The Use of Minority Languages before Administrative Authorities and Courts in South Tyrol

Abstract

In this article the linguistic rights of persons belonging to national minorities are presented as a key component of South Tyrol's territorial autonomy. The current regulation of the use of minority languages before local courts and administrative authorities is based on the specific historical and cultural context.

The case of language rights in South Tyrol shows that the implementation of those rights in practice depends on a number of the implementing measures.

Keywords

• South Tyrol
• autonomy
• language rights
• bilingualism
• court procedure
• public administration