Suchergebnisse

Before the First World War, the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy was one of the largest European countries inhabited by a dozen of ethnic groups who spoke several languages. A language issue was one of the challenges for the Monarchy after the "national awakening" under the influence of the Spring of Nations and changes in society. For a long time, political thinkers of different nationalities discussed various proposals to the Monarchy reform so as it would save its unity and satisfy everyone. Maintaining of this heterogeneous entity by creating a certain balance of forces, taking into account the aspirations of different language groups, was very difficult. In the "Austrian" part of the Monarchy, reigns were based on a pluralistic ethnic policy, strengthening rather than weakening political stability. In the "Hungarian" part, despite the preached rules of far-reaching tolerance, in fear of majorization by the Slavic and Romanian elements, "Magyarization" was carried out, which pushed the role of regional languages to the significance of local dialects. Wrong language and nationality policy carried out by Hungary resulted in the loss of two-thirds of its territory. However, with all its disadvantages, the Monarchy was the first model of a wider "European home" in the modern times. Old Austria can be an example of both right and wrong attempts of approaching social, ethnic or religious problems and is an inexhaustible material for scientific research. ; Przed I wojną światową monarchia austro-węgierska była jednym z największych państw Europy, które zamieszkiwało kilkanaście grup etnicznych i w którym posługiwano się kilkoma językami. Jednym z wyzwań dla niej po "obudzeniu narodowym" pod wpływem Wiosny Ludów i zmianach w społeczeństwie była kwestia językowa. Przez długi czas myśliciele polityczni różnych narodowości występowali z rozmaitymi propozycjami zreformowania monarchii, aby utrzymać ją w całości i zadowolić wszystkich. Utrzymanie tego heterogenicznego tworu przez wytworzenie pewnej równowagi sił z uwzględnieniem aspiracji różnych grup językowych było bardzo trudne. W części "austriackiej" monarchii rządy były oparte na pluralistycznej polityce etnicznej, wzmacniającej, a nie osłabiającej stabilność polityczną. W części "węgierskiej", pomimo głoszonych zasad daleko posuniętej tolerancji, w obawie przed majoryzacją przez elementy słowiańskie i rumuńskie prowadzono "madziaryzację", która spychała rolę języków regionalnych do znaczenia lokalnych narzeczy. Błędną politykę językową i narodowościową Węgry przypłaciły utratą dwóch trzecich swojej powierzchni. Jakkolwiek przy wszystkich swych wadach monarchia stanowiła jednak pierwszy model szerszego "domu europejskiego" w czasach nowożytnych. Stara Austria może być przykładem zarówno słusznych, jak i błędnych prób podejścia do rozwiązywania problemów społecznych, etnicznych czy wyznaniowych oraz stanowi niewyczerpalny materiał do badań naukowych. ; До Первой мировой войны Австро-Венгерская монархия была одним из крупнейших государств Европы, где проживали около дюжины этнических групп и в котором говорили на нескольких языках. Одной из проблем Монархии после «национального пробуждения» под влиянием Весны наций и изменений в обществе была языковая проблема. В течение длительного времени политические мыслители разных национальностей выдвигали различные предложения по реформированию Монархии, поддержанию ее целостности и удовлетворению всех заинтересованных групп. Поддержание этого гетерогенного образования путем создания определенного баланса сил с учетом устремлений различных языковых групп было очень сложным. В «австрийской» части Монархии управление государством было основано на плюралистической этнической политике, укреплении, а не ослаблении политической стабильности. В «венгерской» части, несмотря на декларации о далеко идущей толерантности, в страхе перед мажоризацией славянскими и румынскими элементами, была проведена «мадяризация», которая свела роль региональных языков к значению локальных наречий. Ошибочная языковая и национальная политика стоила потери двух третей ее территории. Однако со всеми своими недостатками, Монархия была первой моделью более широкого «европейского дома» в наше время. Старая Австрия может служить примером как правильных, так и неправильных попыток приблизиться к решению социальных, этнических или религиозных проблем и является неисчерпаемым материалом для научных исследований.

Engl. Zsfassung u.d.T.: The Ukrainian theory of nationality in the period between the war

In the nineteenth century on Polish lands we are dealing with rapid civilizational, economic and social changes. State divisions are gradually disappearing. New structures are formed. These changes also apply to national issues. We can say that in the nineteenth century the concept of nation changed: from a political nation of the nobility to a nation of ethnic Polish origin, where language and religion played a significant role. The Polish peasant population, Polish bourgeoisie, and workers to a large extent integrated with the Polish nation, joined the Polish landed gentry and intelligentsia. A nation was emerging, encompassing all social strata. On the other hand, the non-Polish-speaking Ukrainian, Belarusian, Lithuanian and Jewish communities began to define their nationality not as Polish, but more and more often as Ukrainian, Lithuanian, Jewish to a lesser extent, or Belarusian. These processes will intensify in the interwar period, when we will be dealing with an independent Polish state implementing its nationality policy.

Refleksja nad historią stabilizacji krajów, które przeżyły poważne konflikty zbrojne, może być istotna w rozważaniach na temat szans stabilizacji współczesnych obszarów pokonfliktowych. Kanada znajduje się w kolejnej fazie formowania narodowej tożsamości, która polega na poszukiwaniu własnego odpowiednika amerykańskiej religii obywatelskiej (civil religion). Obecnie podejmowane w dyskursie politycznym próby (re)konstrukcji tożsamościowej społeczeństwa kanadyjskiego mają na celu utrwalenie konsensusu co do trwałości ustroju federalnego i stabilności społecznej. Próby te z jednej strony oparte są na dekonstrukcji tożsamości etnicznej (jako nieistotnej w nowoczesnym społeczeństwie zglobalizowanego świata), z drugiej natomiast – na promowanych prze elity polityczne ideach nacjonalizmu politycznego i ekspansjonizmu w Arktyce. Kanadę postrzegać trzeba zatem nie jako "państwo narodowe" ani "naród upaństwowiony", lecz wciąż jako "państwo znajdujące się w procesie unarodowienia". ; The reflection on the history of stabilization of countries that have experienced serious armed conflicts may be inspiring to consider the chances of stabilization of modern post-conflict areas. Canada is in the next phase of forming a national identity, which consists of searching for its own counterpart of the American civil religion. The current attempts at identity reconstruction of Canadian society in the political discourse are aimed at consolidating the consensus on the permanence of the federal system and social stability. These attempts are based, on the one hand, on the deconstruction of ethnic identity as unimportant in the modern society of the globalized world. On the other hand, political elites promote the ideas of political nationalism and expansionism in the Arctic. Therefore, Canada must be perceived not as a "national state" nor "nation nationalized", but still as a "nation in the process of nationalization".

Extensive research on native speakers' attitudes towards foreign accents and their users carried out in immigrant-receiving countries such as, for example, Great Britain, the United States and Australia (e.g. Kalin and Rayko 1978; Lippi-Green 1997; Munro et al. 2006), has allowed specialists to formulate several cross-cultural generalizations concerning the perception and evaluation of accented speech. For instance, according to Lindemann (2002, 2010), the listeners' attitude towards foreign speakers, shaped by cultural stereotypes and prejudices, plays a crucial role in comprehending accented speech. It is also often claimed (e.g. Said 2006; Lev-Ari and Keysar 2010) that a heavy foreign accent has a negative impact on the listeners' assessment of speakers' personality traits, such as credibility, intelligence and competence. Moreover, this negative accent-based social evaluation, as shown by Lippi-Green (1997), might even lead to various kinds of foreign speakers' discrimination. Contemporary Poland, where Polish-speaking foreigners are still a relative rarity, constitutes an interesting and yet unexplored ground for testing the universality of claims concerning the relationship between the listeners' cultural prejudices and their evaluations of foreign speakers' accents, as well as personality traits. In this paper we report on an empirical study in which 40 Polish university students assessed 11 samples of foreign-accented Polish, both in terms of accent features and personal characteristics ascribed to the speakers, in order to find out whether these judgements are affected by Polish listeners' attitudes towards the speakers' cultural background and knowledge of their nationality. The results of the study indicate that, on the whole, the speakers' nationality does not significantly affect the participants' evaluation of foreign speakers' accent features (i.e. comprehensibility, foreign-accentedness and acceptability). Such relationship can, however, be found in the attribution of personal characteristics to foreign speakers, which, to some extent, is influenced by the information concerning their nationality and listeners' cultural prejudices.

The Hungarian Card exemplifies how to solve nationality and citizenship issues in the transforming international reality after the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the expansion of the European Union. Regardless of the dispute in Hungary, as well as among EU politicians, Hungarian law has emphasized the need to redefine the concept of the nation, or even to substitute the political sense of this concept with the status of state membership or citizenship. The Hungarian Card, how it was passed and then successively amended, evidences that a regional policy is actually operating in Central Europe. Additionally, this Hungarian law has accelerated work on similar regulations in other countries, including Poland. ; The Hungarian Card exemplifies how to solve nationality and citizenship issues in the transforming international reality after the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the expansion of the European Union. Regardless of the dispute in Hungary, as well as among EU politicians, Hungarian law has emphasized the need to redefine the concept of the nation, or even to substitute the political sense of this concept with the status of state membership or citizenship. The Hungarian Card, how it was passed and then successively amended, evidences that a regional policy is actually operating in Central Europe. Additionally, this Hungarian law has accelerated work on similar regulations in other countries, including Poland.

The problem of chances of survival of the Austria-Hungarian monarchy had been a topic of thousands of books and articles in many languages and it is difficult to study all of them. The question whether or not the Habsburg monarchy was doomed to dissolute because of nationality tensions still remains inspiring. Researchers still take up new and detailed topics. Basing on their output it is possible to reassess the problem on more general level. The factors of economic development, administrative structure of the dual state, external enemy, bureaucracy, army and dynasty will be taken into consideration. They will show to what extent the cohesion of Austria-Hungary was maintained before 1914.

The Hungarian Card exemplifies how to solve nationality and citizenship issues in the transforming international reality after the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the expansion of the European Union. Regardless of the dispute in Hungary, as well as among EU politicians, Hungarian law has emphasized the need to redefine the concept of the nation, or even to substitute the political sense of this concept with the status of state membership or citizenship. The Hungarian Card, how it was passed and then successively amended, evidences that a regional policy is actually operating in Central Europe. Additionally, this Hungarian law has accelerated work on similar regulations in other countries, including Poland.

Der Artikel behandelt die Veränderungen in der Bevölkerungsstruktur Thorns und des Landkreises Thorn von der 2. Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts bis einschließlich zur Zwischenkriegszeit. Er enthält eine Analyse von statistischem Material, das aus verschiedenen Arten von Quellen gewonnen wurde. Für den Zeitraum von der 2. Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts bis zum Jahr 1914 wurden statistische Zusammenstellungen für einzelne Landkreise Westpreußens aus den Jahren 1871, 1885, 1895, 1905 und 1910 ausgewertet. Ebenfalls ausgewertet wurden Informationen aus preußischen Statistiken für den Zeitraum des 19. und den Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts. Für die Zwischenkriegszeit waren die Bevölkerungsregister von 1921 und 1931 sehr hilfreich. Darin geht es um die Situation der Bevölkerung, der Konfessionen, der Nationalitäten und der sozialen und wirtschaftlichen Verhältnisse in diesem Zeitraum auf dem Gebiet von Thorn und des Landkreises. Thorn war während dieses gesamten Zeitraums ein wichtiges Industriezentrum, aber es war auch eine Festung und besaß eine Garnison, was schon seit der preußischen Zeit großen Einfluss auf die Entwicklung der Stadt und ihren Charakter hatte. Die Landgemeinden und die Gutsbezirke waren hauptsächlich landwirtschaftliches Terrain, das in seiner konfessionellen und nationalen Struktur differenziert war. Eine kurze Betrachtung der statistisch-demografischen Informationen ergibt ein Bild von enormen Veränderungen in der konfessionellen und nationalen Struktur der Bevölkerung, wobei der 1. Weltkrieg und die Wiedererlangung der Unabhängigkeit durch Polen eine Schlüsselgrenze bilden. Dies war eine Folge des Prozesses der Repolonisierung, der in den zwanziger Jahren des 20. Jahrhunderts auf dem Gebiet des gesamten Landkreises stattfand. Die zahlenmäßige Vergrößerung der katholischen Bevölkerung und der deutliche Abfall der deutschen und evangelischen Bevölkerung (auch wenn Bekenntnis und Nationalität nicht einfach identifiziert werden dürfen) spiegelten die politischen Veränderungen und die Neuschöpfung des polnischen Staats nach über 100 Jahren wider. ; The article discusses the issue of changes in the structure of the population of Toruń and the Toruń county from the second half of the 19th century to the interwar period. The article contains an analysis of statistical material obtained from various types of sources. For the period of the second half of the 19th century to 1914, statistical summaries were used for individual counties of West Prussia for the years 1871, 1885, 1895, 1905 and 1910. Information from Prussian statistics for the period of the 19th and early 20th centuries was also used. For the interwar period the censuses of 1921 and 1931 were extremely helpful. The population, denomination, nationality and socio-economic situation in this period in Toruń and the county were discussed here. Throughout this period Toruń was not only an important industrial centre, but it was also a fortress and it had a garrison, which had affected the development of the city and its character since the Prussian period. Rural communes and court territories were mainly agricultural areas, diversified in terms of religious and national structure. From the short review of statistical and demographic information, there emerges a picture of huge changes in the denominational and national structure of the population, where the key chronological boundaries were World War I and the time when Poland regained independence. It was the result of the repolonization process that took place throughout the county in the 1920s. The increase in the number of Polish and Catholic inhabitants, along with a clear decrease in the number of the German and Evangelical populations (although denominations and nationalities cannot be directly identified) reflected political changes and the creation of the Polish state again after more than a hundred years. ; Artykuł omawia zagadnienie przemian struktur ludności Torunia i powiatu toruńskiego od II połowy XIX wieku do okresu międzywojennego włącznie. Artykuł zawiera analizę materiału statystycznego pozyskanego z różnych typów źródeł. Dla okresu II połowy XIX wieku do 1914 roku wykorzystano zestawienia statystyczne dla poszczególnych powiatów Prus Zachodnich za lata 1871, 1885, 1895, 1905 i 1910. Wykorzystane także zostały informacje ze statystyk pruskich za okres XIX i początku XX wieku. Dla okresu międzywojennego niezwykle pomocne były spisy ludności z 1921 i 1931 roku. Omówiono tutaj sytuację ludnościową, wyznaniową, narodowościową i społeczno-gospodarczą w tym okresie na terenie Torunia i powiatu. Toruń przez cały ten okres był ważnym ośrodkiem przemysłowym, ale był też twierdzą i posiadał garnizon, co miało duży wpływ na rozwój miasta jak i jego charakter już od okresu pruskiego. Gminy wiejskie i obszary dworskie były terenami głównie rolniczymi, zróżnicowanymi pod względem struktury wyznaniowej i narodowościowej. Z krótkiego przeglądu informacji statystyczno-demograficznych wyłania się obraz ogromnych zmian w strukturze wyznaniowej i narodowościowej ludności, gdzie kluczową granicą była I wojna światowa i odzyskanie przez Polskę niepodległości. Był to efekt procesu repolonizacji, który dokonywał się na terenie całego powiatu w latach dwudziestych XX wieku. Zwiększenie liczby ludności polskiej i katolickiej, oraz wyraźny spadek liczby ludności niemieckiej i ewangelickiej (choć wyznania i narodowości nie można wprost utożsamiać) odzwierciedlał zmiany polityczne i tworzenie państwa polskiego na nowo po ponad stu latach.

Artykuł omawia zagadnienie przemian struktur ludności Torunia i powiatu toruńskiego od II połowy XIX wieku do okresu międzywojennego włącznie. Artykuł zawiera analizę materiału statystycznego pozyskanego z różnych typów źródeł. Dla okresu II połowy XIX wieku do 1914 roku wykorzystano zestawienia statystyczne dla poszczególnych powiatów Prus Zachodnich za lata 1871, 1885, 1895, 1905 i 1910. Wykorzystane także zostały informacje ze statystyk pruskich za okres XIX i początku XX wieku. Dla okresu międzywojennego niezwykle pomocne były spisy ludności z 1921 i 1931 roku. Omówiono tutaj sytuację ludnościową, wyznaniową, narodowościową i społeczno-gospodarczą w tym okresie na terenie Torunia i powiatu. Toruń przez cały ten okres był ważnym ośrodkiem przemysłowym, ale był też twierdzą i posiadał garnizon, co miało duży wpływ na rozwój miasta jak i jego charakter już od okresu pruskiego. Gminy wiejskie i obszary dworskie były terenami głównie rolniczymi, zróżnicowanymi pod względem struktury wyznaniowej i narodowościowej. Z krótkiego przeglądu informacji statystyczno-demograficznych wyłania się obraz ogromnych zmian w strukturze wyznaniowej i narodowościowej ludności, gdzie kluczową granicą była I wojna światowa i odzyskanie przez Polskę niepodległości. Był to efekt procesu repolonizacji, który dokonywał się na terenie całego powiatu w latach dwudziestych XX wieku. Zwiększenie liczby ludności polskiej i katolickiej, oraz wyraźny spadek liczby ludności niemieckiej i ewangelickiej (choć wyznania i narodowości nie można wprost utożsamiać) odzwierciedlał zmiany polityczne i tworzenie państwa polskiego na nowo po ponad stu latach. ; Der Artikel behandelt die Veränderungen in der Bevölkerungsstruktur Thorns und des Landkreises Thorn von der 2. Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts bis einschließlich zur Zwischenkriegszeit. Er enthält eine Analyse von statistischem Material, das aus verschiedenen Arten von Quellen gewonnen wurde. Für den Zeitraum von der 2. Hälfte des 19. Jahrhunderts bis zum Jahr 1914 wurden statistische Zusammenstellungen für einzelne Landkreise Westpreußens aus den Jahren 1871, 1885, 1895, 1905 und 1910 ausgewertet. Ebenfalls ausgewertet wurden Informationen aus preußischen Statistiken für den Zeitraum des 19. und den Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts. Für die Zwischenkriegszeit waren die Bevölkerungsregister von 1921 und 1931 sehr hilfreich. Darin geht es um die Situation der Bevölkerung, der Konfessionen, der Nationalitäten und der sozialen und wirtschaftlichen Verhältnisse in diesem Zeitraum auf dem Gebiet von Thorn und des Landkreises. Thorn war während dieses gesamten Zeitraums ein wichtiges Industriezentrum, aber es war auch eine Festung und besaß eine Garnison, was schon seit der preußischen Zeit großen Einfluss auf die Entwicklung der Stadt und ihren Charakter hatte. Die Landgemeinden und die Gutsbezirke waren hauptsächlich landwirtschaftliches Terrain, das in seiner konfessionellen und nationalen Struktur differenziert war. Eine kurze Betrachtung der statistisch-demografischen Informationen ergibt ein Bild von enormen Veränderungen in der konfessionellen und nationalen Struktur der Bevölkerung, wobei der 1. Weltkrieg und die Wiedererlangung der Unabhängigkeit durch Polen eine Schlüsselgrenze bilden. Dies war eine Folge des Prozesses der Repolonisierung, der in den zwanziger Jahren des 20. Jahrhunderts auf dem Gebiet des gesamten Landkreises stattfand. Die zahlenmäßige Vergrößerung der katholischen Bevölkerung und der deutliche Abfall der deutschen und evangelischen Bevölkerung (auch wenn Bekenntnis und Nationalität nicht einfach identifiziert werden dürfen) spiegelten die politischen Veränderungen und die Neuschöpfung des polnischen Staats nach über 100 Jahren wider. ; The article discusses the issue of changes in the structure of the population of Toruń and the Toruń county from the second half of the 19th century to the interwar period. The article contains an analysis of statistical material obtained from various types of sources. For the period of the second half of the 19th century to 1914, statistical summaries were used for individual counties of West Prussia for the years 1871, 1885, 1895, 1905 and 1910. Information from Prussian statistics for the period of the 19th and early 20th centuries was also used. For the interwar period the censuses of 1921 and 1931 were extremely helpful. The population, denomination, nationality and socio-economic situation in this period in Toruń and the county were discussed here. Throughout this period Toruń was not only an important industrial centre, but it was also a fortress and it had a garrison, which had affected the development of the city and its character since the Prussian period. Rural communes and court territories were mainly agricultural areas, diversified in terms of religious and national structure. From the short review of statistical and demographic information, there emerges a picture of huge changes in the denominational and national structure of the population, where the key chronological boundaries were World War I and the time when Poland regained independence. It was the result of the repolonization process that took place throughout the county in the 1920s. The increase in the number of Polish and Catholic inhabitants, along with a clear decrease in the number of the German and Evangelical populations (although denominations and nationalities cannot be directly identified) reflected political changes and the creation of the Polish state again after more than a hundred years.

The law on the Polish Charter is an element of a certain process, noticeable in Central and Eastern Europe, the purpose of which is to reinforce and retain contacts of respective states with immigrants, that is the members of the nation that predominates in each state who live abroad. The regulations which the Polish side has introduced in order to simplify border crossing for individuals of Polish origin by introducing special visas and the Polish Charter have stirred a profound political and social discussion in Belarus. Belarussian society does not have its own national identity, and is not sufficiently developed. The western part of Belarus is a multicultural region. This allows the dwellers of this region to declare themselves to be of practically any nationality as need arises. It may be concluded then that the Polish Charters, issued by Polish diplomatic posts, do not reflect the number of the actual members of the Polish minority. The applications for a Polish Charter are frequently triggered by economic aspects and the assessment that it pays to be a Pole. ; The law on the Polish Charter is an element of a certain process, noticeable in Central and Eastern Europe, the purpose of which is to reinforce and retain contacts of respective states with immigrants, that is the members of the nation that predominates in each state who live abroad. The regulations which the Polish side has introduced in order to simplify border crossing for individuals of Polish origin by introducing special visas and the Polish Charter have stirred a profound political and social discussion in Belarus. Belarussian society does not have its own national identity, and is not sufficiently developed. The western part of Belarus is a multicultural region. This allows the dwellers of this region to declare themselves to be of practically any nationality as need arises. It may be concluded then that the Polish Charters, issued by Polish diplomatic posts, do not reflect the number of the actual members of the Polish minority. The applications for a Polish Charter are frequently triggered by economic aspects and the assessment that it pays to be a Pole.

The main purpose of the article is to present the evolution of legal regulations regarding national minorities in Ukraine, the structure of these minorities and the dynamics of demographic change. The authors analyzed the geographical distribution as well as the political, cultural and educational activity of the most numerous national minorities. They presented the main reasons for the increase or decrease in the size of the largest national groups. The political and legal foundations of minority activities, the specificity of the organization of their educational institutions, national-cultural associations and ethnic parties were analyzed. Particular attention was paid to the problematic provisions of the new Education Act (2017), which reduced the status of languages of national minorities in education and led to the deterioration of relations with individual countries with which minorities are associated. The authors discussed the most severe problems in bilateral relations arising from Ukraine's policy towards minorities and some ideas on how to solve them. The main methods of improving nationality policy in contemporary Ukraine were also presented.

The law on the Polish Charter is an element of a certain process, noticeable in Central and Eastern Europe, the purpose of which is to reinforce and retain contacts of respective states with immigrants, that is the members of the nation that predominates in each state who live abroad. The regulations which the Polish side has introduced in order to simplify border crossing for individuals of Polish origin by introducing special visas and the Polish Charter have stirred a profound political and social discussion in Belarus. Belarussian society does not have its own national identity, and is not sufficiently developed. The western part of Belarus is a multicultural region. This allows the dwellers of this region to declare themselves to be of practically any nationality as need arises. It may be concluded then that the Polish Charters, issued by Polish diplo- matic posts, do not reflect the number of the actual members of the Polish minority. The applications for a Polish Charter are frequently triggered by economic aspects and the assessment that it pays to be a Pole.

On the threshold of the 21st century when another 12 states joined the European Union a matter of multilingualism has been recently considered as a crucial factor with regard to European integration process. Having diverse society the UE has started to promote a phrase Unity in Diversity which in turn provides patronage for a number of cultural and education campaigns. Their aim is to prepare the European citizens for cultural integration and to help them to create a sense of European identity. The main assumption of the already taken actions is taking multilingualism as the pillar of the Union and presenting it as an example of equality regardless to citizens' nationality. The herby article reveals however, that the idea of unity in diversity – at least from the linguistic point of view – is practically impossible to accomplish especially in the face of such a strong position of English in the international arena as it has nowadays. What's more, inside Union in its administration structures the idea of equality is not observed. Due to purely practical and organisational reasons just one language is used – English. Also English is the foreign language that is taught most often in schools throughout the Europe. A question arises whether the idea of a multilingual Union is not a myth? ; On the threshold of the 21st century when another 12 states joined the European Union a matter of multilingualism has been recently considered as a crucial factor with regard to European integration process. Having diverse society the UE has started to promote a phrase Unity in Diversity which in turn provides patronage for a number of cultural and education campaigns. Their aim is to prepare the European citizens for cultural integration and to help them to create a sense of European identity. The main assumption of the already taken actions is taking multilingualism as the pillar of the Union and presenting it as an example of equality regardless to citizens' nationality. The herby article reveals however, that the idea of unity in diversity – at least from the linguistic point of view – is practically impossible to accomplish especially in the face of such a strong position of English in the international arena as it has nowadays. What's more, inside Union in its administration structures the idea of equality is not observed. Due to purely practical and organisational reasons just one language is used – English. Also English is the foreign language that is taught most often in schools throughout the Europe. A question arises whether the idea of a multilingual Union is not a myth?