L'estudi diacrònic del llenguatge administratiu

The study of historical texts is essential in order to bring Catalan administrative language up to date because it allows the use today of old terms and expressions (taking care that they are not too archaizing and as such divorce administrative language from Standard) and at the same time avoids the abuse of foreign words (especially from Spanish and English). The tradition of Catalan administrative language does not help, however, in the designing of documents; in such cases one must have recourse to the international uses and norms of administrative language. The research of historical texts for terms and expressions must follow a systematic and useful working method so that the work of specialists may help the further work of other specialists. On researching historical documentation one must be sure that the new term is really necessary, that there is no supradialectal word, no matter how limited its use (and even though its meaning may be only similar to that of the new word); one must establish the register of the new term and the type of document in which it will be used, and, in order to divulge it adequately, one needs to count on the help of academic and political institutions for its ratification and application. When a new term is introduced into a text, having defined it and given instances of its use in publications in the administrative field, it should be used in fragments where the context helps the reader to deduce its meaning. The more research and concrete studies (proposals to incorporate new terms and expressions) that are carried out, together with an adequate diffusion of the new terms, the faster and more easily Catalan administrative language will be made more complete