La mediazione linguistica e culturale come strumento esemplare per la vigenza dei diritti linguistici di prima specie

Abstract – The relation between language and law is very complex and profound, and it includes the ‘intrinsic’ aspect and the ‘extrinsic’ one. The first deals with the theory of juridical interpretation, which is the clearest example of contact between the language and the law. Language is used to express juridical concepts and notions, whose typical feature concerns the duty to obey some statements expressed in norms, or administrative regulations, or judgments. The ‘extrinsic’ aspect is related to the language as a sign of identity. Language rights and duties are of three different types. The first is related to the language considered as a tool for the enjoyment of fundamental rights, the second regards national minorities, and the third concerns the languages of the foreign nationals and their descendants. The linguistic and cultural mediator is a key institution for the effective exercise of the language rights of the first type and a bridge to the enjoyment of the rights of the third type, in the search for a truly inter-cultural society