The Linguist

Chartered Institute of Linguists AUTUMN 2025 The Linguist 5 NEWS & EDITORIAL What the papers say… New Festival of Translated Literature for Bristol, 10/2/25 'Translated By, Bristol' is… set to include in-depth conversations with translators, conversations between renowned authors and their translators, and discussions of the translation/publishing process… Organisers are enthused about the opportunity afforded by this inaugural event, which is underpinned by a clear mission "to acknowledge the role and contribution of translators across the world". Rare Welsh Bible from 1588 Displayed for First Time, 16/6/25 The book was translated in the year of the Spanish Armada – when Elizabeth I was monarch – by Bishop William Morgan as part of an effort to bring scriptures to people in languages they understood… The Right Rev Dorrien Davies, the Bishop of St Davids, said: "It is a special treasure of the Welsh language and we are honoured to have it in St Davids Cathedral." The latest from the languages world Two new education reports could lead to positive change for languages, says Philip Harding-Esch The Big Idea: Could the English language die?, 11/5/25 The Egyptian language survived the arrival of the Greeks, the Romans and Christianity, but not that of Arabic and Islam in the seventh century AD. No one quite knows why… Even if we can't predict how English will change, we can be sure that it will, and that not even the world's first – and for now, only – global language is immune from extinction. Both Latin and Egyptian were spoken for more than 2,000 years; English has been going strong for about 1,500. Languages future The publication of Hepi's report spelling out the "catastrophic decline in formal language learning" comes at a significant moment for language education policy in England. Hepi (the Higher Education Policy Institute) paints a sobering picture of the state of language skills in the country, against a background of course closures in universities and sixth forms. This has led to 'cold spots' in HE provision in large parts of the UK and threatened the very existence of languages as a subject at A level and even at GCSE for many young people. Meanwhile, the Curriculum and Assessment Review is putting the finishing touches to its final recommendations to government which will define the place of languages on the formal curriculum in the coming years. Many of the recommendations distil priorities that are already well understood by policymakers and stakeholders. For example, the shocking imbalance in take-up between affluent and deprived areas has been growing over many years, and was the main finding of this year's Language Trends annual survey of schools. The attention of such an influential think tank as Hepi is welcome, grabbing headlines and allowing stakeholders like the Russell Group to get their voices heard. It is also encouraging to see that there are pathways to make some of the recommendations a reality. For example, the advice to revitalise language hubs will be reflected this autumn when the DfE-funded National Consortium for Languages Education publishes its national online CPD offer for language teachers, facilitated by regional schools-led networks. There are live policy discussions across government departments on qualification pathways, cross-departmental coordination of language policy, teacher recruitment, nurturing multilingualism and more. The problem is translating this into action. Some challenges are evolving so fast it is hard for policy to keep up. Universities can implement closures within weeks. In the case of teacher recruitment, international relocation payments may not be enough when the biggest emerging challenge appears to be visa costs and eligibility rules. Progress is also hampered by the slow pace of system change. For instance, the long- promised introduction of the British Sign Language (BSL) GCSE has been delayed again and is now expected in 2028 at the earliest. The future of languages as a subject is likely to be clearer after the publication of the Curriculum and Assessment Review, which will define the relative urgency of the priorities set out by the Hepi report. It is worth sharing those findings widely as there is no substitute for public awareness (https://cutt.ly/TrDBSyB5). © SHUTTERSTOCK.COM

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