Decoding Distinctions: National Language vs. Official Language – Unraveling Key Contrasts for Clarity and Cultural Significance

The subject matter—difference between a National Language and an Official Language—has for long been a debatable topic of discourse. However, this piece will do a concise breakdown of the topic as well as uncloak the differences between a national language and an official language.

What is a National Language?

A national language is a language that is widely spoken by majority of the inhabitants of a region or nation. It is a language that unites citizens of a heterogenous speech community—having a number of distinct languages. A national language promotes unity and oneness in a nation by creating a sense of nationalism in the people reminding them of the history and socio-cultural experiences they have in common.

It is spoken by a majority of the citizens in a nation having a special status—pride of place in the nation in which it holds the position. This is a result of historical, socio-cultural, and political factors that determine its status as a national language. For example; The English language is the national language of Great Britain owing to the historical experience of the British with the language— the influence of the Anglo-Saxon conquest which was both political and cultural.

Not all nations have a national language, however, owing to the vast number of distinct languages and ethnic groups that may exist in them. For example; India has over a hundred languages none of which is spoken by an absolute majority of its population. The implication is that none of the languages in India qualify as a national language, likewise in Nigeria where there are over 250 ethnic groups and over 450 languages, none of which has an absolute majority of speakers in the nation—three languages from among the bulk of languages, however, are recognized as having special statuses in Nigeria namely; Igbo, Yoruba, and Hausa languages respectively.

This shows how important a role it is for the majority of the inhabitants of a nation to speak a language before it can be accorded the status of a national language. A number of factors determine the accordance of the status to a language:

• Most of the inhabitants of the region where it is spoken must speak the language actively for it to be accorded the status. This is because a national language serves the purpose of uniting members of a heterogeneous speech community and for a language to be accorded such a position, it must have a large number of people speaking it.
• It must be the indigenous language of the nation where it is spoken to be accorded the status. E.g., Arabic in Saudi Arabia. A language that is not indigenous to the people cannot assume the role of a national language because it does not embody the people's cultural heritage and experiences or even their world views.
• It must have a historical and socio-cultural impact on the people reflected in their interactions. A national language that does not have a historical or socio-cultural impact on the people is incapable of uniting them and creating a sense of oneness in them as such it must possess these qualities.
• It has to be a language that is capable of uniting a nation by providing a sense of shared history and socio-cultural affinities. A language that makes people living in a heterogenous speech community feel like one establishing a common ground for them.

National languages are also used in the political field for the purpose of wider communication with the general populace. It is used to address a nation in a way that presents them as one people in the face of many existing distinct languages. It can also be accorded the status of an official language if it is legally approved as the language of political affairs.

What is an Official Language?

An official language is the language of the political machinery of a nation. It is the language through which laws affecting an entire nation are made; the language of the national assembly, the court, and generally, the language of political activities. This language is often the second language of the people owing to its undeniable status in a country. Being a language of politics makes it imperative for inhabitants of a nation to learn the language in order not to be excluded or marginalized from the political affairs of their nation.

As the language of political affairs, it will also be considered the language of the media. This is simply because political activities are broadcast and reported by the media hence making it imperative for reporting to be carried out in the same language to forestall misinformation of the public as well as reach a wider audience.

An official language is also the language of education and in many nations, the language of admission into tertiary institutions— an act of ensuring that a larger percentage of a country’s population are conversant with the language. The need arises for the language to be taught in schools ensuring an earlier exposure to the language hence the language of education. This also guarantees future political leaders the opportunity to get firsthand exposure to the language of political activities ahead of their political careers.

See also: Language acquisition vs Language learning 

Examples of nations with their official languages include; Arabic—Saudi Arabia, Japanese—Japan, French and English—Canada, French—France, English—Great Britain, and English—Nigeria. It is possible for a nation to have more than one official language as is the case of Canada which has 2 and India which has up to 22 official languages.

A national language can also assume the status of the official language of a nation which is best practice since it is spoken by the majority of the inhabitants of a nation E.g., Arabic in Saudi Arabia.

Factors that Determine the Status of an Official Language 

• It must be legally approved by the law usually based on political, geographical, and socio-cultural reasoning.
• It has to be a language that is widely used—not necessarily a national language. For example; India has up to 22 official languages.
• It has to be a language that is well-developed. The reason is that such a language would need to be wide in its world view— having a rich vocabulary to accommodate concepts and ideologies. A poorly developed language cannot be accorded this status.
• It does not have to be an indigenous language. For instance; English is the official language of Nigeria but it is not indigenous to Nigeria.

Differences between an Official Language and a National Language 

1.       1. A national language is used to promote unity in a heterogenous speech community while an official language is the language of political affairs.

2.   2. A national language must be indigenous while an official language may or may not be indigenous.

3.   3. A national language must be widely spoken to attain its status while an official language must be legally approved.

Both national and official languages have special statuses in the countries they are domiciled. The national language is the language spoken by the majority of a nation’s inhabitants and used to foster unity among citizens, and the official language is the language of political affairs. A number of differences exist between both concepts one of which is; an official language may or may not be indigenous but a national language is always indigenous to the nation where it holds the status. Knowing the meaning and differences between these terms will help citizens of different countries understand statuses of their languages.

See also: What is a first language?