The Celtic Research Circle cordially invites everyone to their second meeting. Prof. UAM dr hab. Michael Hornsby will present a talk on ''Reproducing and managing language conflict at the micro-level: minority and majority language hierarchies in the bagad''. The event will be held at the Faculty of English on 22 November 2022, at 4:45 pm.
The pipe band (Breton bagad) tradition in Brittany was inspired by the Scottish example and has developed since the mid-20th century. The emphasis is mainly on Breton music, but each bagad’s approach is evolutionary: new forms and musical ideas are experimented with at each annual national competition. As a fairly new creation, but with traditional roots, members of each bagad have to negotiate the place of the Breton language within their midst. Some bagadoù can operate totally in French, with just a passing nod to the Breton language, whereas others, located in the traditional heartlands of the language, include more sizeable numbers of Breton speakers who can seek to legitimize their linguistic presence. This paper explores what is seen as acceptable linguistic behaviour in one particular bagad from Western Brittany and how members, both Breton- and non-Breton-speaking, manage potential and actual conflict and a linguistic safety zone in a site which may serve as one of the few remaining spaces where speaking Breton is still (partially) accepted.
