
UNIT 2
38
The right language?
INSIGHT Ire • FICHIER PÉDAGOGIQUE • UNIT 2 
sondage sont développées.
Organisation : les questions proposées serviront 
de support à l’étude des documents et pourront 
être complétées en amont ou en aval par des 
recherches sur l’Internet (voir le site Insight).
Interactions : l’étude des documents de la page 
de gauche pourra conduire à presque tous les 
documents de l’unité, en particulier aux deux 
premiers textes ainsi qu’à l’Extra Text qui montre 
que la question linguistique en Irlande n’est pas 
nouvelle. Les documents de la page de droite 
iront bien avec Text 3 et Work out qui abordent 
la question des niveaux de langue. Le document 
audio est quant à lui clairement lié à Text 2 qui 
montre l’enrichissement de l’anglais grâce aux 
apports d’autres langues.
Évaluation : les expressions proposées dans 
Watch your words pourront être réinvesties afi n 
de formuler un bref compte rendu oral ou écrit de 
l’une des photos de la page de gauche.
CORRIGÉ
My place, your name?
My place, your name?
1
 Read Culture Flash and text A. Explain the 
origins of the names “Pretoria” and “Tshwane”.
 Both names refer to the founders of the city. 
Pretoria has a white / Afrikaaner origin whereas 
Tshwane is an African name which goes back to 
the roots of the country.
Réponse 
+
Pretoria refers to the past of white domination in 
South Africa. Now, the name Tshwane symbol-
ises the rejection of former colonial oppression. 
It is interesting that the name Tshwane, which 
is older than Pretoria, now symbolises a more 
modern South Africa.
2
 Who wants to change Pretoria’s name and why? 
Do you think it’s a good idea?
 “City fathers” want to change the name. They 
are probably black South Africans who want to 
remember / celebrate the black origins of the 
city and the country. The change is symbolic for 
the capital of the country. The word “Tshwane” 
means “we are the same” or “we are one because 
we live together.” 
Thus, I think that it is a good idea as it is 
a way of bringing people together / uniting 
people.
I disapprove as it will make life more complicated 
/ it is not necessary to change the name and will 
lead to division and confl ict.   
Réponse 
+
As a result, the name change could become the 
focus of racial confl ict / tension in South Africa, 
or it could be the signal for a new beginning / 
era in the country.
3
 Look at the photo. Why do you think there are 
two languages on the sign? Translate “Chontae” 
into English.
 There are two languages on the sign as the 
country is offi cially bilingual, with English and Irish 
as offi cial languages. It is a way of proclaiming 
diversity / respecting all the languages spoken 
in the country.
“Chontae” obviously means “County”. 
Réponse 
+
The original language of Ireland was Irish 
(Gaelic) and the roadsigns are a way of re-
membering the nation’s heritage. Today Irish 
is even an offi cial language of the European 
Union. It is a way of stressing their differences 
and identity.
“Aerphort” looks like “airport”. “Kerry” looks 
like an English transcription of “Chiarrai”.
4
 Do you think it is important to defend regional 
languages even if they are only spoken by a few 
people?
 Yes
– Language is a part of a person’s culture, which 
means that we should defend it to preserve the 
diversity of languages in the world. A language 
refl ects the way people think, and if we let a 
language die, we destroy a culture.
– Everywhere, people are trying to preserve re-
gional languages and it works, for example with 
Welsh and Gaelic in the British Isles. Moreover, 
people who speak many languages are usually 
more open-minded because they can communicate 
with more people in the world.
– Finally, some regional languages are getting 
more and more support. For example, Gaelic is 
now an offi cial language of the European Union.
 No
– Unfortunately, there are many linguistic confl icts 
almost everywhere in the world. 
– When people speak different regional languages, 
it leads to separation and rejection. It makes peo-
FP U1_U2 premieres 11.05.indd 38 11/05/2007 13:49:52