Slovenia
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Slovenia (SI)
ECRML
Signed
1997
Ratified
2000
In Force
2001
FCNM
Signed
1995
Ratified
1998
In Force
1998
Country Description
In 2002, Slovenia switched from a traditional door-to-door census system to a fully register-based statistical system, and since then, has not collected data on language use. In 2002, 1 723 434 people reported that Slovene was their “usually spoken” language.
In Slovenia’s sixth periodical ECRML Reports, it is explained that “Slovenia has taken the position that Serbian, Croatian and German are not and cannot be the subject of consideration within the framework of minority languages or the Charter”. The Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts has repeatedly recommended that this be done, but Slovenia has countered that Croatian, German, and Serbian speakers do not fall under “autochthonous” populations in Slovenia.
There is no official national data on the number of Sign Language users in Romania; it is estimated that Slovenian Sign Language is used as a language of communication in Slovenia by around 1 500 deaf people. Apart from Italy, Slovenia is the only EU country to recognize a language of the deafblind, and was the first country to include the language of the deafblind in its Constitution.
Pan-National Official Language(s)
This category only includes languages that are official throughout the whole country (with the exception of Belgium) - languages that are e.g. regionally 'co-official' are not listed here but can be identified in the categories below wherever a relevant legal document is listed. A future update could include lists of co-official languages, as well.
To increase their visibility, recognised Sign Languages are always listed as official languages even if they are not yet technically official. The data on legal recognition was aggregated from legal documents and official sources. Wherever possible, the national number was taken from a national census or recent study/official estimate – sources are listed. The endangerment level is adopted from Ethnologue and further estimates of endangerment can be found on the individual language profile (e.g. by clicking on 'Italian').
| Language | Endonym | Geographic Area | Source | Legal Recognition | Legal Document | Source | National Number | Bases for Calculation | Estimation Date | Source | Endangerment Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Deafblind Language
Sign Language
|
Jezika Gluhoslepih | Whole country | 2021 (furthered in 2025) | Article 62a (Sign language and deaf-blind language) / 62a. člen (znakovni jezik in jezik gluhoslepih) | Awaiting mail | Awaiting mail | Awaiting mail | Not listed | |||
|
Hungarian Sign Language
Sign Language
|
Magyar jelnyelv | 30 co-official bilingual settlements | 2021 | Article 62a (Sign language and deaf-blind language) / 62a. člen (znakovni jezik in jezik gluhoslepih) | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Not listed | |||
|
Italian Sign Language (LIS)
Sign Language
|
Lingua dei segni italiana | 25 co-official bilingual settlements | 2021 | Article 62a (Sign language and deaf-blind language) / 62a. člen (znakovni jezik in jezik gluhoslepih) | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Not listed | |||
|
Slovenian
Slavic
|
Slovenski jezik | Whole country | 1991 | Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia / Ustavo Republike Slovenije | 1 723 434 (given) | Mother Tongue | 2002 | 1 (National) | |||
|
Slovenian Sign Language (SZJ)
Sign Language
|
Slovenski znakovni jezik | Whole country | 2021 | Article 62a (Sign language and deaf-blind language) / 62a. člen (znakovni jezik in jezik gluhoslepih) | Approx. 1 500 (not a census) | Deaf Sign Language Users | 2026 (Website Accessed) | 5 (Developing) |
ECRML-Recognised Languages
This includes languages recognised under the European Charter of Regional and Minority Languages (ECRML). The data on legal recognition was aggregated from legal documents and official sources. Wherever possible, the national number was taken from a national census or recent study/official estimate – sources are listed. The endangerment level is adopted from Ethnologue and further estimates of endangerment can be found on the individual language profile (e.g. by clicking on 'Czech').
| Language | Endonym | Geographic Area | Source | Legal Recognition | Legal Document | Source | National Number | Bases for Calculation | Estimation Date | Source | Endangerment Level | ECRML level |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Croatian
Slavic
|
Hrvatski | Not included | 2000 | ECRML | 54 079 (given) | Mother Tongue | 2002 | 5* (Dispersed) | Part II | |||
|
German
Germanic
|
Deutsch | Not included | 2000 | ECRML | 1 628 (given) | Mother Tongue | 2002 | 5* (Dispersed) | Part II | |||
|
Hungarian
Uralic
|
Magyar nyelv | Hungarian regions, in five municipalities in Prekmurje in the eastern part of Slovenia along the Hungarian border: Hodoš/Hodos, Šalovci1, Moravske Toplice, Dobrovnik/Dobronak, and Lendava/Lendva | 1991 | Constitution, Article 64 | 7 713 (given) | Mother Tongue | 2002 | 2 (Provincial) | Part II & Part III | |||
|
Italian
Romance
|
Italiano | Italian regions, Koper/Capodistria, Izola/Isola, Piran/Pirano, in the western part of Slovenia | 1991 | Constitution, Article 64 | 3 762 (given) | Mother Tongue | 2002 | 2 (Provincial) | Part II & Part III | |||
|
Romani
Indo-Aryan
|
Romani ćhib | Whole country | 1991 | Constitution, Article 65 | 3 834 (given) | Mother Tongue | 2002 | Carpathian Romani - 5* (Developing) | Part II | |||
|
Serbian
Slavic
|
Srpski | Not included | 2000 | ECRML | 31 329 (given) | Mother Tongue | 2002 | 5* (Dispersed) | Part II |
Non-ECRML Languages – Source Overview
Languages marked with ✓ appear in that source.
Languages listed in multiple sources may have differing data – see the detail tables below.
Non-ECRML Languages (Ethnologue)
Languages listed with an 'established status' in Ethnologue. The data on legal recognition, national number, and endangerment level was taken from Ethnologue, reflecting its current state and gaps of knowledge.
| Language | Endonym | Geographic Area | Source | Legal Recognition | Legal Document | Source | National Number | Bases for Calculation | Estimation Date | Source | Endangerment Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Bosnian
Slavic
|
Bosanski | / | 2000 | ECRML? | / | 33 900 | Users | 2022 | 5* (Dispersed) | ||
|
English
Germanic
|
English | / | / | / | / | 1 240 000 | Users | 2012 | 4 (Educational) | ||
|
French
Romance
|
Français | / | / | / | / | 50 000 | Users | 2022 | 5* (Dispersed) | ||
|
Venetian
Romance
|
Vèneto | Izola, Koper, and Piran | / | / | / | / | / | / | 8a (Moribund) |
Recognised Minorities
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