Language And National Security:a Study Of United States Foreian Language Policies Since The Late1950s And Their Implications

Language, the cement of society and also the basis of culture, is regarded as the core of "Soft Power." It is one of the most important embodiments of comprehensive national strength. Since ancient times, language problems have always been related to the sovereignty of the state and the nation, as well as to citizens’ human rights. Language policy is a major part in the social life of a country. It is the requirement which is needed to solve language contradictions.The United States is a typical multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-cultural, multi-religious country with a large population; it is called the nation of nations. As a "melting pot", the United States has more than one ideology or belief, thus when two totally different cultures or ideologies encounter, conflicts arise and can take place in various stages and in all sorts of forms. Among these conflicts, language stands out as a means of communication and a weapon. Language as a weapon is one of the most powerful means of governing by rulers in history, for language is inseparable from human life and serves as the core of a culture. Almost every polity has realized the importance of language policy in maintaining the unity and development of their country.Foreign language policy and national security have been closely related since1958when the United States began to develop a clear national foreign language policy. Ever since the events of September11,2001, United States began to recognize the importance of "language weapons". The United States government began to pay attention to making foreign language policies in order to meet the needs of the country’s politics, economy, diplomacy, and military, especially developing the country’s foreign language policy from the perspective of national security. At the beginning of the new century, the United States government enacted and formulated a series of policies and legislations related to national security, aimed at improving national foreign language skills.Economic globalization brings both opportunity and challenge to promoting language culture to the world. Language policy and language strategy have become integral parts of the national development strategy. Using language to maintain national security and enhance cultural soft power has important strategic significance. While referring to the United States foreign language policies under national security objectives and reflecting China’s foreign language policy, almost no clear national security goals can be found in our country’s foreign language policies. Therefore, based on the implication of the foreign language policies in the United States, foreign language strategy in line with national security needs should be built in China.The present thesis firstly analyzes foreign language policies in the United States from the perspective of national security in two periods:period from the late1950s to the end of the20th century and period following September11,2001. Based on the analysis, the implication for China’s foreign language policy is composed of two parts, the national security goal of foreign language policy and the implication for China’s foreign language policy-making. In making foreign language policies, the safety of national defense, diplomacy, international communication, foreign economy and trade should be taken into consideration.