EU Legal Language, Translation and Terminology: Twelve Viewpoints on EU Multilingual Law-making

Abstract

This paper aims to offer a series of snapshot viewpoints drawn from practical experience and use them as starting points to reflect on a range of topics that illustrate certain features and dimensions of EU law-making methods. Thus, EU legislative acts may be considered messages that are communicated, but also performative utterances. They are multilingual, according to EU treaties, which leads to several linguistic implications. EU legislative acts aim for singularity, are standardised as much as possible and are intended to have consequences within the national legal systems. EU legal meaning does not always align on linguistic meaning. EU language is a variant of the national language and can be analysed using “semiotic” methods. EU law is one out of several interlinked legal orders and EU legislative drafters take into account the fact that the legislative acts will be translated into EU national languages. In this respect, there are databases of documents and terminology resources that help translators carry out their task.

Keywords

• eu legislative acts
• eu legal language
• eu law
• translation
• terminology
• multilingualism
• standardization