Languages at war: policies and practices of language contacts in conflict.

在军事研究中，文化在战争中的作用被视为至关重要。尽管外语往往是战争中文化接触的关键部分，但那些研究冲突的人传统上很少关注它们的作用。历史学家倾向于把语言看作是外交关系的附属部分。在这种背景下，语篇分析者关注的是一般语言，而不是外语。翻译专家关注的是语言中介、口译员或翻译员的作用，而不是非语言学家战斗人员和平民的语言经验。由于缺乏对战争中语言经验的系统研究，促使我们把注意力集中在卷入冲突的士兵和平民的第一手资料上，并研究这些经验与官方战争外语政策制定之间的关系。“战争中的语言”汇集了两所大学的专家，与帝国战争博物馆（Imperial War Museum）建立了一个创新的合作关系。帝国战争博物馆对1914年以来的国际冲突有着无与伦比的报道，其中包括约6万小时的参与者录音。主要调查人员具有战争文化和外语政策发展方面的学术背景，他们的大学雷丁大学和南安普顿大学为这项研究提供了一个支持性的跨学科环境，有欧洲历史和文化、战略和军事研究以及跨国接触方面的专家。该项目将审查两个相关但对比鲜明的案例研究，一个是关于入侵/占领（欧洲，1944-47年），一个是关于维持和平（波斯尼亚，1995-1998年）。这两个案例研究都涉及到20世纪盟军对欧洲大陆的联合干预，但在两个重要方面形成了对比。首先，指挥结构的性质各不相同：以1944-47年的欧洲为例，盟军指挥官一起工作，但在不同的战区作战，而在波斯尼亚，部队部署在多边综合指挥部队中。其次，这两个案例研究中的任务构成了不同类型的语言遭遇：第一个将部队定位为敌对领土的入侵者和占领者，第二个将他们定位为敌对敌人集团之间的维和人员。档案和公共资源将使我们能够研究与这两种情况有关的官方语言政策，这些政策将与帝国战争博物馆保存的参与者的大量证人陈述相对照，并将由项目团队记录的额外访谈作为补充。我们认为，这个项目将使我们能够制定一个框架，分析语言在战争中的作用，这可以转移到其他战争和冲突局势。“战争中的语言”旨在确保外语与战争的相关性以一种有强大学术研究支持的方式进入公共领域，这将有助于为公众辩论提供信息，并激发所有相关人员的未来思考。通过帝国战争博物馆的积极参与，该项目将在未来的博物馆展示、展览和面向公众的节目规划中提高外语的形象。通过“战争中的语言”咨询小组，从事国际关系和战争人员培训的机构，包括外交和联邦事务部和国防部，将有机会评论、讨论和分享结果。

In military studies, the role of culture in war is seen as vital. Although foreign languages are often a key part of cultural encounters in war, those who study conflict have traditionally paid little attention to their role. Historians have tended to see languages as an ancillary part of diplomatic relations. Discourse analysts in this context have looked at language in general, rather than at foreign languages. Translation specialists have concentrated on the role of the language intermediary, the interpreter or translator, rather than on the language experiences of non-linguist combatants and civilians. This lack of systematic study of language experience in war has encouraged us to focus on the first hand accounts of soldiers and civilians caught up in conflict, and to examine the relationship of these experiences to official foreign language policymaking for war. 'Languages at War' brings together specialists from two universities in an innovative association with the Imperial War Museum, which has an unrivalled coverage of international conflict since 1914, including some 60,000 hours of sound recordings with participants. The lead investigators have an academic background in cultures of war, as well as in the development of foreign language policies, and their universities, Reading and Southampton, provide a supportive interdisciplinary environment for this research, with specialists in European histories and cultures, strategic and military studies, and transnational contacts. The project will examine two related but contrasting case studies, one on invasion/occupation (Europe, 1944-47), and one on peacekeeping (Bosnia, 1995-1998). Both case studies concern twentieth century joint Allied intervention in continental Europe, but are contrasting in two important respects. Firstly, the nature of the command structure is different in each: in the case of Europe in 1944-47, Allied commanders worked together, but operated in separate theatres of war, whereas in Bosnia, troops were deployed in a multilateral integrated command force. Secondly, the missions in the two case studies pose contrasting sorts of language encounter: the first positions troops as invaders and occupiers of hostile territory, the second places them as peacekeepers between blocs of opposing enemies. Archive and publicly available resources will enable us to study the official language policies relating to the two situations, and these will be set against the extensive witness statements of participants which are held in the Imperial War Museum, and which will be supplemented by additional interviews recorded by the project team. We believe that this project will enable us to develop a framework for analysing the role of languages in war which can be transferred to other war and conflict situations. 'Languages at War' aims to ensure that the relevance of foreign languages to war enters into the public arena in a way which is backed up by robust academic research, and which will serve to inform public debate and stimulate the future thinking of all those concerned. Through the active participation of the Imperial War Museum, the project will raise the profile of foreign languages in future Museum displays, exhibitions and programme planning which address the general public. Through the 'Languages at War' Advisory Group, agencies engaged in the training of personnel for international relations and war, including the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence, will have an opportunity to comment, discuss and share results.