Status
In 1951, Frisian language activists, protesting the exclusive use of Dutch in the courts, caused a riot in Leeuwarden. The resulting inquiry led to the establishment of a committee of inquiry. This committee recommended that the Frisian language would receive a legal basis as minority language.
Since 1956, West Frisian has an official status along with and equal to Dutch, in the province of Friesland. It is used in many domains of Frisian society, among which are education, legislation, and administration. In 2010, some sixty public transportation ticket machines in Friesland and Groningen added a Frisian-language option.
Although in the courts of law the Dutch language is still mainly used, in the province of Friesland, Frisians have the right to give evidence in their own language. Also, they can take the oath in Frisian in courts anywhere in the Netherlands.
Primary education in Friesland was made bilingual in 1956, which means Frisian can be used as a teaching medium. In the same year, Frisian became an official school subject, having been introduced to primary education as an optional extra in 1937. It was not until 1980, however, that Frisian got the status of a full-fledged, i.e., required, subject in primary schools, and not until 1993 that it got the same position in secondary education.
In 1997, the province of Friesland officially changed its name from the Dutch form Friesland to the Frisian Fryslân. So far 5 out of 31 municipalities (Tytsjerksteradiel, Boarnsterhim, Littenseradiel, Wûnseradiel and Ferwerderadiel) have changed their official geographical names from Dutch to Frisian.
Within ISO 639 West Frisian falls under the codes 'fy' and 'fry', which were assigned to the collective Frisian languages.
Read more about this topic: West Frisian Language
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