The purpose of this article is to evaluate from a legal and critical perspective the recognition of regional languages by the introduction, in July 2008, of article 75-1 in the French Constitution of 1958. The author evaluates the impact of the reference to regional languages; the contributions of this state recognition; its symbolic, psychological, and legal effects; and also its limits. Without calling into question the benefits of the state recognition process, the author concludes that a simultaneous self-recognition by the speakers themselves and by the non-speaker members of local communities is also necessary.
