Our Oifigeach Gaeilge, Amy Uí Riordáin, recently attended the first PLURILINGMEDIA conference in Warsaw, exploring how digital media shapes the future of minority languages. Here are her reflections from this gathering of researchers, practitioners, and content creators.
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My Warsaw adventure began in the early hours of Wednesday, December 3rd, departing Waterford on the airport coach at 1:15am.
By around 10am, I was in Warsaw, reuniting with familiar faces – Dr. Maggie Glass (whose keynote at Celtic Knot 2024 you may remember) and Hannah Yule Heetman from TU Dortmund, who also presented at Celtic Knot last year, sharing an analysis of the 20-year strategy for the Irish Language.
After dropping our luggage, Hannah and I found a café for some hot-desking while Maggie attended the PLURILINGMEDIA Management Meeting. The afternoon brought an unexpected opportunity – I was invited to address the management meeting about Wikimedia Community Ireland’s work as a practitioner of language policy and planning. I highlighted the efforts of minoritised language communities worldwide on Wikimedia Projects, sparking conversations about future collaborations and my continued participation in the network’s Working Groups.
That evening, we met with Dr. Guillem Belmar, co-author with Dr. Glass of the influential paper Virtual communities as breathing spaces for minority languages: Re-framing minority language use in social media – a framework that builds on Fishman’s 1991 framework and would shape much of the conference discussions.
(left-right) Amy O’Riordan, Dr Maggie Glass and Dr Guillem Belmar
Day One
The conference officially opened on December 4th with welcomes from local organiser Nicole Dołowy-Rybińska and COST Action Chair Craig Willis, followed by an excellent plenary from keynote speaker Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones on Resilience and Rights, Revitalisation and Reach: what media tells us about the future of linguistic diversity.
The conference was held in the historic surroundings of the Pałac Staszica (Staszic Palace) and with over 50 sessions over two days we had to make tough decisions for our parallel session attendence.
Morning Highlights
One standout presentation came from University of Galway researchers Verena Platzgummer and Paul Finn with their paper titled ‘Peppa Pig, Peppa Muc nó Peppa Wutz?’ Language Choice in Media Consumption in Multilingual Families in the Gaeltacht.
Their research examined families juggling 2-5+ languages at home, exploring Family Language Planning and media choices. Particularly fascinating was their work with young people on multilingual social media feeds – their preferences, choices, and usage patterns across languages and how new platforms and algorithims are influencing what we are seeing on our feeds.
Verena Platzgummer & Paul Finn from University of Galway presenting their paper ‘Peppa Pig, Peppa Muc nó Peppa Wutz?’ Language Choice in Media Consumption in Multilingual Families in the Gaeltacht
Audiences of Minority Language Media
The Audiences of Minority Language Media session, chaired by Cordula Ratajczak, offered rich insights into diverse linguistic contexts. Katharina Dück and Heiko F. Marten explored the complex media practices of German minorities in post-Soviet societies, examining how they navigate between local multilingualism and transnational opportunities. Cláudia Martins and Joana Aguiar presented their research on 21st century media, mapping contemporary practices for the Mirandese language.
Lara Sorgo’s study on the Italian national community in Slovenia demonstrated how media consumption patterns can reinforce minority presence and identity. Hannah Yule Heetman presented her compelling analysis The Politics of Presence, using statistical methods to unpack where accountability and responsibility actually lie in the English version of Ireland’s Digital Plan for the Irish Language (2022). Meanwhile, Csilla Horváth illuminated the vital role that Mansi print media plays in maintaining language vitality in their community. Each presentation revealed unique challenges and successes – a reminder that while our contexts differ, our struggles and triumphs resonate across linguistic boundaries.
Hannah Yule Heetmann presenting on The Politics of Presence: Language and Power dynamics in the Digital Plan for the Irish Language (2023-2027) with Panel Chair Cordula Ratajczak
Breathing Spaces Revisited
Our afternoon panel, Breathing Spaces Revisited, chaired by Guillem Belmar, was a personal highlight. Belmar and Glass revisited their influential 2019 framework, updating it based on extensive engagement with their publication (which was referenced frequently throughout the conference). The refined framework, previewed at Celtic Knot, promises exciting forthcoming publications.
Maggie Glass presented for Dr. Inge Birnie (and we are sending healing wishes for her broken leg!), examining Breathing Spaces and World Gaelic Week in Scotland. Her analysis revealed that while hashtags can build community, #SeachdainnaGàidhlig on Twitter in 2022 proved less effective than other campaigns in bringing people together for language use and community building – an important reminder that not all digital strategies work equally well.
Amy Uí Riordáin presenting ‘Vicipéid as a Hybrid Breathing Space for the Irish Language’ with fellow Panelists Sebastian Müller, Guillem Belmar and Maggie Glass
I presented Vicipéid as a Hybrid Breathing Space for the Irish Language, showcasing how Vicipéid isn’t just a growing information resource, but a community making planning and policy decisions, collaborating through Irish within the global network contributing to open knowledge in their languages and cultural contexts. Sebastian Müller’s exploration of Translanguaging on TikTok as Breathing Space for Papiamentu was particularly fascinating – he examined content creators’ trends and language use patterns while beautifully contextualising the language’s history and contemporary digital presence.
Day Two
With parallel sessions running throughout the conference, I had to make difficult choices about which presentations to attend – wishing I could split myself in two to catch everything!
The ECRML Perspective
The morning panel on New Media and Language Vitality from ECRML perspective featured Aleksandra Oszmiańska-Pagett, Vesna Crnić-Grotić, Jarmo Lainio, and Adrian Borka discussing how the European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages can support media and language vitality. Their insights were particularly thought-provoking given that Ireland hasn’t yet ratified the Charter, highlighting both opportunities and gaps in our current policy landscape and how the Charter can provide some much-needed leverage for language rights advocacy.
Piotr Szatkowski presenting on Kashubian language content creation and sharing some memes
Content Creators Take Center Stage
The Content Creation in Minoritised Languages roundtable, moderated by Craig Willis, brought invaluable perspectives directly from content creators themselves. Anna Nikitiuk shared her experiences creating Podlachian content, while Paola Valenta discussed the challenges and opportunities for Italian content in Slovenia. Piotr Szatkowski rounded out the panel with insights from Kashubian content creation.
From Eurovision entries, to blogs and podcasts and even memes and TikTok videos, these creators demonstrated the incredibly diverse ways they’re promoting linguistic diversity in digital media spaces.
Digital Spaces and Online Language Use
The session on Digital spaces and online language use, chaired by Aziz Berdiqulov, explored how young people especially are reshaping minority language use online. Sabrina Colombo and Maximilian Oberhollenzer presented Hashtags and Heritage, examining how youth in South Tyrol are evolving their use of Ladin through social media exposure. Antri Kanikli investigated what happens when we increase an endangered minority language’s presence in non-traditional media spaces – challenging our assumptions about where and how languages can thrive.
Lexi Dawn brought parental perspectives to the discussion, examining how Catalan-speaking parents view digital media’s role in their children’s language maintenance and development. Elizabeth Pimenta’s presentation on Hashtags, Hierarchies, and Hybrid Identities offered a fascinating look at Afrikaans-English code-switching on TikTok, revealing how young speakers navigate and perform complex linguistic identities online.
Social Media and Language
The final session I attended, Social media and language chaired by Mirela Alhasani, brought everything full circle with practical applications of the breathing spaces concept. Alena Paulik and Cordula Ratajczak’s presentation on virtual communities of Upper Sorbian adult new speakers was particularly exciting – their work on digital breathing spaces for language revitalisation shows exciting potential for application to other contexts.
Judit Klein explored how Germans in Hungary construct and express their minority identity through social media use, while Alba Milà Garcia and Anna Tudela Isanta examined the dynamics of Catalan as a “marked language” on social media platforms. Nika Stefan’s investigation of Frisian reading and writing practices across both traditional and social media provided insights into how established minority language communities are adapting to digital spaces.
Group Picture of Attendees at the first Conference for the PLURILINGMEDIA COST Action
As I reflect on these intense, inspiring days in Warsaw, several themes emerge:
Community is everything: Media has great potential to build and sustain language communities, but success depends on genuine engagement from the community rather than just a mere presence.
One size doesn’t fit all: Each language and cultural context requires tailored approaches, yet we can learn immensely from each other’s experiments and experiences.
Theory meets practice: The breathing spaces framework continues evolving through real-world application, demonstrating that dialogue between researchers and practitioners is vital.
Digital natives lead the way: Young people and content creators are reshaping how minority languages exist online, often in ways traditional media never imagined.
Collaboration is key: The connections made with fellow panelists, PLURILINGMEDIA network members, and language advocates worldwide promise exciting collaborations ahead and I look forward to future workshops, conferences and opportunities to work together.
Staszic Palace exterior at night, seat of the Polish Academy of Sciences
Looking Forward
The COST Action runs through 2028, providing ongoing opportunities for collaboration and knowledge exchange. For Wikimedia Community Ireland and Vicipéid, this means continued participation in Working Groups, potential research collaborations on virtual communities, sharing our hybrid breathing space model with other language communities, and learning from international best practices.
The Warsaw conference reinforced that while each minority language faces unique challenges, we’re stronger together. Whether it’s Papiamentu on TikTok, Upper Sorbian virtual communities, or Vicipéideoirí (Irish Wikipedia editors), we’re all creating breathing spaces where our languages can thrive in the digital age.
As I returned from Warsaw last week, exhausted but energised, I carried with me research insights and a renewed sense of solidarity. In rooms across the Institute of Slavic Studies, researchers, practitioners, content creators, and advocates proved that minority languages aren’t just surviving in new media, they’re innovating, adapting, and sometimes even leading the way.
The journey that began at 1:15am in Waterford connected me to a network stretching from Gaeltachtaí to the Sorbian regions, from Slovenia to Aruba.
Míle buíochas to everyone who made this conference possible, especially our hosts in Warsaw, and to all who shared their research, experiences, and vision for plurilingual media futures.
Follow @wikimediaie for updates on our ongoing work with PLURILINGMEDIA and virtual breathing spaces for Irish.
The next PLURILINGMEDIA conference details will be announced in 2026.
‘I love Warsaw’ festive lights in Warsaw City Centre
