DCHP-3

bilingualize

DCHP-2 (Oct 2016)
v. — French relations

to make accessible in English and French.

Type: 4. Culturally Significant — One of the earliest attestations of the term is attributed to Canadian professor and senate member Eugene Forsey. In a speech, Forsey advocated for the use of English and French in the federal civil service to avoid Quebec separation (see the 1964 quotation). The term's dissemination, if not coinage, runs parallel to the creation of the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism in 1963. At this time, many laws were passed at both the federal and provincial level with the aim of improving acccess to French-language services in Canada. These policies were particularly significant in areas where francophones were in the majority.
See also COD-2, s.v. "bilingualize", which is marked "Cdn", Gage-3, s.v. "bilingualize", which is marked "Cdn", and OED-3, s.v. "bilingualize" (1), which is marked "Canad.".
Note that the spelling is invariably (originally American) -ize, unlike other Canadian verbs, which usually vary with (originally British) -ise.

Quotations

1964
In addition to elementary French grammar and vocabulary, the stewardesses will receive special instruction to bilingualize their coffee-tea-or-milk professional patter.
1964
"We will have to bilingualize the federal public service as much and as fast as possible," Dr. Eugene Forsey, well known economist and political scientist, warned the Dominion Chalmers United Church Men's Association Thursday evening.
1964
Can Unity Survive? The question is now whether national unity can survive the efforts of the CBC to bilingualize the country electronically, ready or not. Noone can doubt the corporation's goodwill; it has sensed the national mood and is eager to help to initiate the dialogue, facilitate the detente, bridge the two solitudes, tote the barque or do whatever else may be required to keep Canada whole.
1972
Trudeau seems to have lost on two counts in his efforts to bilingualize the civil service.
1984
An explanation was not forthcoming. Sources close to the Premier refused to confirm that there had been a fist-fight over the Prime Minister's wish to bilingualize Ontario.
1999
This week, the English-language board said it will ignore instructions from the Office de la Langue Francaise to bilingualize the messages on the answering machines of some Lester B. Pearson schools.
2004
Canada spends $150 million every year to further bilingualize Canada, in the process disadvantaging westerners seeking federal public service jobs.
2011
"Do one program," she says. "Let's bilingualize all children. We have 13 years to teach them. If we used the resources we have in schools we could have an amazing French second language program and we could keep English language arts and math (in English) [...]"

References

  • OED-3
  • COD-2
  • Gage-3