Jef Verschueren. PHOTO: Manuel Castells

"Euphemisms are not only present in political speeches, but can be found everywhere in the public sphere". discussion paper This was stated by the language expert Jef Verschueren, from the University of Antwerp, who gave the opening address at the international symposium 'Panorama of the programs of study of speech' which is being held these days at the University of Navarra.

"Euphemisms are tools that we use to categorize the issues we are talking about," the professor explained. "It is true that politicians use them constantly, especially in democratic societies, where they have the need to convince their potential voters, but they can be seen in all environments."

When it comes to analyzing whether this form of language is being transferred to society, Jef Verschueren assured that this reality has always existed: "It is not a new phenomenon. Technology now allows information to spread faster, but the categorization of language and euphemisms has always existed.

At meeting, experts from various countries discussed the treatment given in the press in Germany, Italy, Canada and Spain to the presence of religious symbols in public spaces. "Analyzing the way in which the media use the lexicon is an important task, since this is the main element through which reality, or a certain perception of it, is captured in the speech", says Concepción Martínez Pasamar, one of the professors from the University of Navarra participating in the conference.

The symposium is organized by the group Análisis del speech of the University of Navarra (GRADUN), part of the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS) of the academic center, and by the Seminar für Übersetzen und Dolmetschen of the University of Heidelberg.