This article traces the evolution of the ideological construction of elite multilingualism, with a focus on the values accorded to French and English, under transforming socioeconomic and institutional conditions at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The ICRC, a major humanitarian agency based in Geneva, opens a window onto the construction of “internationalisation” and its accompanying language ideologies, resulting in fluctuating hiring requirements for “delegates” (expatriate representatives). The data include job advertisements for delegate posts from 1989 to 2020 complemented by interviews with different generations of delegates and ethnographic fieldwork in a recruitment fair. The analysis of language ideological debates at the ICRC illuminates the articulations and tensions between “roots” in Geneva, symbolised by French, and “routes” in its delegations worldwide, with English as a lingua franca, in dominant discourses about multilingualism. The requirements for ICRC delegates include English as a must and at least a second ICRC working language. Concerning the latter, there are tensions between the desired language regime at headquarters, privileging French as the “parent” language, and the current needs in key operations, with a shortage of Arabic speakers. The analysis shows that French requirements for generalist delegates have fluctuated from perfect command and good knowledge to an optional second working language. In the 2020 recruitment campaign, elite multilingualism is hierarchically stratified into English as a global language, other “working languages” including Arabic, and non-European languages such as Pashto or Dari as newly-introduced “assets”.

本文追溯了精英多语制意识形态建设的演变，重点关注在红十字国际委员会 (ICRC) 不断变化的社会经济和制度条件下赋予法语和英语的价值观。红十字国际委员会是一个总部设在日内瓦的主要人道机构，它为构建“国际化”及其伴随的语言意识形态打开了一扇窗户，导致对“代表”（外籍代表）的招聘要求出现波动。这些数据包括 1989 年至 2020 年代表职位的招聘广告，以及对不同代代表的采访和招聘会上的民族志实地考察。对红十字国际委员会语言意识形态辩论的分​​析阐明了以法语为代表的日内瓦“根源”之间的表达和紧张关系，和“路线”在其全球代表团中，以英语作为通用语，在关于多语制的主导话语中。对红十字国际委员会代表的要求包括必须使用英语和至少第二种红十字国际委员会工作语言。关于后者，总部理想的语言制度（将法语作为“母语”）与关键业务的当前需求（缺乏讲阿拉伯语的人）之间存在紧张关系。分析表明，法语对通才代表的要求已经从完美的命令和良好的知识转变为可选的第二工作语言。在 2020 年的招聘活动中，精英多语种按等级划分为作为全球语言的英语、包括阿拉伯语在内的其他“工作语言”以及新引入的“资产”，如普什图语或达里语等非欧洲语言。