Am I part of a linguistic problem? Here I am in Ukraine, yet I speak Russian. I should not be speaking Russian, but Ukrainian. I speak Russian for two reasons. First, because I could not find a Ukrainian language class in Kansas last summer, and secondly, because it was suggested that I study Russian, as that is the language the majority of people in eastern Ukraine speak. It is true; all of my communications in the streets, markets and shops have been in Russian. Additionally, while Ukrainian is the official language here, and it appears in print in Luhans’k, many products in the stores and signs on buildings are in Russian, however. Without knowledge of Russian, I would be totally lost.
Still, I feel very badly that I am not supporting the national language. I am indirectly part of the problem. There is the view by some that Ukrainian is not fully respected by the ruling government. I do not know if this is true. What is true is that I should be helping to strengthen the language, not invalidate it, but I am trapped by my circumstances and environment. My hands are tied, and I feel guilty at the same time. This is Ukraine, after all, and Ukrainian should be the first language of the Ukrainian people. I am not alone in my views. My Russian colleagues also feel the same way, but then, they are university professors, not politicians.
Thanks for this Lisle. I am wondering where Ukrainian is actually used...spoken in households and among families?...since it seems that Russian is the language of the street and commerce.
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome, Jeff. Ukrainian is spoken in the western part of the country and somewhat in the central part. Russian is spoken in the east and south. By law, Ukrainian is supposed to be used in all public schools, but that is not always the case. Maybe it is spoken at home in some Ukrainian families living in Russian speaking regions, but I have been told by some Ukrainians that they are more comfortable speaking Russian; as that is the language they grew up with.
ReplyDeleteLanguage politics is complicated here, and the history of Ukraine is extremely tragic in many ways. Linguistically, there have been periods in history when Ukrainian was actively suppressed, such as during Russian Imperial rule and most recently during Soviet rule. Now that Ukraine is once again an independent nation, Ukrainian culture and language are experiencing a resurgence. There is not complete agreement on the status of Ukrainian and Russian, however, and it has become a complicated and bitter political issue.
A Russian university colleague has told me that ultimately the transition to Ukrainian should be successful, if the young people here keep learning and speaking the language, but at the present time it is a rather painful and politically divisive issue at certain levels. She has said that at the community level there is not as much discord as within the political arena. According to her, Russian speakers in the east and Ukrainian speakers in the west are not necessarily at odds with each other and can usually get along just fine. The obstacle is the fighting and conflict among politicians who can ultimately cause problems for the average Russian and Ukrainian through the laws and orders (rules) that they initiate. It’s a mess, really.