Russia’s war in Ukraine has foregrounded disparities within Russia’s multi-ethnic population. In particular, the disproportionately high mobilisation of ethnic minorities and the demonisation of certain ethnic groups in international media has stoked not only fears but also resistance among non-Russian nationalities to the expansionist Russian culture and its mono-language policy. Together with experts on cultural and language policy in Eastern Europe, we discuss how Russia’s imperial language policy is organised and assess its impact on national languages. We also look at the background to Russia’s development into a monolingual nation and the responses of ethnic minorities in Kalmykia, Buryatia, Tatarstan, and Sakha (Yakutia) to this policy. How has the language activism of minorities in Russia changed since the Russian invasion of Ukraine?

Participants

Vlada Baranova is a sociolinguist and fellow at the Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies. She was an associate professor at the Higher School of Economics Campus in St. Petersburg until her resignation in 2022.

Monika Wingender is Professor for Slavic Linguistics and Managing Director of the interdisciplinary Giessen Center for Eastern European Studies (GiZo) at Justus Liebig University Giessen.

Chair: Tsypylma Darieva is a social anthropologist, Senior Researcher at ZOiS and head of the research cluster ‘Migration and Diversity’.

Zoom Link

https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEpd-uoqzorGt2w7Sm6cKmtzAKlfYF2M99m