Language Policy of the CIS Countries: Current State and Prospects

Abstract

Language policy issues are inextricably linked with the socio-political vectors of development of a state. The significance of this problem field is actualised with a number of examples from modern history, when the "language issue" became a source of social tension, led to various kinds of conflicts, including interstate ones. The article is devoted to the analytical study of the modern specifics of language policy in the CIS countries. Research attention is focused on nine states that are active members of the integration association (Ukraine, which de facto does not participate in the activities of the Commonwealth, and Russia are not considered due to the presence of administrative national autonomies and the number of different ethno-cultural communities, as well as the need to reflect in the work the peculiarities of the functioning of the Russian language, which has a special status in the region). The practice of implementing the language policy pursued in the CIS countries allows to generalize and compare the experience of states that have relatively recently received sovereignty and the ability to form an appropriate agenda independently. The analysis made it possible to identify the general directions of language policy, typical for individual countries: 1) protection of the languages of the titular nation with the consolidation of their status as the only state and official for all spheres of communicative interaction (Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Uzbekistan); 2) carrying out an alphabetical reform in order to switch to the Latin alphabet (Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Uzbekistan); 3) implementation of the policy of state bi- or polylingualism (Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan); 4) attempts to solve precedent linguistic problems (nomination of the state language for Moldova, the status of the Russian language for Armenia and Georgia).