The Language Policy of Ukraine
Journal Title: Chorzowskie Studia Polityczne - Year 2015, Vol 10, Issue
Abstract
Efforts at increasing the usage of the mother tongue among the Ukrainians have been sluggish in producing results and a sizeable proportion of the generations educated in the Soviet era still cannot speak or write in the Ukrainian language. Relevant regulations were lenient and vague. At the social or political level, the ukrainization process was implemented gradually and with caution. The foundations of language policy were not laid until the 1990s and the beginning of the 21st century, and the policy was consistent with the standards adopted in most liberal democracies. At the same time, however, there were no mechanisms in place to protect the rights of specific linguistic groups, either in respect of the attempted ukrainization of the society or in terms of support for the languages of national minorities. There was therefore a real danger that the policies could be easily undercut in case of an attitude change in the society or a political upheaval. Guarantees of equal rights given to linguistic groups have actually reinforced the supremacy of the Russian language. The fumbling moves made by the Ukrainian post-Euromajdan government raised fears of coercive ukrainization. These concerns were soon effectively exploited by Kiev’s geopolitical opponents, such as, in the first place, Russia. Although the issue was not in itself of major importance, it became a turning point for the conflict arising in Eastern Ukraine.
Authors and Affiliations
Andrzej Małkiewicz, Jewhen Perehuda
Keywords
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