An Estonian-Russian Language Club as a Venue for Grassroots Ethnic Integration

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Anastasiya Astapova
Keyword(s):  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Russian Language ◽  
Ethnic Segregation ◽  
Political Debate ◽  
Baltic Countries ◽  
Russian Speakers ◽  
Ethnic Integration ◽  
Estonian Language ◽  
The Eu

Abstract One third of Estonian residents identify Russian as their mother tongue, and despite having lived in Estonia for decades, many of them are not fluent in the Estonian language and choose to remain stateless rather than obtain Estonian citizenship by passing the state language exam. Ethnic segregation in Estonia continues to be a matter of bitter political debate, not least in the context of tensions with neighboring Russia and pressure from the EU to solve the problem. While a lot of state resources are being spent on what the Estonian-speaking public often perceives as vain attempts at integration of Russophones, several civil society initiatives have recently emerged to provide platforms for informal language socialization. In this article, I focus on the case study of the Keelegrupp (Language Group) which provides a venue for interaction between Estonian and Russian speakers, to analyze what makes this informal organization more successful at responding to the challenges of language-based segregation than professional, state-funded initiatives. Ethnographic documentation and analysis of this initiative is essential given that its experience and structure are highly applicable for and transferrable to many other states with similar situations of ethnic segregation, not the least the neighboring Baltic countries.

scholarly journals Russian soft power in the Baltic States through the lens of research: traditions, competition, confrontation

Baltic Region ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 107-124
Author(s):  
Vladislav V. Vorotnikov ◽  
Natalia A. Ivanova
Keyword(s):  
Mass Culture ◽  
Soft Power ◽  
Russian Language ◽  
Ruling Class ◽  
Baltic States ◽  
Hard Power ◽  
Baltic Countries ◽  
Bilateral Relations ◽  
Russian Speakers ◽  
The Baltic

In this article, we aim to analyse the research discourse in the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) as regards Russian soft power, which is considered as hard power, and to compare the theses that dominate this discourse with the actual interactions between Russia and the three states in media, education, and culture. Each Baltic country has built a system of political and legal restrictions to diminish the effect of Russian soft power, which is considered in terms of hard power, i.e. as a threat to national security. The current forms of Russian soft power are becoming less productive in the region and their use in the negative political context of bilateral relations has the opposite effect for Russia – the country loses in reputation and image. The main factor at play is the information content of the Russian-language media space. At odds with the historical and political views of a significant part of the Baltic States’ ruling class, it is becoming the target of counteraction. At the same time, Russian high and mass culture and, partly, educational services are in demand from both Baltic Russian speakers and ethnic Lithuanians, Latvians, and Estonians. Our analysis shows that the views of Baltic researchers that Russian soft power is politics-driven and foreign to the region are exaggerated and biased. In its turn, Russian soft power in the Baltics retains the potential to aid the country’s foreign policy, being a complement to the latter rather than its direct tool.

scholarly journals Aesthetic perception of the Russian sound speech by Germans (a case study of German internet forums)

2022 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 102-110
Author(s):  
E. A. Shesterina
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Russian Language ◽  
German Language ◽  
Aesthetic Perception ◽  
Russian Speakers ◽  
Aggressive Communication ◽  
Internet Forums ◽  
Rhythmic Organization ◽  
The Russian Language

The article is devoted to the aesthtic assessment of the sound of Russian speech as reflected in German Internet forums. Segmental and suprasegmental features of Russian pronunciation which evoke in native speakers of German empathy and / or antipathy towards Russian sounding speech, are described. The ordinary Germans' naive assessment of Russian souding speech differs from that by professional linguists. Germans who are not familiar with the theoretical basis of the phonetic structure of the Russian language pay attention, first of all, to those pronunciation features that are not characteristic of the phonetic basis of the German language. Among them on segmental level are the following: trembling sonant [r̥], vowel [ᵻ] and back-lingual slit [ɣ] after vowels [e], [i] and consonants [lʲ], [nʲ], [j], the pronunciation of which in German in this position is pronounced as ich-Laut [ç]. The Germans also seem to dislike clusters of consonants that are absent in the German language, for example, -рск-, -здр- etc. The presence of these sounds in the Russian language allows ordinary Germans to characterize Russian sounding speech as rude, despite the remarks of the Germans that there are many “soft” sounds i.e. palatalized consonants in the Russian language. The main difference at the suprasegmental level, which in the scientific literature is designated as the opposition of the German “staccato” and Russian “legato”, finds its confirmation in the statements of German members of the forum. The rhythmic organization of Russian speech is assessed by common Germans as discordant and indistinct, since, unlike German speech, Russian speech is characterized by relaxed articulation, non-forced vocalization, an extended melodic range and an irregular rhythmic patterns. In addition, the use of different pitch movements in friendly and aggressive communication encourages Germans to qualify the speech of Russian speakers in obvious situations of friendly communication as confrontational.

Ukrainian vs. Russian? The Securitization of Language-Related Issues in Ukrainian Blogs and on News Websites

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 375-399 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ksenia Maksimovtsova
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Legal Status ◽  
Russian Language ◽  
National State ◽  
Association Agreement ◽  
Russian Speakers ◽  
News Websites ◽  
The Russian Language ◽  
The Eu ◽  
State Language

The transformation of the peaceful demonstrations, which started on November 21, 2013, against Yanukovych’s decision to suspend the signing of the association agreement with the EU, into the bloodshed in Kyiv and eastern Ukraine, has vividly demonstrated that the rhetoric of the “protection of Russian-speakers’ rights” can be easily transformed from the level of “discursive threats” to the real threat of Ukraine’s dissolution. Therefore, the article seeks to explain how language-related issues were securitized in public discussions in leading Ukrainian blogs and on news websites that function in the Russian language after the Revolution of Dignity. The analysis of journalistic articles and users’ comments encompasses the period of 2013–2015 when the Russian–Ukrainian conflict and the discussion of language issues reached its climax. It is argued that despite an extreme presence of anti-Russian (anti-imperialist) arguments and consolidation over the idea of Ukrainian as the only state language (“one nation–one language”), arguments that supported an equal legal status of Russian- and Ukrainian-speakers were also to be found in selected digital media outlets. The analysis has also demonstrated that for most online users of Ukrainian digital media that function in Russian, the state language is constructed as the language discriminated against in its own national state.

scholarly journals Minorias étnicas e segregação nas cidades - uma aproximação ao caso de Lisboa, no contexto da Europa Mediterrânica

Finisterra ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 33 (66) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Macaísta Malheiros
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Metropolitan Region ◽  
Southern Europe ◽  
Evolutionary Trends ◽  
Ethnic Segregation ◽  
Southern Zone ◽  
Segregation Process ◽  
Mediterranean Europe ◽  
The Eu

ETHNIC MINORITIES AND SEGREGATION IN CIIES. AN ASSESSMENT OF THE CASE OF LISBOA WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF MEDITERRANEAN EUROPE - The present paper offers an analysis of the socio-ethnic spatial segregation process that has taken place in the Lisbon Metropolitan Region throughout the last 25 years. This process is analysed within the framework of the contemporary chages affecting the European metropolis and particularly those located in the Southern zone of the EU. The first part discusses the features of socio-ethnic segregation in the metropolises of Europe, bearing in mind North-American references. Within this line of thought, it is argued that the uniqueness of Southern European metropolis as well as its specific immigratory context lead to relatively original patterns of segregation. In the second part, the features of the contemporary socio-ethnic segregation of the Lisbon conurbation are presented as a case-study from Southern Europe. The confrontation of the different ethnic spaces of the Portuguese metropolis as well as the increase in the values of the segregation indices registered in the last decade are discussed herein. The final part tries to place the ethnic segregation issue within the framework of the ongoing restructuring urban process, offering a short overview of a few possible evolutionary trends

scholarly journals BILINGUALISM IN ESTONIA: POLITICS, EDUCATION, CULTURE, AND MENTALITY

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 47-56
Author(s):  
A.V. Volodina ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Service Sector ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Russian Language ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
Russian Speakers ◽  
National Minorities ◽  
The Government ◽  
Estonian Language ◽  
Education Culture ◽  
The Russian Language

In Estonia, there is only one official language. At the same time about 25–29 % of the population in Estonia considers Russian as their native language. The area of the Russian language in Estonia is located mostly in the northeastern county (Ida-Virumaa). Trying to integrate the region into the Estonian-speaking space leads to the building of Estonian-language cultural and educational institutions, while the country leaders seem to be ready to use the Russian language in the communication with Russian-speaking minority. At the same time, there is a tendency to reduce the share of Russian language education: opposition requires complete and immediate liquidation, while the government still insists on the gradual changes in the system, when there will be only a small number of Russian-language educational institutions. However, programs with partial teaching in Russian have remained at higher educational institutions, and some Russian-language conferences are still held at research centers. Estonia uses Russian speakers to attract foreigners who want to study Russian in Europe and to be taught by Russian native speakers. The Language Act regulates the correlation of Estonian and Russian in official institutions and the service sector. The Language Inspectorate constantly checks the compliance of services with the Language Act, at the same time infringing on the rights of the Russian-speaking population, which are also specified in the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities. The popularity of recently appeared Russian-language channel ETV+ cannot be compared with Russian federal channels. At the same time, the appearance of the TV programs “My Estonias” and “My Truth”, which create dialogue between the communities, is a good sign. These programs were launched due to the cultural interaction, in which the theater played a role of a platform for negotiations between Estonians and Russians. The problems of the Russian-speaking population outlined in theatrical productions are also caused by its heterogeneity, since language is not an unequivocal sign of national identity.

A CASE STUDY OF NL INFLUENCE IN UNIS FKIP ENGLISH DEPARTMENT STUDENTS' INTERLANGUAGE

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-54
Author(s):  
Irmala Sukendra ◽  
Agus Mulyana ◽  
Imam Sudarmaji
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Universal Grammar ◽  
Similar System ◽  
The One ◽  
L1 Acquisition

Regardless to the facts that English is being taught to Indonesian students starting from early age, many Indonesian thrive in learning English. They find it quite troublesome for some to acquire the language especially to the level of communicative competence. Although Krashen (1982:10) states that “language acquirers are not usually aware of the fact that they are acquiring language, but are only aware of the fact that they are using the language for communication”, second language acquisition has several obstacles for learners to face and yet the successfulness of mastering the language never surmounts to the one of the native speakers. Learners have never been able to acquire the language as any native speakers do. Mistakes are made and inter-language is unavoidable. McNeili in Ellis (1985, p. 44) mentions that “the mentalist views of L1 acquisition hypothesizes the process of acquisition consists of hypothesis-testing, by which means the grammar of the learner’s mother tongue is related to the principles of the ‘universal grammar’.” Thus this study intends to find out whether the students go through the phase of interlanguage in their attempt to acquire second language and whether their interlanguage forms similar system as postulated by linguists (Krashen).

Modernisation of Higher Education – Willful Action or Wishful Thinking? The Case of Bulgaria

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 3-17
Author(s):  
Elena Blagoeva
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
National Level ◽  
Sustainable Growth ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Case Study Methodology ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Eu

The impact of the last global economic crisis (2008) on the European economy put a strain on higher education (HE), yet it also pushed the sector towards intensive reforms and improvements. This paper focuses on the “Strategy for the Development of Higher Education in the Republic of Bulgaria 2014-2020”. With a case study methodology, we explore the strategic endeavours of the Bulgarian government to comply with the European directions and to secure sustainable growth for the HE sector. Our research question is ‘How capable is the Bulgarian HE Strategy to overcome the economic and systemic restraints of Bulgarian higher education?’. Because the development of strategies for HE within the EU is highly contextual, a single qualitative case study was chosen as the research approach. HE institutions are not ivory towers, but subjects to a variety of external and internal forces. Within the EU, this is obviated by the fact that Universities obtain their funds from institutions such as governments, students and their families, donors, as well as EU-level programmes. Therefore, to explore how these pressures interact to affect strategic action on national level, the case method is well suited as it enabled us to study the phenomena thoroughly and deeply. The paper suggests the actions proposed within the Strategy have the potential to overcome the delay, the regional isolation and the negative impact of the economic crisis on the country. Nevertheless, the key elements on which the success or failure of this Strategy hinges are the control mechanisms and the approach to implementation. Shortcomings in these two aspects of strategic actions in HE seem to mark the difference between gaining long-term benefits and merely saving face in front of international institutions.

After the 2008 Financial Crash

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Hood ◽  
Rozana Himaz
Keyword(s):  
Financial Crisis ◽  
Global Financial Crisis ◽  
The Other ◽  
Political Debate ◽  
Deficit Reduction ◽  
The Eu

This chapter describes the long 2010–15 fiscal squeeze under the first Conservative–Liberal coalition since the early 1920s, in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis and with debt and deficit at levels not seen for four decades or more. It included sharp political debate over timing, depth, and tax/spending balance of fiscal squeeze, with most of the coalition squeeze based on its Labour predecessor’s plans, and the deficit reduction outcome roughly the same as those Labour plans, principally because of shortfall on the revenue side. This episode was marked by a repeat of ‘bear trap’ tactics by the incumbents, and the post-squeeze 2015 election rewarded one party in the coalition, while the other party was heavily punished and so was the Labour Opposition. How far the victory of ‘Vote Leave’ (Brexit) in the 2016 referendum on UK membership of the EU can be attributed to fiscal squeeze is debatable.

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