In the last few years there has been an increasing interest in the role the Russian language still plays in the successor states of the former Soviet Union. The Russian spoken in these countries displays peculiar characteristic features that lead some linguists to speak about ‘national’ varieties. In this contribution, after a presentation of the Ukrainian language situation, we will describe some of the linguistic features that mark the variety of Russian spoken in Ukraine. Subsequently we will examine some topical questions related to the status and the spheres of usage of the Russian language in Ukraine. Finally, we will discuss the critical issue of a Ukrainian ‘national’ variety of Russian.
The Russian Language in Ukraine: some unsettled questions about its status as a national variety
Del Gaudio S
2012-01-01
Abstract
In the last few years there has been an increasing interest in the role the Russian language still plays in the successor states of the former Soviet Union. The Russian spoken in these countries displays peculiar characteristic features that lead some linguists to speak about ‘national’ varieties. In this contribution, after a presentation of the Ukrainian language situation, we will describe some of the linguistic features that mark the variety of Russian spoken in Ukraine. Subsequently we will examine some topical questions related to the status and the spheres of usage of the Russian language in Ukraine. Finally, we will discuss the critical issue of a Ukrainian ‘national’ variety of Russian.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
