CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2021
| Author | Mosiashvili, Mariam |
|---|---|
| Title | Official State Language Acquisition as a Boundary Crossing-Experiences of Young Georgian Azerbaijanis |
| Summary | The thesis explores the experiences undergone through the state language acquisition process by young Georgian Azerbaijanis. Based on 12 semi-structured interviews, their exposure to Georgian was seen as crossing a symbolic and social boundary of belonging accompanied with identity negotiation struggles. The research addresses the gap in academic literature regarding the individual experiences of Georgian Azerbaijanis' first generation who acquired the language after the 2010 education reforms aimed at civic integration. It is argued that language boundary crossing is related to complex identification struggles. On one hand, state language learning makes young individuals better integrated and gives them a tool to claim political identification with Georgian citizenship. On the other hand, through language boundary-crossing, individuals perceive discrimination, ethnic prejudice and relative deprivation, leading to the feeling of otherness. The Georgian Azerbaijanis' perception that they are not accepted through the state language acquisition in the same way they expected and the new perspective on ethnic issues make their distinct ethnicity a salient part of everyday life. The research discusses the daily identity struggles, feelings of in-betweenness, and identity negotiation strategies such as producing bottom-up narratives of multiethnicity, civic integration and challenging the exclusive understanding of what it means to be a citizen of Georgia. The analysis indicates that the way individuals relate to and perceive language through boundary-crossing can affect the salience and relevance of their categories of identification and lead to complex negotiation processes. It challenges theoretical assumptions about one-sided theories of assimilation or ethnic retention. |
| Supervisor | Pogonyi, Szabolcs |
| Department | Nationalism Studies MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2021/mosiashvili_mariam.pdf |
Visit the CEU Library.
© 2007-2021, Central European University