CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2023
| Author | Анастасія Тесленко |
|---|---|
| Title | Reinventing Language: Agency and Linguistic Switching in the Wartime Ukraine |
| Summary | This research is centered around the experience of Ukrainian citizens who were brought up in Russian-speaking households but later decided to switch to the Ukrainian language. After the 2022 full-scale Russian invasion, many Ukrainian felt the need to abandon the Russian language in their everyday life and turn to Ukrainian instead of it. However, as this thesis shows, changing the primary language of communication is a complicated and time-consuming process. The first aim of this research is to understand how massive events such as war reflect on mundane practices such as the use of language. Secondly, it explores the individual trajectories of people switching to the Ukrainian language and the challenges they encounter in the process. To achieve what has been stated above, I conducted 16 in-depth interviews with Ukrainians of various ages and professions as a part of my fieldwork in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. I argue that linguistic switching acts as a tool of performing agency and national belonging; it allows people to create safe spaces and encourages comradeship in the times of extreme danger. |
| Supervisor | Kowalski Alexandra; Fabiani Jean-Louis |
| Department | Sociology MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2023/teslenko_anastasiia.pdf |
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