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Programme: accepted abstracts

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Abstract ID: 143

Thematic Session (Papers belonging to this Thematic Session)

Language Change in Central Asia

Authors: Ahn, Elise S.; Landis, David; Smagulova, Juldyz
Submitted by: Ahn, Elise S. (Kazakhstan Institute of Management, Economics, and Strategic Research (KIMEP), Kazakhstan)

According to the World Bank (2009), over 50% of the world population is considered urban dwellers. By development standards, the percentage of urban dwellers is an industry accepted indicator that emerging economies are modernizing their infrastructures in order to position themselves as actors in a 21^st century global economy. This has been true when looking at the Central Asian Republics, which include: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and the different ethno-linguistic groups represented within these borders and their diasporic populations. In these countries, 65% of their total populations are considered urban dwellers. But what does this mean and what implications does this have for the social transformations that began in the late 1980s and continue to the present?

In the Central Asian case, urbanization has not been strictly the process of people moving to urban areas because of various push factors like more economic opportunities, education, resources, etc. Urbanization has also triggered other processes like accelerated social stratification, overcrowding in public schools, as well as what Alex Danilovich (2010) refers to as the “ruralization” of Kazakhstani cities, a concept that can be extended to the other Central Asian cities as well. 

And while cities are and continue to be important sites to for social scientists to observe transition and change, in this region, the macro-context they are situated in still fundamentally shape policy agendas. A top priority for these national governments is their establishment as independent and legitimate political and global entities. Equally important is the construction of national identities (Schlyter, 2003). An added layer of complexity is the continuation of the political maneuvering from the international community that took place during the last few centuries, i.e., the “Great Game” which continues today in soft power domains, e.g., economics, language, and culture.  These external and internal power dynamics are further complicated by the enormous challenges that many of these countries are facing including: ethno-linguistic and religious conflict, population movement, poverty, unemployment, and increasing social stratification. All of these processes have been accelerated and linked to the rapid processes of urbanization that many cities in these countries have been undergoing post-1992.

This thematic strand will explore the way societies are changing by examining the various linguistic reforms that are being debated and implemented in urban spaces in this region, particularly focusing on: 

• In what ways have the construction of urban cores and the creation of wealth contributed to the formation of new social elites and changing notions of what constitutes socio-cultural-linguistic capital?

• What has been (and continues to be) the impact of urbanization and demographic change on language change, particularly as it relates to language shift and revival, as well as education reform in Central Asia?  

• How is the institutionalization of language and literacy policies through education with a focus on affirming ethnic languages and the composition of national historiographies contributing to the construction of particular national identities? and

• How has language been used as a tool in the politicization of transnational identities and histories (e.g., pan-Turkism, pro-Russian, pro-EU movements)?  

Papers within this thematic strand should consider one or more of the aforementioned questions in relation to current discussions about national identity, language policy and planning processes, education and social stratification, and changing notions of socio-cultural capital in Central Asia, which is currently experiencing dramatic contextual change as a result of economic change and varying degrees of geo-political instability. The overall aim of this thematic strand is to encourage discussion about these different lines of research that will contribute to the broader field of Sociolinguistics by examining this understudied and emerging region.

References

Danilovich, A. (2010).  Kazakhs, a nation of two identities. Politics and revived tradition. In Problems of Post-Communismm, 57(1), 51-58, doi: 10.2753/ppc1075- 821657005.                                                           

Dave, B. (2007). Kazakhstan – ethnicity, language and power. New York City, NY: Routledge.

Fainstein, S.S. & Campbell, S. (2002). Readings in urban theory. Malden, MA: Blackwell.

LeGates, R.T. & Stout, F. (Eds.) (2005). The city reader. New York City, NY: Routledge.

Schlyter, B. (2003). Sociolinguistic changes in Central Asian societies. In J. Maurais and M. Morris (Eds.). Languages in a globalizing world (pp. 157-187). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

World Bank. (2009). Urban development. Retrieved on September 12, 2011 from: http://data.worldbank.org/topic/urban-development