Belarusian Language: What Belarusans Speak Daily

Belarus has two official languages: Belarusian and Russian. However, Russian is the most commonly spoken language in the country, with 70% of the population using it in their homes, compared to 23% for Belarusian. The country's language policy has been heavily influenced by its history, with Russian and Polish historically being introduced by occupying powers. In the 20th century, the Belarusian language was suppressed by the Soviet Union and then later by President Lukashenko's government. Despite this, the language is still spoken by millions of people and is taught in schools.

Russian is the most common language used at home in Belarus

Russian is the most widely spoken language in Belarus, with 70% of the population using it as their primary home language. This is despite the fact that Belarusian is one of the country's two official languages, along with Russian. The dominance of Russian in Belarus can be attributed to the country's history of being ruled by other nations and kingdoms, as well as the influence of the Soviet Union, which favoured the Russian language over Belarusian.

Following its independence in 1991, Belarusian enjoyed a brief period of popularity and was the country's sole official language. However, this led to public protests and, after a controversial 1995 referendum, Russian was reinstated as an official language. This referendum, in which 88.3% of voters supported equal status for Russian and Belarusian, resulted in a further increase in the use of Russian throughout the country.

The number of people speaking Belarusian at home has declined over time. In 1999, approximately 36.7% of the population spoke Belarusian at home, but by 2009, this number had decreased to 11.9%. It is worth noting that a significant proportion of the population, approximately 30%, speak a mixture of Russian and Belarusian known as Trasianka.

While Belarusian is the mother tongue of 53.2% of the population, Russian is the primary language of communication and instruction in schools. It is also the language used in a large number of official documents and government affairs. The decline in the use of Belarusian can be attributed to various factors, including historical influences, political decisions, and the lack of support for the language in education and media.

In recent years, there have been efforts to revive the Belarusian language, with some language support groups advocating for increased literacy and usage. Additionally, the current political and economic conflicts with Russia may also influence a potential shift in the country's language landscape.

Belarusian is the mother tongue of 53.2% of the population

The Belarusian language is the mother tongue of 53.2% of the population. It is one of the two official languages in the Republic of Belarus, alongside Russian. It is also spoken in some parts of Russia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, and Ukraine by Belarusian minorities in those countries.

The earliest known documents from ethnic Belarusian territories date from the 12th century. Most of these are saints' vitae and sermons written in the Church Slavonic language. In the 13th and 14th centuries, an increasing number of texts, mainly official records and other types of documents, began to show phonetic, grammatical, and lexical characteristics that were regarded as typically Belarusian.

In the late 14th and 15th centuries, Church Slavonic religious writings in East Slavonic territories underwent a process of archaization known as "rebulgarisation". This change made Church Slavonic even less comprehensible to the general population, and, along with the political rise of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, it contributed to the emergence of a written language based on an East Slavonic vernacular. This new language became the official language of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and was used by the authorities, in offices, and in diplomatic correspondence.

In the 19th century, poets and intellectuals inspired by the language use of the peasantry contributed to a new basis for a modern Belarusian literary language. However, the language policy of the Russian Empire treated Belarusian as a dialect of Russian, and after the January Uprising of 1863, all tentative steps toward Belarusian linguistic and cultural emancipation were blocked by the authorities.

After the liberalizations that followed the 1905 Russian Revolution, a ban on printed texts in Belarusian was lifted, and efforts for the creation of a modern Belarusian literary language intensified. A fundamental role in the development of literary norms in modern Belarusian was played by the newspaper Nasha Niva, published from 1906 to 1915.

During the Soviet era, the Belarusian language was suppressed in favour of Russian, and it continues to be marginalized today. In the 1999 census, 85.6% of citizens with Belarusian nationality declared Belarusian as their mother tongue, but this number decreased to 60.8% in the 2009 census. While Belarusian is taught in schools, none of the universities in Belarus provide Belarusian-language education, and the number of Belarusian language lessons in schools is declining.

Belarusian is written in Cyrillic and is closely related to Ukrainian and Russian

The Belarusian language is written in Cyrillic and is closely related to Ukrainian and Russian. It is one of the two official languages in Belarus, alongside Russian. It is also spoken in some parts of Russia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, and Ukraine by Belarusian minorities in those countries.

Belarusian is an East Slavic language that is historically the native language of most Belarusians. It is closely related to Ukrainian and Russian, with which it shares many grammatical and lexical features. Belarusian, Russian, and Ukrainian also retain a degree of mutual intelligibility. Belarusian is written in the Cyrillic script, which was first used as an alphabet for the Old Church Slavonic language. The modern Belarusian Cyrillic alphabet was defined in 1918 and consists of thirty-two letters.

The Belarusian language descends from a language generally referred to as Ruthenian (13th to 18th centuries), which in turn descended from Old East Slavic (10th to 13th centuries). Belarusian dialects gradually shade into Russian and Ukrainian dialects on their respective borders. The central dialects form the basis for Standard Belarusian. The language also contains many Polish loanwords due to historical influences.

The earliest known texts in Old Belarusian date back to the 13th and 14th centuries. In the late 14th and 15th centuries, Church Slavonic religious writings underwent an archaization known as "rebulgarisation" to counteract the alleged "falsification" of the divine word by vernacular influences. This made Church Slavonic even less comprehensible to the population, contributing to the emergence of a written language on an East Slavonic basis. This language was the official language of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which included present-day Belarus, Lithuania, and Ukraine. It was used by the authorities, in offices, and in diplomatic correspondence.

In the 19th century, poets and intellectuals inspired by the language use of the peasantry contributed to the development of a modern Belarusian literary language. However, the Russian Empire treated Belarusian as a dialect of Russian, and after the January Uprising of 1863, all steps towards Belarusian linguistic and cultural emancipation were blocked by the authorities. It was only after the 1905 Russian Revolution that a ban on printed texts in Belarusian was lifted, and efforts to create a modern Belarusian literary language intensified.

During the Soviet era, the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR) initially pursued a policy of Belarusization in the 1920s, aiming to increase the use of Belarusian in public life. However, in the early 1930s, Soviet leaders began an ideological struggle against "local nationalisms," resulting in grave repressions and the physical elimination of the pro-Belarusian intelligentsia. In 1934, Russian was declared the language of interethnic communication for the entire Soviet Union, further marginalizing Belarusian.

After World War II, the BSSR became the Soviet republic with the highest share of immigrants from the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR), and Russian-speaking specialists often held leadership positions. This contributed to the spread of Trasianka, a mixed speech in which Belarusian and Russian elements and structures alternate arbitrarily. Today, Russian is the most widely spoken language in Belarus, and its dominance has led to a decline in the use of Belarusian, both in families and in public life.

Trasianka is a mix of Russian and Belarusian spoken in some parts of Belarus

Trasianka, or Belarusian-Russian Mixed Speech (BRMS), is a mix of Russian and Belarusian spoken in some parts of Belarus. The term Trasianka is derived from the Belarusian word for low-quality fodder, made by mixing hay with straw. The term was first used in the second half of the 1980s to describe the mixing of Belarusian and Russian, and carries a negative connotation.

The mixing of languages in Belarus is not a new phenomenon. For a long time, Belarusian territories have been borderlands, where local dialects came into contact with more socially dominant languages such as Polish or Russian. However, the specific mix of languages now recognised as Trasianka emerged following World War II. Post-war industrialisation led to substantial labour migration from rural areas to towns, and the number of urban dwellers increased from 21% in the 1950s to 66% in the 1990s. Villagers brought their dialects of Belarusian to towns, where Russian was the dominant language. This led to a struggle for linguistic accommodation, resulting in the emergence of Trasianka.

The dominance of the Russian language in Belarus has been influenced by a history of Russification, first by the Russian Empire and then by the Soviet Union. After World War II, ethnic Russians from other parts of the Soviet Union moved to Belarus and took on leadership roles. This contributed to the perception of Russian as the language of social advancement.

Trasianka is considered by some to be a dialect of Belarusian or Russian. Linguists' opinions vary, with some claiming it is a variety of Belarusian, and others suggesting it may develop into a regional dialect of Russian. However, the mixing of languages is not unique to Belarus, and similar phenomena can be observed in other parts of the world, such as Surzhyk in Ukraine and Spanglish in the United States.

While Trasianka is stigmatised and considered an indicator of poor education, it is used by Belarusians from all educational levels and age groups. It is particularly common in rural areas and among older generations. The use of Trasianka has declined in recent years, with younger Belarusians increasingly favouring Russian.

Russian and Polish were introduced to the educational system when Russia and Poland laid claim to the country

The history of Belarus is largely defined by its geographical location, sandwiched between Russia and Poland. This has resulted in a complex linguistic situation, with the country's language being heavily influenced by its neighbours.

In the 19th century, Russia and Poland began to lay claim to the country, and as a result, Russian and Polish were introduced to the educational system. This marked a significant shift in the country's language dynamics, as previously, Belarusian had been the dominant language, spoken by the nobility. With the introduction of Russian and Polish, Belarusian began to be associated with the lower classes. This trend continued until the end of the century, when a Belarusian revival movement emerged, aiming to protest Russian and Polish influences.

During this period, the Belarusian language faced suppression and was largely confined to vernaculars and folklore passed down orally. The language policy of the Russian Empire further contributed to the decline of Belarusian, as it treated Belarusian as a dialect of Russian. This resulted in Belarusian being blocked from official records and other types of documents. However, the movement of Romanticism in the 19th century played a crucial role in preserving the language. Poets and intellectuals inspired by the language use of the peasantry contributed to a new basis for a modern Belarusian literary language.

The introduction of Russian and Polish to the educational system in Belarus had a lasting impact on the country's language dynamics. It led to a decrease in the use of Belarusian, with it becoming associated with the lower classes. Despite efforts to revive and promote the use of Belarusian, it continues to face competition from Russian and Polish influences.

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