Ukraine War Spurs Kazakhstan to Embrace its Own Language.

Ukraine War Spurs Kazakhstan to Embrace its Own La...

## Kazakhstan Embraces Linguistic Sovereignty Amidst Geopolitical Shifts Driven by a desire to solidify its national identity and spurred on by the geopolitical landscape, Kazakhstan is accelerating its efforts to strengthen the Kazakh language across all facets of society. The 2023-2029 Language Policy Concept, a comprehensive plan designed to elevate the status and usage of Kazakh, is gaining momentum, signaling a significant shift away from the dominance of Russian. Central to this initiative is the expansion of Kazakh into key sectors like science, technology, media, and governance. This includes a gradual transition from the Cyrillic script to the Latin alphabet, a move intended to modernize the language and align it with global communication standards. The government is actively investing in projects aimed at revitalizing Kazakh-language media. Minister of Culture Aida Balaeva claims that Kazakh-language media consumption now dominates the market, reaching an impressive 80% of the audience. While independent verification of this figure is difficult, the trend towards increased Kazakh media consumption is undeniable. This revitalization isn't just a domestic affair. The inclusion of Kazakh in Hollywood dubbing, alongside only 29 other languages, highlights its growing international recognition, fueled by increasing demand within Kazakhstan itself. Furthermore, the integration of Kazakh into social media platforms, apps, and video games is making the language more accessible and appealing to younger generations. This linguistic shift is a relatively recent development. According to Rustam Burnashev, Associate Professor at the German-Kazakh University in Almaty, Kazakh was historically marginalized as a language of education due to the pervasive influence of Russian during the Soviet era. Now, it is emerging as a powerful symbol of national identity. Enrollment figures in Kazakh-language schools reflect this change, rising from 32.4% in 1991 to 66% in 2019. This suggests a potential decline in Russian proficiency among younger generations, particularly outside of the northern and central regions where large ethnic Russian populations reside. Kazakhstan's Soviet past left a legacy of Russian as a lingua franca, born out of the forced resettlement of various ethnic minorities to the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic. This created multiethnic communities where Russian served as a common language. However, more than three decades after independence, Kazakhstan is undergoing a significant demographic transformation. With a growing Kazakh population, now exceeding 70% of the total, the country is actively shaping its national identity and prioritizing the widespread use and development of its titular language. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine appears to have further accelerated this process, reinforcing the need for Kazakhstan to assert its cultural and linguistic sovereignty.