Throughout the history of Russia and the Soviet Union , the Ukrainian language has been viewed as less prestigious, and intellectual of a language than Russian. Historically, rulers such as Catherine the Great have tried to either restrict the use of Ukrainian in the Slavic people, or eliminate it completely. This long standing governmental rejection and condescending attitude toward Ukrainian has created some disturbing connotations and generalizations about those that speak Ukrainian. My father, Vadim Vashchenko, a man fluent in both Russian and Ukrainian, among a variety of others, reveals some of the ideas and stereotypes associated with the Ukrainian language by the majority of the Russian speaking population.
He was born in Kiev , and learned to speak Ukrainian both because it was taught in school, and because it was occasionally spoken in the household. Although most Ukrainians did not take this language seriously in school, my father thought it was valuable to learn it, and valued it for its connection with his heritage and with the history of his country. He explains that not only was it considered uneducated and vulgar to speak Ukrainian (which he did not care about), but it also had possible legal consequences due to the Communist regime's negative attitude toward the language and the culture as a whole (which was a more effective motivator to avoid the use of Ukrainian in public).
In many nations, there is a distinct rift between those that speak Russian and those that speak Ukrainian. Even today, Ukrainian is associated with rural areas, blue collar workers, and education that is not up to par. In Russia , intellectuals whose primary language is Ukrainian are regarded as unprofessional, and find it considerably more difficult to find jobs, and gain fame. The artistic aspect of Ukrainians has also suffered, as any form of writing, literature, or poetry that is produced in Ukrainian is considered vulgar and common, and is rejected by many Russian speakers.
Transcription
Q: So how did this affect you personally, because you are fluent in both Russian and Ukrainian?
A: It affected me personally first of all Ukrainian was virtually confined to a couple of very narrow areas, you learned it in school, you read a couple of literary magazines, but you were not supposed to use it in everyday life. If you were a worker or a blue collar worker, it was ok to speak Ukrainian in everyday life, nobody actually cared, but usually blue collar workers were held lower if they didn't speak Russian. About intellectuals, if you speak Ukrainian you are suspicious. The KGB which had the informants everywhere might consider you as a hidden nationalist so you were against great soviet union, so might be prohibited you might be oppressed whatever. You can't get promotion, you can't feed your family. So unless you are not specifically historian or writing ...creating Ukrainian literature, soviet Ukrainian literature, because anything…you can't publish a novel where your Ukrainian man character doesn't have Ukrainian best friend, it is so called “friendship of peoples”. So if you speak Ukrainian you're not ours, you are possibly imperialistic agent, so I spoke Ukrainian within circle of my friends who informants are and we did not tell jokes in the presence of these people, political jokes, and we did not speak Ukrainian in the presence of these people. That's how it was.
Q: So not a lot of people can tell the difference between Russian and Ukrainian, could you give an example of maybe some of the pronunciation differences, like how does someone distinguish between someone with a Ukrainian accent or someone who doesn't speak Ukrainian correctly.
A: Let me tell you this, I can't illustrate correct Ukrainian, I can't recognize it here, from incorrect for your listeners who do not understand this language, how it sounds I will…let me give you a sample in Russian and Ukrainian. Russian this is a great Pushkin, how it sounds: [Russian text]
That's Russian.
Ukrainian is much softer: [Ukrainian text] That's Ukrainian classical poet Maxim Rilsky who spent just three years in the concentration camp and somehow survived and after he returned from the concentration camp he actually wrote only about comrade Lenin, comrade Stalin, the communist party and other crap of this kind.
Q: So would you say that a typical Russian citizen can distinguish between correct and incorrect Ukrainian and a Ukrainian accent as opposed to pure Russian
A: Yes it's easily recognizable for many Russians. Don't forget that after Catherine the great in 1775 eliminated Zoporojien Kozaks, some of them to Turkish provinces, some of them moved to the southeast and eventually they created the so-called Kozak army close to caucus region, caucus mountains, and until the middle of the 20 th century they actually spoke their dialect which was purely Ukrainian.
And Russians can recognize, you see even those who speak Russian in Ukraine, they don't speak pure Russian, You see the word “what” have you ever heard from me correct Moscow pronunciation “shot” or Petersburg pronunciation “chto” ? I always say “sho” “sho” that's Ukrainian pronunciation of this word…..
The pronunciation differences, and the general differences in grammar and syntax between Russian and Ukrainian are not very significant, and it seems almost ludicrous that languages whose roots are so similar, and whose cultures are so closely linked would be held in such different regards by Russian citizens. Russian is the traditional language of the church, even though historically, ancient religious chants were performed in a special religious dialect that was virtually identical to Ukrainian. The situation seems very similar to a number of cases in which a country invades a weaker one and the native people are forced to change their culture as well as their native language. In the case of Ukraine , which has almost always either been under direct rule of the Russian Empire, or under its strong influence, the Ukrainian language has been repeatedly shunned, discouraged, or even banned and forcibly restricted.
As a result, the Ukrainian people themselves have developed mental stereotypes of people that speak Ukrainian as their primary language. Those that were born into Ukrainian families are often ashamed of their heritage, and attempt to learn Russian as soon as possible. Many believe, and often rightly so, that the only way they can move up in the social, educational, and financial hierarchy is to become proficient, if not fluent in Russian. This “prestige” language had become so idealized in Ukraine that the people themselves did not want to associate with Ukrainian, because of its continuous belittling by the government.
Only recently has any action been taken to not only reclaim Ukrainian as the true language of Ukraine , but also to end to stigma associated with it, and return to Ukrainian culture as opposed to one that emulates Russia . The “Orange Revolution” in the past few years in Ukraine, in which Yushchenko beat out Yanukovich for political power in Ukraine. He has now proceeded to employ “Ukranification” in Ukraine , where the native language will once again be used in schools, in the legal system, and in government positions.
Political Culture and National Identity in Russian-Ukrainian Relations
by Mikhail A. Molchanov
About the
Author
My name is Svetlana, and i was born in Kiev, Ukraine, where most of my immediate and extended family is from. When i was 4 my parents and i immigrated into the United States and lived in Brooklyn, NY until i was in 2nd grade, at which point we moved to Raleigh, NC. Although i was not exposed to Ukranian society, i was significantly influenced by my traditional Jewish and Russian upbringing, and can speak Russian fluently. I studied both Russian and Spanish at the AP level in high school, and have traveled briefly to Canada and Mexico. Additionally, i have been extensively immersed into traditional Indian culture because i have managed to aquire at least a dozen Indian friends who speak a variety of languages, including my best friend, who has declared me an honorary Indian.
My ability to use information technology, although dwarfed by that of my computer programming family members, is fairly decent. I can use all of the programs and am familiar with most of the programs on the computer, and rarely have difficulty with basic elements of modern technology.
My interest in music, art and theater is enormous, although only as a fan. I am a complete nerd for art, architecture and art history, and i have spent many a day wandering around various art museums (and my parents have had to physically drag me out of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York at least a dozen times). In addition, i have a deep appreciation for music and theater, for which i can thank my parents, who did their best to expose me to concerts, plays, and opera when i was growing up. Obviously, Placido Domingo is not my favorite musician, but i can and do listen to anything from classical music to Guns N Roses, to Panic! at the Disco.
My goal in taking this course is to further my knowledge of language, especially how it relates to the development of humans today and the effects of various languages and issues on society and current events. I am also really interested in the psychological aspects of this topic.
Throughout the history of Russia and the Soviet Union , the Ukrainian language has been viewed as less prestigious, and intellectual of a language than Russian. Historically, rulers such as Catherine the Great have tried to either restrict the use of Ukrainian in the Slavic people, or eliminate it completely. This long standing governmental rejection and condescending attitude toward Ukrainian has created some disturbing connotations and generalizations about those that speak Ukrainian. My father, Vadim Vashchenko, a man fluent in both Russian and Ukrainian, among a variety of others, reveals some of the ideas and stereotypes associated with the Ukrainian language by the majority of the Russian speaking population.
My name is Svetlana, and i was born in Kiev, Ukraine, where most of my immediate and extended family is from. When i was 4 my parents and i immigrated into the United States and lived in Brooklyn, NY until i was in 2nd grade, at which point we moved to Raleigh, NC. Although i was not exposed to Ukranian society, i was significantly influenced by my traditional Jewish and Russian upbringing, and can speak Russian fluently. I studied both Russian and Spanish at the AP level in high school, and have traveled briefly to Canada and Mexico. Additionally, i have been extensively immersed into traditional Indian culture because i have managed to aquire at least a dozen Indian friends who speak a variety of languages, including my best friend, who has declared me an honorary Indian.