Language Follows Power: The Linguistic Free Market in the Old Soviet Bloc

Author(s): Marshall R. Singer

Source: Foreign Affairs , Jan. - Feb., 1998, Vol. 77, No. 1 (Jan. - Feb., 1998), pp. 19-24
Published by: Council on Foreign Relations

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/20048359

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 Language Follows Power
The Linguistic Free Market in the Old Soviet Bloc

Marshall R Singer

Along with political and economic As Moscow's power waned across

domination, a great power exerts the Soviet Union, in Eastern Europe,
tremendous cultural influence over its and on the periphery of empire, so did
colonies or satellites. Language offers a the linguistic hold of Russian. Six
particularly dramatic illustration, as years after the demise of the U.S.S.R.,
with the linguistic quilt the French among the 15 erstwhile republics and
and the British stitched across Africa. 20 countries of the old Soviet bloc,
When empires decline, so does their Russian is the official language only in
cultural sway, including the use of Russia and?after the referendum on
their language. For insight into chang the June 1997 uni?n treaty with Russia?
ing power relations after communism's in Belarus, where it has equal status
fall, listen to what the former Soviet with Belarusan. By comparison,
bloc is speaking. almost four decades after the collapse
People's attachment to language and of the British and French empires,
the culture it embodies?or resentment English or French is still one of the
of them, in the case of a conqueror's official languages in more than half the
tongue and culture?runs deep. But former dependencies, and many use
whether the motivation is emotional or only English or French.1
pragmatic, ardent nationalism or the de Moreover, as the newly independent
sire to get along, any language people and the once nominally but now gen
choose for themselves and their children uinely autonomous states turn to powers
is a function of their perception ofthat other than Russia for their economic,
language's standing in the world and of military, and other needs, their citizens
the relative importance of the nation or are increasingly speaking those powers'
nations that use it. languages, along with their own native

Marshall R Singer is Professor of International and Intercultural Affairs

at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, University of
Pittsburgh. He is the author of Weak States in a World of Powers: The Dynamics of
International Relationships.

[19]

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 MarshallR Singer
tongues. Russian is no longer the lan learned to speak it. Often it was more
guage that elites and people concerned the language of the cities than the
with getting ahead are encouraging countryside. Party officials, local man
their children to study. English is, fol agers of factories and collectives, and
lowed by German, with French often a people tied to the modern sectors of the
distant third. Language use serves as a economy had to know it, but not neces
barometer of the severity of the Soviet sarily farmers. Russian was spoken
collapse, the attraction of Europe, and most in the richest republics and least
the allure of English, which is emerg in the poorest. In many of the republics
ing as the contemporary lingua franca where knowledge of Russian was and is
of the West and large reaches of the widespread, the proportion of ethnic
rest of the world. Russians in the population was high or
(as in Belarus and Ukraine) the national
THE REPUBLICS TURN THEIR BACKS
language was very similar to Russian.
Russian was never thought of as an in As Moscow's hold weakened, national
ternational language until the Soviet ism arose throughout the Soviet Union,
Union came to be considered a super encouraging among the non-Russian
power during the Cold War. In czarist nationalities a rejection of everything
Russia, aristocrats and educated people Russian. The effect was especially pro
spoke French, frequently as their only nounced in the areas of language and cul
language. Pushkin learned Russian ture, says Tatiana Marchenko, a senior fel
from his nanny; his parents spoke to low at the Russian Academy of Science.
him solely in French. "The Russian language is disappearing from
From the time of their incorporation the lives of the younger generations" outside
into the Russian empire, all the lands Russia, she observes. She points to the di
that later became Soviet republics had minishing number of schools and univer
Russian as at least one of their official sities where instruction is in Russian.2
languages. Sometimes the Soviet gov The same holds true for book pub
ernment made efforts to support the lishing and television. While overall
native languages; more often it sup releases of new books were down every
pressed them. But although Russian where in the last years of the Soviet
was mandatory in schools in the Soviet Union because of paper shortages and
Union, its adoption was far from price increases, publication of native
wholehearted. In half the republics, language books rose, according to
less than 50 percent of the population Marchenko. Between 1986 and 1990,

*It is true that in many former colonies English or French was the only language spoken in
all parts and thus has been used to hold the country together after independence. Russian does
not play a similar role in any of the non-Russian former republics. Also, all the states of the Soviet
bloc and the republics of the U.S.S.R. were states (of sorts) before the Russians arrived.
tatiana Marchenko, 'The New Social and Cultural Situation and the Ouster of Russian
Speaking Population from the Former Union Republics," in The New Russian Diaspora: Russian
Minorities in the Former Soviet Republics, ed. Emil Payin et al., Armonk M.E. Sharpe, 1994, p. 147.

[2o] FOREIGN AFFAIRS Volume77No.i

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 Language Follows Power
except in Ukraine and Belarus, the the top of the Communist Party or the
number of foreign-language texts pub government. Then they had to be fairly
lished also increased?at least 300 fluent in Russian.
percent in Moldavia (now Moldova), In countries such as Afghanistan,
Azerbaijan, and Kazakst?n, 150 percent Cuba, and Vietnam, on the periphery
in the Central Asian republics, and 20 of the Soviet sphere but still under
to 30 percent in Latvia, Estonia, and heavy Russian influence, the percentage
Georgia. For books translated from of Russian-speakers was lower but still
Russian into native languages, star significant.3 Military and Communist
tling reductions were reported between Party officials, technicians, and others
1986 and 1990 in the Baltic and Trans were taught or picked up the language
caucasian republics and in Moldova; in during training in the Soviet Union
Lithuania, Marchenko says, transla or in working with Soviet advisers.
tions of Russian children's books fell Chinese President Jiang Zemin learned
95 percent over the same period. In Russian well enough as a student and
television, airtime once assigned to as a trainee at the Stalin Automobile
Russian-language broadcasts is now Works in Moscow in the heyday of in
devoted to broadcasts in national lan ternational communism in the 1950s
guages. But because Russian TV is fre that Boris Yeltsin complimented him
quently better than the programming on it during Jiang's trip to Russia
in local languages, recent polls show last November.
that many people in the former re The data now coming in suggest
publics favor at least some hours of that the countries that were least polit
Russian programming. ically tied to the Soviet Union and had
the fewest ethnic and cultural links
THE TIES THAT BIND LEAST
with Russia most easily gave up the
While Russian was never the official lan Russian language. When former Soviet
guage of any of the countries of Eastern bloc countries are ranked by the num
Europe, it was the second language, spo ber of post-secondary students they
ken in the higher government, military, send to Russia to study, 14 of the top
and intellectual circles. Most schools in 15 turn out to be former Soviet re
Eastern Europe taught Russian as a sec publics?some with very large ethnic
ond language, but students frequently Russian populations?while the bot
learned it the way American students tom 10 are all either Eastern European
learn foreign languages: they took or peripheral countries.4
courses, but most could never really English and German are displacing
speak it. It was a different story, though, Russian as the second language across
if they were planning to study in the the Soviet bloc, for historical but even
Soviet Union or had hopes of rising to more for practical reasons like access to

3"PeripheraT countries also include Finland, Mongolia, and Iran, all invaded by Russia at
one time or another, and North Korea.
4UNESC0 Statistical Yearbook, 1996, Lanham: UNESCO and Bernan Press, 1997.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS -January/February 1998 [21]

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 MarshallR Singer
business and professional opportunities. Russia, and is the runner-up wherever it
German's roots in Eastern Europe are is not first. This has much to do with
deep. In the Baltic states, it was the the fact that the United States is the
language of education and of sophisti sole remaining superpower. It domi
cates from the Middle Ages until World nates trade in many regions. It is the
War I. German was the official language major supplier of arms (with English
throughout the Austro-Hungarian operations manuals) and training (con
Empire during its half-century of ducted in English, if held in America)
existence from 1867 to 1918. Language for the militaries of the world. Califor
follows trade, and in Central Europe nia's Silicon Valley produces the world's
during the interwar years, Germany most advanced computer technology,
was far and away the leading trade and English sites on the World Wide
partner of virtually every country. Web, many of them American, outnum
Today Germany is again the top trade ber those in all other languages com
partner of the Eastern European na bined by an estimated 20 to 1. If a young
tions (except Slovakia, whose major person wants to study at a university in
partner is the Czech Republic, with the United States, Britain, Canada,
which it was until recently united). Australia, India, Nigeria, or many other
Most of these countries have a strong countries, she or he had better be fluent
desire to join the European Union (eu) in English. Aside from all this, because
under the joint leadership of Germany English is so widely spoken as a second
and France. The Czech Republic, language, people believe that if they
Hungary, and Poland are to be consid know it, they can get around almost
ered for membership in 1999, with anywhere they would want to go.
Estonia and Slovenia next in line. Data They are not far wrong.
from the Munich branch of the Goethe
A RUSSIAN EDUCATION
Institute, which promotes German lan
guage and culture, show that German Another indicator of the decline in
is the most widely studied foreign lan Russian power and in the perceived
guage in primary and secondary schools importance of learning Russian is the
in five former Soviet bloc countries, number of foreign students choosing to
three of which were part of the Austro study in Russia. Before the Soviet
Hungarian Empire. Of the 20 million Union's collapse, Russian universities
people around the world learning Ger and technical schools, combined with
man today, two-thirds are in Eastern government scholarships, drew the best
Europe and the former Soviet Union. students from the other republics.
But it is English that has become the Moreover, students from Eastern
common language for Eastern Europe Europe and elsewhere in the Soviet
and the Soviet bloc, as it already was for bloc came on Soviet scholarships or
large areas of the rest of the world. Eng grants from their own communist
lish is the most widely studied foreign governments or were sponsored by rel
language in eight of the 16 countries the atives who were high-ranking officials.
Goethe Institute examined, including If these youths were to assume posi

[22] FOREIGN AFFAIRS- Volume77No. 1

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 Language Follows Power
tions of influence in the communist students studying abroad to Russia, all
world, their backers believed, they had are former republics, and many have
to learn Marxist economics and imbibe large concentrations of ethnic Russians.
the Soviet viewpoint?preferably in Patrice Lumumba University is still
Moscow or Leningrad. Students, rec functioning, but not because of govern
ognizing Russia's importance in their ment scholarships or communist soli
world, aspired to do just that. No darity. Education is cheap in Russia
figures are available from communism's compared with the United States, and
apogee, but anecdotal evidence indi it is not easy to get into British,
cates the number of foreign students French, or Japanese universities. While
studying in the Soviet Union was very a Russian education may not be as
large. Patrice Lumumba University in good and is not as prestigious, it is bet
Moscow was set up for the sole purpose ter than anything most Third World
of accommodating students from East and some Eastern European students
ern Europe and the developing world. can get at home.
There is some data from the U.N. But if they can find a way, Eastern
Educational, Scientific and Cultural European families and those from else
Organization (unesco) for 1989, when where in the Soviet bloc increasingly
dissolution of the empire was just be send their children west to study busi
ginning, and much more for the 1990s. ness administration, computer science,
(The most recent available figures are medicine, and other technical subjects
from 1994 or 1995, depending on the in which Western countries are per
country or region.) In 1989, there were ceived to excel. Perhaps several hun
20,926 students from Africa studying in dred thousand students from the for
Russia; by 1994/95 the number had mer Soviet sphere are studying in
fallen to 3,762. Asia sent 31,600 students Germany, other Western European
in 1989 and 5,900 in 1994/95, South countries, or the United States. Some
America 3,400 in 1989 and 522 in students go elsewhere for linguistic, re
1994/95. Among the few individual ligious, or historical reasons, but they
countries for which unesco has data are the exceptions.
going back to 1989, Bulgaria sent 4,146 After the initial rejection of Russia
students that year and just 134 in and its language, the last few years have
1994/95, the number of Polish students witnessed some movement in the opposite
dropped from 2,221 to 130 over the same direction, notably in Belarus. Eastern
period, while the former East Germany European countries producing goods
sent 1,255 m i?S?, compared with 96 that are not competitive in Western mar
from united Germany in 1994/95. From kets may well turn back to Russia; such
year to year, the falloff in the flow is trade has increased in the last few years.
dramatic. Twenty-five former Soviet Countries not invited to join nato or the
bloc countries sent fewer students to eu or that otherwise feel slighted by the
Russia in 1994/95 than in 1993, while West may look more kindly on Russia.
only two sent a handful more. Of the 11 But if the economic, military, and political
countries that sent more than half their power of the eu and nato continues to

FOREIGN AFFAIRS -January/February 1998 [23]

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 MarshallR Singer
expand in the former Soviet bloc, while
Russia's declines, the use of Russian will
also decline.
The relationship between power and
language is summed up by the experiences
of Quoc Khoi, a Vietnamese man who
made an appearance in a May 7,1995,
New York Times article:

Quoc Khoi carries the history of

Vietnam on the tip of his tongue. As
foreign powers have come and gone, Directory of International
Mr. Khoi, who is now in his fifties, has
Organizations
learned French, then Japanese, then Hans-Albrecht Schraepler
English, then Russian. Vietnam is on its "Provides information not easily found in
own now, and Mr. Khoi is again riding other sources."?Booklist I Reference Books
Bulletin
the linguistic wave of history: He is
456 pp.
making his living teaching English.?
New Paperback Edition:
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Hans-Albrecht Schraepler
512 pp. October 1997
ISBN 0-87840-633-6, cloth, $65.00

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NAFTA and the Future of Environmental
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John J. Audley
American Governance and Public Policy series
288 pp. October 1997
ISBN 0-87840-651-4, paper, $21.95

After Development
The Transformation of the Korean Presidency
and Bureaucracy
Sung Deuk Hahm
and L. Christopher Plein
192 pp. September 1997
ISBN 0-87840-660-3, paper, $24.95

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PHONE: 800-246-9606 OR 410-516-6995
FAX: 410-516-6998

[24] FOREIGN AFFAIRS Volume77No. 1

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