ДОСЛІДЖЕННЯ ВІТАЛЬНОСТІ МАЛОПОШИРЕНИХ МОВ УКРАЇНИ: ДОСВІД І ПЕРСПЕКТИВИ

Abstract

This study summarizes the achievements of Ukrainian sociolinguistics at the turn of the 21st century in the field of studying the languages of national minorities in Ukraine. The relevance of the study lies in the influence of the new worldview paradigm. Its goal is to preserve and protect humanity’s unique cultural heritage, which is under threat of reduction or destruction. The topicality of sociolinguistic studies of the languages of national minorities is also associated with the changing socio-political context in post-Soviet countries, especially in Ukraine. Consequently, there is a need for sociolinguistic monitoring of the linguistic situation, as well as for studying the conditions and mechanisms of linguistic behavior of minorities in bilingual and multilingual regions. It is also important to develop practical recommendations on the balance of linguistic rights and cultural needs of Ukrainian ethnolinguistic communities. The study is presented as part of the research project entitled “Practices of language protection of the European linguistic and cultural space and the prospects for language policy in Ukraine” (2019–2023). The method of diachronic description allows us to trace the evolution of research ideas and the changes in methodological premises regarding the problems of language evolution in Ukraine from the times of the USSR to the present day.