The People Divided by the Border (Comparative Characteristics of Germans in Russia and Kazakhstan)

Abstract

Germans who previously lived in the same state were separated by state borders after the collapse of the USSR. Living in newly independent States launched the processes of ethnic self-determination and adaptation to new socio-cultural and political conditions. Based on the results of ethnosociological surveys of the German population in Russia and Kazakhstan, we give a comparative characteristic of the identity of Germans in these countries. In general, the identity of Germans in the post-Soviet space has many common features, which are determined by the common historical fate, cultural and linguistic unity, the presence of support programs from Germany and the active activity of public organizations. The differences in the identity of the Germans of Russia and Kazakhstan are related to the peculiarities of national policy, including historical memory and the state language. The development of the identity of Kazakh Germans takes place in somewhat more difficult conditions, since in Kazakhstan the number of the German population has decreased almost fivefold over the years of independence (while the emigration potential is still high), and there are no areas of compact residence of Germans. In the sphere of ethno-linguistic processes, we have noted the presence of bilingualism and trilingualism of Germans in Russia and Kazakhstan and the decline in the popularity of learning German in school institutions. The special, specific features of this new identity are connected with the political and cultural realities of the new States.