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Abstract
The article deals with an oral speech phenomenon widespread in the Republic of Belarus, where it is known as trasjanka. This code originated through constant contact between Russian and Belarusian, two closely related East Slavonic languages. Discussed are the main features of this code (as used in the city of Minsk), the sources of its origin, different linguistic definitions and the attitude towards this code from those who dwell in the city of Minsk. Special attention is paid to the problem of distinction between trasjanka and different forms of codeswitching, also widely used in the Minsk language community.
Key words
Belarusian
closely related language contacts
language attitude
Russian
trasjanka
1 Background: The language situation in Minsk
The language situation in Minsk, as in the Republic of Belarus in general, is usually described as stable, closely related bilingualism with an overwhelming predominance of the Russian language over the Belarusian language. The co-existence of the two languages in contemporary Belarus is well described by S. Zaprudski:
Currently, the Belarusian language faces many challenges. It is insufficiently supported by the Belarusian state, the unfavourable situation of which continues to deteriorate. Issues regarding the development of the Belarusian language are traditionally neglected by the communist parties. As for democratic parties, the majority of them have only recently begun to notice that the language is an important element of the Belarusian people's identity. This realization was unintentionally inspired by the 1995-2000 state policy, aimed at forcing Belarusian out of normal, everyday use and into the realm of a marginal 'opposition-related' phenomenon. (Zaprudski, 2002)
Standard Belarusian does not truly exist in the everyday language practice of the majority of Minsk residents, although it is used in mass media and is formally taught within the system of education. This leads to the absence of an oral form of standard Belarusian for the majority of Minsk residents (the number of speakers of literary Belarusian is very small and they do not influence the speech practices of people outside their milieu). The main form, which in some sense can be considered a spoken form of Belarusian of Minsk dwellers, used by a portion of Minsk residents, is a special code in between Russian and Belarusian.
This code is called 'trasjanka' (a term...