Parliamentarians are looking for ways to protect the Russian language from attacks and borrowings

The Russian language has recently been “under a targeted attack from our enemies,” said Chamber Chairman Valentina Matvienko in her opening remarks at parliamentary hearings in the Federation Council. In particular, according to her, “in Ukraine it is actually outlawed, although it is clear [что] For millions of people it is their native, first language.” “The protection of Russian-speaking citizens, their life and freedom, their right to speak Russian is also one of the main goals of the special military operation, along with demilitarization and denazification,” Matvienko recalled.

At the same time, according to her, sometimes you can hear “that we need to abandon almost all foreign words.” “In my opinion, this is still too radical an approach,” the speaker believes. She recalled that the Russian language “over the centuries has absorbed elements of the languages ​​of a variety of peoples: European, Turkic, and many others, and thousands of once borrowed words have already become an organic part of our language, we cannot ignore this.” “It’s another matter when alien words are used in official speech unnecessarily, in the presence of well-established Russian correspondences,” Matvienko noted.

She cited several such words: “moderator” (“we are already used to it, it’s true, but this is “host” – a normal Russian word, even deeper”), “deadline” (“deadline”), “coffee break” ( “It’s clear that this is a break”). According to the speaker, this phenomenon “must be calmly dealt with.” “I propose to start with myself, with public authorities. Believe me, I’m not in an open mode, but I often talk with government officials – high and low. I’m trying to explain that “cashback” is a bad word; it shouldn’t be used in official documents,” added Matvienko.

She criticized a number of Russian brands, including those that came “to replace Western ones that left our market,” which “continue to use foreign names and imitate the design of foreign products.” “The fashion for everything Western, which went bankrupt, which discredited itself. This fashion, in my opinion, should go away irrevocably, and our citizens are increasingly – and we see this – supporting understandable Russian-language brands. This old habit of imitating foreign manufacturers must, of course, be abandoned,” the speaker said, using four “alien” words.

Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Pyotr Tolstoy believes that due to the abundance of Anglicisms, some Russians began to speak “Anglosurzhik”.

However, the main part of his speech concerned the situation with the Russian language abroad, which he assessed as “catastrophic.” In particular, the deputy noted that residents of many countries of the former USSR “learn English and feel great,” although in Russia they would like them to learn Russian. “Moreover, they are trying to displace the Russian language in their countries, replacing it with their national language,” Tolstoy added. Russia, in this regard, according to him, is not doing anything, although it could preserve the Russian language “not only by opening schools and universities, but also by absolutely specific legislative decisions regarding citizens of countries where Russian is not the state language.” On September 1, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov launched the construction of three Russian-language schools – in Bishkek, Batken and Karakol. There will be nine of them in total in the future.

“If Russian is not your state language, then, excuse me, citizens of these countries should not work in public places: as drivers, sellers, and especially as Yandex couriers.” Such responsible work is not for them,” Tolstoy said. A basic level of knowledge of the Russian language is mandatory for all labor migrants, says Konstantin Kostin, president of the Civil Society Development Foundation. “You can introduce a certain gradation, that to work as a loader or builder you need level A, to work in a taxi – B, to work as a doctor – C. Well, this is an option. If you don’t know the language, it’s tourism. If work is a language [знать] definitely,” he explained.

The general radicalization of rhetoric blurs the boundaries between self-presentation and usefulness, notes political scientist Mikhail Vinogradov. According to him, today the Russian migrant market is already experiencing a decline, which the consumer can feel in the rise in taxi prices. “The productivity of a similar increase in prices for other services provided in public places creates a choice of two bad options: the disappearance of these services or a sharp rise in prices against the backdrop of inflation,” he told Vedomosti.