ABSTRACT
The role of Russian in Azerbaijan has considerably decreased after Azerbaijani became the sole official language following the establishment of independence in 1991. This period of over the last 25 years has witnessed changing dynamics and new paradigms of the functional distribution of Russian in Azerbaijan. Language legislation developed in the early stage of independence revealed most of the tendencies that are characteristic of new nations. However, language practices and attitudes still reflect some features of the linguistic culture developed during the Soviet period as well as considerations of economic benefits.
Russian has never lost its social prestige, at least among certain groups of urban elites. Moreover, recently, interest in learning Russian has increased among other social groups in whose repertoire Russian has hardly ever played an important role. The reason behind this is its functionality rather than social prestige. While Russian is not required to obtaining a job in governmental organizations—Azerbaijani alone, or Azerbaijani and English are sufficient—applicants proficient in Russian have better chances of getting jobs in commercial organizations. Although this requirement is not always explicitly expressed, the youth are highly aware of the role Russian proficiency plays in finding employment. One of the most often observed tendencies among non-Russian speaking students, for example, is learning Russian at later stages of their education (e.g., at the graduate or post-graduate levels).
The language ecology in the country is favorable for maintaining Russian and its social prestige. The Russian language cultural organizations, including theaters and media, are very active and have stable audiences across generations. Russian is still used in sociocultural gatherings such as art exhibitions and music performances, which are popular among Russian-speaking elites. Recently, there have been some initiatives to solidify the position of Russian in the education system. Thus, in August 2017, the Minister of Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan ordered intensive Russian courses to be added in 50 secondary schools and lyceums (high schools) of Azerbaijan.
Data for the present research was drawn from official language policy documents and legislative acts. A considerable part of the analyses presented in the chapter is based on 120 semi-structured interviews with students and 30 with employees of banks, insurance companies, stores, etc.
