ERIC Number: EJ1468737
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 21
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1479-0718
EISSN: EISSN-1747-7530
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Resilience through Language? A Case Study of Three Minority Communities in Georgia
Diana Forker1; Natia Botkoveli1
International Journal of Multilingualism, v22 n2 p228-248 2025
The concept of resilience has been employed as an analytical tool in a wide range of scientific disciplines and fields from the natural sciences to social sciences and humanities, but within linguistics it is a relatively new and so far, rarely applied concept. This paper is intended as a contribution to fill this gap through a sociolinguistic study of three minority language communities in Georgia - Armenians, Azerbaijanis and Chechens. The sociolinguistic conditions of the three communities in Georgia partially overlap, but also show interesting differences. In order to observe the impact that minority languages possibly have on forming resilient communities, we have interviewed members of these three minority groups using semi-structured questionnaires. We concentrate on two important domains of use, namely education and work, and also explore language attitudes and ideologies. The results of our study are mixed: minority language speakers occasionally benefit from their language knowledge, and their positive attitudes towards their own languages strengthen their linguistic and sociocultural identity. Nevertheless, linguistic discrimination is also part of their every-day experience in a majority society that highly values the national language Georgian.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Resilience (Psychology), Language Minorities, Minority Groups, Sociolinguistics, Attitudes, Ideology, Language Usage, Social Discrimination, Language of Instruction, Work Environment
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Georgia Republic
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: 1Department of Caucasus Studies, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany