Ethnic Language and Culture Vitality: A Sociolinguistic Survey in the Ural Mari Communities
DOI: 10.23951/2307-6119-2026-2-49-61
The article examines the use of Mari idioms and aims to determine their vitality in Mari communities in the Sverdlovsk region, established in the late 16th and mid-18th centuries. The materials are part of a larger project addressing Mari idioms in old diasporas of Bashkortostan, Tatarstan, and the Sverdlovsk and Kirov regions. Mari idioms in the Sverdlovsk region have not yet been the subject of a comprehensive sociolinguistic study, underscoring the scientific significance of this research. Data were collected during 2025 fieldwork in three districts of the Sverdlovsk region with compact Mari populations: Achit, Nizhnie Sergui, and Krasnoufimsk. The methods used include observation, questionnaires, in-depth and semi-structured interviews, documentation of responses, and statistical data analysis. Fieldwork was conducted in villages and settlements with predominantly Mari populations, and the total sample includes 190 respondents aged 12 to 88. The study explores the actual use of Mari idioms in the Sverdlovsk region, including domains of use, language loyalty among speakers, vitality across different age cohorts and ethno-local groups, and intergenerational language transmission. The article analyzes the functioning of Mari idioms in family and community life, as well as in daily interactions across trade, transport, agriculture, education, culture, and religious rites. The results allow for an assessment of the vitality of Mari idioms and cultural and religious practices, the identification of factors that contribute to their preservation or hinder it, and the drawing of parallels with language situations in other old Mari diasporas.
Keywords: Mari idioms, ethnic language, language situation in the Sverdlovsk region, sociolinguistic survey, language use, family language policy, language in education, intergenerational language transmission, speech practices, language ideologies, language shift, ethnic culture
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Issue: 2, 2026
Series of issue: Issue 2
Rubric: LINGUISTICS
Pages: 49 — 61
Downloads: 81