Language Ideologies in Transition: Multilingualism in Russia and Finland

The articles collected in this volume address linguistic diversity in Russia and Finland from different perspectives and aim to provide both theoretical and empirical knowledge concerning recently emerged multilingual and multicultural developments. The topics include representations and conceptualisations of multilingualism, the language education of immigrants, the linguistic rights of ethnic minorities, language policy, and ideologies underlying multilingual activities. Linguistic and cultural diversity is approached from different theoretical and methodological perspectives (e.g. discourse analysis, ethnography). The focus is on both micro and macro level phenomena. The articles show how the ideologies that underlie language policies and also various grass-root multilingual practices are conditioned by broader political, historical and socio-cultural contexts.

Mika Lähteenmäki is Senior Researcher in the Department of Languages at the University of Jyväskylä (Finland). He has published widely on the linguistic aspects of the works of the Bakhtin Circle and the history of Soviet linguistics.
Marjatta Vanhala-Aniszewski is Professor of Russian Language and Culture in the Department of Languages at the University of Jyväskylä (Finland). Her current research on the contemporary Russian language is focused on Russian media and academic discourse.