Language Behavior of Inhabitants of Podlasie in Bilingual Environment: Sociolinguistic Perspective

Abstract

The current state of speech of residents of peripheral areas results from both intersystem and extralinguistic factors. In the Podlasie region the linguistic awareness has not been shaped only by the linguistic criterion. East Slavs most often identify themselves with the Belarusian nation. There are, however, cases where the Belarusian nationality is questioned due to the local language varieties typical of the Ukrainian language. It is possible to observe an ongoing process of stronger assimilation of East Slavs through actions aimed at integrating them into Polish-speaking communities. Religion, in this case Eastern Orthodoxy, is a factor causing disintegration.