THE PROBLEMS OF BILINGUALISM AND

MULTILINGUALISM IN KAZAKHSTAN

Nyyazbekova Kulanda Sarsenkulovna,

associate professor Department of the Practical Languages,

Kazakh National Pedagogical University named after Abai

Almaty, Kazakhstan

The experience of languages functioning in multinational countries proves bilingualism and multilingualism to be necessary and practically the only way of solving the problem of overcoming language barrier and ensuring easy communication of citizens of one and the same state formation speaking different languages. The bilingualism and multilingualism are important social realities especially in countries including many nationalities, for example there are hundreds of nations and nationalities representatives of which live in Kazakhstan one should take this reality into consideration. The development and forming of bilingualism mustn’t be compulsory and influence mastering of the native language in a negative way. Otherwise ethnically native language can be moved aside to the periphery of communication and it will provide a negative effect on the national self-consciousness.

The bilingualism and multilingualism are not phenomena. It was known in the ancient society. Many outstanding scientists, public figures, writers of the Orient (Makhmud Kashgari, Alisher Navoyi, Al-Farabi, etc) created their works in native and other languages (Arabian, Persian). There are also many modern bilingual and multilingual figures of science and culture, writers.

The bilingualism and multilingualism have been historically thoroughly investigated but nowadays it is studied as lingual essence of everyday lingual life.

The problem of multilingualism is the topic of different investigations in the field of modern linguistics. They are focusing at the interaction of various ethnical groups cultures in the multinational societies. It is caused by intensification of inter-ethnic interaction, bilingualism being one of its main characteristics. The formation of the bilingualism and multilingualism is implemented in the conditions of the cultures mutual penetration which is a norm for a modern civilized society functioning. The interaction of languages predetermines the necessity of wide range practical measures aiming the inter-ethnic interaction improvement development [Siguan M., Makki U.F., 1990].

The bilingualism and multilingualism are polysemantic phenomena closely connected with the social factors, and they are also an integral part of the lingual policy which in its turn cannot be divided from the national policy.

Usage of the bilingualism and multilingualism in different spheres of human’s social activity has its own peculiarities (linguistic, ethics-aesthetics, situational, etc).

Thus, the bilingualism appears as “an instrument meeting the spiritual, moral-aesthetic requirements of a person and society, it is fully expressed in the sphere of artistic and literal contacts between nations” [Khasanov B.,1990].

In the whole the bilingualism providing the development of national cultures makes spiritual culture of one nation as a property of the other nation, and mastering two languages is exceptionally useful in this meaning. K. Paustovsky wrote: “Any human being’s cultural level and civic duty can be judged by his attitude to the language. True love to the motherland is impossible without love to the language. A human being indifferent to his native language is savage person. Indifference to the language can be explained as indifference to the past, present and future of a nation” [Paustovsky K., 1981].

Discussing the problem of bilingualism in a present day society Ch. Aitmatov speaks about two ways of its development: “The first way is to rely on high-developed language ‘maintenance’, to use its services in full. The second way is the way of coexistence, the way of national language parallel development using a non-native language” [Aitmatov Ch., 1979].

Nowadays the language policy is realized in accordance to the “Kazakhstan Republic Language Law” and Republic’s Constitution. According to the law the status of the Kazakh language is determined as official. But nevertheless there is a complicated language situation in Kazakhstan: the Kazakh language is not functioning in full as an official one, the youth takes a fancy to foreign languages and actively learns them (especially English); the ‘Pigeon’ language is developing (‘pigeon’ means mixed, for example, Russian – Kazakh or Kazakh - Russian). In this connection we needed a fast qualitative-quantitative solution of the problem at all levels of official and non-official lingual communication. The bilingualism means two languages, but it doesn’t mean negation of one language at the expense of the other. If a state possesses a definite state language it should be used by the state bodies to communicate with population as a means of communication. Otherwise the statehood of the official language couldn’t be proved by the lingual communication practice. Along this the functioning of the official language must not hamper on the bilingualism development. The bilingualism and multilingualism are the social needs result and a social phenomenon. It is worth to mention N. Shaimerdenova’s opinion who thinks: “we need the bilingualism because several generations of Kazakh intelligentsia (especially scientific) have been aiming at the Russian language and at the European culture. The Russian language has served as a common specific liaison for the Kazakh language into the other languages. this fact is a very important argument for preserving the Russian language as the second additional means of communication not only this, but also because the functioning of second and third languages is the powerful source of mutual cultural enrichment for different nation representatives till the state language becomes the main means and instrument of the inner-national and inter-cultural communication” [Shaimerdenova N.G., 1996].

The bilingualism and multilingualism are investigated from the different points of view: philosophical – in the works of K.Kh. Khanazarov, M.S. Dzhunusov, D.I. Marinesku; ethno-sociological and socio-lingual – in the works of Yu.D. Desheriyev, I.F. Protchenko, M.N. Guboglo, M.I. Isayev, A.E. Karlinsky, etc; psycho-lingual – in the works of L.V. Shcherba, U. Vinerihe, Yu.A. Zhluktenko, L.S. Vygotsky; philological – in the works of L.V. Shcherba, N. Mikhailenko, B.Kh. Khasanova, etc.

There are different definitions of the bilingualism in the scientific literature, for example, K.Kh. Khanazarov determines bilingualism as “the knowledge of two languages and usage of them” [Khanazarov K.Kh., 1982]; according to M.S. Dzhunusov bilingualism means “socio-lingual phenomenon which appeared in the result of multilingual nation’s communication” [Dzhunusov M.S., 1989].

The scientists engaged with learning of the bilingualism in social aspect use terms ‘social’ and ‘socio-lingual’ as synonyms. But also we can meet differentiated usage of these terms. For example, Yu.D. Desheriyev and I.F. Protchenko determine bilingualism as “… knowledge of two languages in the known forms of their existence to express ideas in comprehensive form notwithstanding the degree of interference display; and also the usage of inner language by a bilingual person in the writing process and oral communication in the second language; and the skill to comprehend the foreign speech and messages with a full understanding” [Desheriyev Yu.D., Protchenko I.F., 1972].

B.N. Golovin thinks that bilingualism “is a functioning of two languages on the one and the same territory, and in the same ethnic sphere. In other words, it is the usage of two languages in the process of communication by the same nation” [Golovin B.N., 1980].

We hold to the following classification based on a level of language mastering (especially of the second). According to this position we can determine two types of bilingualism:

1. Subordinated bilingualism (mixed, imperfective). In this case a person can’t speak the second language perfectly, that is why we can find mistakes in the speech of the learned language, i.e. practical interference is on hand.

2. Coordinated bilingualism (clear, perfect; autonomous – the term of L.V. Shcherba). In this case a person can speak a foreign language as a native one, and we can’t find mistakes in his speech, i.e. interference is absent.

The final aim of the bilingualism formation is an achievement of the coordinated type of bilingualism (clear, perfect, autonomous).

Literature:

1. Aitmatov Ch. Co-authorship with ground and water. – Frunze, 1979. – p. 406.

2. Desheriyev Yu.D., Protchenko I.F. Principal aspects of bilingualism investigation. The problems of bilingualism and multilingualism. – Moscow, 1972. – p. 325.

3. Dzhunusov M.S. Social aspects of bilingualism in the USSR. // Sociology and ideology. – Moscow, 1989. – p. 450.

4. Golovin B.N. The basis of speech culture. – Moscow: Higher education, 1980. – p. 256.

5. Khanazarov K.Kh. Solving of national-lingual problems in the USSR. – Moscow, 1982. – p. 257.

6. Khasanov B. Kazakh – Russian artistic and literal bilingualism. – Almaty: Rauan, 1990. – p. 125.

7. Paustovsky K. Budagov R.A. Review. // The problems of linguistics. №4, 1981. – p. 132-135.

8. Shaimerdenova N.G. Lingual situation in Kazakhstan and translation problems. // Lingual translation problems. – Almaty, 1996. – p. 86-87.

9. Siguan M., Makki U.F. Education and bilingualism. – Moscow: Pedagogic, 1990. – p. 75.

10. Nyyazbekova K.S. Development of the mental abilities of the students bilinguals. – XXV International scientific-practical conference «Problems of modern philology and psychology», II stage of the championship on the pedagogical and psychological science, I stage of the championship in philology, The event was held in absentia, an interactive form in London 16.05-21.05.2012. – p. 195-197.