Expressed attachment to Russia and social integration: the case of young Russian speakers in Latvia, 2004–2010

Birka, Ieva

doi:10.1080/01629778.2015.1094743

Cited by 13 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Indeed, ethnicity arguably became less salient as ethnic heterogeneity within Russophone communities presented obstacles to political and social mobilisation (Zevelev 2008, p. 57). As time progressed, research consequently often focused on 'Russian speakers' rather than ethnic Russians (Birka 2016), especially in the context of the Baltic states. David Laitin (1998) even argued that a Russian-speaking 'nationality' was steadily emerging, with language replacing ethnicity as the most salient marker of group identity.…”

Section: Russian Speakers As a Unit Of Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

The Russian-Speaking Populations in the Post-Soviet Space: Language, Politics and Identity

Cheskin¹,

Kachuyevski

2018

Europe-Asia Studies

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IN RECENT YEARS, THERE HAS BEEN SUSTAINED ACADEMIC AND political scrutiny of externally located 'kinsfolk': that is, groups of individuals located outside of a nominally national 'kin-state', and over whom the state in question lays claim to various forms of symbolic and/or legal jurisdiction (Duvold 2015; Pogonyi 2017). Academically, this literature is often nestled within broader, critical discussion of contemporary nations and nationalisms (Agarin & Karolewski 2015), with scholars noting 'the increasingly transnational character of global migration flows, cultural networks and socio-political practices' (Smith & Bakker 2008, p. 3). Often premised on the assumption that globalisation has the capacity to erode traditional borders, these transnational developments have spurred significant research interest into kin-state policies across the globe. These policies are typically enacted by states to construct diasporic identities that create strong bonds of identity between co-ethnics and their supposedly external homeland (Stjepanovi c 2015, p. 144). The kinsfolk question is consequently salient for the foreign policy actions of self-designating external homelands, but can also be heavily securitised by states that house groups of individuals who have the potential to be 'diasporised'. Owing to the scale of its potentially diasporic kinsfolk, the Russian Federation stands out globally as a significant agent of kin-state nationalism. Indeed, in recent years the Russian authorities have directed substantial resources towards kin-state activities, even codifying Russian-speaking 'compatriots' as central elements of the country's assertive foreign policy (Grigas 2016, pp. 57-93). While much has been written on Russia's politicisation of Russian speakers in its so-called 'near abroad' (Cheskin 2016; Grigas 2016; Duvold 2015; Schulze 2018), the essays in this volume place greater emphasis on the exploration of trends within the various communities of Russian speakers themselves. In this endeavour, we are influenced by Rogers Brubaker, who admonishes us to think of a diaspora as 'a category of practice … used to make claims'; diaspora, he goes on to say 'does not so much describe the world as seek to remake it' (Brubaker 2005, p. 12). This special issue consequently investigates trends in how 'Russian

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Section: Russian Speakers As a Unit Of Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

The Russian-Speaking Populations in the Post-Soviet Space: Language, Politics and Identity

Cheskin¹,

Kachuyevski

2018

Europe-Asia Studies

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“…Studies away from home usually took place in multicultural settings. This was in contrast with Latvia's highly sensitised narratives on ethnic Russians and Russian-speakers, despite the fact that Russian youth do feel that they belong to Latvia to a high degree (Birka 2015). This ultimately problematises the question of students' ability to claim their foreignearned degree in Latvia as valuable if they themselves are not ethnic Latvians.…”

Section: Inequalities Of Recognitionmentioning

confidence: 85%

Between a ‘student abroad’ and ‘being from Latvia’: inequalities of access, prestige, and foreign-earned cultural capital

Lulle

Buzinska

2017

Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies

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“…Unsurprisingly, therefore, the lack of progress made by (particularly) Estonia and Latvia regarding the granting of automatic citizenship to Soviet-era migrants has fostered ethnic identity-building on the part of minority communities, who have come to see their kin-states rather than their resident states as supporters and promoters of their particularistic, ethnicallydefined interests (Birka, 2016). The reference to the kin-state of Russian-speaking minorities has been particularly divisive: Primarily, it has called into question the success of securing majority-led projects of nation-state-building in the face of assertive domestic minorities; as a result of possible assertiveness of the resident and marginalised minority groups, it had not dealt away with the spectre of geopolitical uncertainty coming from Russia for the Baltic states.…”

Section: Conditions For Minority Participation In Public Lifementioning

confidence: 99%

Nation-States into Nationalising States

Agarin

2017

Intersections

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The widely shared perception in the Baltic societies about these countries being national homelands of respective ethno-nations is indispensable for understanding recent political developments in the region. Arguably, the outcomes of the transition from Soviet to European Union member-states have been by far and large positive, forging functioning state institutions and creating polities that are on the forefront of upholding European standards in a range of areas. Much of the debate on the region, my own past contributions included, has emphasised the importance of nation-state-building agendas that have facilitated the transformation of the Russianspeaking population of the region from a formerly dominant nationality of the Soviet Union (SU) into a group that is today a minority in nation-states of Estonians, Latvians, and Lithuanians. Although there are plenty of assessments of how the change in minority members' opportunities has impacted their social, economic and political mobilisation strategies over the decades since the Soviet demise, this article looks at the framework for these groups' participation in public life.

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Expressed attachment to Russia and social integration: the case of young Russian speakers in Latvia, 2004–2010

Cited by 13 publications

References 24 publications

The Russian-Speaking Populations in the Post-Soviet Space: Language, Politics and Identity

The Russian-Speaking Populations in the Post-Soviet Space: Language, Politics and Identity

Between a ‘student abroad’ and ‘being from Latvia’: inequalities of access, prestige, and foreign-earned cultural capital

Nation-States into Nationalising States

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