Minority languages in Belarus

1.   Minority languages in Belarus

MINORITY
LANGUAGES
IN BELARUS

2. National culture

N AT I O N A L
C U LT U R E
Holidays and traditions. Belarus is
rich in holidays and traditions that
reflect its cultural heritage. For
example, Kupala, Independence
Day and Christmas.
Kitchen. Belarusian cuisine is
known for its variety and
simplicity. The traditional diet is
based on potatoes, grains, meat
and vegetables. One of the most
famous dishes is pancakes,
potato pancakes.

3. Music and dancing

MUSIC AND
DANCING
Belarusian music is diverse and
includes both traditional folk and
modern styles. Folk music uses
instruments such as the
sukharka and the tsimbaly.
Modern Belarusian musicians
experiment with various genres,
creating unique musical
compositions.

4. Russification in the country

R U S S I F I C AT
ION IN THE
COUNTRY
changes in the navigation signs of
the Minsk Metro, which, according
to information for 2023, were
related to Russification.
At the time, it was reported that
the station names had been
duplicated in both Belarusian and
Russian. Previously, the metro's
navigation was done in Belarusian
using Cyrillic and Latin
transliteration, with no Russian
language in the signs.

5. The Brest region leads in terms of the percentage of respondents who identified the Belarusian language as their native

T H E B R E S T R E G I O N
L E A D S
I N T E R M S O F
T H E P E R C E N T A G E
O F
R E S P O N D E N T S W H O
I D E N T I F I E D T H E
B E L A R U S I A N
L A N G U A G E
A S
T H E I R
N A T I V E
L A N G U A G E ,
W I T H 7 7 % .
A P P R O X I M A T E L Y
5 9 . 5 % O F T H E
P O P U L A T I O N
I N T H E
M I N S K R E G I O N A N D
5 4 . 5 % O F T H E
P O P U L A T I O N
I N T H E
G R O D N O R E G I O N
S H A R E
T H I S V I E W . I N
T H E G O M E L R E G I O N ,
4 7 % O F R E S P O N D E N T S
I D E N T I F I E D T H E
B E L A R U S I A N
L A N G U A G E
A S
T H E I R
N A T I V E
L A N G U A G E ,
W H I L E I N T H E
M O G I L E V R E G I O N ,
T H I S P E R C E N T A G E
W A S
4 6 . 1 % , A N D
I N
T H E V I T E B S K R E G I O N ,
I T W A S
4 5 . 3 % . T H E
H I G H E S T P E R C E N T A G E
O F T H E P O P U L A T I O N
W H O C O N S I D E R
B E L A R U S I A N
A S
T H E I R N A T I V E
L A N G U A G E
I S
O B S E R V E D
A M O N G
P E O P L E O V E R 7 0
Y E A R S
O F A G E
–
1 3 . 4 % . I N T H E A G E
G R O U P F R O M 3 0 T O 3 4
Y E A R S ,
T H I S
P E R C E N T A G E
I S 9 . 6 % ,
A N D
F R O M 6 0 T O 6 4

6. SchoolS

SCHOOLS
On February 21, a roundtable
discussion was held with Svetlana
Ukleiko, Head of the Main
Department of General Secondary,
Preschool, and Special Education
at the Ministry of Education, who
stated that 45% of schools in
Belarus are Belarusian-language
schools.
According to her, there are currently
approximately 3,000 general
secondary education institutions in
the Belarusian Ministry of Education
system.

7. According to the 2019 census, 54.1% of the total population of Belarus identified Belarusian as their native language. Among

AC C O R D I N G T O T H E
2 0 1 9 C E N S U S , 5 4 . 1 %
O F T H E T O TAL
P O P U L AT I O N O F
B E L AR U S I D E N T I F I E D
B E L AR U S I A N AS T H E I R
N AT I V E L AN G U A G E .
AM O N G E T H N I C
B E L AR U S I A N S , T H I S
F I G U R E WAS 6 1 . 2 %,
AN D AM O N G E T H N I C
P O L E S , I T WAS 5 4 . 5 %.
However, Russian is the
predominant language in
Belarusian society: according to
the 2019 census, 71.4% of the
population reported speaking
Russian at home, while 26%
reported speaking Belarusian.

8. Language preservation strategies

LANGUAGE
P R E S E R VAT I O N
S T R AT E G I E S
Language learning in schools. The Belarusian language is
studied from the first grade, from the 2nd to the 11th grade
the same number of hours are allocated for studying
Belarusian and Russian languages. In grades 10 and 11,
there is a choice of learning a language at a basic or
advanced level.
Optional classes. They allow you to study the language in
more detail and in depth.
Mandatory final exam. During the period of study at the
second stage of general secondary education, a mandatory
final exam in the Belarusian language is provided. At the
third stage, students are given the right to choose an exam
in Russian or Belarusian.
Meetings with literary critics, scientists and cultural figures.
Such meetings, contests and literary festivals are held in
educational institutions to promote the language.
Publication of articles. Articles are published on the pages
of the publications "Adukatsia i vykhavanne", "Belarusskaya
mova i litaratura", "Nastunitskaya Gazeta", which highlight
the experience of teachers and collectives on the issues of

9. the future of language

THE FUTURE OF
LANGUAGE
According to some linguists, without proper
language teaching in schools and government
support, the prospects for the Belarusian language
are bleak. However, there is another perspective: if
aimed at supporting Belarusian rather than
replacing Russian (balanced bilingualism), the
prospects may be better.
2 0 . 0 9 . 2 0 2 5
there is a reasonable government language policy

10.

In 2024, Dmitry Krutoi, Head of the
Presidential Administration of Belarus,
spoke about the possibility of declaring
2025 the Year of the Belarusian
Language, as there is a "great demand for
education in the Belarusian language" in
the country.
Belarusian President Alexander
actions related to the use of a particular
language in the country should be
extremely careful and well-considered.
The President of the Republic calls for
supporting the Belarusian language, but
not at the expense of the Russian
language.
2 0 . 0 9 . 2 0 2 5
Lukashenko, for his part, believes that any

11. Thanks for your attention

THANKS FOR YOUR
AT T E N T I O N
The presentation was prepared by 1st
year student Dominika Kruk