The Influence of Linguistic Ideologies on the Value of the Polish Language and Polish Identity Among Middle-Aged Ukrainian Citizens of Polish Origin

Abstract

This paper provides a thorough analysis of the influence of linguistic ideologies on the prestige of the Polish language and Polish self-identification among middle-aged Ukrainian citizens of Polish origin who emigrated to Poland both before the outbreak of the Russian–Ukrainian war and after Russia's full-scale military invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The linguistic biographies of two families who have moved to Wroclaw for permanent residence are investigated in the article. Members of these families represent the middle-aged generation, as they were born in Ivano-Frankivsk in 1964–1987 (36–59 years old as of 1 April 2024), being children and grandchildren of the older and the oldest generations of Poles in Ivano-Frankivsk (formerly Stanislaviv) who have lived in the city for the last hundred years (1923–2023).

Keywords

• Polish language
• Ukrainian language
• language ideologies
• language prestige
• self-identification