The Formation of National Identity through the Theoretical Approaches of Linguistic and Language Identity of Ukrainian Dissidents

Abstract

In this article, the author analyzes the ideological struggle for the Ukrainian national identity happened in a meaningful time of Khrushchev Thaw when first dissidents appeared. Additionally, we have applied the theme of ideological propaganda and agitation considered through language approach to a larger scientific extent. First, we characterize separately the creating of an ethnic identity endorsed by the SRSR, and national identity of the URSR as an integral part of a specific social identity, linguistic identification with representatives of a certain nation, its culture and traditions, which include the entire complex of emotions caused by the sense of belonging. By involving the idea of identity as a relational, socio-cultural phenomenon, we considered the concept of Bucholt and Hall, J. Mead, K. Levy-Strauss. Next, we identify the works of Anthony Smith, Herbert Blumer, Ernest Gellner, Eric Gobsbaum. Trying to conduct the concept analysis of the formation of the Ukrainian national identity through the semantic and semiotic aspects of the language identity according to the Dissidents movement we used 3 key topic notions: - Identity as a relational, socio-cultural phenomenon; - Socio-historical contextualization of showing the national identity as an environmental product of the nation; - Ideology of the Standard Language. Finally, the author comes to an outcome that the Soviet ideology allowing the formation of the so-called ethnographic identity of Ukrainians, made considerable efforts to prevent the creation of a nationwide identity that Ukrainian Dissidents were fighting for, herewith, artificially imposing the idea of the disunity of Eastern and Western Ukraine.

Keywords

• identity
• dissidents
• khrushchev thaw
• ukraine
• 1960’s
• 1980’s
• standard language
• homo sovieticus
• ukrainian language