Government Attitude Toward English
The Turkmen government has a complicated relationship with English. At first glance, it seems eager to engage with the western world and appreciates English as a symbol of internationality and modernity. In 1993, Asgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, passed a Three Language Policy. This made Turkmen the first official language of the city and English the second while Russian was demoted to third. Striving to rid Turkmenistan of any Russian influence, Niyazov, the first president of Turkmenistan (the current president is Berdimuhamedow) replaced the Cyrillic script which had been established under the USSR with a Latin script. Explaining his reasoning in a speech, Niyazov stated: “Just as the Cyrillic alphabet had aided in Turkmens’ learning Russian, the new alphabet will assist the populace in its learning English” (Clement 2014). More specifically, the Latin alphabet would lead Turkmenistan into the English speaking world, and thus, the world of international commerce, international politics and international scholarship. A motivation which Niyazov acknowledged in the same address saying: “creating a new Turkmen alphabet based on Latin script would hasten the young country’s progress toward intellectual, cultural and social strength. And, it would expedite means for Turkmenistan’s joining the world civilization and taking its own worthy place among developed countries.” (Clement 2014). Photograph of Saparmurat Niyazov taken from Kremlin.ru
However, government interest in promoting English learning and dissemination proves somewhat nominal. From the early days of its independence, Turkmenistan has primarily concerned itself with its titular language and discouraged non-Turkmen forms of information and language. Non-Turkmen media is heavily regulated. In the past, even foreign texts were banned. Many non-Turkmen speakers lost their jobs in Niyazov’s aggressive push for Turkmenization. Niyazov even went so far as to fire his foreign minister for the minister’s lack of fluency in Turkmen (Clement 2014). While the Turkmen language movement is primarily driven by anti-Russian sentiment, it does effect English. In spite of the fact that English is widely acknowledged by both the government and its population as a language of opportunity, the government regards it with a more quiet, though perhaps even more pervasive, suspicion because of its non-Turkmen origins. The Turkmen government's suspicion of the West rears its head in legislation. In fact, the government only recently repealed a ban on operas and circuses, which was originally instated because operas and circuses were deemed too "non-Turkmen". Government fear of westernization becomes especially apparent when Turkmenistan is compared to neighboring countries. Whereas Turkmenistan merely appears to move toward westernization and integration of English, other countries such as Uzbekistan actually do. In Uzbekistan, non-Uzbeks more frequently opt to learn English as opposed the national language. This is in large part driven by the employment advantages open to English speakers. In contrast, non-Turkmens often feel more pressure to learn the national language as their employment in Turkmenistan hinges upon their grasp of the national language and verification of their Turkmenization (Fierman 2009, pg. 1218). Photograph of current president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow taken from Kremlin.ru
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Popular Attitude Toward English
While English may be a low priority for the government, the population exhibits a sincere interest in English. Many parents wish their children to learn English to improve their employment opportunities while many of the younger generation view English as "cool". Despite the fact that foreign language learning is discouraged by the government, English is the most popular foreign language within schools (Sartor 2010). Parents and students jump at the opportunity to learn English. The younger Turkmens' perception of English as "cool" seems to indicate a cultural interest as opposed to merely an occupational one. Perhaps they long for involvement in popular English music, film, television and social media happenings, which are accessible to and seemingly ubiquitous throughout the rest of the world. English in Media The younger Turkmen generation certainly engages much more with international forms of media such as YouTube and social media platforms. Simply looking on YouTube, one can find a number of Turkmen YouTubers, who opt to open their videos with the English "hello" over the Turkmen "salam". These Turkmen YouTubers also use terms of various YouTube trends, which are most often in English. For example, it is common for YouTubers to have a "Q&A" video, which Turkmen YouTubers will also call a "Q&A" video rather than using the Turkmen terms for "question and answer". Younger Turkmens also have a greater interest in western television shows and music. Though English television, film and music are still difficult to come by in Turkmenistan, exposure and interest in western entertainment has increased. English in the Everyday Due to government paranoia regarding external influence, and desire to keep a tight grip on the Turkmen people through "Turkmenization", English is notably absent. One does not see English on the signs around the towns and cities, rarely hears music with English lyrics or sees adds in English. Instead, signs are proudly in Turkmen and often begrudgingly in Russian to accommodate the significant population of Russian speakers within Turkmenistan and travelers from other Central Asian countries or from Slavic countries. |