New concepts and words in post-Soviet Russia

Area of Science:

• Linguistics
• Sociolinguistics
• Cultural Studies

Background:

• The study is part of a larger project on Anglicisms in European languages, supervised by the University of Cologne.
• Adaptation of loanwords in Russian exhibits unique social and cultural traits due to significant political changes and market economy introduction.
• Previous research on Anglicisms in Russian has not fully explored the impact of post-socialist transformations on loanword integration.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the linguistic and social adaptation of Anglicisms in the Russian language.
• To analyze the most frequent loanwords introduced in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
• To categorize recent Russian borrowings based on their stability, usage, and socio-cultural implications.

Main Methods:

• Linguistic analysis of Anglicisms in Russian.
• Social analysis of loanword adaptation.
• Content analysis of professional (literary, business, political) and mass media sources.
• Categorization of borrowings into neutral, expressive, and evaluative groups.

Main Results:

• Identified three main groups of recent Anglicisms: stable neutral terms, fashionable neologisms with limited use, and evaluative words.
• Demonstrated that Russian loanword adaptation is distinct due to socio-political changes.
• Highlighted how borrowings reflect Western cultural values and post-socialist concepts.

Conclusions:

• Anglicisms in Russian are a dynamic linguistic phenomenon shaped by societal changes.
• The study provides a framework for understanding contemporary loanword integration in Russian.
• Further research can explore the long-term impact and evolution of these Anglicisms.