Susanna Petrosyan, Yerevan. Exclusively for Vestnik Kavkaza
The Russian language is studied in Armenian schools from the second year, while all other foreign languages are studied from the third year. Russian is still the language of some Armenian mass media – the newspapers “Voice of Armenia,” “New Time,” “Republic of Armenia,” and the radio program “Aijk” on Public Radio. All leading Russian TV-channels are rebroadcast in the country. The population watches most Western movies in Russian; moreover, private channels don't have to follow the law on dubbing foreign films into Armenian. The majority of internet resources also have Russian versions.
However, during the years of independence Armenia has faced new challenges in the sphere of Russian language development. A generation which has been torn away from a common language space is being raised in the country. The number of people who speak Russian has fallen 25%. According to the official data of the census of 1989, the share of citizens who spoke Russian was more than 80%.
The countryside seems to be more troublesome. The main problem is a lack of teachers in general, including Russian language teachers. However, there is no generally-accessible testing system for the Russian language, like TOEFL for English or DAF for German. This could present a clear picture in the matter, as to solve the problem they need precise data.
In the context of the development of Russian in Armenia there are certain steps which could be taken within the framework of Armenian-Russian cooperation. However, there are problems which Russia could solve by itself, as it is interested in the preservation of Russian spiritual culture.
As for joint tasks, there is improvement of teaching of Russian within the framework of the school program. In Soviet times the majority of Armenian pupils spoke Russian fluently. Probably it is useful to study the programs and experience of the times.
Today the young generation has vast opportunities to study foreign languages and continue their education abroad. It is necessary to develop and implement programs on development of the Russian language through promotion of one of the richest cultures of the world, which could attract young people.
The Russian state could encourage the foundation of museums of Russian art in several cities of Armenia, at least in two of them – Yerevan (extension of the existing Museum of Russian Art) and Gyumri (where the Russian military base is situated). These steps and a well-thought-out PR campaign could play an effective role in promoting Russian language and culture, and conducting classes of Russian and Russian literature in museums and centers of Russian culture will contribute to attracting interest in the culture and the language of the neighboring country. Probably a settlement of the issue at state level will demand a lot of time. However, there is an easier way: there are many wealthy Armenians living in Russia, who would be glad to contribute to a project which would be useful for both countries.
There is such a precedent. Gerard Cafesjian, an American philanthropist of Armenian origin, has opened the Museum of Contemporary Art in Yerevan. The museum was built in a park. Gerard Cafesjian decorated the park with sculptures from all over the world. By the way, soon an English garden will open in Yerevan.
To be continued
