Abstract

Many post-Soviet countries exhibit a distinctive sociolinguistic configuration in which Russian retains a dominant functional role, often at the expense of indigenous languages. This paper develops an integrated theoretical framework linking language use, cultural structure, and long-run linguistic dynamics.

We conceptualize culture as a structured system of meanings and practices and introduce a novel distinction between linguistically expressed culture—domains whose transmission depends on language (e.g., literature, science, written history)—and linguistically unexpressed culture—domains that can persist independently of a specific linguistic medium (e.g., customs, social norms, ritual practices, and embodied traditions). This distinction allows us to formalize a language–culture mismatch, whereby the dominant language does not fully coincide with the core cultural system of a society.

Building on insights from linguistic relativity and evolutionary dynamics, we propose a stylized dynamic model of language competition with cultural feedback. The model generates multiple equilibria: a low-level equilibrium associated with language decline and a high-level equilibrium corresponding to language revitalization. Crucially, we show that linguistically unexpressed cultural domains act as a latent reservoir of identity, sustaining cultural cohesion even under partial language shift and thereby lowering the threshold for subsequent language recovery.

Within this framework, reciprocal bilingualism plays a non-trivial role: rather than accelerating assimilation, it may facilitate coordination across linguistic groups and support the expansion of the indigenous language, provided that cultural cohesion remains anchored in non-linguistic domains. This mechanism helps explain why linguistically heterogeneous populations may remain culturally cohesive and retain endogenous potential for language revival.

We illustrate the theoretical argument using the case of Kazakhstan, where strong bilingualism coexists with a robust indigenous cultural core and expanding domains of Kazakh-language use. The analysis suggests that such systems are inherently dynamic and may transition toward either linguistic convergence or sustained bilingual equilibrium with increasing prominence of the indigenous language.

The paper contributes to the literature by integrating cultural theory with dynamic models of language competition and by identifying a previously underexplored mechanism through which culture can outlive language and subsequently enable its revival.