SYTUACJA JĘZYKA POLSKIEGO NA DAWNYCH KRESACH PÓŁNOCNO-WSCHODNICH
The situation of the Polish language in the former North-Eastern Borderlands

Summary/Abstract: Researchers of the Polish communities abroad condition the development of the Polish language outside of Poland on such extralinguistic factors as: 1) the political status of the Polonocentric community, 2) the origin of this community in relation to the processes of autochthonisation and migration (emigration), 3) intentions towards the culture of the country of residence, 4) social status and social mobility, 5) legal norms related to the communicative community, 6) the degree of community cohesion, 7) generational differences, 8) history of formation and development. Taking into consideration the above-mentioned assumptions, it can be stated that the Polish minority in the former North-Eastern Borderlands (in Lithuania, Latvia and Belarus) has autochthonic traits and is distinguished by the degree of spatial concentration and preservation of the autonomous character of its culture. The preservation of the identity and language is mainly infl uenced by such institutions as school, church and various sociocultural institutions, which integrate Poles as a national minority. Among the enumerated objective factors school is the most important institution because it allows the preservation of the written code. Written language becomes a tool for cultural development and allows further preservation of active multilingualism.

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