Mahabat Sadyrbek on Internationalizing the Kyrgyz Language

Dr. Mahabat Sadyrbek, a political scientist and linguist at Kyrgyz National University, shared her insights on the internationalization and development of the Kyrgyz language in an interview with The Diplomat. "When a language becomes accessible, it becomes visible, and when it becomes visible, it becomes part of international scholarship and global dialogue," Dr. Sadyrbek stated, emphasizing the importance of language dissemination. In Kyrgyzstan, Russian remains widely used as a lingua franca due to Soviet-era influences. However, in recent years, attention has increasingly focused on the role and development of local languages in Central Asia, including Kyrgyz. Regarding the relationship between Kyrgyz and Russian, Dr. Sadyrbek pointed out, "The real question is not whether one language should replace another. The challenge is ensuring that Kyrgyz has the educational, scientific, and institutional foundations it needs to function confidently in every sphere of modern life." She expressed the view that Kyrgyzstan's future lies not in a choice between languages, but in a multilingual society where each language fulfills its own role while Kyrgyz strengthens its place in public life. She noted that while language is deeply personal, it also has political dimensions. The continued influence of Russian in Central Asia is explained by historical, cultural, and educational ties, as well as access to a vast intellectual and digital space. However, she analyzed that Kyrgyzstan has strengthened the position of Kyrgyz as the state language since independence, which is not a rejection of Russian but a natural process of nation-building. Dr. Sadyrbek believes that language change is driven not only by legislation but also significantly by education, migration, urbanization, economic opportunities, technology, and everyday communication. She highlighted that younger generations are increasingly using Kyrgyz with confidence, creating content on digital platforms. Dr. Sadyrbek stressed the necessity of not only having native speakers but also systematizing the language and making it accessible to non-native speakers, such as by authoring Kyrgyz grammar reference books in German and English, for the international spread of the Kyrgyz language.