Belarus pushes new language rules: foreign words, abbreviations under scrutiny

In a bid to “protect the national cultural space” and promote what authorities term “cultural security,” Belarus has unveiled plans to restrict the use of foreign words—especially in business names, advertising, and signage.

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Belarusian Ministry of Antitrust and Trade Regulations

The Ministry of Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade’s recommendation, reported by Euroradio, is part of a broader government initiative titled The Concept of Development of the National Cultural Space in All Spheres of Social Life for 2024–2026.

Under this policy, foreign and non-Slavic terms, including abbreviations, could be replaced by Belarusian or Russian equivalents. It’s the latest linguistic twist in a country that has oscillated between official support for both Belarusian and Russian since President Alyaksandr Lukashenka assumed power in 1994.

Initially, Belarusian was the sole state language; a 1995 referendum elevated Russian to co‑equal status, triggering a wave of what critics label “Russification.”

Surveys reflect this transformation. While 85.6 percent of the population identified Belarusian as their native tongue in 1999, only 61.2 percent did so in the 2019 census.

Usage rates are even lower: less than 30 percent speak Belarusian daily.

Lukashenka himself rarely speaks Belarusian and has made disparaging comments about it, once calling it “a poor language” and claiming, “nothing significant can be effectively expressed in Belarusian.”

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Source: Belsat