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Posted by Lolya on October 19, 2001 at 22:45:59:
In Reply to: Nationalism vs. Patriotism posted by Olexandr on September 30, 2001 at 12:35:41:
It has been many years since I have spoken Ukrainian as a daily regimen. But there is no more beautiful sound to my ears than hearing Ukrainian spoken – while shopping or walking in the street. I will inevitably stop and speak to that person and sometimes find a new friend. Ukraine is feeling her freedom finally, and with it goes pride in country, in Arts, and in language. Language defines a people to a great extent, and after being persecuted for so many years and not allowed to speak Ukrainian, Ukrainians want to assert the use of their language in their own homeland. Call it whatever you like – patriotism OR nationalism. It is absolutely normal and commendable. That Russians should want to use Russian while in Ukraine… that’s should be no problem… as long as the schools teach Ukrainian as the first language and the coming generation speaks Ukrainian. You, at times, cannot change an older person’s skills. For them, patience is necessary. We are, however, becoming a global society. So, as Ukraine becomes more stable and confident in her status as a world-class country, perhaps we’ll see more languages being learned and used in the metropolitan areas. When you have travelers from all over the world coming to your country, it is quite hospitable to be able to speak other languages, and accommodate foreigners. So, I guess I’d like to see in the future, more foreign languages introduced in the schools and a patriotic and nationalistic Ukraine reaching out to the world in its own language of Ukrainian, AND the languages of the world.