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Zhanna SHAIMUKHANBETOVA
Director General,
National Academic Library of the Republic of Kazakhstan
(Astana, Republic of Kazakhstan)
The Role of Kazakhstan’s Libraries
in Shaping the Country’s Linguistic Landscape
Language is one of the most important cultural phenomena as well as a
multifunctional tool. It moulds us as personalities, passing on information
about our heritage.
In his prose poem “Kara Soz” (“Words of Advice”), the Kazakh poet Abai
Kunanbayev says that the command of a language opens up a window onto
the achievements of world civilization: “Knowledge of a foreign language and
culture puts one on a par and at ease with the native speech community, and
if receptive to their concerns and aspirations they struggle for, that person is
bound to join in.”
By exploring other cultures, people can also develop self-critical thinking and
expand their outlook.
Kazakhstan: Linguistic Situation
Nowadays, as so many of the world’s languages disappear (according to
UNESCO statistics, one language becomes extinct every other week), the
Kazakh government remains committed to its policy of supporting all the
languages spoken in the country. “Language policy” may sound rather formal as
a term, but behind it in Kazakhstan are the fates of the many constituent ethnic
communities. So maintaining peace and harmony in the country’s multilingual,
multi-faith society should always be a key priority.
Despite the many historical upheavals they have been through, the Kazakh
people have not lost their greatest asset, the language, which is key to
comprehending the nation’s essence.
“It makes me happy to see Kazakhstan’s people become more respectful and
proud of their national language and more willing to study it,” President
Nursultan Nazarbayev said in his address to the nation on January 28, 2011.
And speaking at the 13 th session of the Assembly of the Nation on August 20,
2007, Mr Nazarbayev said: “…we should make every effort to further promote
the Kazakh language, which is the main unifying force for all of Kazakhstan’s
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