Dialectal Subdivison of Karelian and Identity Politics in the Karelian-Speaking Community

The Republic of Karelia is a region in the northern part of Russian Federation. Due to a centennial coexistence of the Russian, Finnish, Karelian and Vepsian languages, the linguistic situation in the Republic is intricate. This paper uses the method of semi-structured interviewing in order to investigate the language situation in the Republic of Karelia and how dialectical subdivision of the Karelian language affect linguistic identity of its speakers. The problem of mutually intelligibility of the dialects is also discussed. The study results indicate that people of the Republic identify themselves as speakers of a particular Karelian dialect rather than speakers of the Karelian language. There are relatively large differences among dialects which prevent activists and linguists from forming a single literary language and successfully establishing it as the language of the state. I believe these findings can have a profound impact on language planning and possible strategies in interaction of ethnocultural communities not only in the Republic of Karelia but all over Russia.