Soviet Language Policy in Uzbekistan: How the Role of Russian has Changed through Soviet Times and Independence

This thesis examines the progression of Soviet language policy in Uzbekistan and its effects. It also examines how the perception of Russian has changed in post-Soviet Uzbekistan and Uzbeks now view their own language as a direct result of language policy. I based my research on the research of others and the interview of a former Peace Corps volunteer who lived in both Tashkent and Andijon for a total period of two years. Through my investigation, I discovered how the Central Asian languages were formed on the basis of language, how Soviet leaders used both Russian and ethnic languages to manipulate its non-Russian population, and the use of language policy in present-day Uzbekistan to distance the republic from its Soviet past. I also learned the connotations associated with the Russian language, and the prejudice that Russophones, even those who have attempted to learn the titular language, face as a result of their inherent ties with the Russian language