Linguistic Anthropology in Russian Translation (Afterword to the discussion)

Abstract

The article presents the results of the Forum “Linguistic Anthropology”, dedicated to the current state of language and culture studies in Russia. It is obvious that the transfer of an interdisciplinary field called “Linguistic Anthropology” to Russian science and education is already underway. At the same time, as the discussion shows, a Russian version of this area is organized around several points of attraction: Western literature on language and culture and language and politics, the theory and methods of linguistics, sociolinguistics, conversational analysis and discourse analysis, and the Russian school of еthnolinguistics. An intriguing methodological problem at the intersection of anthropology and linguistics is dealing with the unspoken, the ambiguous and the ironic. The participants in the discussion ask critical questions both of the grounds on which the researcher recognizes gaps and ambiguities, and of the goals of her interlocutors when they indicate that certain meanings cannot be expressed. Reflecting on the analytical potential of the metaphor of translation (another point where language and culture meet), the Forum participants talk about its political underpinnings: translation can both establish hierarchical relationships and create a space for cooperation. The discussion showed that the translation of American linguistic anthropology into Russian academic reality can create a space for dialogue both between disciplines and between researchers from different countries. The union of anthropology and linguistics offers relevant tools that are in demand not only among anthropologists and ethnographers, but also among historians, sociologists and other researchers who seek to understand social reality.