Language and Nationality: Social Inferences, Cultural Differences, and Linguistic Misconceptions, by Pietro Bortone, London and New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2022, 272 pp., $130 (hardback), ISBN 9781350071636, $40 (paperback), ISBN 9781350071643.

Abstract

scholarly works for years to come. The five in-depth case studies are thorough and interesting. At the same time, this book also raises some questions.Why is the role of external actors brought up in the theoretical chapter yet no hypotheses derived about it? Later in the case studies of Estonia and Latvia, the role of external actors such as the European Union is an important factor that has influenced the countries’ decision-making towards their Russian minorities. Furthermore, could it be that the key variable influencing governmental decision-making towards their Russian minorities is not so much the perceived threat that such minorities may represent but more so the perceived likelihood that harsher measures towards the Russophones could lead to a Russian intervention? The way it is conceptualized and operationalized, the very concept of “threat perception” includes numerous variables – and it is not clear how much weight each of them holds. As a result, in the qualitative empirical part of the study it can sometimes be questioned whether the perceived threat level could be assigned differently. For example, after assessing the numerous variables that fall under threat perception, the author states that Russian minorities have historically represented only a moderate threat to Latvia and Estonia. However, as in both of these countries there has been a significant concentration of Russian speakers in the Eastern regions, why is this threat assessed just as moderate? The threat perception section as a whole could benefit from engaging more with additional literatures on threat perception in international relations. Finally, while it is impressive to learn that this book draws on interviews with more than 100 individuals, it would be helpful to see more information about these interviews – for example, are these interviews roughly equally distributed over all 11 countries? Overall, this book is a welcome addition to the scholarship on minority integration, ethnic politics and the politics of the Former Soviet Republics. Those with interest in Ukraine, Georgia, Estonia, Latvia and Kazakhstan will likely be interested in reading the detailed the cases studies on these countries. The theoretical and conceptual insights regarding the dynamics of minority integration and exclusion will be of interest to keen observers of conflict situations and secessionist movements in other regions.