SOCIOLINGUISTIC METHOD AS AN INSTRUMENT OF TERRITORIAL MONITORING

Abstract

The article presents the application of the method of sociolinguistic questionnaires as a tool for territorial monitoring. Sociolinguistic questionnaires conducted in the late twentieth century in some settlements of the Kherson region. The objectives of the study are performed in two dimensions – synchronic and diachronic. The synchronic dimension revealed the peculiarities of the national-linguistic sphere of individual villages and cities of the Kherson region, in particular their common features of historical foundation (mostly in the XVIII century, mainly by Ukrainian peasants and Cossacks); features of dominance of the Ukrainian culture and language (from insignificant advantage in some settlements to full dominance in the majority); functioning of the Ukrainian language in the majority of respondents' families, as well as in parents' and grandparents' families; identifying a high rate of positive attitude to the Ukrainian language despite the share of Russian-speaking people, in particular in the choice of school educations' language for children and in the attitude to the Ukrainian language as the state language, in expressing views on its future.

In the diachronic dimension, parallels are drawn with the current situation. Thus, it was found that the opinion of the respondents about the further equality of the two languages was not correct, because the Ukrainian language today has reached a high functional level. Also, in accordance with the strategies of administrative-territorial reform and the formation of national identity in modern Ukraine, the effectiveness of the sociolinguistic method in the study / monitoring of the linguistic and national situation in the regions of the country are proved.

It is concluded that the above results of the survey, obtained using the sociolinguistic method, should be used in scientific research related to the current state of the national language sphere in Ukraine, in particular in each region, which will help develop a proper state strategy for this sphere.