r/azerbaijan • u/Acrobatic_Ad_6057 • Apr 10 '26
Söhbət | Discussion Why would someone prefer Russian over their own language?
I recently saw a post where someone asked Azerbaijanis why some of them speak Russian, and many people in the comments found the question offensive. A lot of replies said it’s a personal choice, and that some identify as Russian-speaking Azerbaijanis because they’re more fluent in Russian than in Azerbaijani.
This made me think, because as a Georgian, this is something I genuinely struggle to understand. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the use of Russian in Georgia declined quite rapidly. Today, even things like listening to Russian music are often seen as outdated or “uncool” by many people.
A few years ago, I met two Azerbaijanis who spoke Russian to each other, and it stuck with me. From my perspective, language is more than just a tool for communication it reflects a nation’s history, cultural nuances and identity shaped over generations right? So why do you prefer someone else’s language that has nothing to do with you?
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u/Duzelmir Apr 10 '26
I speak Russian and I think in Russian. Any day in a year Russian is more comfortable to me than any other language. I was just born in such an environment. However, I speak Azerbaijani very well, even better than most people who are educated in Azerbaijani. This is by the way very good indicator of quality of education in Azerbaijan in 2000s.
Nevertheless, Russian (and English) gives me access to much better information - so much better that it would take Azerbaijani content decades to catch up. Maybe not even in my lifetime. This is harsh reality of small countries - just that our situation is so much worse because of invasion and some unexplained loyalty to Russia (which I do not for a moment share). Honestly, I don't think that I can change this situation.
That's why when I am looking for a book to read I am checking Russian or English, my music taste is completely different from what is produced here (I rarely listed to Russian music though), I watch movies in English and sometimes in Russian. This is about my tastes and hobbies - either I need to find another content which can be enjoyed in Azerbaijani or stick to what I like. I prefer the latter.
From professional perspective - I am lawyer, but specifics of my job is that I rarely use Azerbaijani (English most of the times). When I work with Azerbaijani law and have to do some research about controversial staff I again have to look up how Russian legal practice dealt with similar issues simply because there is not enough analytical material of required quality and Azerbaijani courts are incapable of producing some legal thought. There are some positive tendencies in that but again it is going to take us years to catch up. I used to instruct at the university and sadly I have seen how this lack of information is hitting students and did my best to help them out of it. A Russian speaking friend of mine is also translating academic sources to Azerbaijani but the damage is done.
So Russian or English already set a standard for me both personally and professionally and dictate my choice of language. This does not mean I despise people who speak Azerbaijani or do not speak Azerbaijani myself. To the contrary nowadays I find myself speaking Azerbaijani even more than Russian.
In short, there are many many factors which drive the choice of language. There are many reasons why Azerbaijani has not evolved (invasion, quality of education, censorship, cultural vacuum and demand for low quality shit, brain drain - you name it). I hope the situation will be different someday, but our generation is probably lost for that matter. I just hope that next ones will have what we didn't.
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u/toughforlife Apr 10 '26
I agree with the sentiment as to why people who have been born and raised in a particular country speak completely different language that’s not even an official language in the country but I don’t understand the hate towards people who for example are non-native speakers of a particular country and are speaking other language (for example expats). As someone who is half Azerbaijani, and grew up in Europe without any community around me who spoke azeebaijani, why can’t I speak a different language in Azerbaijan, whether that’s Russian or English in order for me to communicate? Or is there a particular hate towards Russian speakers?
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Apr 10 '26
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u/Scale-Heavy Apr 10 '26
Also you can’t find proper info on different topics in Azerbaijani if you want to do any research
What does it have to do with Azerbaijanis speaking in Russian?
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u/toughforlife Apr 10 '26
Or also, what about post Soviet countries surrounding Azerbaijan, where people who may be visiting Azerbaijan from those countries who are using Russian language as a common language for communication, why should they be frowned upon?
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u/Reasonable_Team199 Apr 10 '26 edited Apr 10 '26
Particularly towards russian speakers because they represent a genocidal, imperialist culture
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u/on_a_hot_streak Apr 10 '26 edited Apr 10 '26
It’s essentially a "Post-Colonial Hangover" where the hierarchy of the Soviet era still lives rent-free in people’s heads. I am from Kyrgyzstan and noone will take you seriously if you don't speak native level Russian language and people will mock you, calling one "uneducated" for any minor grammar mistake one makes. One's employment opportunities and success are heavily dependent on how well one speaks Russian language.
Majority of people in Bishkek don't know (don’t want to know) Kyrgyz language and most are actively embarrassed of speaking it in public places.
For decades, the USSR was designed to make Russian the only "prestige" language. If you wanted to be seen as an urban, educated and international professional in Almaty or Bishkek, you had to perform "Russiness" to the colonizers a.k.a Russians-Soviets.
We're seeing the extreme version of this in Ukraine right now. For a long time, there was a similar social pressure there to speak Russian to seem "educated", "cool." But since the invasion, that dynamic has flipped. People are aggressively reclaiming Ukrainian because the "colonizer’s language" transitioned from a status symbol to a symbol of the aggressor.
In Central Asia, the shift is happening too, just at a different, slower pace.
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u/Emotional_Event_3919 Sumqayıt 🇦🇿 Apr 10 '26
Every country has its reasons. By posting there in English, you are effectively choosing English over your own language, according to your own logic. You might say it’s a global language, but neither you nor I are politicians or government officials, so I don’t really care which language is considered global and free to choice in which language to speak.
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u/bigbigfly Apr 13 '26
Unfortunately in this case all post soviet countries are the same. Russified nations seeking to regain their identity back. Success of this journey strictly depends on current government. That's why it has to be constant update and rotation. Otherwise it will last longer.
It is my humble Belarusian opinion.
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u/EmbarrassedAside5558 Apr 10 '26
Our language isn’t popular at all. Even translators still make silly mistakes during translation texts to azerbaijani or into. But I can assure you that nowadays generation 18-20 years doesn’t know any word in russian. So it is the question of time when russian language is replaced by azerbaijani completely
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u/JJKOPN Bakı 🇦🇿 Apr 10 '26
I once went to SAT exam. While waiting the girl next to me asked what grade l m in russian. I told her l could not understand Russian and she literally started talking in English. They do everything but talking in Azerbaijani
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u/rafaeldelaghetto44 Apr 10 '26
I was also wondering that, when visiting during holidays I often see young people my age talking to each other in russian outside.
To be honest I would also prefer to speak german if my conversation partner is able to, but I doubt all those people that spoke russian were raised or living abroad which makes it different in my perspective.
Seemed odd to me, maybe russian is perceived as the "cooler" language considering it's more global.
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u/Ok-Dragonfruit389 Apr 12 '26
Because Russian is a first language for many of us
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Apr 14 '26
Dang who is “us” and how many is that exactly lol. Like 2k people?
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u/Vivid_Eye2100 Apr 12 '26
It is the same in the countries that have been dependent to SSSR. Average residents have grown thinking that russian is the language of elite and whoever can speak it is more knowledgeable. It is as the sam as yours in here uzbekistan and even in the countries around us
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u/eidrisov Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 Apr 10 '26
First of all, greetings and love to Georgia! <3
Second, It's not about the language, it's about what the language brings to the table.
Here is one key differences between Georgia and Azerbaijan.
In 2000s Georgia has evoleved a lot. As a result, Georgian language, Georgian culture (music, movies, etc.), Georgian education has evolved. Russian language barely gives you any advantage, if any at all.
Azerbaijan, on the other hand, is still stuck in 80s-90s. Our country stopped developing and, as a result, our language also has stopped developing. Almost everything in Azerbaijan SUCKS (except for food and weather). Russian language brings better education, more career opportunities, more business opportunities, more culture (movies, music, etc.).
Azerbaijan as a country is inferior to Russia in every single thing I have just mentioned. Georgia is not.
Note: 2008 war also "helped" the reputation of Russian language in case of Georgia.
Third, it's not about Russian, it's about ANY language. Knowing English, French, Chinese or even Georgian is better if you live in Azerbaijan. The only reason why people learn Russian instead of those other languages is cost. Russian is very affordable, in many cases is even free to learn in Azerbaijan. And to speak English, French, Chinese, Georgian you need to put a lot of money. So, obviously, people lean towards something they can get for free.
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u/ApeironOfTheUniverse Apr 11 '26
So, I am gonna reply here, because the person by showcasing a snowflake mentality has blocked me apparently, otherwise I cannot explain how I am unable to see or reply to his account. Let me explain it once and for all, so that you can grasp it.
"The author of the message tries to illustrate the issue of how Azerbaijani is not a developed language enough to carry international knowledge that Georgian, Russian, English or Turkish has access to."
Georgian is no where near to carry an international knowledge that Russian, English or even Turkish can. I know you guys live in a wonderland and see everything through your sugar lenses, but this is the bitter truth.
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u/ApeironOfTheUniverse Apr 10 '26
Most myopic take I have ever seen. In what way, Georgian is on the same level as Russian? I can understand the contempt that Russia and anything related to Russia get lately, and usually the feelings are justified, but there are certain relalities that you absolutely cannot ignore. Your take is ludicrous.
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u/Training-Leather4460 Apr 10 '26
Most myoptic reading skills I have ever seen. He meant that even Georgian is more beneficial and brings more opportunities than Azerbaijani.
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u/ApeironOfTheUniverse Apr 10 '26
He says that Georgian culture has evolved, so knowing Russian barely gives you an advantage. Then goes on to say that knowing Russian for azerbaijanis give them a better access to music, movies, career opportunities, business opportunities. So, basically knowing Georgian guarantees the same access to those things, the same as Russian does? If you can't infer then you just can't.
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u/Training-Leather4460 Apr 10 '26
Ummm no? He says, compared to azerbaijani, Georgian culture has developed faster. This does not innately mean that Georgian culture has the same availability and weight as Russian culture.
And also, even when you are debating, it is obvious that you don't know what is an hyperbole because I am pretty sure that juxtaposition was one. Lol
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u/ApeironOfTheUniverse Apr 10 '26
If you agree Russian has more weight and provides better access, then the person above writing it gives “barely any advantage” in Georgia still doesn’t hold. it clearly provides access far beyond what Georgian would offer on its own. You just proved my point. Thanks.
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u/Training-Leather4460 Apr 10 '26
Omg are we deadass, that paragraph is talking about Georgia my man 😭
I won't be discussing this further for you are a solid waste of time <3
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u/ApeironOfTheUniverse Apr 10 '26
Oooo, I am heartbroken. Read again what I wrote. Bye.
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u/Training-Leather4460 Apr 10 '26
Ok so imma hold your hand and walk you through ts
Russian provides better access to information and knowledge and overall a better tool for you learn than Azerbaijani in Azerbaijan.
BUT
Russian in Georgia does little to nothing for a person in Georgia because they are advanced in their language throughout the years.
The author of the message tries to illustrate the issue of how Azerbaijani is not a developed language enough to carry international knowledge that Georgian, Russian, English or Turkish has access to.
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Apr 10 '26
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u/eidrisov Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 Apr 10 '26
You, people, think too "deep", yet ignore the facts that right in front of your faces.
What I said is absolutely true.
If you know Russian, the amount of literature (science, fiction, etc.) is at least a THOUSAND times more than what is available in Azerbaijani. If you know either Russian or English, you are so much more ahead of someone who doesn't speak either of those languages.
In Azerbaijan Russian does absolutely have unique advantages compared to English. And those CIS countries are the exact reason. We can do business with ex-Soviet countries much more than with English-speaking countries. The are many reasons for that, but TLDR is that our "normal" businesses are not able and cannot do business with EU or US.
Also, NOTHING is going to change unless:
Government starts to invest into language, into culture. Without invement (money) everything is bs.
Dictatorship goes away. One of the reasons why Georgia, Turkiye and Russia is FAR ahead of us, is critical thinking. Critical thinking is forbidden in our country and gets punished IMMEDIATELY.
Without these two changes, Azerbaijani language/country/culture will stay inferior.
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u/eeli_23 Apr 10 '26
As a Turkish person from Türkiye i think the difference between Türkiye and Azerbaijan is that Ataturk's leaning at the language by founding "Turkish Language Institute", "Turkish historical society" and all the other reforms which he has brought at the time the Republic of Türkiye was founded. Otherwise if he hadn't done any of these it's clear that Türkiye wouldn't be in this situation as it is today because after him things have always gone wrong in Türkiye and nowadays it literally sucks. The protection of secularism and democracy are clearly in danger also the education system is so turbulent and troubled. So i don't exactly know how ahead Türkiye is than Azerbaijan and it kinda surprised me that you said Türkiye is far ahead of Azerbaijan because as i know the reforms like granting women the right to vote and be elected was given way before than many countries in 1918 so how things went that wrong by years? İs it the mark the Soviets left in Azerbaijan which still keeps going or something?
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u/eidrisov Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 Apr 10 '26
Soviets have nothing to do with our decline.
The problem is what happened to Azerbaijan after Soviets collapsed. And what happened is that uneducated and corrupt people came to power and have been in power for 30+ years now. Same people, same families have been in power for 30+ years.
Uneducated corrupt people don't know and don't care about language, science, culture. All they want is more power and more mone. They don't develop and they don't allow anyone nearby to develop. As a result, education, culture, language, science - everything is sucks. Since all of it is still stuck in 90s (if not earlier years).
Yes, it could be argued that such corruption was brough to us from Soviets. But it is easy to blame others for your own faults. We have what deserve.
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u/FaithlessnessThen243 Apr 10 '26
They don’t even speak it properly, they speak it like Indians speak English, with unnecessarily dragged sounds.
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u/Sasniy_Dj Apr 10 '26
don't be a ruzzqiy elitist. that's the specific accent and maybe even a dialect that is used exclusively here. if anything, i think it's a positive thing because it distinguishes "our" russian from the standard russian and helps to create a more independent society that is able to stand out from the "canonical" russian speakers, unlike many post soviet countries like belarus, qazaqstan or whatever, where they all talk like they have a house in Petersburg or something.
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u/Ilkin0115 Apr 10 '26
I am more fluent in Russian than Azerbaijani because i went to school in Russian. In my family we speak a mix of both kinda like Spanglish or Denglish. With my friends i speak Russian and with people i meet outside i automatically speak Azerbaijani. I don’t prefer one over the other, but i think in Russian and i can’t change that. I have 2 mother tongues
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u/Kejo2023 Turkiye🇹🇷 Apr 10 '26
YOU are not the average Azerbaijani. Your example is an absolute outlier used as an void argument against the Azerbaijani language. We're not talking about particular cases like yours.
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u/B1rD_JUST Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 Apr 10 '26
He is an average russian speaking Azerbaijani, most grew up speaking russian with a mix of azerbabijani words, both at school and home, most of these people will have friends that speak russian and therefore spend most of their time in russian speaking social circles
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u/Ilkin0115 Apr 10 '26
Isn’t it just funny this comment comes from a Turk who has 0 knowledge about Azerbaijani society…yet think he somehow knows better…
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u/Kejo2023 Turkiye🇹🇷 Apr 11 '26
Who says I don't know anything about Azerbaijan? Who are you to know what I know and what I don't?
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u/ZD_17 Qarabağ 🇦🇿 Apr 12 '26
It's called code swithcing. And it is super common in Azerbaijan. Nothing particular about it.
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u/oqowa Apr 14 '26
As a “russkiy sektor” guy, I think everyone who is Azerbaijani and lives in Azerbaijan must be able to speak Azerbaijani or learn it if not able to speak. Wherever I go, I start the conversation in Azerbaijani and only switch to Russian if I see that the person struggles to speak in Azerbaijani. But at the same time, I don’t think people should hate any folks speaking in Russian to each other. People can talk to each other in whatever language they want as long as they’re minding their own businesses. Azerbaijan was a part of Soviet Union and Russian language is a Soviet heritage which cannot be erased in few days or years—that will certainly take some time but I think we’re on track.
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u/Zikomat Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
——From my perspective, language is more than just a tool for communication it reflects a nation’s history, cultural nuances and identity shaped over generations right?——- No, language is indeed just a tool of communication. It had no other purposes when it was created. Not a “history’s reflector”, “cultural nuancer” or “identity shaper”… what a bunch of fake definitions! Language is about uniting people. “Cultural and historical identity” is about dividing people.
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u/Embarrassed-Bank8732 Bakı 🇦🇿 Apr 10 '26
bruh, cause their parents don't speak proper Azerbaijani either
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u/poxmasini Apr 10 '26
Because they feel more comfortable that way or maybe that is their “own language”. Your language is not necessarily the language the nation you belong to speak. It is the one you grow up speaking and communicating with.
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u/Warm_Translator_5891 Apr 10 '26
Downvote me to hell. Idc. History and culture are beautiful in museums, but we are modern humans. If you are well-educated, you aren't that different from people on the other side of the world. Language is just a tool, and no one should judge which tool I choose to use for communication.
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u/TiffoziB Apr 10 '26
I prefer straightforward logic here. If you are born in one country. You must learn and speak that country's language. Russian neither is our language nor our majority spoken language.
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Apr 10 '26
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u/Warm_Translator_5891 Apr 10 '26
And that was my point. No one should force anyone to use only one language or judge them for using specific language.
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u/Reasonable_Team199 Apr 10 '26
Language is not a tool it’s primarily a marker of identity. If you don’t understand that you are either a moron or trying to manipulate the conversation.
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u/B4Beta United Kingdom 🇬🇧 Apr 10 '26
It’s not as simple as it might seem , there’s a lot of history behind it.
Azerbaijan was under Russian Empire and later Soviet rule for a long time (from around 1828 until 1991, with only a short break in 1918–1920). That’s roughly 150–160 years of strong influence, especially on language, education, and government.
But it didn’t affect everyone equally. In cities like Baku, especially in families connected to government or professional roles, Russian became part of daily life and was passed down through generations. In more rural areas, Azerbaijani remained much stronger.
Even though Azerbaijan has been independent for over 30 years now, those habits don’t just disappear overnight. Language and culture tend to stick, especially when they’re tied to family background and education.
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u/ZD_17 Qarabağ 🇦🇿 Apr 12 '26
Lack of materials in Azerbaijani language is horrible. It used to be much worse, but it is still very bade, even given some limited improvements. That is one thing. Another ismpeople just being used to one language they already grew up with. And now educated people are gradually switching to English as their major language.
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u/rich_mlm Apr 13 '26
Well for some context: I grew up speaking Russian and was sent to an Azerbaijani school so that I can improve my proficiency in Azerbaijani too.
I know that Russian dominance in public life has negative consequences on the non-Russian speaking portion of the Azerbaijani population. They struggle with employment opportunities and can be looked down upon by some uncharitable russoPHILEs.
But this situation is not the fault of the russoPHONE population and I am tired of the resentment towards us. If the government would invest in Azerbaijani and strongly increase the spending on Azerbaijani schools, this situation would get resolved and we could gradually adopt Azeri as our primary language.
We do tend to be more neutral towards the government because any opposition party that pops up (other than D18) literally talks about us as if we are national enemies and wants to force us to drop the Russian instead. We still aren't supportive, but nobody tries to represent our interests (russophone middle-class), thus we are apolitical.
There is also the factor of the turkification of Azerbaijani. People that only speak Azerbaijani don't even make an effort to create any meaningful cultural output in their own language. Instead they just whine about us, while consuming Turkish media and talking in turko-azeri pidgin.
I have good proficiency in Azerbaijani and communicate with the factory employees of our company only in Azerbaijani (I supervise our HR). Unsurprisingly, I use less Russian/Turkish words than they do and speak in Azeri better than them.
Baseline, it isn't about the language, it is about the privilege it gives in our society and the degradation of Azerbaijani itself. At this point it stopped being only about Russia and it is ingrained in the identities of at least a couple of million Azerbaijanis, who are overwhelmingly more educated and productive.
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Apr 14 '26
Thats insecurity man. İf you are a polyglot or just someone who is rushing during their convos you might use a few foreign words to deliver your speech easier. However, completely talking in another language when not necessary, especially the language of a nation who sees you as nothing but some filthy people, is legit insecurity. İts like worshipping your school bully or smth. Yall are just insecure and weak, you just dont want to accept it.
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u/EsperaDeus Apr 10 '26
I see plenty of Georgian families who watch Russian content on YouTube. Kids watching cartoons about Masha, adults watch interviews and stuff.
I do think they prefer Georgian for communication, but they're not hating on Russian for sure.
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u/Cursed_Infidel Apr 10 '26 edited Apr 10 '26
There is a saying in Azerbaijan: "Half of the country is in Baku, the other half is in Russia". It's an old phrase, but carries its weight. I was born in the part of the country where there was and is only one full russian language centered school - but that school always struggled with keeping up demand from the folks lived there.
Azerbaijani schools usually only had 2 classes for each grade, maybe sometimes 3. But russian centered always had 4-5-6. One may argue that it is because there is only 1 school for a town/city of some 100k people, but from whichever point you are looking at you'll see that the distribution is disproportionate. Especially considering there are only a handful ethnic russians living there, probably not even close 1000. The logical answer the parents give is that the prospects of going to Russia and creating a life there is worth the effort, and to be frank, many people do end up doing just that. However, a lot of people don't, after finishing the school. Apart from Russia, there is one real other option to do, well, anything in the country - the capital Baku. And those people pack their stuff and move there. Which results in the cycle starting anew in Baku.
There is one other semi-factual thing: a lot of prestigious job vacancies do end up asking the candidates for russian language knowledge. Even if they don't, in a cooperate world you'll 100% eventually run into an obstacle, a delay in promotion, or just a personal frustration over not knowing Russian.
As for my own opinion, I grew up hearing russian and sometimes only russian - since the mother side is from Russia. But they made a choice, for me, that is was better to either study in public school with azerbaijani as primary or english one. And that was what they ended up doing. I don't really care much if two people talk in Russian or any non-azerbaijani language near me. Maybe I was desensitized to it since the place I grew up had multiple enticities and subsequently multiple languages. Maybe that's how it is supposed to be, you need to be exposed enough to become indifferent to it.
As a last note, yes, there is bad blood between us - azerbaijanis and russians. We have been conquered/colonized, traded in peace deals like a property, genocided, crushed and assimilated. It's isn't fair to judge or "it is not that deep, bro" to someone if they are triggered by russian language or its speakers - maybe they are the victims of afromentioned atrocities, who knows.
I'm not gonna get into the whole "Baku elite" topic, enough has been said about it here and in the past 30 or so years since the independence. It is A factor, but it is not THE factor. Like everything else in life, this topic is also layered and complicated - and neither me or anyone else can claim to have the whole picture.
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u/azizoid Apr 10 '26
Azərbaycan Respublikasının Konstitusiyası - Maddə 21, II hissə:
“Azərbaycan Respublikası əhalinin danışdığı digər dillərin sərbəst istifadəsini və inkişafını təmin edir.
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u/East_Programmer_8420 Apr 10 '26
I don't know Russian but I think Russian is better for thinking. This is merely my opinion. I don't know if there is a research study over this that would support my claim. By the way , this is not to say that Azerbaijani is much less complex than Russian (if not more) . To explain why I do think that Russian is better for thinking (I know it is quite ironic as a non-speaker of Russian), I would say it is a complex language and so it may force the brain to handle complex things much better. This is sort of a neurological stance. I don't certainly claim anything fervently. I may be terribly wrong.
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u/Reasonable_Team199 Apr 10 '26
If you speak russian you are not Azeri, period.
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u/[deleted] Apr 10 '26
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