Language shift and language revival in Crimea

Abstract This article presents observations and findings from an ongoing research on language revival among Italian new speakers in Crimea. Victim of Stalin’s mass deportations of minorities in the 1940s, the community experienced severe physical, demographic, social and cultural dislocation that led inexorably to language shift towards Russian. Through the use of ethnographic research methods, including participant observations and in-depth, semi-structured interviews, the study explores the participants’ motivations, learning experiences and language use as they are involved in the project of reviving the Italian community.