Significant Study Reveals Discrimination of Latvian Language
Vineta Skujiņa's monograph documents the state of the Latvian language and problems in intercultural communication, revealing that unlike Western Europe, the native population faces difficulties.
Vineta Skujiņa (Poriņa), a researcher at the Latvian Occupation Museum and doctor of philology, has published a monograph on discrimination of the Latvian language and societal bilingualism in Latvia. The study is unique in that it uses documented facts to reveal the state of the Latvian language and intercultural communication problems in the 20th and 21st centuries.
The research began in 2004 as part of an European Commission project “Intercultural Dialogue for a European Multicultural Society”. When the results were compiled, the linguistic situation in Latvia surprised other project participants – it turned out to be completely different from Western European countries. In Western Europe, communication problems usually arise for immigrants, while in Latvia, the native population has long faced and still faces issues when using the state language.
The monograph was published by the Latvian Occupation Museum Association in 2025 and is featured in the 2026 issue no. 3 of the magazine “Domuzīme”. Skujiņa's work is a significant contribution to understanding the consequences of Soviet occupation in the language domain.
