ATTITUDE TOWARDS FOREIGN LANGUAGES IN JADID TRANSLATIONS: A STUDY OF LINGUISTIC REFORM AND CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION IN EARLY 20TH-CENTURY CENTRAL ASIA

Abstract

This article explores the attitudes of Jadid intellectuals toward foreign languages as reflected in their translation practices during the late Tsarist and early Soviet periods in Central Asia. Drawing on a qualitative analysis of primary and secondary sources, the study examines how Jadid translators navigated the tension between preserving national linguistic identity and embracing foreign linguistic influences, particularly from Russian, Arabic, Persian, and Western European languages. The findings reveal a complex and context-dependent posture: while Jadids rejected cultural subjugation, they pragmatically adopted foreign linguistic elements to modernize education, disseminate reformist ideas, and create a unified national literary language. This study contributes to the understanding of Jadidism as a multifaceted reform movement and highlights the role of translation as a site of ideological negotiation and cultural mediation.