Talk:List of countries and territories where Russian is an official language

Help needed
This is a stub, not very well formatted. Please help to complete. --Atitarev (talk) 05:35, 1 February 2008 (UT]

From 1960s to 1980s Russian languague is used widely in Vietnam as first foreign languageCristiano Toàn (talk) 11:51, 4 September 2009 (UTC)

Tables
The tables are so weird. There should be an introductory paragraph and explanation to each table. Aleksandr Grigoryev (talk) 01:19, 14 February 2013 (UTC)

article scope and merge suggestion
This is not a "List of countries where Russian is an official language". Such a list is given in the first section, and it has five entries, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan.

The article then goes on to discuss " Regions where Russian is an official language" and "Organisations with Russian as an official language" and "several other countries where Russian, though not official, is an important secondary language".

This is all fine, but it doesn't fit the page title, so perhaps merge it into a page on the wider concept of "Russian-speaking world".

Also, it would be nice (actually: required) to base this on references. It's not enough to say "here are a few countries where Russian speakers live", because that would include practically every country in the world. If you want to discuss a concept of " not official, but an important secondary language", you are making a judgement call, and this needs to be based on secondary references. --dab (𒁳) 14:11, 27 March 2014 (UTC)

More countries
Russian is also the official language of the newly self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Lugansk People's Republic

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donetsk_People%27s_Republic https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lugansk_People's_Republic — Preceding unsigned comment added by OBCPO1 (talk • contribs) 20:42, 20 May 2014 (UTC)

POV, recentism and lacking in sources
Please provide sources where the Federation of Novorossia is recognised by any official nation-state (particularly as it violates WP:RECENTISM).

The map is pure fiction. Again, provide sources demonstrating that Russian is a de facto language in Ukraine and other regions illustrated. The map, itself, is completely illiterate: "Russia in a de facto working language". What does that actually mean in English? This article is WP:POV and, frankly, WP:OR. Please get anything which stands up to scrutiny merged into the Russophone article ASAP. If not, I'll simply mark it for speedy deletion. --Iryna Harpy (talk) 06:17, 20 July 2014 (UTC)

External links modified
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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/20081006092114/http://cominf.org:80/2004/10/15/1127818105.html to http://cominf.org/2004/10/15/1127818105.html

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Cheers.—cyberbot II  Talk to my owner :Online 14:45, 23 February 2016 (UTC)
 * ✔️ Confirmed as correct. Thanks, Cyberbot II. --Iryna Harpy (talk) 21:56, 25 February 2016 (UTC)

Reason for subdivisions
French is declared the language of France, including autonomous regions, but local constitutions still warrant mention on Wikipedia. In following this policy, it is worth documentation that Russia's Republics, which function much in the same way, also be mentioned in the same provisions that French is an official language. Therefore, the reason for including these republics is the recognition of official, regional constitutional declarations on language.

Israel
The Russian language cannot be considered official in Israel at this moment in time, and it's only "state" use is in prescription medication. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 136.227.189.45 (talk) 20:11, 1 February 2017 (UTC)

Donetsk and Lugansk mentioned twice
The reasoning for Donetsk and Lugansk regions being mentioned twice is the different legal implications. Both are controlled de facto independently from Ukraine, and these de facto constitutions establish Russian (and Ukrainian) as official languages. The law of 2012 on Ukrainian languages also applies to said regions, whom had previously made the language official in the oblasts. Because they did this, in both spheres of continuity, the Russian language is official. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 136.227.189.45 (talk) 20:14, 1 February 2017 (UTC)
 * I'm removing the DPR and LPR as WP:OR. Neither region is officially recognised by any sovereign states. Note, also, that the section is titled 'countries'. Only the first 4 qualify as officially recognised countries/nation-states. Disputed territories with extremely limited recognition do not qualify such a description and, as such, are WP:POV inclusions. --Iryna Harpy (talk) 21:04, 1 February 2017 (UTC)

Reliably sourced retraction of co-official status in 4 oblasts in Ukraine?
I reverted your changes, , and then. Firstly, you should provide edit summaries for the benefit of other editors/contributors, particularly when reverted once for not having provided sources for such major changes. Secondly, I'm aware of the recently amended language component of the Law of Ukraine, as are multiple other editors, but the contention is a far broader than overriding regional law, and there are no sources to back up any changes to regional laws. Anything you read into sources is a breach of WP:NOR and WP:SYNTH. Please provide reliable sources confirming that the four regions/oblasts you've removed have actually actually retracted the co-official status of Russian (such as it is) before making this major change again.

I noticed that you've just made the same change to the corresponding Ukrainian article without citing any sources. Surely you must have some Ukrainian language sources confirming the retraction of official status?

I'm going to ping and  in on this as they may be able to clarify further, or have further sourcing for changes. Iryna Harpy (talk) 23:08, 3 August 2019 (UTC)


 * Addendum: Should Crimea and Sevastopol be mentioned here? They're not recognised as having been annexed by Russia by the international community, so I think a brief note on their status is appropriate for this list. Earlier versions referenced the status (see ) until a series of undiscussed changes took place in 2017 (an example ). I blinked and missed it. Iryna Harpy (talk) 23:56, 3 August 2019 (UTC)
 * uk:Закон України «Про забезпечення функціонування української мови як державної»--PsichoPuzo (talk) 07:38, 4 August 2019 (UTC)


 * Please see WP:WINARS regarding the use of any other Wikipedia articles as a reference. Given, however, that this law has been enacted, regardless of whether it's been universally accepted, it stands as law, therefore no oblasts in Ukraine can use the Russian language as a co-official language (or having status in any shape or form other than a foreign language used by a 'minority group' within Ukraine). Cheers. Iryna Harpy (talk) 22:17, 4 August 2019 (UTC)


 * Pretty unsure that AR Crimea should be "blanket-removed" (its 1998 Constitution granted certain official usage to Russian and Crimean Tatar languages way before now-annulled 2012 language law came into being), yet, as for Sevastopol, "regional status" of Russian there was based on 2012 law (see archived link), so it is under certain doubt within Ukrainian framework. Although there was also a 2006 decision (see preamble of 2012 decision), also likely of similar topic, I don't have access to that document nor I found any information about its present status (in force? abrogated/declared null and void?). So, AR Crimea should stay (with a note about uncontrolled/disputed status, but that not a problem at all), Sevastopol likely not, and others certainly not. And while sometimes local authorities defy central ones on the issue, courts step in in that cases. Bests, --Seryo93 (talk) 07:39, 4 August 2019 (UTC)


 * Thanks, . Such dramatic changes are seriously Draconian stuff given the number of Russian speaking monoglots including plenty of Ukrainian 'ethnics'... but, that was the name of the game. Yes, I think Crimea should be reintroduced. I'm also leaning towards Sevastapol as well, primarily because of the major institutions and governments of the international community not recognising the annexation (Ukraine's position on the matter is virtually irrelevant in this context). If the annexation is unrecognised, only laws enacted prior the annexation are considered to be legal tender. Iryna Harpy (talk) 22:08, 4 August 2019 (UTC)
 * Crimea is re-added as a "separate case": 1) ARC didn't invoke 2012 law but in practice already has/-d a kind of regional language status of Russian ("shall be used in all spheres of public life" is more than obvious indication of that, given that public life also encompasses official governmental usage), 2) Sevastopol, while falling under category of 2012 law, also attempted to declare "regional status" in 2006, and, despite 2010 judicial annullment of that decision, still stood by it (as evident from preamble of 2012 decision). A Russian framework is also noted (with a note of non-recognition). Bests, --Seryo93 (talk) 06:46, 5 August 2019 (UTC)
 * Nicely done, Seryo93! Iryna Harpy (talk) 22:50, 5 August 2019 (UTC)

Also it should be moved to another section, presumably into: Russian with other unofficial status.--PsichoPuzo (talk) 17:14, 6 August 2019 (UTC)


 * I'm not sure that's the best place for it/the best arrangement. At the moment, the structure conflates nation-states and states of limited recognition (i.e., Moldova [Transnistria being represented alongside Gagauzi], and states of extremely limited recognition like Abkhazia and South Ossetia, all being treated as if they were recognised nation-states on an equal footing). For the reader, this is a misrepresentation of the status of the "regions" being represented, implying that they are all undisputed. Perhaps the way forward is to move Abkhazia and South Ossetia completely into the "other" section, clarifying that they are states of limited recognition in the status section. The Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol should be abbreviated to "see Russian with other unofficial status below" with the full clarification transferred to that section, plus the "see Russian with other unofficial status below" qualifier for Transnistria as well. Well, that doesn't actually cover it properly as Abkhazia and South Ossetia are partially recognised (no matter how partial that recognition). Perhaps there should be another table added to the end dedicated to states of limited recognition. Iryna Harpy (talk) 23:27, 6 August 2019 (UTC)

Move discussion in progress
There is a move discussion in progress on Talk:List of territorial entities where Afrikaans and Dutch are official languages which affects this page. Please participate on that page and not in this talk page section. Thank you. —RMCD bot 16:24, 10 May 2020 (UTC)

Artsakh
Would it be appropriate to include Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic) in this list now? I think like a week ago they made Russian official.

rissian 2601:19B:C81:1D00:55E7:C02B:BBEA:78C2 (talk) 17:51, 17 April 2023 (UTC)