More than 200 ethnic groups live on the territory that was once called ussr until it broke more than 30 years ago. Still around 185 ethnic groups live in the territory of modern russia with more than 100 languages spoken, and still the traces of ussr and russian colonialism lead to many people in former ussr territories forgetting or not learning their native languages and speaking mostly russian. This also results in many indigenous peoples investing into russophone literature, while the literature in their languages is under the risk of extinction.
TEL L laboratory the laboratory where people who have been mostly writing in russian instead of their native languages try to gain their language and culture back and start enriching the indigenous peoples poetry and prose, that is now in different shapes depending on a culture — from almost non-existing to very limited and mostly patriarchal and/or russian-propagandistic.
Lostlingual project is a Project by Dinara Rasuleva, where they reflect on how they’ve been losing their native Tatar language, while writing in russian language for decades. While Dinara shared their experience, a lot of people shared their similar experiences that resulted in the TEL L laboratory — the collaboration of Napishi writing course and Totschka library.
We want to regain our languages and our literature and start creating queer, feminist, anti-imperialist literature in our native languages.
Come and see the results of the 10 week language laboratory and listen to the stories of people of seven different ethnic groups, to their translingual poetry and prose.
The performers:
Vioxendez
Әлия/Aliia
Игорь/ Igor
Маша/ Маsha
Дарья Ма / Daria Ma / דאַריאַ מאַ
Sofia/ София
Ludmila Pogodina
Sofia Evmina
Данияр/ Daniyar
and more
Languages:
Ukrainian
Belarusian
Tatar
Yakut (Sakha)
Bashkir
Kyrgyz
Yiddish
German
English
Russian
Italian
French
FREE ENTRY