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Belarusian language

Belarusian language

5.8
A language spoken mainly in Belarus
  • noun
translation icon : idioma bielorruso
  • The Belarusian language is an essential part of the country's cultural identity.

Examples

  • In particular, traditionalists advocate for an intensive rapprochement between the Belarusian language and the vocabulary of Russian.

    Blog text (26)
  • From 1986 to the present day, Belarus has held a public YouTube karaoke discussion on the status and future of the Belarusian language.

    Blog text (26)
  • This ear traditionalists often explain later borrowed from the Russian language as the common heritage of both the old East Slavic languages while at the same time denying any link between the Old Belarusian language and novobelorusski periods.

    Blog text (26)
  • Many children in Belarus learn the Belarusian language in school to preserve their heritage.

  • The government promotes the use of the Belarusian language in official documents and public signage.

Synonyms

Belarusian
vsBelarusian language
1 7.2

A Slavic language spoken mainly in Belarus

adds the East Slavic regional classification missing here
Byelorussian
vsBelarusian language
  • Archaic
8.3

The language spoken in Belarus

is the modern standard name rather than the older form
Byelorussian language
vsBelarusian language
7.9

A language spoken mainly in Belarus that uses the Cyrillic alphabet

is the commonly used short name instead of this formal label
White Russian language
vsBelarusian language
  • Archaic
8.4

A language spoken in Belarus, also called Belarusian

is the present single-word name used today
White Russian
vsBelarusian language
  • Archaic
9.9

The Belarusian language spoken in Belarus

is the neutral current term rather than an outdated label

Surface Forms

Morphology

Belarusian + language

The meaning 'the East Slavic language spoken primarily in Belarus' is directly and compositionally derived from 'Belarusian' (denoting origin/association with Belarus) + 'language' (a system of communication). This adjective+noun pattern is a standard, cross-linguistic way to name languages and would be immediately understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

The name Belarusian language comes from the country name 'Belarus', which originally meant 'White Rus', a name for the people of that region long ago. So Belarusian language simply means 'the language of Belarus' and is closely related to Russian and Ukrainian.