Lexical skills in Russian among Russian-Kazakh bilingual children in Northern Kazakhstan: Evidence from noun and verb naming

Purpose: This study explores lexical skills in Russian among Russian-Kazakh bilingual children, using it as a lens to examine patterns of language dominance and post-Soviet language dynamics in multilingual Kazakhstan. The study addressed three key questions: (1) How do Russian-Kazakh bilingual children compare to monolingual Russian-speaking peers in lexical abilities in Russian, particularly on noun and verb naming? (2) What factors predict lexical abilities in both groups? (3) What are the characteristics of cross-linguistic influence from Kazakh (if any) on Russian in bilingual children’s non-target responses? Methodology: The study involved 43 Russian-Kazakh bilingual children aged 5–8 from urban areas in Northern Kazakhstan, who were compared to 22 age-matched monolingual Russian-speaking children. Data on demographics and language use were collected, and lexical abilities were assessed through noun and verb naming tasks, with quantitative and qualitative analyses used to evaluate performance and bilinguals’ strategies for addressing lexical gaps. Findings: Russian-Kazakh bilinguals exhibited lower proficiency than monolinguals but demonstrated creative strategies to manage gaps in their vocabulary. Age and word characteristics affected lexical performance for both groups, with older children performing better in both noun and verb tasks. Minimal cross-linguistic influence from Kazakh on Russian was observed, primarily in noun production, highlighting the dominance of Russian in bilinguals’ environments. Originality: The study sheds light on how Kazakhstan’s post-colonial linguistic landscape shapes language acquisition in children, showing that Russian retains a dominant role while coexisting with Kazakh in a multilingual context. It highlights the evolving role of Russian as a transnational lingua franca in Kazakhstan’s diverse society. Implications: This study investigates Russian lexical proficiency among Russian-Kazakh bilingual children in Northern Kazakhstan and explores how varying language exposure affects lexical outcomes. The findings highlight differences in word retrieval accuracy between the two groups, suggesting the role of exposure patterns and the sociolinguistic environment in shaping bilingual vocabulary development. These results contribute to ongoing discussions about language use in Kazakhstan, particularly on the functional role of Russian in early education, without making claims about language policy effects.