On 18 February 2012 Latvian citizens participated in a referendum on making Russian a second official (“state”) language. The proposal was rejected by three-quarters of voters. There is a complex background to language policy in Latvia, where since regaining independence in 1991 the country has promoted Latvian as the only state language, though Russian and other languages are widely used at a societal level. The language law and associated citizenship law in Latvia (as in Estonia) have received considerable commentary, with recent significant writings disagreeing strongly regarding their interpretation. These laws have also very often been criticized by both European institutions and by Russia, yet are tenaciously clung to as a basis of Latvian sovereignty. Proficiency in Latvian among previous non-speakers of this language has improved markedly since regained independence, and generally there has been little interpersonal or community confict over language. The move for a referendum, promoted by Russian groups of a highly political character, and with a particular discourse about Latvia and language, brings a new phase to an ongoing language policy issue. Subsequent events both in Latvia (in the form of a constitutional amendment) and in Ukraine (in the form of both language law and armed conflict) show language policy being increasingly influenced by wider political forces.

中文翻译：

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2012 年 2 月，拉脱维亚公投将俄语作为第二国语

2012 年 2 月 18 日，拉脱维亚公民参加了将俄语设为第二官方（“国家”）语言的公投。该提议被四分之三的选民否决。拉脱维亚的语言政策有着复杂的背景，自 1991 年重新获得独立以来，该国一直将拉脱维亚语提升为唯一的国家语言，尽管俄语和其他语言在社会层面上被广泛使用。拉脱维亚（如爱沙尼亚）的语言法和相关的公民法受到了大量评论，最近的重要著作对其解释存在强烈分歧。这些法律也经常受到欧洲机构和俄罗斯的批评，但仍顽固地坚持作为拉脱维亚主权的基础。自从恢复独立以来，以前不讲拉脱维亚语的人对拉脱维亚语的熟练程度有了显着提高，并且总体上几乎没有关于语言的人际或社区冲突。由具有高度政治性质的俄罗斯团体推动的全民公投行动，以及关于拉脱维亚和语言的特定话语，为正在进行的语言政策问题带来了一个新阶段。拉脱维亚（以宪法修正案的形式）和乌克兰（以语言法和武装冲突的形式）的后续事件表明，语言政策越来越受到更广泛的政治力量的影响。以及关于拉脱维亚和语言的特定话语，为正在进行的语言政策问题带来了一个新阶段。拉脱维亚（以宪法修正案的形式）和乌克兰（以语言法和武装冲突的形式）的后续事件表明，语言政策越来越受到更广泛的政治力量的影响。以及关于拉脱维亚和语言的特定话语，为正在进行的语言政策问题带来了一个新阶段。拉脱维亚（以宪法修正案的形式）和乌克兰（以语言法和武装冲突的形式）的后续事件表明，语言政策越来越受到更广泛的政治力量的影响。