I am interested in the languages spoken as native ones in the villages around Vilnius and in the south-east of the country (like in the Salčininkai region) like in Rudamina, Jašiūnai or Skaidiškės

Some people say people mosty speak Polish, others Russian and others say it's a mix between Russian, Polish, Lithuanian and Belarussian…

Which one is more accurate?

And if most of them speak a "pidgin" language that consists of the mix from Polish, Russian, Belarussian, Lithuanian…etc, sometimes called "Tutejszy", is it true that the majority of people in these towns (especially the younger ones) are beginning to stop using those language mixes and instead are tending to use the "pure" form of these languages (like "pure" Polish, Russian, Belarussian…etc)?

I'm asking this because of this article (https://www.delfi.lt/ru/news/live/yazyk-kotorogo-net-kto-gde-i-s-kem-govorit-v-litve-po-prostu-78601107). I don't speak Russian but I translated it and it basically says so.

In summary, do people in the towns around Vilnius and in eastern Lithuania with a majority of slavic speakers, mainly speak one language at home? Or rather many of them, often mixing them? Which ones?

Of course, I'm referring to these languages as the native language/the one spoken at home. Obviously virtually all people in Lithuania can speak Lithuanian

by stifenahokinga

4 comments

  1. I live in a village next to Vilnius, and nearly everyone here speaks Polish at home. It’s not the “standard” Polish spoken in Warsaw or on TV. It’s gwara wileńska. It’s a dialect that mixes ancient Polish with some Lithuanian and a lot of Russian influences (russicisms). So it’s not 100% clear Polish, but we all communicate without issues.
    Of course, most people also speak Lithuanian, especially the younger ones because of school and work. However, in informal settings like home and among neighbors, Polish remains the primary language for many families around here.

  2. What’s with this spam across all Baltic-related subs? I’ve seen at minimum 4 copies of this exact post today, several hours apart.
    Why do you ask?

  4. Depends which town and which neighbourhood. The suburban exodus did some serious mixing around, and due to that lithuanian language prominance overall is growing in majority polish areas. Otherwise, you are most likely to hear lithuanian, russian and mowa prosta/tutjezy mix.

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