Bryansk Territory between the State of Russia and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (Rzeczpospolita): politics, religion, language

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present the history of the Bryansk Territory as one of the border regions of Russia in the context of the contradictory relationship between the Russian and Polish-Lithuanian states (XVI–XVIII centuries) and the conflict of religious and social systems. Moreover, the geographically and historically conditioned linguistic heterogeneity of this region is pointed out. The author examines the influence of extralinguistic factors (political, religious, cultural processes and contacts with foreign countries) on the development of language in the border region.