Research Summary: Recurring mechanisms of language use across historical pandemic contexts: evidence from Russian and Polish diasporas in Germany during COVID-19

Research published in Frontiers in Education examines crisis-induced multilingual practices among Russian and Polish diaspora communities in Germany during the COVID-19 pandemic. By contextualising empirical findings within historical pandemic patterns, the study identifies three recurrent mechanisms: the emergence of new multilingual contact spaces, the temporary expansion of multilingual institutional communication, and the reorganisation of domestic language practices. The investigation highlights how major public health disruptions systematically reshape communicative domains, with specific empirical focus on domestic language shifts captured via semi-structured interviews.

Why it matters

Understanding how crises reshape linguistic domains matters because institutional and domestic communication channels predictably fracture during systemic disruptions. Recognizing these recurrent historical mechanisms prevents organisations from relying on ad-hoc, transient linguistic accommodations during emergency response operations. Consequently, this evidence informs durable cross-cultural communication architectures necessary for public resilience during prolonged disruptions.

Key insights

• Crisis contexts such as epidemics structurally disrupt and reorganise communicative domains rather than altering language use randomly.
• Three historically recurrent mechanisms govern crisis-induced minoritised language use: emergence of new multilingual contact spaces, temporary institutional communication expansion, and domestic language reorganisation.
• The COVID-19 pandemic specifically impacted the domestic communicative sphere of Russian and Polish diasporas in Germany, as assessed through semi-structured interviews.

Source

Frontiers in Education — https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2026.1926721