THE USE OF THE UZBEK LANGUAGE ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND LINGUISTIC CHANGES
Abstract
The present chapter examines the theoretical foundations for studying the use of the Uzbek language on social media platforms and the linguistic changes arising from digital communication. Drawing on sociolinguistics, computer-mediated communication theory, and code-switching research, the chapter argues that the emergence of social media as a primary communicative arena has introduced structural, lexical, and orthographic pressures on Uzbek that cannot be understood without reference to the language's post-Soviet sociolinguistic context. The chapter surveys the key theoretical frameworks — including David Crystal's concept of Netspeak, John Gumperz's approach to code-switching as a discourse strategy, Carol Myers-Scotton's Markedness Model, and research on language and identity in digital environments — and situates them within the specific conditions of the Uzbek linguistic landscape: the ongoing script transition from Cyrillic to Latin, the persistence of Russian as a prestige code, and the growing influence of English as the language of global digital culture. The findings of this theoretical survey suggest that Uzbek on social media is best understood as a site of active negotiation between national identity, globalization, and digital informality.