Among the entire population of Kazakhstan, 97 percent are fluent in Russian. The Russian language has become a reliable political communication partner in the integration process of Kazakh society; the Russian language is not only supported constitutionally but in all spheres and industries.

Can Kazakhs understand Russian?

Young ethnic Kazakhs in remote villages don't know Russian very well; they cannot speak it. Urban youth are mostly bilingual. But the nature of that bilingualism is changing: Kazakh is starting to dominate, with Russian becoming the second language.

Is Kazakh and Russian similar?

Along with the Russian language, the Kazakh language also functions as one of the country's official languages. The Kazakh language is genetically a northeastern Turkic language. The Kazakh is most similar to Kyrygyz and Tatar (spoken in Russia) and is influenced heavily by both Mongolian and Tatar.