The corpus planning has often been viewed a necessary and important step in maintaining and promoting use of the language. To my mind, a lot has been done in corpus planning of the Kalmyk language, and there are still a lot to be done. The processes of standardization and modernization are the endless ones. However, corpus planning may encounter cultural obstacles and have unforeseen consequences, only through language practice we can see how efficient it is.

4.3. Acquisition Planning

Acquisition planning refers to organized efforts to promote the learning or relearning of a language in order to increase the number of those who speak the language by:

• language reproduction, namely safeguarding its transference from one generation to the next within the family unit and the community;

• language production, namely teaching the language at educational institutions.

Being taught to be ashamed of their own identity and language has left a psychological scar on many of our people of age over thirty, at the same time the attitudes of many young people under thirty towards the Kalmyk language is far from being positive. Recent research in the field shows that the proportion of speakers fluent in Kalmyk did not exceed 6% among the young. About 98% of Kalmyk pupils entering school at the age of seven don't speak their mother tongue and most of school-graduates leave schools without gaining any proficiency in their native language.

It is agreed that education is absolutely central to language reproduction and production within society. Where the education system favours the minority language, a sizeable increase has been experienced in the number of children who have a command of it. Acquisition planning through education has always been an area of the state policy, and, perhaps, the most successful. The education policies for Kalmyk have changed considerably over the last decade. The current situation is as follows: two national schools, a number of classes (exact figures mentioned above) at primary schools and groups in pre-school institutions with the Kalmyk language as a medium of instruction have been opened; Kalmyk is part of the core curriculum in all the schools; this year compulsory exams in Kalmyk in the 9th and 11th grades have been introduced; new teaching technologies and materials are being developed; teachers of Kalmyk and those working in national schools have special 30% bonus to their salary.

No one disputes the fact that the family and the community are the primary language reproduction units, via the classic route of grandparents - parents - children. Grandparents and parents of children studying at schools today are those who have come through deportation or were born in the Siberia, the first generation that stopped speaking their mother tongue. So it is difficult to imagine that a native language environment can be found in the families. That's why adult language education courses (courses in the workplace, evening classes, etc) is an important consideration in language planning. Unfortunately, there is no register of the number of courses or attendance. Accelerated Kalmyk language courses at Kalmyk Center for Intensive Language Teaching are attended mostly by those adults who want to restore their ethnic self-identity, get an access to cultural life or to help children with homework, though the number of such adults is not numerous.

When a visitor either a Russian-speaking one or a foreigner comes to the Republic of Kalmykia he can easily notice that the language mostly spoken in the streets or in any public place is Russian thought most of the population is of oriental appearance. This fact often surprises newcomers, as they usually expect that in the ethnic republic like Kalmykia they will hear the mother tongue spoken everywhere. If a visitor asks someone (especially under age of 35-40) if he speaks the Kalmyk language or not, in most cases he is sure to hear a negative answer. One can easily see the presence of the unique Kalmyk culture everywhere: oriental architecture, sculptures and billboards depicting scenes from the traditional Kalmyk life, signs written in the old Kalmyk vertical writing, etc. It is obvious that you will have a chance to listen to the Kalmyk folklore, see national dances and even participate in some traditional celebrations. If you switch on the radio or TV, you will also be able to listen to or to watch some programs in the Kalmyk language. It is not a problem to buy a newspaper or a book in Kalmyk. But one will hardly hear people speaking their mother tongue on a daily basis for interpersonal exchange within the community.

To an outsider's eye Kalmyk still remains the hidden language. Changes to positive are only very gradually taking place. But it is obvious that Kalmyk is perceived to belong mostly to the domain of language learning.