Thread by @kamilkazani

We are used to think of Russian aristocracy as of gallophones. That was true for circa 1800 when the elites indeed talked to each other in French (as described by Tolstoy). But by 1900 everything changed - now upper aristocracy including the imperial family talked in English...

Why? I think it's a good example of the elite cultural dynamics. Around 1800 very few people in Russia were fluent in French. If you were, it meant that you are a rich and powerful aristocrat. Poorer gentry spoke in broken French. So fluency in French was a rare status signal

However, during the 19th c. with literacy rising and the system of public education improving, the French became too popular and common. Not only the aristocrats, but even many middling classes were fluent in it. Becoming so common, it couldn't remain a status signal anymore

So by the 20th c. the higher elites had to choose new status signals, including a new language to differentiate themselves from the lower strata. They chose English. Interesting choice, cuz English was not so common or popular back then. But that's exactly why it was chosen

In 1800 Alexander I talked and corresponded in French, because very few people knew French back then. But once French became too popular, Tsars abandoned it. And by 1900 Nicholas II talked and corresponded in English.

So, we can see how cultural patterns work. First they are adopted by the elites as a status-signal, adopted for their rarity, to distinguish themselves from the masses. From there they tricked down. Cuz humans are imitative and they imitate the higher-ups.

The problem is - once they trickle down, they can't serve their initial purpose anymore. Once trend is too popular, it can't really be a status marker. Therefore, higher elites abandon it, and choose new status-signalling habits instead.