Language Under Fire

Abstract: Language fundamentally shapes identity, belonging, and psychological well-being. In wartime, linguistic choices become politicized, simultaneously influencing individual mental health and collective resilience. Following the February 24, 2022, Russian invasion, Ukraine experienced rapid linguistic transformation as many bilingual and Russian-speaking citizens consciously adopted Ukrainian across personal, professional, and public domains. This paper synthesizes transdisciplinary research examining how media narratives about language affect ontological security and collective resilience in wartime affects Ukraine. We argue that language choice functions as a primary psychological determinant during an existential conflict. Media disseminates strategic narratives framing Ukrainian as both a national survival code and a vessel for agency, creating a symbolic canopy under which identity is reconstructed. Through the Social Identity Approach, we demonstrate that language choice triggers either social cure, when voluntary Ukrainian adoption buffers trauma trough group belonging, or social curse, when exclusionary borders generate traumatization. Voluntary linguistic shift restores ontological security by providing biographical continuity in crisis, establishing psychological boundaries against trauma. Building on the Social Identity Model of Collective Resilience, we show how individual ontological anchors aggregate into collective capacity for sustained resistance. Linguistic transformation thus operates as protective canopy through media scaffolding and as ontological anchor via individual practice. Symbolic choices are transforming into sustainable foundation for both mental well-being and national survival in wartime Ukraine.