Language of a barrier-free society: the experience of Ukraine

The purpose of this article is to provide a better scientific understanding of a “barrier-free language”, the concept of which has been developed by Ukrainian politicians, public figures and journalists, and to interpret it as a linguistic phenomenon. The subject of scientific interest is the handbook and the dictionary of the barrier-free language introduced in Ukraine as a part of the strategy for the formation of a barrier-free society, and its object is the suggested linguistic means of implementing the principles of the barrier-free language and argumentation of their expediency. The compilation of the dictionary of the barrier-free language and the suggested changes in nomination demonstrate a number of important developments: overcoming depersonalisation, rethinking the role of linguistic means that were previously unconditionally perceived as acceptable and desirable (in particular, euphemisms) in communication, understanding affixal derivatives not only in linguistic dimension in terms of word-forming meaning, but also taking into account their social connotations fixed by usage, raising the issue of objectification of a person's sexual and gender identity in the Ukrainian language, etc. In a broader sense, it demonstrates changes in perception of language as a social phenomenon that not only serves the communicative needs of society but also affects the way people live in it, and the gradual formation of a type of speaker who understands freedom of expression as inseparable from the responsibility to respect the rights and guarantee the freedom of others.