Orthographic innovations and variations in contemporary Ukrainian

This article discusses certain orthographic issues facing contemporary Ukrainian. Innovations and variations found in electronic media texts are analyzed. The media, which validates orthographic innovations and variations, is viewed as the principal language planner of Ukrainian, one that promotes a new orientation for society and a new cultural identity of its members. Orthography is discussed as a social practice that is embedded in the cultural beliefs and transformations of the writers and speakers of the language. The study shows that innovations in the language are signs of modernization and of changing identities of the linguistic community.