Dolgan language
The Dolgan language is a Turkic language with 930 speakers, spoken in the Taymyr Peninsula in Russia. The speakers are known as the Dolgans. The word "Dolgan" means 'tribe living on the middle reaches of the river'. This is most likely signifying the geographical location of the Dolgan tribe. Its closest relative is Sakha.
| Dolgan | |
|---|---|
| Дулҕан, Dulğan, Һака, Haka | |
| Pronunciation | [dɔlgæn] |
| Native to | Russia |
| Region | Krasnoyarsk Krai |
| Ethnicity | Dolgans |
Native speakers | 1,100 (2010 census) |
Turkic
| |
| Dialects |
Western Dialect Western Dialect
Central Dialect Eastern Dialect |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | dlg |
| Glottolog | dolg1241 |
| ELP | Dolgan |
Yakut Language (blue) and Dolgan Language (green) | |
Dolgan is classified as Definitely Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger | |
The language is very local and restricted to a certain area and has declined in usage over the years. As of 2010 there are only about 1,050 speakers of the language. The language has expressed a few changes since the beginning of its formation, such as alphabet and phrasing terms. The issue as of recently has become the weak integration of this local language within families with mixed marriages. Instead of speaking either of the parents' local languages, the family incorporates Russian as the more dominant language to ease interfamilial and external communication. This results in children learning the language only slightly or as a second language. Over generations, the language continues to fade.