Ossetian language
Ossetian (/ɒˈsɛti.ən/ oss-ET-ee-ən, /ɒˈsiːʃən/ oss-EE-shən, /oʊˈsiːʃən/ oh-SEE-shən), commonly referred to as Ossetic and rarely as Ossete (Ossetian: ирон ӕвзаг, romanized: iron ӕvzag pronounced [iˈron ɐvˈzäɡ] southern; [iˈron ɐvˈʒäɡ] northern), is an Eastern Iranian language that is spoken predominantly in Ossetia, a region situated on both sides of the Greater Caucasus. It is the native language of the Ossetian people, and a relative and possibly a descendant of the extinct Scythian, Sarmatian, and Alanic languages.
| Ossetian | |
|---|---|
| ирон ӕвзаг (iron ævzag) дигорон ӕвзаг (digoron ævzag) | |
| Pronunciation | [iˈron ɐvˈzäɡ] [digoˈron ɐvˈzäɡ] |
| Native to | Ossetia |
| Region | Caucasus |
| Ethnicity | 700,000 Ossetians |
Native speakers | 490,000 (2020 census) |
Standard forms |
|
| Dialects | |
| Official status | |
Official language in |
Partially recognized states: South Ossetia |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-1 | os |
| ISO 639-2 | oss |
| ISO 639-3 | oss |
| Glottolog | osse1243 |
| Linguasphere | 58-ABB-a |
Latin-script Ossetian text from a book published in 1935; part of an alphabetic list of proverbs. | |
Ossetian is classified as Definitely Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger | |
The northern half of the Ossetia region is part of Russia and is known as North Ossetia–Alania, while the southern half is part of the de facto country of South Ossetia (recognized by the United Nations as Russian-occupied territory that is de jure part of Georgia). Ossetian-speakers number about 614,350, with 451,000 recorded in Russia per the 2010 Russian census.