Siberian Yupik (also known as Central Siberian Yupik, Bering Strait Yupik, Yuit, Yoit, "St. Lawrence Island Yupik" and in Russia "Chaplinski Yupik" or Yuk) is one of the four^[1] Yupik languages:

• Central Siberian Yupik,
• Naukan Siberian Yupik,
• Central Alaskan Yupik,
• Pacific Gulf Yupik.

Central Siberian Yupik belongs to the Eskimo-Aleut language family. It the largest Yupik idiom spoken in Siberia, and it is spoken also on St. Lawrence Island. Its speakers, the Siberian Yupik people, are an indigenous people who reside along the coast of the Chukchi Peninsula in the Russian Far East and on St. Lawrence Island in the Alaska villages of Savoonga and Gambell.

In Alaska, about 1,050 people from a total Siberian Yupik population of 1,100 speak the language. In Russia, about 300 of an ethnic population of 1,200 to 1,500 speak the language, making a total of about 1,350 speakers worldwide.

Subgroups

Chaplinski (the largest Yupik language of Siberia, the second one being Naukanski), or Ungazighmiistun, is named after Ungaziq (Novoe Chaplino), a toponym. The word Ungazighmii / ????????^[2][3] (prononce: , plural Ungazighmiit / ????????? ^[4][5]) means "Ungaziq inhabitant(s)". People speaking this language live in several settlements in south-eastern parts of Chukchi Peninsula^[6] (among others Provideniya, Uelkal, Sireniki), also on Wrangel Island^[5] and Anadyr city, Novoye Chaplino.^[7] According to another terminology, these people speak Chaplinski, and Ungazighmit people speak one of its dialects, alongside with other dialects spoken by Avatmit, Imtugmit, Kigwagmit ? and these can be divided further into even smaller dialects.^[6]

Other Eskimo languages spoken in Siberia

Other Yupik languages

Naukanski, or Nuvuqaghmiistun, the second largest Yupik language spoken in Siberia, is spoken in settlements Uelen, Lorino, Lavrentiya, Provideniya.^[7]

Debated classifications

Also Sireniki Eskimo language, locally called Uqeghllistun, was an Eskimo language once spoken in Siberia. It had many peculiarities. Sometimes it is classified as not belonging to the Yupik branch at all, thus forming (in itself) a stand-alone third branch of Eskimo languages (alongside with Inuit and Yupik).^[6][8] Its peculiarities may be the result of a supposed long isolation from other Eskimo groups in the past.^[9]

Sireniki became extinct in early January 1997.^[6][8][10]

References

English

• de Reuse, Willem J. (1994). Siberian Yupik Eskimo: The language and its contacts with Chukchi. Studies in indigenous languages of the Americas. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. ISBN 0-87480-397-7.

Russian

• The transliteration of author's name, and the rendering of title in English:
• The transliteration of author's name, and the rendering of title in English:

Notes

References

Further reading

External links

• Endangered Languages in Northeast Siberia: Siberian Yupik and other Languages of Chukotka by Nikolai Vakhtin
• Uelen language ? problems of identification .

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