Also Known As:
Nivx, Gilyak, сахалинский нивхский язык, Nivkhi, Nivukhi, Ghilyak, Ghiliak, Gilyak, Gelyak, Giriyaaku, Нивхгу диф, Ньиғвӈгун, гиляцкий язык
Dialects & Varieties
- North Sakhalin Gilyak
- Amur
- East Sakhalin Gilyak
The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire
"The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire." edited by Andrew Humphreys and Krista Mits. Online: http://www.eki.ee/books/redbook.
Threatened
20 percent certain, based on the evidence available
1,080
Native Speakers Worldwide
Speakers
Native or fluent speakers:
No results found.
Second-language speakers and learners
No results found.
Semi-speakers or rememberers
No results found.
Children:
No results found.
Young adults
No results found.
Older adults
No results found.
Elders
No results found.
Ethnic or community population
4,673
Year information was gathered
No results found.
Comments on speakers
With the abolition of native language schools, an ethnic mix of schoolchildren became additional justification for using Russian in schooling. The trend toward bilingualism begun in the 1930s, soon gained momentum: by 1959 the figure was 23%. Russian is now by far the predominant language, and the Nivkhs are on their way from bilingualism back to monolingualism but this time with the Russian language.
Location and Context
Countries
No results found.
Location Description
The Nivkhs live in the Far East, on the Lower Amur, on the coast of the Ohkotsk Sea on the river's estuary, and on Sakhalin Island (Yh-mif in the Nivkh language). In the administrative sense, they belong to the Khabarovsk district of the Russian Federation (the districts of Takhatin and Lower Amur), and Sakhalin region (the districts of Rybinov, Kirov, Alexandrov and Shirokopad)
Government Support
No results found.
Institutional Support
No results found.
Speakers' Attitude
No results found.
Other Languages Used By The Community
Russian
Number of Other Language Speakers:
None
Domains of Other Languages:
None
Writing Systems
Standard orthography:
No results found.
Writing system:
Russian alphabet
Other writing systems used:
No results text.
Comments on writing systems:
Under the Soviet regime, a Nivkh alphabet based on the Latin alphabet (1931) and a written language based on the Amur dialect were created. In 1953, the transition to the Russian alphabet was completed and a new primer published.
Recent Resources
«Нивх диф» (Нивхское слово) — газета на нивхском и русском языках, издаваемая в селе Некрасовка Охин
«Нивх диф» (Нивхское слово) — газета на нивхском и русском языках, издаваемая в селе Некрасовка Охин
Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Nivkh