Samoyedic

Samoyedic is a branch of the Uralic language family spoken in Siberia and the Arctic regions of Russia. It is traditionally divided into Northern Samoyedic and Southern Samoyedic. Northern Samoyedic languages include Nganasan, Enets, and Nenets; Southern Samoyedic languages include Selkup and Kamassian, the latter now extinct. The name Samoyedic derives from the Russian ethnonym samoyed, historically used for some indigenous peoples of the region.

Geography and speakers: The languages are concentrated in Arctic and subarctic zones along polar coastlines and river basins in central and northern Siberia. Most Samoyedic languages have small speaker populations and are considered endangered; vitality varies by language, with some communities maintaining intergenerational transmission and others with only elderly speakers. Documentation, language revival efforts, and ethnolinguistic programs are underway in several communities and institutions.

Linguistic features: As part of the Uralic family, Samoyedic languages are generally inflected and agglutinative, relying on suffixal morphology to mark case, number, tense, aspect, and mood. The branch shows extensive diversity in phonology and grammar across its languages, and while not all share common phonological features, they collectively contribute to the Uralic structural profile.

Writing and status: Cyrillic scripts are standard for most Samoyedic languages, with orthographic reform and literacy initiatives supporting education and media use. Some languages have Latin-script orthographies in research contexts or revival projects. Samoyedic languages are of interest to linguists for understanding Uralic history and Siberian linguistic diversity.