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Circassian Languages
Circassian , also known as Cherkess , is a subdivision of the Northwest Caucasian languages, Northwest Caucasian language family, spoken by the Circassians, Circassian people. There are two Circassian languages, defined by their literary standards, Adyghe language, Adyghe (; also known as West Circassian), with half a million speakers, and Kabardian language, Kabardian (; also known as East Circassian), with a million. The languages are highly Mutual intelligibility, mutually intelligible with one another, but differ to a degree where they would be considered clear-cut dialects. The earliest extant written records of the Circassian languages are in the Arabic script, recorded by the Turkish traveller Evliya Çelebi in the 17th century.Papşu, Murat (2006)Çerkes-Adığe yazısının tarihçesi". ''Nart, İki Aylık Düşün ve Kültür Dergisi'', Sayı 51, Eylül-Ekim 2006. There is consensus among the linguistic community about the fact that Adyghe and Kabardian are typologicall ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Circassians
The Circassians (also referred to as Cherkess or Adyghe; Adyghe and Kabardian: Адыгэхэр, romanized: ''Adıgəxər'') are an indigenous Northwest Caucasian ethnic group and nation native to the historical country-region of Circassia in the North Caucasus. As a consequence of the Circassian genocide, which was perpetrated by the Russian Empire in the 19th century during the Russo-Circassian War, most Circassians were exiled from their homeland in Circassia to modern-day Turkey and the rest of the Middle East, where the majority of them are concentrated today. The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization estimated in the early 1990s that there are as many as 3.7 million Circassians in diaspora in over 50 countries. The Circassian language is the ancestral language of the Circassian people, and Islam has been the dominant religion among them since the 17th century. Circassia has been subject to repeated invasions since ancient times; its isolated terrain co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
