Nenets
PrintA language of Russian Federation
ISO 639-3
Alternate Names
Nenec, Nenetsy, Nentse, Yurak, Yurak Samoyed
Population
21,900 (2010 census). Ethnic population: 41,300 including both Forest Nenets and Tundra Nenets.
Location
Northwest Siberia, north Dvina river mouth tundra area to Yenisei river delta; scattered in Kola peninsula, Nenets and Yamalia autonomous regions; Krasnoyarsk District.
Language Maps
Language Status
6b (Threatened).
Classification
Dialects
Forest Yurak, Tundra Yurak.
Language Use
In Siberia most young people are still fluent in the language. On the European side, very few children learn it; young people tend to prefer Russian [rus] and most speakers are middle-aged or older (Salminen 2007). A few to half of children speak Nenets. Positive attitudes. In Siberia, many school-age children also use Russian [rus].
Language Development
Most attended school and read Russian. Dictionary. Grammar. Bible portions: 2004–2010.
Language Resources
Writing
Cyrillic script.
Mainly nomadic. Christian, traditional religion.