Circassian languages
| Circassian | |
|---|---|
| Cherkess | |
| Ethnicity | Circassians |
| Geographic distribution |
North Caucasus |
| Linguistic classification | Northwest Caucasian |
| Proto-language | Proto-Circassian |
| Subdivisions | |
| Glottolog | circ1239 |
Circassian
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Circassian /sərˈkæsiən/, also known as Cherkess /tʃərˈkɛs/, is a subdivision of the Northwest Caucasian language family. There are two Circassian languages, defined by their literary standards, Adyghe (КӀахыбзэ, also known as West Circassian), with half a million speakers, and Kabardian (Къэбэрдейбзэ, also known as East Circassian), with a million. The languages are mutually intelligible with one another. 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.
There is a strong consensus among the linguistic community about the fact that Adyghe and Kabardian are typologically distinct languages. However, the local terms for these languages refer to them as dialects. The Circassian people call themselves "Адыгэ" Adygè (English: Adyghe) in their native language. In the southwestern part of European Russia, there is also a federal subject called Adygea (Russian: Адыгея Adygeja), enclaved within Krasnodar Krai, which is named after the Circassian endonym. In the Russian language, Circassian subdivision is treated as a single language and called Адыгский (Adygskij, meaning the Adyghe language), whereas the Adyghe language is called Адыгейский (Adygejskij, meaning the language of those in [the Republic of] Adygea). The terms "Circassian" and "Cherkess" are sometimes used in several languages as synonyms for the Northwest Caucasian languages in general or the Adyghe language in particular.
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