Cuman language
| Cuman | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Hungary |
| Region | Cumania |
| Ethnicity | Cumans |
| Extinct | 1770, with the death of István Varró |
|
Turkic
|
|
| Latin | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | None |
Cuman (Kuman) was a Kipchak Turkic language spoken by the Cumans (Polovtsy, Folban, Vallany, Kun) and Kipchaks; the language was similar to the today's various languages of the Kipchak-Cuman branch. The Kipchak language/Cuman is documented in medieval works, including the Codex Cumanicus, and it was a literary language in the Central and Eastern Europe that left a rich literary inheritance. The language became the main language (lingua franca) of the Golden Horde.
The Cumans were nomadic people who lived in the steppes of Eastern Europe, north of Black Sea before the Golden Horde. Many Turkic peoples including the Crimean Tatars, Karachays, Kumyks, and Balkars are descended from the Cumans. Today, the speakers of these various languages belonging to the Kipchak-Cuman branch speak variations closely related to the Cuman language.
The Cuman language became extinct in early 17th century in the region of Cumania in Hungary, which was its last stronghold. Tradition holds that the last speaker of the Cuman language there was a person named István Varró, a resident of Karcag (Hungary) who died in 1770.
The Cuman-Kipchaks had an important role in the history of Hungary, Romania (see, for example, the Besarab dynasty), Moldavia and Bessarabia.
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