Ket
Ket is a Yeniseian language spoken in Russia, by about 150 people. Glottolog rates it shifting.
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Ket is the last surviving Yeniseian language of Siberia, with very few speakers left. In 2008 Edward Vajda proposed it is related to the Na-Dene languages of North America, Navajo among them — if right, the first family shown to span Asia and the Americas.
The Ket ( KET) language, or more specifically Imbak and formerly known as Yenisei Ostyak ( OSS-tee-ak), is the sole surviving language of the Yeniseian language family. It is spoken along the middle Yenisei basin by the Ket people.
The language is threatened with extinction—the number of ethnic Kets that are native speakers of the language dropped from 1,225 in 1926 to 537 in 1989. According to the latest reports from linguists, this number has since fallen to less than 30. A 2005 census reported 485 native speakers, but this number is suspected to be inflated. According to a local news source, the number of remaining Ket speakers is around 10 to 20. Another Yeniseian language, Yugh, became extinct in the 1970s.
From Wikipedia · Ket language · CC BY-SA 4.0
Words in Ket
| Meaning | Word | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| tongue | ӄо | qo |
| heart | хуу | hū |
| head | kajga | |
| blood | сюль | sʸulʸ |
| liver | сеӈ | sʼeŋ |
| water | уль | ul' |
| fire | боʼк | boˀk |
| snow | беʼт | beˀd |
| wind | бей | bej |
| tree | өксь | |
| night | си | si |
| dog | тип | tīb |
| bird | кеӈассель | keŋasselʸ |
| horse | көнь | |
| five | ӄак | qak |
| sleep | таӷут ~ тадам | |
| milk | mamul | |
| house | иӈӷусь | íŋɢusʲ |
| big | қя | |
| white | тагым | tagɨm |
| black | тум | tum |
Most similar languages
Vocabulary
- YughYeniseian47% alike
- ArinYeniseian16% alike
- Kott-AssanYeniseian12% alike
- DharumbalPama-Nyungan9% alike
- Gureng GurengPama-Nyungan9% alike
- YambetaAtlantic-Congo8% alike
Vocabulary compares 40 basic words (ASJP); grammar compares 195 features (Grambank). Similar is not always related.
Nearby languages
Elsewhere
Glottolog · kett1243 · Wikipedia (English) · Ethnologue · ket