Orok language
- Not to be confused with the Oroch language.
| Orok | |
|---|---|
| Uilta | |
| Native to | Russia |
| Region | Sakhalin Oblast, Russia |
| Ethnicity | Orok |
Native speakers | 50 (2010 census)[1] |
|
Tungusic
| |
| Cyrillic | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | oaa |
Orok is the Russian name for the language known by its speakers as Ulta or Ujlta. Similarly, the people are called Oroks or Ulta. It is a Tungusic language. The language is spoken in the Poronaysky and Nogliksky Administrative Divisions of Sakhalin Oblast, in the Russian Federation.
According to the 2002 Russian census there were 346 Oroks living in Russia, of whom 64 were competent in Orok. But the 2010 census, that number had dropped to 47. Oroks also live on the island of Hokkaido in Japan, but the number of speakers in uncertain, and certainly small.[2]
There are two dialects of Orok: northern (east Sakhalin) and southern (poronaysky). The variety of the language spoken on the island of Hokkaido belongs to the southern dialect.
Orok is used conversationally in everyday situations by the members of the older generation. It is also the language of oral folk literature. Oroks also speak Russian.
An alphabetic script, based on Cyrillic, was introduced in 2007. A primer has been published, and the language is taught in one school on the island of Sakhalin.
Alphabet
The Cyrillic script introduced in 2007 is:[3]
The letter "en with left hook" is not contained in Unicode 6.0. However, it is accepted by the Unicode Technical Committee for inclusion in a later version of Unicode.[4][5]
References
Bibliography
- K.A. Novikova, L.I. Sem. Oroksky yazyk // Yazyki mira: Tunguso-man'chzhurskie yazyki. Moscow, 1997. (Russian)
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