Circassian languages

Circassian , also known as Cherkess (/tʃɜːrˈkɛs/ chur-KESS), is a subdivision of the <a href="/facts/Northwest_Caucasian_languages/BYQjgreq">Northwest Caucasian</a> language family, spoken by the <a href="/facts/Circassians/fTWD67Tg">Circassian people</a>. There are two main variants of the Circassian language, defined by their literary standards, <a href="/facts/Adyghe_language/Eamslo4k">Adyghe</a> (кӀахыбзэ; also known as West Circassian) and <a href="/facts/Kabardian_language/a1Yv2tUX">Kabardian</a> (къэбэрдейбзэ; also known as East Circassian). The languages are highly <a href="/facts/Mutual_intelligibility/h1SbX0wN">mutually intelligible</a> with one another, but differ to a degree where they would be considered clear-cut dialects. The earliest extant written records of the Circassian language are in the <a href="/facts/Arabic_script/GB5gsj1F">Arabic script</a>, recorded by the Turkish traveller <a href="/facts/Evliya_%C3%87elebi/QUUyKc6Y">Evliya Çelebi</a> in the 17th century, although the <a href="/facts/Greek_alphabet/1cHwB8Dg">Greek</a> and <a href="/facts/Georgian_scripts/43Afaqmj">Georgian</a> alphabets were adapted for them in ancient and medieval times.
There is 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 (adyge; English: Adyghe) in their native language. In the southwestern part of European Russia, there is also a <a href="/facts/Federal_Subject/f2oIKgbo">Federal Subject</a> called <a href="/facts/Adygea/rY4sQHDE">Adygea</a> (<a href="/facts/Russian_language/ETXrTgHV">Russian</a>: Адыгея, Adygeya), enclaved within <a href="/facts/Krasnodar_Krai/vQ076rBo">Krasnodar Krai</a>, which is named after the Circassian <a href="/facts/Endonym/8pyd1nE9">endonym</a>. In the <a href="/facts/Russian_language/ETXrTgHV">Russian language</a>, the Circassian subdivision is treated as a group of languages and called адыгские (adygskie, meaning the Adyghe languages), whereas the Adyghe language is called адыгейский (adygeyskiy, 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 <a href="/facts/Northwest_Caucasian_languages/BYQjgreq">Northwest Caucasian languages</a> in general or the Adyghe language in particular.

Circassian languages open-in-new

Circassian languages