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Tuha language

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Tuha
Uighur Uryangkhai, Khövsgöl Uryangkhay
Tuha
Pronunciation[tuʰha]
[tuˤha]
Native toMongolia
RegionTsagaan-Üür, Khövsgöl[1]
Ethnicity600 Tuha (Urianghai)
Native speakers
<10 (2019)[2]
Turkic
Dialects
  • Soyt
  • Arig Urianghai
  • Övör Širkheten
  • Görööčin Urianghai
Language codes
ISO 639-3None (mis)
Glottologtuha1234
ELPTuha
BERJAYA
Khövsgöl Uryangkhay is classified as Critically Endangered by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger[3]

Tuha, also called Uighur Uryangkhai and Khövsgöl Uryangkhay, is a moribund variety of Tofa[4] or an independent language[5][6] spoken east of Lake Khövsgöl[7] in northern Mongolia by less than 10 people.[4][2] Even though it was taught in schools during the 1970s, during which it was investigated by the Mongolian linguist Luvsandorjiyn Bold, it is now nearly extinct.[8]

Classification

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Tuha is a member of the Sayan Turkic branch of Siberian Turkic. It has preserved archaic features lost elsewhere in Sayan Turkic.[2] According to Juha Janhunen, it is best classified as a language for taxonomic purposes and language revitalization.[9] According to Elisabetta Ragagnin, Tuha shares isoglosses with Tofa, Altai and Old Turkic.[1]

It is believed that the Tuha originally were Soyots that separated from them around 400 years ago.[citation needed]

Phonology

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Vowels

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Tuha vowels[5]
Front Central Back
Close i[a] ɨ[b] u[c]
Mid e[d] o[e]
Open a

Consonants

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The nasal palatal approximant [j̃] occurs in Tuha, as with all other Taiga Sayan languages. For example, the words añaq 'cup' (<Mongolian: аяга), ñaš 'tree' (<*ɨɣaš), mɨñaq~mɨyaq 'dung', ñaaq 'chin, jaw', ñeŋ 'anus', and yaa~ñaa 'new' have it.[5]

Vocabulary

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In the 1970s, Tuha took over 30% of its vocabulary from Mongolian.[5] This can be seen from the word for böhkčinǝ ~ böhkčino 'wolf', which seems to come from the Mongolian word börte činō 'blue-grey wolf'.[10] Tuha also has preserved the archaic features of Sayan Turkic that are not documented in the other Sayan Turkic languages.[1]

Where Tuha has the word keeš- /keeǰir/ 'to say', in Tofa this word is far more limited in usage, and is used only relating to marriage arrangements (cf. Tofa heešken qɨs 'bride).[5]

Notes

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  1. ↑ [ɪ] is an allophone of [i].
  2. ↑ [ɑ], [ɔ] are allophones.
  3. ↑ [ʊ] is an allophone.
  4. ↑ [ɛ] is an allophone.
  5. ↑ May be pronounced as [a] in first syllables.

References

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  1. 1 2 3 Elisabetta Ragagnin (2018). A Turcological gem: The Tuhan language of Northern Mongolia. Vol. 22. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 "A preliminary archive of language and cultural material from the Tuhan people of northern Mongolia | Endangered Languages Archive". www.elararchive.org. Retrieved 2024-07-05.
  3. ↑ UNESCO Interactive Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger Archived 22 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  4. 1 2 Ragagnin, Elisabetta (2009). "A rediscovered low-land Tofan variety. Turkic Languages 13, 225-245". Turkic Languages.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Eriksson, Tom. On the Phonology and Morphology of the Taiga-Sayan Tuha Language. The 4th International Turkish Research Symposium.
  6. ↑ Peter Piispanen (2020). BLAŽEK, V. Altaic Languages–History of research, survey, classification, and a sketch of comparative grammar, in collaboration with M. SCHWARZ and O. SRBA. p. 271. Retrieved 23 December 2025.
  7. ↑ Tom Eriksson; Juha Janhunen (2015). "On the Limnonyms Khövsgöl and Kosogol and their Ethnic Implications". Studia Etymologica Cracoviensia. 20: 90. Retrieved 25 January 2026.
  8. ↑ "Tuha". ELP. Retrieved 22 December 2025. During the Soviet era Tuha was taught in the village school and was investigated by Mongolian linguist Luvsandorjiyn Bold in the 1970s.
  9. ↑ "Did you know Tuha is critically endangered?". Endangered Languages. Retrieved 2024-12-04.
  10. ↑ Ragagnin, Elisabetta (2022). "Further notes on Mongolic elements in Uyghur-Uriankhay (Tuhan)". Türkçe ve Moğolca Çalışmaları Sempozyumu. Istanbul: 72.
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