Uyghur language facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Uyghur |
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| Uighur ئۇيغۇرچە / ئۇيغۇر تىلى |
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Uyghur written in Perso-Arabic script
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| Pronunciation | ||||
| Native to | Xinjiang, China | |||
| Ethnicity | Uyghur | |||
| Native speakers | 25 million (2016)e18 | |||
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| Early forms: |
Karakhanid
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| Writing system | Arabic (official, Uyghur alphabet) Latin Cyrillic |
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| Official status | ||||
| Official language in |  China
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| Regulated by | Working Committee of Ethnic Language and Writing of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region | |||
Geographical extent of Uyghur in China
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Uyghur (ئۇيغۇرچە, Uyghurche) is a language spoken by about 8 to 11 million people. Most of these speakers are Uyghur people. They live in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of Western China. Uyghur is part of the Turkic language family. This family includes languages like Turkish and Kazakh.
Uyghur has several ways to be written. The most common way uses the Uyghur alphabet. This alphabet is based on the Arabic alphabet. There are also two ways to write Uyghur using the Latin alphabet. Another way uses the Cyrillic alphabet.
Contents
What is the Uyghur Language?
Uyghur is a language with a rich history. It belongs to the Karluk branch of Turkic languages. This means it is related to languages like Uzbek. Over time, Uyghur has been influenced by other languages. These include Persian and Arabic. It has also been influenced by Russian and Chinese.
Where is Uyghur Spoken?
The main place where Uyghur is spoken is the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China. This area is in the northwest part of China. Uyghur speakers also live in other countries. These include Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. Smaller groups of speakers can be found in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Writing Systems of Uyghur
Uyghur can be written in different ways. Each system has its own history and uses.
Uyghur Arabic Alphabet
The most common writing system is the Uyghur Arabic alphabet. It is also called UEY. This alphabet is based on the Arabic alphabet. It is used officially in China. This system is written from right to left. It includes special letters for sounds unique to Uyghur.
Uyghur Latin Alphabet
There are two main Latin alphabets for Uyghur. One is the Uyghur Latin Yëziqi (ULY). The other is the Uyghur New Script (UYY). These systems use letters from the Latin alphabet. They are written from left to right. ULY is often used online and for computers.
Uyghur Cyrillic Alphabet
The Uyghur Cyrillic Yëziqi (USY) uses the Cyrillic alphabet. This system was developed in the Soviet Union. It is still used by some Uyghur speakers in Central Asian countries.
Sounds of Uyghur
Uyghur has many interesting sounds. It has a system called vowel harmony. This means that vowels in a word must match each other. For example, if the first vowel is "front" (like "i" or "e"), the other vowels in the word will also be "front." This makes the language sound very smooth.
Uyghur also has many consonants. Some of these sounds are similar to English. Others are unique. For example, it has sounds like "gh" (similar to a French "r") and "kh" (similar to the "ch" in "loch").
Uyghur Grammar Basics
Uyghur grammar is different from English. It is an "agglutinative" language. This means words are formed by adding many suffixes. Each suffix adds a specific meaning. For example, to say "in my houses," you might add suffixes for "my," "plural," and "in" to the word "house."
The basic word order in Uyghur is Subject-Object-Verb (SOV). This means the verb comes at the end of the sentence. For example, instead of "I eat apples," it would be "I apples eat."
Images for kids
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A signboard in front of the Military Museum of Xinjiang written in Uyghur (using Arabic script) and Standard Chinese
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Internet café in Khotan oasis city in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Address written in Uyghur with the Arabic script.
See Also
- In Spanish: Idioma uigur para niños
