Evenki language
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- noun
- The documentary showcased the dwindling number of speakers of the Evenki language in Siberia.
Examples
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The scholar studied the structure and vocabulary of the Evenki language to better understand its unique features.
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The religion of the Evenki—I read on—was shamanism, and the word "shaman" itself came into Russian from the Evenki language: the Evenki, therefore, had made their contribution to our language and literature.
Fiction book (1991) -
During the conference, we learned about the rich oral traditions preserved in the Evenki language.
Synonyms
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A language spoken by an indigenous people in eastern Siberia and northern Mongolia
A language spoken by the Evenki people in eastern Siberia
A language spoken by native people in eastern Siberia and parts of China
A language spoken by the Evenki people in eastern Siberia
A language spoken by the Evenki people in eastern Siberia
A language spoken by the Evenki people in eastern Siberia
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is fully compositional: 'Evenki' names an ethnic group or its associated name and 'language' denotes a speech system, so 'Evenki language' straightforwardly means the language of the Evenki people. This construction follows a common cross-linguistic pattern (ethnonym + language) and would be immediately inferable to a B1 learner who knows both constituent words.
Etymology
Evenki language comes from the name of the Evenki people who live in eastern Siberia. Their name may come from a word meaning 'people' or 'man', so Evenki language simply means the language spoken by the Evenki people.