Ossete language
- noun
- Many people in North Ossetia speak the Ossete language.
Examples
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The Ossete language is taught in some schools in North Ossetia.
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She wrote her thesis on the grammar of the Ossete language.
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Many older residents still prefer to speak the Ossete language at home.
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The Ossete language has a rich oral tradition.
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Many older residents still prefer to speak the Ossete language at home.
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The Ossete language is taught in some schools in North Ossetia.
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Many people in North Ossetia speak the Ossete language fluently.
Synonyms
A person from Ossetia or the language they speak
A language spoken mainly by people in Ossetia, a region in Russia and Georgia
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a straightforward compositional noun phrase: combining the proper name 'Ossete' with 'language' denotes the language of the Ossetes, so the meaning follows directly from the constituents. The 'X language' pattern is cross-linguistically common and therefore immediately interpretable by a B1 learner who knows both words.
Etymology
Ossete language comes from the people called the Ossetes, who are also known as Ossetians. Long ago their ancestors were a group of people who rode horses called the Alans and moved into the region, so Ossete language simply means 'the language of the Ossetes'.