Kazakh language
- noun
- The Kazakh language has undergone significant reforms since Kazakhstan gained independence.
Examples
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The Kazakh language is rich in history.
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She is fluent in both Russian and Kazakh language.
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He studied the Kazakh language at university to better understand Central Asian culture.
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Many people are learning the Kazakh language.
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The Kazakh language is spoken by millions of people in Kazakhstan and nearby countries.
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Many children in Kazakhstan learn the Kazakh language alongside Russian in school.
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The government has implemented programs to promote the use of the Kazakh language in media and education.
Synonyms
A Turkic language spoken mainly in Kazakhstan and nearby countries
A Turkic language that Kazakh people speak in Kazakhstan and nearby areas
The Turkic language spoken by people in Kazakhstan
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'the Turkic language spoken by the Kazakh people' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'Kazakh' (denoting the people/adjective of Kazakhstan) with 'language' (a named spoken or written system). The demonym+language construction is cross-linguistically common and follows regular noun-modifier composition, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Kazakh language comes from the name of the people, Kazakh, a word that may come from an old word meaning 'free man' or 'wanderer', and language meaning their speech. Imagine nomads on the wide grassland talking to one another — that picture explains why Kazakh language means 'the language spoken by the Kazakh people'.