Russia has always been and remains a multinational country, in which more than two hundred different peoples currently live. And although Russian is the official language throughout the state, each ethnic group has the right to preserve and develop its native speech. The Tuvan language, spoken mainly on the territory of the Republic of Tyva, is considered one of the most difficult and at the same time colorful languages of our homeland.
General characteristics
The Tuvan language belongs to the Turkic group, that is, genealogically it is related to Kazakh, Tatar, Azerbaijani and some others.
Historically, the Turkic ethnic group settled over vast territories from China to Europe, conquering the local population and assimilating it. The Turkic languages are rich and diverse, but all of them are united by a large number of front and middle vowels (a, e, u, o), including doubled ones, as well as the predominance of the suffixal word-formation method.
In lexical compositionTuvan there is a significant corpus of borrowings from Mongolian, Russian and Tibetan.
The Tuvan alphabet appeared only in the first half of the 20th century. The first written language was created on the basis of the Latin alphabet. In 1941, the alphabet was changed to Cyrillic, which was in line with the program of the USSR government to create a single charter for all republics.
The Tuvan language has the status of an official language in the Republic of Tuva, but it is also spoken in the northern regions of Mongolia. There are currently over 200,000 speakers.
Is it possible to learn the Tuvan language on my own
For a Russian person, learning such a language is a rather difficult task. Perhaps that is why the number of Russians living in Tyva and knowing Tuvan barely exceeds one percent. It is believed that this language is best studied by those who have already become familiar with other Turkic languages, such as Kazakh.
To learn Tuva, it is not necessary to go to distant Tuva, basic knowledge can be obtained independently using special manuals and textbooks.
It should be said that despite the fact that the alphabet for Tuvans appeared less than a century ago, Russian linguists began to describe the grammar of this language half a century before the appearance of Tuvan literacy.
Currently, one of the most authoritative publications is the monograph by F. G. Iskhakov and A. A. Palmbach, published in 1961. Using this textbook, you can get acquainted with the phonetics and morphology of Tuva.
Recently, a manual by K. A. Bicheldey Let's talkin Tuvan. This tutorial is aimed at those who are just starting to get acquainted with the language. It contains exercises, brief references on grammar and phonetics, and vocabulary is selected in accordance with the needs of the student-debutant.
Some words and phrases in Tuvan language
Linguists distinguish four dialects of the language in question: southeastern, western, central, and the so-called Tojin. The literary language is based on the central dialect. It is on it that books, periodicals and television programs are published.
Below are some Tuvan words that can be used in everyday communication.
| Hello | Ekii |
| Hello! | Ke eki! |
| Goodbye | Bayyrlyg/baerlyg |
| Please | Azhyrbas |
| Sorry | Buruulug boldum |
| Give (polite form) | Berinerem |
| I don't know | Bilbes men |
| Where is the hospital? | Kaida emnelge? |
| How much does it cost? | Ortee kajil? |
| Very delicious | Dandy amdannyg |
| We are going to the center | Baar bistoptop |
| What's your name? | Meen Hell Eres |
| May I? | Bolur be? |
| Sorry | Buruulug boldum |
| Very good | Duca eki |
| Bad | Bagai |
| Where are you? | Kaida sen? |
Tyva language dictionaries
Currently, there are quite a few dictionaries of the Tuvan language. There are even several online translators on the Internet. However, printed literature is still a classic.
As a guide for learning the language, we can recommend the Tuvan-Russian dictionary edited by E. R. Tenishev. This work was published in 1968, but is still authoritative both in terms of the amount of material collected (more than 20 thousand words) and in the way the meanings are interpreted.
Those who are interested in the history of the language may find the multi-volume etymological dictionary compiled by the linguist B. I. Tatarintsev useful.
Tuvan literature
Poetry and prose in this interesting language appear infrequently, but some Tuvan writers should still be mentioned: Sagan-ool V. S., Mongush D. B., Olchey-ool M. K., Hovenmey B. D.. Tuvan literature began to develop after the creation of the alphabet, that is, from the 30s of the last century.
If you are interested in how Tuvan verses sound in Tuvan, you can findsuch poetry on the Internet. In particular, on the site "Poems.ru" or "Vkontakte". There are works by Lama-Rima Ooredia and many other contemporary writers who are in love with their homeland and who want to support the national culture in the public domain.
The government of Tuva is trying in every possible way to support the development of their native language, because the number of speakers of Tuvan is decreasing every year, and Russians rarely take up the study of this language due to its complexity.
Music of Tyva
Tuvan songs are distinguished by their melodiousness, national coloring and often resemble ancient shamanic chants. Connoisseurs of folklore motifs can be advised to listen to Khun Khurta and Chilchilgin. Those who prefer pop style and chanson will like Nachyn, Ayan Sedip and Andriyan Kunaa-Siirin.
Other modern musicians include Shyngyraa, Buyan Setkil, Ertine Mongush, Chinchi Samba and Igor Ondar and Kherel Mekper-ool. You can find the music of these artists in social networks and on special sites. However, be prepared for the fact that Tuvan songs, even performed in the style of pop or chanson, differ in melody and rhythm from Western music.
