Documenting the Mongol Uriankhai dialect and culture of Mongolia
The Endangered Language Documentation Programme (ELDP) provides grants worldwide to for the linguistic documentation of endangered language and knowledge. Grantees create multimedia collection of endangered languages. These collections are preserved and made freely available through the Endangered Languages Archive (ELAR) housed at the library of SOAS University of London.
Uriankhai is a one of endangered Oirat language spoken in vast, but sparsely populated regions in Uvs, Khovd and Khuvsgul province of Mongolia. Estimates are that only small minority among the 26664 Uriankhai still speak the language, which is equal to only one percent of population of Mongolia. Due to the dominance of Kazak and Tuvan language in Bayan-Ulgii province, Khalkha language in Khovd province and Darkhad and Khalkha languages in Khuvsgul province Uriankhai of Oirat are disappearing rapidly. The documentation effort will focus on the language as occurring in a number of different culturally important situation types of nomadic life, also folk songs, poem, eulogy and fairy tales and thus capture those parts of Uriankhai language and culture that are disappearing most rapidly.
Primary investigator: Tsendee Yunger
Project Details
Location: Mongolia, Eastern Asia, Asia
Organiser(s):
Endangered Languages Documentation Programme
Project partner(s): Centre of Oirat Studies
Funder(s):
Arcadia
Funding received: £15,449.00
Commencement Date: 01/2011
Project Status: Active
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