Adyghe language
| Adyghe | |
|---|---|
| West Circassian | |
| Адыгабзэ | |
Ādəɣābză (Adyghe) written in the Cyrillic script, the ABX Latin script and the now-defunct Perso-Arabic variant | |
| Native to | Adygea Krasnodar Krai |
| Ethnicity | Circassians, Cherkesogai |
Native speakers | 610,000 (2010–2020) |
Early forms | |
| Dialects | |
| Cyrillic Latin Perso-Arabic script | |
| Official status | |
Official language in | Russia |
Recognised minority language in | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 | ady |
| ISO 639-3 | ady |
| Glottolog | adyg1241 |
Distribution of the Adyghe language in Adygea, Russia (2002) | |
Adyghe is classified as Vulnerable by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger | |
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| Circassians Адыгэхэр |
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Adyghe (/ˈædɪɡeɪ/ or /ˌɑːdɪˈɡeɪ/; also known as West Circassian) is a Northwest Caucasian language spoken by the western subgroups of Circassians. It is spoken mainly in Russia, as well as in Turkey, Jordan, Syria, Iraq and Israel, where Circassians settled after the Circassian genocide (c. 1864–1870) by the Russian Empire. It is closely related to the Kabardian (East Circassian) language, though some reject the distinction between the two languages in favor of both being dialects of a unitary Circassian language.
The literary standard of Adyghe is based on its Temirgoy dialect. Adyghe and Russian are the two official languages of the Republic of Adygea in the Russian Federation.
In Russia, there are around 128,000 speakers of Adyghe, almost all of them native speakers. In total, some 300,000 speak it worldwide. The largest Adyghe-speaking community is in Turkey, spoken by the diaspora from the Russian–Circassian War (c. 1763–1864). In addition, the Adyghe language is spoken by the Cherkesogai in Krasnodar Krai.
Adyghe belongs to the family of Northwest Caucasian languages. Kabardian (also known as East Circassian) is a very close relative, treated by some as a dialect of Adyghe or of an overarching Circassian language. Ubykh, Abkhaz and Abaza are somewhat more distantly related to Adyghe.