View source for Chukchi language

{{Short description|Chukotko-Kamchatkan language of northeast Russia}}
{{Distinguish|Chuukic languages}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Chukchi
| nativename       = {{lang|ckt|ԓыгъоравэтԓьэн йиԓыйиԓ}}<br /> {{tlit|ckt|Ḷygʺoravètḷʹèn jiḷyjiḷ}}
| pronunciation    = {{IPA|[ɬəɣˀorawetɬˀɛn jiɬəjiɬ]}}
| states           = [[Russia]]
| region           = [[Chukotka Autonomous Okrug]]
| ethnicity        = [[Chukchi people|Chukchi]]
| speakers         = 8,526, 52.6% of ethnic population
| date             = 2020 census
| ref              = <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://rosstat.gov.ru/vpn_popul|title=All-Russian population census 2020 (in Russian)|website=rosstat.gov.ru|publisher=Federal State Statistics Service|access-date=23 February 2023|archive-date=24 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200124160257/http://rosstat.gov.ru/vpn_popul|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| familycolor      = Paleosiberian
| fam1             = [[Chukotko-Kamchatkan languages|Chukotko-Kamchatkan]]
| fam2             = [[Chukotkan languages|Chukotkan]]
| iso3             = ckt
| script           = [[Cyrillic script]] <br> [[Tenevil]] (Historically)
| notice           = IPA
| glotto           = chuk1273
| glottorefname    = Chukchi
| map              = Chukotko-Kamchatkan map.svg
| mapcaption       = Pre-contact distribution of Chukchi (pink) and other [[Chukotko-Kamchatkan languages]]
| map2             = Lang Status 40-SE.svg
| mapcaption2      = {{center|Chukchi is classified as Severely Endangered by the [[UNESCO]] ''[[Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://en.wal.unesco.org/discover/languages?text=&sort_by=title&page=47|title=UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger|access-date=13 April 2023}}</ref>}}
}}
[[File:WIKITONGUES- Evgenii speaking Chukchi.webm|thumb|A Chukchi speaker, recorded in [[Romania]]]]
'''Chukchi''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|tʃ|ʊ|k|tʃ|iː}} {{respell|CHUUK|chee}}),<ref>Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student’s Handbook'', Edinburgh</ref> also known as '''Chukot''',<ref>{{Cite web |title=ckt {{!}} ISO 639-3 |url=https://iso639-3.sil.org/code/ckt |access-date=2022-11-11 |website=iso639-3.sil.org}}</ref> is a [[Chukotko-Kamchatkan languages|Chukotko–Kamchatkan language]] spoken by the [[Chukchi people]] in the easternmost extremity of [[Siberia]], mainly in [[Chukotka Autonomous Okrug]]. The language is closely related to [[Koryak language|Koryak]]. Chukchi, Koryak, [[Kerek language|Kerek]], [[Alutor language|Alutor]], and [[Itelmen language|Itelmen]] form the Chukotko-Kamchatkan [[Language families and languages|language family]]. There are many cultural similarities between the Chukchis and [[Koryaks]], including economies based on [[reindeer herding]]. Both peoples refer to themselves by the endonym '''''Luorawetlat''''' ({{Lang|ckt|ԓыгъоравэтԓьат}} {{IPA|[ɬəɣˀorawetɬˀat]}}; singular '''''Luorawetlan''''' {{Lang|ckt|ԓыгъоравэтԓьан}} {{IPA|[ɬəɣˀorawetɬˀan]}}), meaning "the real people". All of these peoples and other unrelated minorities in and around Kamchatka are known collectively as [[Kamchadals]].

''Chukchi'' and ''Chukchee'' are [[anglicisation|anglicized]] versions of the Russian [[exonym]] ''Chukcha'' (plural ''Chukchi''). This came into Russian from {{Lang|tuw-Latn|Čävča}}, the term used by the Chukchis' [[Tungusic languages|Tungusic]]-speaking neighbors, itself a rendering of the Chukchi word {{Lang|ckt|чавчыв}} {{IPA|[tʃawtʃəw]}}, which in Chukchi means "[a man who is] rich in reindeer," referring to any successful reindeer herder, a wealthy man by local standards.

Although Chukchi language is taught in 28 elementary schools in Chukotka Autonomous Region to 1616 children (according to 2015-2016 data),<ref>{{cite web |url=http://xn--80atapud1a.xn--p1ai/region/education/native_language/|lang=ru|title=Chukotka Autonomous Okrug — Native language|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818234529/http://xn--80atapud1a.xn--p1ai/region/education/native_language/ |accessdate=30 December 2016|archive-date=2016-08-18 }}</ref> and there are several hours of daily TV and radio broadcasts in the Chukchi language, the everyday use and proficiency in the language is declining among native Chukchis. According to [[Russian Census (2021)|the 2020 census]], 8,526 of the 16,200 Chukchi people speak Chukchi; and most Chukchi now speak [[Russian language|Russian]] (fewer than 100 report not speaking Russian at all). The language is on the list of [[endangered language]]s in the [[UNESCO]] [[Red Book of Endangered Languages|Red Book]].

== People ==
{{Main|Chukchi people}}
The Chukchi people have a rich history and culture, which have traditionally centered around war.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Bogoras |first=W. |date=1901 |title=The Chukchi of Northeastern Asia |journal=American Anthropologist |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=80–108 |doi=10.1525/aa.1901.3.1.02a00060 |doi-access=}}</ref> The Chukchi prize warriors and the fighting spirit that they embody. This emphasis on conflict can be seen in the interactions between the Chukchi and the Russians, which date back to the middle of the seventeenth century and tell of glorious battles between the two groups.<ref name=":0" /> The Chukchi have also been known to battle nearby tribes, particularly the Tánñit, which comprise fellow Siberian peoples known as the Koryaks. However, over the last century, the Chukchi people have engaged in far fewer conflicts and have focused more on trading. Today, the Chukchi economy relies heavily on trade, particularly with Russia.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Kolga |first=M. |title=The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire |publisher=Tallinn: NGO Red Book |year=2001}}</ref>

Besides trading with Russia, the Chukchi make their living off of herding reindeer and bartering with other tribes.<ref name=":0" /> There is also a group of Chukchi that do not herd reindeer and instead live along the coast, trading more with tribes who live along the pacific coast. Some Chukchi people even choose to go back and forth between the two divisions, trading with both. These people tend to control more of the trade and have been called Kavrálît or "Rangers".

Notably, Chukchi men and women use different pronunciation for the same words. While men say "r" or "rk", women say "ts" or "tsts" in the same word.<ref>Богораз В. Г. Материалы по изучению чукотского языка и фольклора. — СПб., 1900.</ref>

== Usage ==
Many Chukchis use the language as their primary means of communication both within the family and while engaged in their traditional pastoral economic activity (reindeer herding). The language is also used in media (including [[radio]] and [[TV]] translations) and some [[business]] activities. However, Russian is increasingly used as the primary means of business and administrative communication, in addition to behaving as a [[lingua franca]] in territories inhabited by non-Chukchis such as Koryaks and Yakuts. Over the past few decades, fewer and fewer Chukchi children have been learning Chukchi as a native language. Almost all Chukchis speak Russian, although some have a lesser command than others. Chukchi language is used as a primary language of instruction in [[elementary school]]; the rest of secondary education is done in Russian with Chukchi taught as a subject.

A Chukchi writer, [[Yuri Rytkheu]] (1930–2008), has earned a measure of renown in both Russia and Western Europe, although much of his published work was written in Russian, rather than Chukchi. Chukchi poet [[Antonina Kymytval]] wrote in her native language.

== Phonology ==
{{Main|Chukchi phonology}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+Chukchi consonant phonemes
!
![[Bilabial consonant|<small>Bilabial</small>]]
![[Alveolar consonant|<small>Alveolar</small>]]
![[Retroflex consonant|<small>Retroflex</small>]]
![[Palatal consonant|<small>Palatal</small>]]
![[Velar consonant|<small>Velar</small>]]
![[Uvular consonant|<small>Uvular</small>]]
![[Glottal consonant|<small>Glottal</small>]]
|-
!<small>[[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]</small>
|{{IPAlink|m}}
|{{IPAlink|n}}
|
|
|{{IPAlink|ŋ}}
|
|
|-
!<small>[[Stop consonant|Stop]]</small>
|{{IPAlink|p}}
|{{IPAlink|t}}
|
|{{IPAlink|t͡ʃ}}
|{{IPAlink|k}}
|{{IPAlink|q}}
|{{IPAlink|ʔ}}
|-
!<small>[[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]</small>
|{{IPAlink|β}}
|{{IPA link|s}}
|
|
|{{IPAlink|ɣ}}
|
|
|-
![[Lateral consonant|<small>Lateral</small>]]
|
|{{IPAlink|ɬ}}
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!<small>[[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]</small>
|
|
|{{IPAlink|ɻ}}
|{{IPAlink|j}}
|
|
|
|}

* [ɸ, x, ɻ̊, j̊] are heard as allophones of /β, ɣ, ɻ, j/ after voiceless stops.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2013-10-30 |title=chapter2_9 |url=http://privatewww.essex.ac.uk/~spena/Chukchee/chapter2.html#postlex |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131030024912/http://privatewww.essex.ac.uk/~spena/Chukchee/chapter2.html#postlex |archive-date=2013-10-30  |access-date=2022-10-21 }}</ref>
* /ɻ/ is mostly heard as an alveolar trill [r], when in between vowels.<ref>Skorik (1961)</ref>
* /s/ is phonetically [s~t͡ʃ] in free variation and only occurs in the men's dialect.
* /t͡ʃ/ becomes [s] before /q/ and only occurs in the women's dialect.
* /s/, /t͡ʃ/ and /ɻ/ have different distributions between men's and women's dialects.<ref>Dunn (1999)</ref>

There are no voiced [[plosive consonant|stops]] in the language; these are only found in [[loanword]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Chukchi language, alphabet and pronunciation|url=https://omniglot.com/writing/chukchi.htm|access-date=2020-08-02|website=omniglot.com}}</ref>

The vowels are {{IPA|/i/}}, {{IPA|/u/}}, {{IPA|/e₁/}}, {{IPA|/e₂/}}, {{IPA|/o/}}, {{IPA|/a/}}, and {{IPA|/ə/}}. {{IPA|/e₁/}} and {{IPA|/e₂/}} are pronounced identically but behave differently in the phonology. (Cf. the two kinds of {{IPA|/i/}} in [[Eskimo language|Inuit Eskimo]], whose known cause is the merger of two vowels {{IPA|/i/}} and {{IPA|/ə/}}, which are still separate in [[Eskimo language|Yup'ik Eskimo]].)

A notable feature of Chukchi is its [[vowel harmony]] system largely based on [[vowel height]]. {{IPA|/i, u, e₁/}} alternate with {{IPA|/e₂, o, a/}}, respectively. The second group is known as "dominant vowels" and the first group as "recessive vowels"; that is because whenever a "dominant" vowel is present anywhere in a word, all "recessive" vowels in the word change into their "dominant" counterpart. The [[schwa]] vowel {{IPA|/ə/}} does not alternate but may trigger harmony as if it belonged to the dominant group.

Initial and final consonant clusters are not tolerated, and schwa epenthesis is pervasive.

Stress tends to: 1. be penultimate; 2. stay within the stem; 3. avoid [[schwa]]s.

== Orthography ==
[[File:Chukotskie ideogrammy.png|thumb|Ideograms created by Chukchi reindeer herder [[Tenevil]]]]
[[File:Chukchi textbook cover.jpg|right|thumb|250px|The cover of a Grade 5 Chukchi language textbook from 1996, illustrating the then new [[El with hook|Cyrillic El with hook]] letter. The title is {{Lang|ckt|Ԯыгъоравэтԯьэн йиԯыйиԯ}} 'Chukchi language'.]]

Chukchi is one of few languages to have autonomously produced its own written script, and the northernmost language in the world to have done so. The script was invented by a man named [[Tenevil]], but never saw widespread use.<ref name="Harbsmeier">{{cite book |last=Harbsmeier |first=Michael |title=State and Society: The emergence and development of social hierarchy and political centralization |date=1995 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=0-203-99003-X |editor1-last=Gledhill |editor1-first=John |editor1-link=:jv:John Gledhill |pages=247–272 [256–257] |chapter=Inventions of writing |editor2-last=Bender |editor2-first=Barbara |editor2-link=Barbara Bender |editor3-last=Larsen |editor3-first=Mogens Trolle |editor3-link=:ru:Ларсен, Могенс Тролле}}</ref>

Until 1931, the Chukchi language had no official orthography, in spite of attempts in the 1800s to write religious texts in it.{{cn|date=October 2025}}

At the beginning of the 1900s, [[Vladimir Bogoraz]] discovered specimens of pictographic/logographic writing by the Chukchi herdsman [[Tenevil]]. Tenevil's writing system was entirely his own invention.<ref name="Harbsmeier" /> It was nearly lost during the initial period of Soviet contact and subsequent Russian Arctic expeditions. The first official Chukchi alphabet was [[Latinisation in the Soviet Union|devised by Bogoraz]] in 1931 and was based on the [[Latin script]]:{{cn|date=October 2025}}

{| style="font-family:Arial Unicode MS; font-size:1.4em; border-color:#000000; border-width:1px; border-style:solid; border-collapse:collapse; background-color:#F8F8EF"
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | А а
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ā ā
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | B b
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | C c
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | D d
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Е е
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ē ē
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ə ə
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ə̄ ə̄
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | F f
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | G g
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | H h
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | I i
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ī ī
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | J j
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | K k
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | L l
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | M m
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | N n
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ŋ ŋ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | O o
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ō ō
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | P p
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Q q
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | R r
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | S s
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | T t
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | U u
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ū ū
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | V v
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | W w
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Z z
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ь ь
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|}

In 1937, this alphabet, along with all of the other alphabets of the non-Slavic peoples of the USSR, was [[Cyrillisation in the Soviet Union|replaced]] by a [[Cyrillic]] alphabet. At first it was the [[Russian alphabet]] with the addition of the digraphs ''Кʼ кʼ'' and ''Нʼ нʼ''. In the 1950s the additional letters were replaced by ''Ӄ ӄ'' and ''Ӈ ӈ''. These newer letters were mainly used in educational texts, while the press continued to use the older versions. At the end of the 1980s, the letter ''Ԯ ԯ'' (''Ԓ ԓ'') was introduced as a replacement for ''Л л''. This was intended to reduce confusion with the pronunciation of the Russian letter of the same form. The Chukchi alphabet now stands as follows:{{cn|date=October 2025}}

{| style="font-family:Arial Unicode MS; font-size:1.4em; border-color:#000000; border-width:1px; border-style:solid; border-collapse:collapse; background-color:#F8F8EF"
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[A (Cyrillic)|А а]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Be (Cyrillic)|Б б]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Ve (Cyrillic)|В в]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Ge (Cyrillic)|Г г]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[De (Cyrillic)|Д д]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Ye (Cyrillic)|Е е]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Yo (Cyrillic)|Ё ё]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Zhe (Cyrillic)|Ж ж]]
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Ze (Cyrillic)|З з]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[I (Cyrillic)|И и]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Short I|Й й]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Ka (Cyrillic)|К к]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Ka with hook|Ӄ ӄ]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[El (Cyrillic)|Л л]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[El with hook|Ԓ ԓ]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Em (Cyrillic)|М м]]
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[En with hook|Н н]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[En with hook|Ӈ ӈ]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[O (Cyrillic)|О о]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Pe (Cyrillic)|П п]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Er (Cyrillic)|Р р]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Es (Cyrillic)|С с]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Te (Cyrillic)|Т т]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[U (Cyrillic)|У у]]
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Ef (Cyrillic)|Ф ф]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Kha (Cyrillic)|Х х]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Tse (Cyrillic)|Ц ц]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Che (Cyrillic)|Ч ч]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Sha (Cyrillic)|Ш ш]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Shcha|Щ щ]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Hard sign|Ъ ъ]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Yery|Ы ы]]
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Soft sign|Ь ь]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[E (Cyrillic)|Э э]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Yu (Cyrillic)|Ю ю]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Ya (Cyrillic)|Я я]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Apostrophe|ʼ]]
| 
| 
| 
|}

=== Romanization of Chukchi ===
The romanization of Chukchi is the representation of the Chukchi language using Latin letters.

The following is the [[ISO 9]] system of Romanization:<ref name="ISO9">{{cite web |title=ISO 9:1995: Information and documentation — Transliteration of Cyrillic characters into Latin characters — Slavic and non-Slavic languages |url=http://www.iso.org/iso/iso_catalogue/catalogue_tc/catalogue_detail.htm?csnumber=3589 |access-date=10 July 2019 |publisher=International Organization for Standardization}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="display: inline-table;"
! style="font-weight: bold;" | [[Cyrillic script|Cyrillic]]
! style="font-weight: bold;" | [[Latin script|Latin]]
![[Cyrillic script|Cyrillic]]
![[Latin script|Latin]]
|-
| А а
| A a
|П п
|P p
|-
| Б б
| B b
|Р р
|R r
|-
| В в
| V v
|С с
|S s
|-
| Г г
| Ɣ ɣ
|Т т
|T t
|-
| Д д
| D d
|У у
|U u
|-
| Е е
| Ye ye
|Ф ф
|F f
|-
| Ё ё
| Yo yo 
|Х х
|X̑ x̑
|-
| Ж ж
| Ż̬ ż̬
|Ц ц
|Ts ts
|-
| З з
| Z z
|Ч ч
|C̄‘ c̄‘
|-
| И и
| I i
|Ш ш
|Ţ꙼ ţ꙼
|-
| Й й
| Y y
|Щ щ
|Ś ś
|-
| К к
| K k
|Ъ ъ
|"
|-
| Ӄ ӄ
| Q q
|Ы ы
|Ə ə
|-
| Л л
| L l
|Ь ь
|'
|-
| Ԓ ԓ
| Ḷ̃ ḷ̃
|Э э
|E e
|-
| М м
| M m
|Ю ю
|Yu yu
|-
| Н н
| N n
|Я я
|Ya ya
|-
| Ӈ ӈ
| Ŋ ŋ
|ʼ
|ʼ
|-
| О о
| O o
|
|
|}

The Letters Бб, Дд, Жж, Зз, Сс, Фф, Хх, Цц, Шш, And Щщ, Are Only Used For Discutaration Not Chukchi Letting Dialects Of Country Foreign Names And Blaouuer Loanwords The 10 Letters Banned 

Г And Ы Are Pronounced [g] And [ɨ] And Respective In Russian Loanwords And Foreign Names

== Grammar ==
Chukchi is a largely [[polysynthetic]], [[agglutinative]], [[direct-inverse language]] and has [[Ergative–absolutive language|ergative–absolutive alignment]]. It also has very pervasive [[Incorporation (linguistics)|incorporation]]. In particular, the incorporation is productive and often interacts with other linguistic processes.<ref name="Spencer 1995">{{Cite journal|last=Spencer|first=Andrew|date=1995|title=Incorporation in Chukchi|journal=Language|volume=71|issue=3|pages=439–489|doi=10.2307/416217|jstor=416217}}</ref> Chukchi allows free incorporation of adjuncts, such as when a noun incorporates its modifier.<ref name="Spencer 1995"/> However, besides the unusual use of adjuncts, Chukchi behaves in a typologically normal manner. The language of Chukchi also uses a specific verb system. The basic locative construction of a sentence in Chukchi contains a single locative verb, unlike many other languages.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Dunn|first=Michael|date=2007|title=Four Languages From The Lower End Of The Typology Of Locative Predication.|journal=Linguistics|volume=45|issue=5/6|doi=10.1515/ling.2007.026|hdl=11858/00-001M-0000-0013-18B0-4|s2cid=27120598|hdl-access=free}}</ref>

In the ''nominals'', there are two numbers and about 13 morphological cases: absolutive, ergative/instrumental, equative (copula), locative, allative, ablative, orientative, inessive, perlative, sublative, comitative, associative, and privative.<ref>{{Cite thesis|last=Dunn|first=Michael John|date=1999|title=A Grammar of Chukchi|type=PhD Thesis|chapter=Nominal Inflection|publisher=Australian National University|hdl=1885/10769 |url=http://hdl.handle.net/1885/10769}}</ref> Nouns are split into three declensions influenced by [[animacy]]: the first declension, which contains non-humans, has plural marking only in the absolutive case; the second one, which contains personal names and certain words for mainly older relatives, has obligatory plural marking in all forms; the third one, which contains other humans than those in the second declension, has optional plural marking. These nominal cases are used to identify the number of nouns, as well as their purpose and function in a sentence.<ref name="Spencer 1995"/>

''Verbs'' distinguish three persons, two numbers, three moods (declarative, imperative and conditional), two voices (active and [[antipassive]]) and six tenses: present I (progressive), present II (stative), past I ([[aorist]]), past II ([[perfect (grammar)|perfect]]), future I (perfective future), future II (imperfective future). Past II is formed with a construction meaning possession (literally "to be with"), similar to the use of "have" in the perfect in English and other Western European languages.

Both subject and direct object are cross-referenced in the verbal chain, and [[person agreement]] is very different in intransitive and transitive verbs. Person agreement is expressed with a complex system involving both prefixes and suffixes; despite the agglutinative nature of the language, each individual combination of person, number, tense etc. is expressed in a way that is far from always straightforward. Besides the [[finite verb|finite forms]], there are also infinitive, [[supine]] (purposive), numerous [[gerund]] forms, and a present and past participle, and these are all used with auxiliary verbs to produce further analytic constructions.

The word order is rather free, though [[Subject–object–verb|SOV]] is basic. The possessor normally precedes the possessed, and [[postposition]]s rather than prepositions are used.

Chukchi as a language often proves difficult to categorize. This is primarily due to the fact that it does not always follow a typical linguistic and syntactical pattern. These exceptions allow Chukchi to fit into more than one linguistic type.<ref name="Spencer 1995"/>

Chukchi has periodic tense: it can incorporate the noun {{lang|ckt|nәki-}} to build a nocturnal verb form.<ref>{{cite journal|author=[[Guillaume Jacques]]|year=2023|title=Periodic tense markers in the world's languages and their sources.|journal=Folia Linguistica |volume=57|issue=3|pages=539–562|doi=10.1515/flin-2023-2013|url=https://shs.hal.science/halshs-04239547}}</ref>

{{fs interlinear|abbreviations=NOCT:nocturnal|indent=4|lang=ckt
|мын-ныки-урэ-ӄэпл-увичвэн-мык
|myn-nyki-urè-ḳèpḷ-uvičvèn-myk
|1PL-NOCT-long.time-ball-play-IMP:1PL
|‘Let’s spend a lot of time playing ball at night.’ (Skorik 1977: 241)}}

== Vocabulary ==
A large number of words in the Chukchi language are [[Reduplication|reduplicated]] in their singular forms, i.e. Chukchi {{lang|ckt|Э’ръэр}} ("iceberg") and {{lang|ckt|Утуут}} ("tree").<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ландшафт |url=http://charles.weinstein.free.fr/chukches/LEX/Lex_landshaft_ru.html |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=charles.weinstein.free.fr}}</ref> There is also significant influence from the [[Russian language]], especially in formal vocabulary and modern concepts, i.e. Chukchi {{lang|ckt|Чайпат}}, from Russian {{Lang|ru|Чай}} (tea). The extent to which Chukchi and the [[Eskimo language]]s borrowed vocabulary between one another, or a relationship between the two, has not been studied in detail.

=== Numbers ===
The ''numeral'' system was originally purely [[vigesimal]] and went up to 400, but a decimal system was introduced for numerals above 100 via Russian influence. Many of the names of the basic numbers can be traced etymologically to words referring to the human body ("finger", "hand" etc.) or to arithmetic operations (6 = "1 + 5" etc.).

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Number !! Name !! Transliteration
|-
| 1 || ''Ыннэн'' || Ynnèn
|-
| 2 || ''Ӈирэӄ'' || Ňirèḳ
|-
| 3 || ''Ӈыроӄ'' || Ňyroḳ
|-
| 4 || ''Ӈыраӄ'' || Ňyraḳ
|-
| 5 || ''Мэтԓыӈэн'' ||Mètḷyňèn
|-
| 6 || ''Ыннанмытԓыӈэн'' (1 + 5) || Ynnanmytḷyňèn
|-
| 7 || ''Ӈэръамытԓыӈэн'' (2 + 5) || Ňèrʺamytḷyňèn
|-
| 8 || ''Амӈырооткэн (ӈыръомытԓыӈэн)'' (3 + 5) || Amňyrootkèn (ňyr'omytḷyňèn)
|-
| 9 || ''Ӄонъачгынкэн (ӈыръамытԓыӈэн)'' (4 + 5) || Ḳonʺačgynkèn (ňyr'amytḷyňèn)
|-
| 10 || ''Мынгыткэн'' || Myngytkèn
|-
| 11 || ''Мынгыткэн ыннэн пароԓ'' (10, 1 extra) || Myngytkèn ynnèn paroḷ
|-
| 12 || ''Мынгыткэн ӈиръэ пароԓ'' (10, 2 extra) || Myngytkèn ňirʺè paroḷ
|-
| 13 || ''Мынгыткэн ӈыръо пароԓ'' (10, 3 extra) || Myngytkèn ňyrʺo paroḷ
|-
| 14 || ''Мынгыткэн ӈыръа пароԓ'' (10, 4 extra) || Myngytkèn ňyrʺa paroḷ
|-
| 15 || ''Кыԓгынкэн'' || Kyḷgynkèn
|-
| 16 || ''Кыԓгынкэн ыннэн пароԓ'' (15, 1 extra) || Kyḷgynkèn ynnèn paroḷ
|-
| 17 || ''Кыԓгынкэн ӈиръэ пароԓ'' (15, 2 extra) || Kyḷgynkèn ňirʺè paroḷ
|-
| 18 || ''Кыԓгынкэн ӈыръо пароԓ'' (15, 3 extra) || Kyḷgynkèn ňyrʺo paroḷ
|-
| 19 || ''Кыԓгынкэн ӈыръа пароԓ'' (15, 4 extra) || Kyḷgynkèn ňyrʺa paroḷ
|-
| 20 || ''Ӄԓиккин'' || Ḳḷikkin
|-
| 21 || ''Ӄԓиккин ыннэн пароԓ'' (20, 1 extra) ||Ḳḷikkin ynnèn paroḷ
|-
| 30 || ''Ӄԓиккин мынгыткэн пароԓ'' (20, 10 extra) || Ḳḷikkin myngytkèn paroḷ
|-
| 40 || ''Ӈирэӄӄԓиккин'' (20 × 2)
|Ňirèḳḳḷikkin
|-
| 50 || ''Ӈирэӄӄԓиккин мынгыткэн пароԓ'' (40, 10 extra)
|Ňirèḳḳḷikkin myngytkèn paroḷ
|-
| 60 || ''Ӈыроӄӄԓеккэн'' (3 × 20)
|Ňyroḳḳḷekkèn
|-
| 70 || ''Ӈыроӄӄԓеккэн мынгыткэн пароԓ'' (60, 10 extra)
|Ňyreḳḳḷekkèn myngytkèn paroḷ
|-
| 80 || ''Ӈыраӄӄԓеккэн'' (4 × 20)
|Ňyraḳḳḷekkèn
|-
| 90 || ''Ӈыраӄӄԓеккэн мынгыткэн пароԓ'' (80, 10 extra)
|Ňyraḳḳḷekkèn myngytkèn paroḷ
|-
| 100 || ''Мытԓыӈӄԓеккэн'' || Mytḷyňḳḷekkèn
|-
| 111 || ''Мытԓыӈӄԓеккэн ыннэн пароԓ'' || Mytḷyňḳḷekkèn ynnèn paroḷ
|-
| 131 || ''Мытԓыӈӄԓеккэн мынгыт ыннэн пароԓ'' || Mytḷyňḳḷekkèn myngyt ynnèn paroḷ
|-
| 200 || ''Мынгытӄԓеккэн'' (10 × 20) || Myngytḳḷekkèn
|-
| 300 || ''Кыԓгынӄԓеккэн'' (15 × 20) || Kyḷgynḳḷekkèn
|-
| 400 || ''Ӄԓиӄӄԓиккин'' (20 × 20) || Ḳḷiḳḳḷikkin
|-
| 500 || ''Мытԓыӈча мытԓыӈӄԓеккэн пароԓ'' (400, 100 extra) || Mytḷyňča mytḷyňḳḷekkèn paroḷ
|-
| 600 || ''Ыннанмытԓынча мытԓыӈӄԓеккэн пароԓ'' (400, 200 extra) || Ynnanmytḷynča mytḷyňḳḷekkèn paroḷ
|-
| 700 || ''Ӄԓиӄӄԓиккин кыԓгынӄԓеккэн пароԓ'' (400, 300 extra) ||  Ḳḷiḳḳḷikkin kyḷgynḳḷekkèn paroḷ
|-
| 800 || ''Ӈирэче ӄԓиӄӄԓиккин'' (2 × 400) || Ňirèče ḳḷiḳḳḷikkin
|-
| 900 || ''Ӈирэче ӄԓиӄӄԓиккин мынгытӄԓеккэн пароԓ'' (2 × 400, 100 extra) || Ňirèče ḳḷiḳḳḷikkin mytḷyňḳḳekkèn paroḷ
|}

Ordinary numbers are formed with the suffix -ӄeв (after close vowels) or -ӄaв (after open vowels).

== External influence ==
The external influences of Chukchi have not been well-studied. In particular, the degree of contacts between the Chukchi and [[Eskimo–Aleut languages|Eskimo]] languages remains an open question. [[Research]] into this area is problematic in part because of the lack of written evidence. (Cf. de Reuse in the Bibliography.) Contact influence of Russian, which is increasing, consists of word borrowing and pressure on surface [[syntax]]; the latter is primarily seen in written communication (translated texts) and is not apparent in day-to-day speech.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{refbegin|2}}
* Alevtina N. Zhukova, Tokusu Kurebito,"A Basic Topical Dictionary of the Koryak-Chukchi Languages (Asian and African Lexicon Series, 46)",ILCAA, Tokyo Univ. of Foreign Studies (2004), {{ISBN|978-4872978964}}
*{{cite journal | last1 = Bogoras | first1 = W | year = 1901 | title = The Chukchi of Northeastern Asia | doi = 10.1525/aa.1901.3.1.02a00060 | journal = American Anthropologist | volume = 3 | issue = 1| pages = 80–108 | doi-access =  }}
*Bogoras, W., 1922. "Chukchee". In ''Handbook of American Indian Languages'' II, ed. F. Boas, Washington, D.C.
*Comrie, B., 1981. ''The Languages of the Soviet Union'', Cambridge: [[Cambridge University Press]] (Cambridge Language Surveys). {{ISBN|0-521-23230-9}} (hardcover) and {{ISBN|0-521-29877-6}} (paperback)
*De Reuse, Willem Joseph, 1994. ''Siberian Yupik Eskimo: The Language and Its Contacts with Chukchi'', Univ. of Utah Press, {{ISBN|0-87480-397-7}}
*Dunn, Michael John (1999). ''A Grammar of Chukchi'' (PhD Thesis). Australian National University.
*Dunn, Michael, 2000. "Chukchi Women's Language: A Historical-Comparative Perspective", ''Anthropological Linguistics'', Vol. 42, No. 3 (Fall, 2000), pp.&nbsp;305–328
*Kolga, M. (2001). The Red Book of the Peoples of the Russian Empire. Tallinn: NGO Red Book.
*Krause, Scott R. (1980). ''Topics in Chukchee Phonology and Morphology''. Ann Arbor: UMI.
*Nedjalkov, V. P., 1976. "Diathesen und Satzstruktur im Tschuktschischen" [in German]. In: Ronald Lötzsch (ed.), ''Satzstruktur und Genus verbi'' (Studia Grammatica 13). Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, pp.&nbsp;181–211.
*{{cite web |url=http://scripts.sil.org/cms/scrIpts/render_download.php?site_id=nrsi&format=file&media_id=Cyrillic_2005-08-09&filename=N2933.pdf |title=Proposal to Encode Additional Cyrillic Characters |last=Priest |first=Lorna A. |year=2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310070448/http://scripts.sil.org/cms/scripts/render_download.php?site_id=nrsi&format=file&media_id=Cyrillic_2005-08-09&filename=N2933.pdf |archive-date=2016-03-10 |url-status=dead }}
*Skorik, P[etr] Ja., 1961. ''Grammatika čukotskogo jazyka 1: Fonetika i morfologija imennych častej reči'' (Grammar of the Chukchi Language: Phonetics and morphology of the nominal parts of speech) [in Russian]. Leningrad: Nauka.
*Skorik, P[etr] Ja., 1977. ''Grammatika čukotskogo jazyka 2: Glagol, narečie, služebnye slova'' (Grammar of the Chuckchi Language: Verb, adverb, function words) [in Russian]. Leningrad: Nauka:
*Weinstein, Charles, 2010. ''Parlons tchouktche'' [in French]. Paris: L'Harmattan. {{ISBN|978-2-296-10412-9}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{wiktionarycat}}
{{Incubator|ckt}}
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* {{cite web |last=Spencer |first=Andrew |title=Chukchee homepage [Grammatical sketch based on Skorik 1961–1977] |year=1999 |url=http://privatewww.essex.ac.uk/~spena/Chukchee/CHUKCHEE_HOMEPAGE.html |access-date=2005-07-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051025130220/http://privatewww.essex.ac.uk/~spena/Chukchee/CHUKCHEE_HOMEPAGE.html |archive-date=2005-10-25 |url-status=dead }}
* {{cite web |title=Chukchi language and folklore in texts collected by V. G.Bogoraz. Part two: grammar |author1=Muravyova I. A. |author2=Daniel M. A. |author3=Zhdanova T. Ju. |year=2001 |url=http://gendocs.ru/v2785/?download=1 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130416222744/http://gendocs.ru/v2785/?download=1 |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 16, 2013 }}
* {{cite web |url=http://lingsib.unesco.ru/en/languages/chukchi.shtml.htm |title=Endangered Languages of Siberia – The Chukchi language|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071020011049/http://lingsib.unesco.ru/en/languages/chukchi.shtml.htm |archive-date=2007-10-20 }}
* {{cite web |url=http://chukchi.efenstor.net/ |title=Russian-Chukchi Phrasebook |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071102095105/http://chukchi.efenstor.net/ |archive-date=2007-11-02 }}
* {{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100315132016/http://www.ling-atlas.jp/r/tale/list |url=http://www.ling-atlas.jp/r/tale/list |title=Chukchi fairy tales in Chukchi and English|archive-date=2010-03-15 }}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.ibt.org.ru/russian/bible/chk/chkluk.pdf |title=The Gospel of Luke in Chukchi |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304101127/http://www.ibt.org.ru/russian/bible/chk/chkluk.pdf |archive-date=2012-03-04 }}
* {{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090916093217/http://www.ks87.ru/site.xp/049048056.html |url=http://www.ks87.ru/site.xp/049048056.html |title=A Chukchi language appendix to the newspaper "Krayny Sever"|archive-date=2009-09-16 }}
* {{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006074450/http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus_lan_97_uezd_eng.php |url=http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus_lan_97_uezd_eng.php  |title=Population by mother tongue and districts in 50 Governorates of the European Russia in 1897|archive-date=2014-10-06 }}
* {{cite web |last=Siegel |first=Wolfram |title=Chukchi (Луоравэтлан/Luoravetlan) |work=Omniglot |url=http://www.omniglot.com/writing/chukchi.htm}}
* {{cite book |last1=Volodin |first1=A. P. |first2=P. Ja. |last2=Skorik |year=1997 |chapter=Čukotskyj jazyk |trans-chapter=The Chukchi language |title=Jazyki mira: Paleoaziatskije jazyki |trans-title=Languages of the World: Paleoasiatic Languages) |location=Moskva |publisher=Indrik |pages=23–39 |lang=ru |url=http://www.philology.ru/linguistics4/volodin-skorik-97.htm}}
* {{cite book |last=Skorik |first=P. J. |year=1961 |title=Grammatika čukotskogo jazyka |trans-title=Grammar of the Chukchi Language |lang=Russian |volume=1 |location=Leningrad |publisher=Nauka}}
* {{cite book |last=Skorik |first=P. J. |year=1977 |title=Grammatika čukotskogo jazyka |trans-title=Grammar of the Chukchi Language |lang=Russian |volume=2 |location=Leningrad |publisher=Nauka}}
{{div col end}}

{{Paleosiberian languages}}
{{Languages of Russia}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Chukchi culture]]
[[Category:Chukchi people]]
[[Category:Chukotko-Kamchatkan languages]]
[[Category:Indigenous languages of Siberia]]
[[Category:Agglutinative languages]]
[[Category:Polysynthetic languages]]
[[Category:Vowel-harmony languages]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]