Aari
A language of Ethiopia (North central Omo Region, southern tip of Ethiopian plateau, near the Hamer-Banna.). Population: 158,857 (1998 census). 129,350 monolinguals. Ethnic population: 155,002 (1989 census). Alternate names: Ari, Ara, Aro, Aarai, "Shankilla", "Shankillinya", "Shankilligna"
Aariya
A language of India. Region: Madhya Pradesh, Chhatarpur, Datia, Panna, Rewa, Satna, Shahdol, Sidhi, Tikamgarh districts.
Aasáx
A language of Tanzania: Northern Tanzania in the central Maasai Steppe. Landenai, Ndovu Okutu, Lolbeni villages, and Lemelebo, Landrobo, Naitomani, and Kilili districts are reported to have speakers. Alternate names: Asax, Asá, Aasá, Assa, Asak, "Ndorobo", "Dorobo", Lamanik, Il Konono. Language use: Reported in 1999 to still be spoken in the central Massai Steppe. It became linguistically extinct in the eastern Maasai Steppe in 1976. They are dependent on the Maasai and became absorbed into it and nearby Bantu groups. Speakers use Maasai with the Maasai, on whom they are economically dependent.
Abadi
A language of Papua New Guinea: Central Province, north of Galley Reach. Alternate names: Gabadi, Kabadi. Dialects: Lexical similarity 53% with Toura (closest). Language use: All ages. Positive language attitude. Many in younger generation use Tok Pisin or English.
Abaga
A language of Papua New Guinea: Eastern Highlands Province, Goroka District. Population: 5 (1994 SIL). Ethnic population: 1,200 (1975 SIL). Language use: Speakers also use Kamano or Benabena.
Abai Sungai
A language of Malaysia (Sabah): Lower reaches of the Kinabatangan River. Language use: 40% to 60% of the ethnic group speaks Abai Sungai. Used in the home. About 30% to 50% of the children speak it. Neutral language attitude.
Abanyom
Language of the Ekoid subfamily of Niger-Congo. It is spoken by the Abanyom people in the Cross River State region of Nigeria, numbering about 12,500. A member of the Southern Bantoid group, Abanyom is fairly closely related to the Bantu languages. It is tonal and has a typical Niger-Congo noun class system.
Abar
A language of Cameroon: North West Province, Menchum Division, Wum Subdivision, centered around village of Missong, including villages of Munken and Abar. Alternate names: Mijong, Missong.
Abau
A language of Papua New Guinea: Sandaun Province, Green River District, Sepik and Green rivers. Not in Papua, Indonesia. Alternate names: Green River.
Abaza
Language of the Caucasus mountains in the Russian autonomous republic of Karachay-Cherkessia by the Abazins. It consists of two dialects, the Ashkherewa dialect and the T'ap'anta dialect, which is the literary standard.
Abé
A language of Côte d'Ivoire: Southern Department, Subprefecture of Agboville (except Krobou Canton) and Abbe Canton of Tiassale Subprefecture. 70 villages. Alternate names: Abbé, Abbey, Abi. Dialects: Tioffo, Morie, Abbey-Ve, Kos (Khos).
Abidji
A language of Côte d'Ivoire: Department of Abidjan, Subprefecture of Sikensi (12 villages), and a few villages in Subprefecture of Dabou. Alternate name: Abiji. Dialects: Enyembe, Ogbru. Language use: Speakers also use French, Jula, Baoule, or Adioukrou.
Abinomn
A language of Indonesia (Papua): Lakes Plain area, from the mouth of the Baso River just east of Dabra at the Idenburg River to its headwaters in the Foya Mountains, Jayapura Kabupaten, Mamberamo Hulu Kecamatan. Alternate names: Avinomen, "Baso", Foya, Foja. Dialects: Close to Warembori.
Abishira
An extinct language of Peru: Puerto Elvira on Lake Vacacocha on the Napo River. Alternate names: Abiquira, Auishiri, Agouisiri, Avirxiri, Abigira, Ixignor, Vacacocha, Tequraca. Language use: Official language.
Abkhaz
Is a Northwest Caucasian language spoken in Abkhazia and Turkey by the Abkhazians. Abkhaz has about 100,000 speakers in Abkhazia with up to 500,000 more living in Turkey. Georgian Constitution establishes Abkhaz as the second official language of Georgia (on the territory of Abkhazia).
Abnaki, Eastern
An extinct language of USA: Formerly near Bangor, Maine, 1 village (Penobscot). Alternate name: Abenaki. Dialects: Penobscot. Language use: The last speaker of Penobscot died in the 1990s. Other dialects also extinct.
Abnaki, Western
A language of Canada: Quebec on St. Lawrence River between Montreal and Quebec City. Alternate names: Abenaki, Abenaqui, St. Francis. Language use: Extinct in the USA. All speakers are older adults. Speakers also use French.
Abom
A language of Papua New Guinea: Western Province, a few older adult speakers in Tewara, Lewada, and Mutam villages. Dialects: Lexical similarity 14% with Bitur, 12% with Baramu, 11% with Makayam, 9% with Were, 4% with Idi and Agob. Language use: All speakers are older adults (2002). Middle-aged generation understand only rudiments. Children do not speak or understand Abom.
Abon
A language of Nigeria: Taraba State, Sardauna LGA, Abong town, east of Baissa. Alternate names: Abong, Abõ, Ba'ban.
Abron
A language of Ghana: Southwestern Ghana, northwest of Asante Twi. Also spoken in Côte d'Ivoire. Alternate names : Brong, Bron, Doma, Gyaman. Language development: Literacy rate in first language: below 1%. Literacy rate in second language: 25% to 50%.
Abu
A language of Papua New Guinea: East Sepik Province, Angoram District, 19 villages; Madang Province, Bogia District, 8 villages, western side of lower Ramu River. Alternate names: Adjora, Adjoria, Azao. Dialects: Abu, Auwa, Sabu. Auwa may be a different language.
Abua
A language of Nigeria: Rivers State, Degema and Ahoada LGAs. Alternate names: Abuan. Dialects: Central Abuan, Emughan, Otapha, Okpeden. The central dialect is understood by all others. Odual is the most closely related language. Lexical similarity 70% with Odual.
Abui
A language of Indonesia (Nusa Tenggara): Central and western Alor in the Lesser Sundas. Alternate names: Barue, "Barawahing", Namatalaki. Dialects: Atimelang, Kobola, Alakaman. Much dialect diversity. The Alakaman dialect may be a dialect of Kamang (Woisika). May be more than one language.
Abujmaria
Is a Dravidian language spoken in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh provinces in India. It is closely related to Telugu. Abujmaria speakers are a sub-group of the Gondi people, the largest tribal group in India.
Abun
A language of Indonesia (Papua): North coast and interior of central Bird's Head, north and south of Tamberau ranges. Sorong Kabupaten, Ayamaru, Sausapor, and Moraid kecamatans. About 20 villages. Alternate names : Yimbun, A Nden, Manif, Karon. Dialects: Abun Tat (Karon Pantai), Abun Ji (Madik), Abun Je.
Abung
A language of Indonesia (Sumatra), region south. Dialects: Jabung, Menggala (Northeast Lampung), Kota Bumi (Northwest Lampung). Many differences in vocabulary and phonology with Pesisir. Menggala has 72% lexical similarity with Kalianda, a dialect of Southern Pesisir. Lexical similarity 77% among dialects.
Abure
A language of Côte d'Ivoire, region: Southern Department, Subprefecture of Bonoua, some in Subprefecture of Grand Bassam, many in Abidjan. Alternate names: Abouré, Abule, Akaplass, Abonwa. Dialects: Closest to Anyin. Also close to Baule and Nzema. Language use: Many speakers use Anyin.
Abureni
A language of Nigeria, region: Bayelsa State, four towns: Brass LGA, Agrisaba (Obo-Emeke); Ogbia LGA, Idema; Nembe LGA, Okoroba; Ogbia LGA, Opume, which is politically part of Oloibiri. Alternate names: Mini.
Acehnese
(Also Achinese, Achehnese) or Aceh (formerly Atjeh) is a Malayo-Polynesian language spoken in Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia.
Achagua
A language of Colombia, region: Rio Meta near Puerto Gaitan. Not in Venezuela. Alternate names: Ajagua, Xagua. Dialects: Close to Piapoco. Language use: Used in the home. Speakers are trilingual in Achagua, Spanish, and Piapoco.
Achang
A language of China, region: Dehong Dai-Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture and Baoshan District, western Yunnan Province, along the Myanmar border, Longchuan, Lingbe, and Luxi counties. Also spoken in Myanmar. Alternate names: Ngochang, Achung, Atsang, Ach'ang, Acang, Ahchan, Ngacang, Ngatsang, Ngachang, Ngac'ang, Ngo Chang, Mönghsa, Maingtha. Dialects: Longchuan, Lianghe, Luxi. The 3 dialects are reported to not be inherently intelligible to one another's speakers. Longchuan differs more from the other dialects, and has more Dai loanwords. Lianghe and Luxi use many Chinese loanwords. There are also Burmese loanwords. Related to Phun, Maru, Lashi, Zaiwa. Language use: Speakers are mainly adults. The Longchuan dialect is stable, but speakers of other dialects are shifting to Chinese. Many Han people in Longchuan County use Achang in informal situations. All domains. Spoken Chinese and Dai are in common use as second languages. Written Chinese is also in use.
Aché
A language of Paraguay, region: Eastern, Alto Paraná, Caaguazú, Chopa Pou, Cerro Moroti, and Puerto Barra reservations, and Tupa Renda. Alternate names: "Guaiaqui", "Guayakí", "Guoyagui", Guayaki-Ache, Axe. Dialects: Reported to be four dialects, one of which is nearly extinct. Language use: Speakers are becoming bilingual in Paraguayan Guaraní.
Acheron
A language of Sudan, region: Northern Sudan, Kordofan Province, southern Nuba Hills. Alternate names: Garme. Dialects: Eastern Acheron, Western Acheron. Not a dialect of Moro. Language use: Speakers also use Sudanese Arabic.
Achi', Cubulco
A language of Guatemala, region: Central area west of Rabinal, Baja Verapaz Department. Language development: Literacy rate in first language: 1% to 5%. Literacy rate in second language: 11%. Taught in primary schools. Dictionary. Grammar. NT: 1984.
Achi', Rabinal
A language of Guatemala, region: Central Rabinal area, Baja Verapaz Department. Alternate names: Rabinal K'iche'. Dialects: Closest linguistically to Cubulco Achi'. Language use: All ages. Possibly 20% of speakers can discuss more than common topics in Spanish.
Acholi
A language of Uganda, region: North central Acholi District. Also spoken in Sudan. Alternate names: Acoli, Atscholi, Shuli, Gang, Lwo, Lwoo, Akoli, Acooli, Log Acoli, Dok Acoli. Dialects: Labwor, Nyakwai, Dhopaluo (Chopi, Chope).
Achterhoeks
Language of Netherlands, region: Northeastern, Gelderland Province. Alternate names: Achterhoek, Aachterhoeks. Language use: Official language. Speakers also use Dutch.
Achuar-Shiwiar
A language of Peru, region: Morona, Macusari, Tigre, Huasaga, and Corrientes rivers. Also spoken in Ecuador. Alternate names: Achuar, Achual, Achuara, Achuale, Jivaro, Maina. Dialects: Different from Shuar (Jivaro) of Ecuador. Language use: Official language. Bilingual level estimates for Spanish: 0 90%, 1 6%, 2 3%, 3 1%, 4 0%, 5 0%.
Achumawi
A language of USA, region: Northeastern California. Alternate names: Achomawi, Pitt River. Dialects: Originally there were nine dialects.
Acipa, Eastern
A language of Nigeria, region: Niger State, Kontagora LGA; Kaduna State, Birnin Gwari LGA. Towns include Randeggi and Bobi. Alternate names: Acipanci, Achipa, Sagamuk. Dialects: Boroma (Taboroma). Lexical similarity 83% between Randeggi and Bobi; 52% with Shama; 47% to 50% with Kamuku; 42% to 44% with Hungworo; 15% to 20% with Western Acipa.
Acipa, Western
A language of Nigeria, region: Niger State, Kontagora LGA; Kebbi State, Sakaba LGA. Towns include Kumbashi, Kakihum, and Karisen. Alternate names: Acipanci, Achipa, Sagamuk. Dialects: Cep (Tochipo, Tacep, Western Acipanci). Morphological evidence suggests its affiliation with the Kamuku language cluster. Lexical similarity 89% to 95% among the dialects; 15% to 20% with Eastern Acipa; 18% with Hungworo; 16% to 17% with Shama; 15% to 17% with Kamuku.
Acroá
An extinct language of Brazil, of the Bahia area. Alternate names: Coroá.
Adabe
A language of East Timor, region: Atauro Island, north of Dili on Timor Island. Alternate names: Ataura, Atauru, Atauro, Raklu-Un, Raklu Un. Dialects: Munaseli Pandai. Reported to be different from Galoli dialects on Atauro. No relationship to Kolana.
Adamorobe Sign
Is an indigenous sign language used in Adamorobe, an Akan village in eastern Ghana. Its users are about 300 deaf and 900 hearing people (Nyst). Ethnologue reports a total of 3,400 signers, including hearing users.
Adang
A language of Indonesia (Nusa Tenggara), region: Northwestern (Bird's Head) Alor Island in the Lesser Sundas. Alternate names: Alor. Dialects: Aimoli. On the basis of linguistic differences and social identity, it is considered a separate language from Kabola.
Adangbe
A language of Ghana, region: Border area with Togo directly east of Ho. Agotime are mainly in Ghana. Volta Region. Ghana towns are Kpoeta, Apegame, and others. Also spoken in Togo. Alternate names: Dangbe, Adantonwi, Agotime, Adan. Dialects: Close to Igo.
Adap
A language of Bhutan, region: South central, between Damphu and Shemgang, Ada village, Wangdue Phodrang District. Dialects: Lexical similarity 77% with Dzongkha, 62% to 65% with Bumthangkha, 41% with Tshangla.
Adele
Is spoken in eastern Ghana and as well in Togo. It is a minority language and has about 21000 speakers. It belongs to the Ghana Togo Mountain languages (traditionally called the Togo-Remnant languages) and is counted to the Kwa languages family. The speakers themselves call the language Gidire.
Adhola
A language of Uganda, region: Eastern, Mbale District. Not in Kenya. Alternate names: Dhopadhola, Jopadhola, Ludama. Dialects: The most distinct of the Western Nilotic languages in Uganda.
Adi
A language of India, region: Arunachal Pradesh, East, West, and Upper Siang districts, Upper Subansiri and Dibang Valley districts; Assam, north hills of Assam Valley, between Bhutan and the Buruli River. Also spoken in China. Alternate names: Abhor, Abor, Boga'er Luoba, Lhoba, Luoba. Language use: Speakers also use Assamese, Hindi, or Nepali.
Adi, Galo
A language of India, region: Arunachal Pradesh, West Siang, East Siang, Dibang Valley (south), Lohit (east), Changlang (northeast), and some in Upper Subansiri (west) districts. Alternate names: Adi, Adi-Gallong, Adi-Galo, Gallong, Galong. Dialects: Reportedly intelligible with other Adi dialects but they are sociolinguistically distinct.
Adioukrou
A language of Côte d'Ivoire, region: Southern Department, Subprefecture of Dabou, in 49 villages. Alternate names: Adyukru, Adjukru, Adyoukrou, Ajukru.
Adonara
A language of Indonesia (Nusa Tenggara), region: Adonara Island, and eastern Solor Island, between Flores and Lembata. Alternate names: Nusa Tadon, Waiwerang, Vaiverang, Sagu. Dialects: West Adonara, East Adonara, East Solor.
Aduge
A language of Nigeria, region: Anambra State, Oyi LGA.
Adyghe
Is one of the two official languages of the Federal Republic of Adygea in the Russian Federation, the other being Russian. It is spoken by the various tribes of the Adyghe nation: Shapsugh, Bzedugh, Abzekh, Kemirgoy, Hakuchi, and some others. The language referred to by its speakers as Adygebze or Ad?gabza, and alternatively spelled in English as Adygean, Adygeyan or Adygei. It is also known as Circassian.
Adynyamathanha
A language of Australia, region: South Australia, Flinders Ranges area, Nepabunna. Alternate names: Wailpi, Wailbi, Waljbi, Wipie, Ad'n'amadana, Anjimatana, Anjiwatana, Archualda, Benbakanjamata, Binbarnja, Gadjnjamada, Jandali, Kanjimata, Keydnjmarda, Mardala, Nimalda, Nuralda, Unyamootha, Umbertana. Dialects: Related to Guyani, Banggarla, Nugunu, and Narungga, which may be extinct.
Adzera
A language of Papua New Guinea, region: Morobe Province, Markham Valley, Kaiapit District, Leron River. Alternate names: Azera, Atzera, Acira. Dialects: Yarus, Amari, Azera, Ngarowapum, Tsumanggorun, Guruf-Ngariawang (Ngariawan), Sarasira (Sirasira), Sukurum. The dialects form a cluster.
Aekyom
A language of Papua New Guinea, region: Western Province, Kiunga area. Alternate names: Awin, Aiwin, Akium, West Awin. Dialects: North Awin, South Awin, East Awin.
Aer
A language of Pakistan, region: Lower Sindh, Jikrio Goth near Kunri around Deh 333, Hyderabad, and at Jamesabad. Others are reported to have migrated to India at Partition in 1947, living in the Kach Bhuj area in Gujarat. Dialects: Jikrio Goth Aer, Jamesabad Aer. Lexical similarity 78% with Katai Meghwar and Kachi Bhil, 75% to 77% with Rabari, 76% with Kachi Koli.
Afade
A language of Nigeria, region: Borno State, Ngala LGA, 12 rather dense villages. Also spoken in Cameroon. Alternate names: Affade, Afadeh, Afada, Kotoko, Mogari.
Afar
A language of Ethiopia, region: Eastern lowlands, Afar Region. May also be in Somalia. Also spoken in Djibouti, Eritrea. Alternate names: Afaraf, "Danakil", "Denkel", `Afar Af, Adal. Dialects: Northern Afar, Central Afar, Aussa, Baadu (Ba`adu). Related to Saho.
Afitti
A language of Sudan, region: Northern Sudan, Nuba Hills, eastern Jebel ed Dair. Main center is Sidra. Alternate names: Ditti, Unietti, Affitti, Dinik. Dialects: Not inherently intelligible with Ama. Lexical similarity 59% with Ama.
Afrikaans
Is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in South Africa and Namibia with smaller numbers of speakers in Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, Zimbabwe and Zambia.
Agul
Or Lezgi, also called Lezgian, is a language spoken by the Lezgins who live in southern Dagestan (a republic of Russia) and northern Azerbaijan.
Aimaq
Is a dialect of the Persian language of Afghanistan spoken west of the Hazara, central northwest Afghanistan, eastern Iran, and Tajikistan.
Aini
Is a Turkic language spoken in western China known as Aini, variously spelled Aynu or Ainu, though it is unrelated to the Ainu language of Japan and Russia. It is a mixed language, having a mostly Turkic grammar but a mainly Iranian vocabulary. It is spoken by the Aini, a nomadic peoples.
Ainu
Is spoken by the Ainu ethnic group on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido. It was once spoken in the Kurile Islands, the northern part of Honshu, and the southern half of Sakhalin.
Akan
Are those languages belonging to the Kwa language family spoken in Ghana and the Côte d'Ivoire: Agona, Ahafo, Akan, Akyem, Andoh, Anyi, Asen, Attié, Baule, Brong, Chakosi, Dankyira, Guang, Kwahu, Nzema, Sefwi.
Akawaio
Is a Cariban language spoken mainly in Guyana, most commonly in the region of the Upper Mazaruni. Though many speakers don't live in villages, there are a number of population centers, notably Kamarang, Jawalla, Waramadong, and Kako. Some 6,000 people speak Akawaio. It is also spoken to a lesser extent in Venezuela.
Akkadian
Was a Semitic language (part of the greater Afro-Asiatic language family) spoken in ancient Mesopotamia, particularly by the Assyrians and Babylonians. It used the cuneiform writing system derived ultimately from ancient Sumerian, an unrelated, non-Semitic language. The name of the language is derived from the city of Akkad, a major center of Mesopotamian civilization.
Aklanon
Is a Visayan language spoken in Aklan province in the Philippines.
Albanian
Is a language spoken by over 6 million people, primarily in Albania, Kosovo, Greece, Serbia and Montenegro, and the Republic of Macedonia but also in other parts of the Balkans, along the eastern coast of Italy and in Sicily, as well as by emigrant groups in Scandinavia, Germany, Greece, Italy, the UK, Egypt, Turkey, and the USA. The language forms its own distinct branch of the Indo-European language family.
Aleut
is a language of the Eskimo-Aleut language phylum. It is the tongue of the Aleut people living in the Aleutian, Pribilof, and Commander Islands. In 1995 there were 305 speakers of Aleut.
Algonquin
(Or Algonkin) is an Algonquian language closely related to Ojibwe, although many consider it to be instead a particularly divergent dialect of Ojibwe. It is spoken, alongside French and to some extent English, by the Algonquin First Nations of Quebec and Ontario.
Alemán Coloniero
Spoken in Colonia Tovar, is a dialect that belongs to the Low Alemannic branch of German. It is spoken in Venezuela. The language, which like other Alemannic dialects is not intelligible with Standard German, is spoken by descendants of Germans from the Black Forest region of Southern Baden, who emigrated to Venezuela in 1843.
Alsatian
Is a Low Alemannic dialect spoken in Alsace, a region now in eastern France, and historically passing between French and German control many times. Though not readily intelligible to speakers of standard German, it is closely related to other nearby Alemannic dialects, such as Swiss German, Swabian, and Badisch with French influences. It is often confused with the Frankish language, a more distantly related German Western Franconian dialect. Both are called alsacien in French.
Altay
Is a language of the Turkic group of languages. It is an official language of Altai Republic, Russia. The language was called Oyrot prior to 1948. There were ca. 52,000 people speaking this language in 1989. Two dialects of the Altay language are northern (with the Tuba, Kumandy, and Chalkan varieties named after the main tribes) and southern (with the Altai proper and Telengit varieties).
Alutor
Is a language of Russia that belongs to the Chukchi-Koryak group of the Chukotko-Kamchatkan languages.
American Sign
(ASL, also Amslan obs., Ameslan obs.) is the dominant sign language of the Deaf community in the United States, in the English-speaking parts of Canada, and in parts of Mexico. Although the United Kingdom and the United States share English as a spoken and written language, British Sign Language (BSL) is quite different from ASL, and not mutually intelligible.
Amharic
Is a Semitic language spoken in North Central Ethiopia. It is the second most spoken Semitic language in the world, after Arabic. It is the "official working" language of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and thus has official status nationwide. It is also the official or working language of several of the states within the federal system, including Amhara and the multi-ethnic Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples region. It has been the working language of government, the military, and of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church throughout modern times. Outside Ethiopia, Amharic is the language of some 2.7 million emigrants (notably in Egypt, Israel and Sweden), and is spoken in Eritrea by educated Eritreans of the preindependence generation and younger deportees from Ethiopia.
Amorite
is the term used for the early (North-)West Semitic language, spoken by the north Semitic Amorite tribes prominent in early Middle Eastern history. It is known exclusively from non-Akkadian proper names recorded by Akkadian scribes during periods of Amorite rule in Babylonia (end of the 3rd and beginning of the 1st millennium), notably from Mari, and to a lesser extent Alalakh, Harmal, and Khafaya. Occasionally such names are also found in early Egyptian texts; and one place-name — "Snir" (???????) for Mount Hermon — is known from the Bible (Deut. 3:9).
Anglo-Saxon
Also called Old-English is an early form of the English language that was spoken in parts of what is now England and southern Scotland between the mid-fifth century and the mid-twelfth century. It is a West Germanic language and therefore is similar to Old Frisian and Old Saxon. It is also related to Old Norse (and by extension, to modern Icelandic).
Amdang
Is a language closely related to Fur spoken in Chad by about 5,000 people (as of 1983). It is mainly spoken in Chad north of Biltine, and sporadically elsewhere in Wadai. There are also small colonies of speakers in Darfur near Woda'a and Fafa, and in Kordofan in the Abu Daza district and at Magrur north of Bara. Most of the ethnic group now speaks Arabic.
Ammonite
Is the extinct Hebrew Canaanite language of the Ammonite people mentioned in the Bible, who used to live in modern-day Jordan, and after whom its capital Amman is named. Only fragments of their language survive - chiefly the 9th century BC Amman Citadel Inscription, the 7th-6th century BC Tell Siran bronze bottle, and a few ostraca. As far as can be determined from this small corpus, it was extremely similar to Biblical Hebrew, with some possible Aramaic influence.
Andalusian
Is a proposed term to classify the various romance lects spoken in the Andalusia region of Spain as a full language. While these variants are mostly considered dialects of Spanish, Andalusian nationalists and Andalusian cultural advocates consider the differences significant enough to warrant the label of "language".
Angaur
Is one of the official languages of Palau. In Angaur Island the languages Angaur and Japanese are official. It is a western Austronesian language.
Anlo Ewe
The Anlo Ewe form a subdivision of the Ewe people living on the coast of Ghana between the mouth of Volta River and the border of Togo. Their language (self-name Anlogbe) is a dialect of the Ewe language, itself part of the Gbe language cluster.
Ao
Is a Kuki-Chin-Naga language (of the Tibeto-Burman family) spoken by the Ao of Nagaland in northeast India. Gordon (2005) estimates that there are 141,000 speakers. Missionary grammars from the late 19th century exist. A grammatical description is Gowda (1975). Coupe (2003) is one of the few acoustic studies published on a Kuki-Chin-Naga language (only three exist). Coupe also has a reference grammar in progress.
Apachean
Also Southern Athabaskan is a subfamily of Athabaskan languages spoken primarily in the North American Southwest (including Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Sonora) with two outliers in Oklahoma and Texas. These languages are spoken by various groups of Apache and Navajo peoples. Western Apaches call their language Nnee biyáti’ or Ndee biyáti’. Navajos call their language Diné bizaad.
Arabic
The Arabic language, or simply Arabic, is the largest member of the Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family (classification: South Central Semitic) and is closely related to Hebrew and Aramaic. It is spoken throughout the Arab world and is widely studied and known throughout the Islamic world. Arabic has been a literary language since at least the 6th century and is the liturgical language of Islam.
Aragonese
Is a Romance language now spoken by some 10,000 people over the valleys of the Aragón River, Sobrarbe and Ribagorza in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain. It is also colloquially known as fabla (literally, "speech").
Aramaic
Is a Semitic language with a 3,000-year history. It has been the language of administration of empires and the language of divine worship. It is the original language of large sections of the biblical books of Daniel and Ezra, and is the main language of the Talmud. Aramaic is believed to have been one of the languages spoken by Jesus, and it is still spoken today as a first language by numerous small communities. Aramaic belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family. Within that diverse family, it belongs to the Semitic subfamily. Aramaic is a part of the Northwest Semitic group of languages, which also includes the Canaanite languages (including Hebrew).
Arawakan Languages
(Also Arahuacan, Arawakanas, Arahuacano, Maipurean, Maipuran, Maipureano, Maipúrean) are a hypothetical indigenous language family of South America and the Caribbean. Originally the name Arawak belonged exclusively to a powerful tribe in Guyana and Surinam. The tribe became allies of the Spanish because they traditionally were enemies of the Carib groups with whom the Spanish were at war. There are older forms of the Arawak language still spoken in Surinam.
Argobba
Is an Ethiopic language that spoken in an area north-east of Addis Ababa. It belongs to the South-Ethio Semitic subgroup together with Amharic and the Gurage languages. Writing in the mid-1960s, Edward Ullendorff noted that it "is disappearing rapidly in favour of Amharic, and only a few hundred elderly people are still able to speak it. The language is spoken in a number of pockets and has at least four regional variations (dialects): Harar (extinct), Aliyu Amba, Showa Robit and Shonke.
Armenian
Is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people in the Armenian Republic and also used by the Armenian Diaspora. It constitutes an independent branch of the Indo-European language family, though many Indo-Europeanists believe it forms a subgroup with the Greek and Indo-Iranian families (see Clackson 1994 for extensive discussion).
Arpitan
Franco-Provençal (Francoprovençal) or Arpitan, is a Romance language with several dialects in a linguistic sub-group separate from Langue d'Oïl and Langue d'Oc. The name Franco-Provençal was given to the dialect group in the 19th century because it shared features of French and Provençal without belonging to either. The modern name Arpitan has achieved some currency for the language in recent years. Today, the largest number of Franco-Provençal speakers reside in the Aosta Valley Autonomous Region of Italy. The language also is spoken in alpine valleys in the Province of Turin, two isolated towns in the Province of Foggia, and rural areas of the Suisse-Romande region of Switzerland. It is classified as a regional language of France and constitutes one of the three great Romance languages of France although its use is low.
Arvanitic
Or Arvanitika, is the variety of Albanian traditionally spoken by the Arvanites, a population group in Greece. Arvanitic is sometimes also described as Graeco-Albanian or similarly, although today such designations are considered offensive by many Arvanites themselves, who identify nationally and ethnically as Greeks and not Albanians (GHM 1995). Arvanitic is today an endangered language, as its speakers have been shifting to the use of Greek and most younger members of the community no longer speak it fluently.
Ashkenazi Hebrew
Is a descendant of Biblical Hebrew favored for liturgical use by Ashkenazi Jewish practice. Its phonology was influenced by languages with which it came into contact, such as Yiddish and various Slavic languages. It survives today as a separate religious dialect even alongside Modern Hebrew in Israel.Although Modern Hebrew was based on Sephardi Hebrew, the language as spoken in Israel is essentially Sephardi Hebrew utilizing Mishnaic spelling, constrained to Ashkenazi Hebrew phonology, including the elimination of pharyngeal articulation and the conversion of /r/ from an alveolar flap to a voiced uvular fricative or trill.
Ashkun
is a language of Afghanistan in the region of Pech Valley around Wama, northwest of Asadabad in Kunar province. It is classified as member of the Nuristani sub-family of the Indo-Iranian languages.
Assamese
is the language spoken by some of the natives of the state of Assam in northeast India. It is also the official language of Assam. It is spoken in parts of Arunachal Pradesh and other northeast Indian states. Small pockets of Assamese speakers can be found in Bhutan and Bangladesh. Immigrants from Assam have carried the language with them to other parts of the world. The eastern most of Indo-European languages, it is spoken by over 20 million people. The word Assamese is an English one, built on the same principle as Cingalese, Canarese, etc. It is based on the English word Assam by which the tract consisting of the Brahmaputra valley is known. But the people themselves call their state Ôxôm and their language Ôxômiya.
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic
Is a modern Eastern Aramaic or Syriac language. Assyrian Neo Aramaic is not to be confused with Assyrian Akkadian, or the Old Aramaic dialect that was adopted as a lingua franca in Assyria in the 8th century BC. Although this latter Aramaic is also an Aramaic language, it is incomprehensible to speakers of the modern language. Originally, Assyrian Neo-Aramaic was spoken in the area between Lake Urmia, north-western Iran, and Siirt, south-eastern Turkey, but it is now the language of a worldwide diaspora. Most speakers are members of the Assyrian Church of the East.
Athabaskan
Or Athabascan (also Athapascan or Athapaskan) is the name of a large group of distantly related Native American peoples, also known as the Athabasca Indians or Athapaskes, located in two main Southern and Northern groups in western North America, and of their language family. The Athabaskan family is the largest family in North America in terms of number of languages and the number of speakers (the Uto-Aztecan family which extends into Mexico has many more speakers). In terms of territory, only the Algic language family covers a larger area.
Ateso
(Also known as Iteso or Teso) is a Nilo-Saharan language, spoken by the Iteso ethnic group in Uganda and Kenya. As of the 1991 census around 1 million people in Uganda spoke Ateso. An estimated 279,000 people in Kenya also speak it. Its SIL code is TEO.
Asi
The Asi language is spoken in towns on Tablas Island as well as the islands of Banton, Simara, and Maestre de Campo. These islands are part of the Romblon province of the Philippines.
Astur-Leonese
Is a Romance language of the West Iberian group, spoken in the Spanish provinces of Asturias (where it is called Asturian, asturianu, or Bable), León, Zamora and Salamanca (where it is called Leonese, llïonés), Extremadura (where is called Extremaduran, extremeñu). The language was once considered an informal dialect (basilect) of Spanish, but now it is considered a separate language. In Asturias it is protected under the Autonomous Status legislation, and is an optional language at schools. In Portugal, the related Mirandese language is officially recognized.
Auslan
Is the sign language of the Australian Deaf community. The term Auslan is a portmanteau of "Australian sign language", coined by Trevor Johnston in the early 1980s, although the language itself is much older. Auslan is related to British Sign Language (BSL) and New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL); the three have descended from the same parent language, BANZSL. Auslan has also been influenced by Irish Sign Language (ISL). Like other sign languages, Auslan has a grammar and vocabulary quite distinct from English. Its invention cannot be attributed to any individual; rather, it developed naturally like spoken languages.
Avar
The modern Avar language "language of the mountains" belongs to the Avar-Andi-Tsez subgroup of the Alarodian Northeast-Caucasian (or Nakh-Dagestani) language family.
Avestan
Is an Eastern Old Iranian language that was used to compose the hymns of the Zoroastrian holy book, the Avesta. Iranian languages are part of the Indo-Iranian Language group which includes the Indo-Aryan languages such as Sanskrit. The Indo-Iranian language group is the major eastern branch of the Indo-European languages. Along with Old Persian, Avestan is one of the two oldest Iranian languages of which we have evidence. The structure of the language and its sound system testifies to its status as a member of the Northeastern Iranian branch.
Awadhi
Is an Indian language, often considered a dialect of Hindi, spoken in the Awadh (Oudh) region of Uttar Pradesh. Its speakers are also found in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi and Nepal. It is the dialect in which the Raamcharitmaanas of Tulsidaas and other important works of Hindi literature are written. It is spoken by at least 20,000,000 people.
Aymara
Is an Aymaran language spoken by the Aymara of the Andes. It is one of only a handful of Native American languages with over a million speakers, and it is one of the official languages of Bolivia and Peru. It is also spoken in Chile and Argentina. Many linguists believe that Aymara is related to its more widely-spoken neighbour, Quechua. This claim, however, is disputed — although there are indeed similarities, critics say that these may simply be areal features resulting from prolonged interaction between the two languages. The Aymara language is an inflected language, and has a subject-object-verb word order.
Azerbaijani
Also called Azeri, Azari, Azeri Turkish, or Azerbaijani Turkish, is the official language of Republic of Azerbaijan. It is called Azerbaycan dili in Azerbaijani. Iranian Azerbaijanis often call it Turki. Some dialects of the language are spoken in many parts of Iran (but most notably in the northwestern areas, known as Iranian Azerbaijan), where it is the most dominant language and lingua franca for minority languages to the area such as Kurdish, Armenian and Taleshi. Iran is home for the majority of Azeri speakers in the world. The language is also spoken in Russia's Republic of Dagestan, south-eastern Georgia, northern Iraq, and eastern Turkey. There are approximately 23 to 30 million native Azerbaijani speakers (Circa 16 to 23 million in Iran and 7 million in Azerbaijan Republic and 800,000 on other smaller communities). It is a Turkic language of Oghuz branch, closely related to Turkish and also historically influenced by Persian and Arabic languages.
