Can you identify the language, and do you know where it’s spoken?
6 thoughts on “Language quiz”
I admit that this guess is based partly on the musical content – the singing is very difficult to make out (and much of it consists of “da di da di…”, which could just about be any language). But there is a certain rhythmic quality that I associate with the Uralic languages.
My guess is one of the Mordvinic languages.
Sounds like Värttinä, who, Wikipedia informs me, “sing in the Karelian dialect of the Finnish language”. But I wouldn’t be surprised if they grabbed a song from some other language/dialect if they liked the sounds.
It isn’t Karelian, but is a related language.
I now know the answer, but only because I accidentally stumbled across the same song on Youtube while searching for possible clues, so it seems only fair to let Jonathan keep guessing.
If I may elaborate slightly on the clue, it is related to Karelian by way of being a Uralic language, but not all that closely related.
The language is Moksha (мокшень кяль) a memnber of the Mordvinic branch of Uralic languges spoken mainly in the Republic of Mordovia in the Russia Federation. The song is called Куданьконь Кияксова.
Thank so much, Simon, for adding another Uralic language to my list. I really like that “certain rhythmic quality” that David Eger noted. (And if anyone is interested, here’s an example of a song by Värttinä, the Finnish group that I guessed.)
I admit that this guess is based partly on the musical content – the singing is very difficult to make out (and much of it consists of “da di da di…”, which could just about be any language). But there is a certain rhythmic quality that I associate with the Uralic languages.
My guess is one of the Mordvinic languages.
Sounds like Värttinä, who, Wikipedia informs me, “sing in the Karelian dialect of the Finnish language”. But I wouldn’t be surprised if they grabbed a song from some other language/dialect if they liked the sounds.
It isn’t Karelian, but is a related language.
I now know the answer, but only because I accidentally stumbled across the same song on Youtube while searching for possible clues, so it seems only fair to let Jonathan keep guessing.
If I may elaborate slightly on the clue, it is related to Karelian by way of being a Uralic language, but not all that closely related.
The language is Moksha (мокшень кяль) a memnber of the Mordvinic branch of Uralic languges spoken mainly in the Republic of Mordovia in the Russia Federation. The song is called Куданьконь Кияксова.
The recording comes from the YouTube.
Thank so much, Simon, for adding another Uralic language to my list. I really like that “certain rhythmic quality” that David Eger noted. (And if anyone is interested, here’s an example of a song by Värttinä, the Finnish group that I guessed.)