Oroch (Орочи кэсэни)

Oroch is a Tungusic language spoken in eastern Siberia in the Russian Federation by about 8 people. It is spoken the Komsomolsky, Sovetskaya Gavan and Ulchsky districts of Khabarovsk Krai. There were three dialects: Tumninsky, Khadinsky and Hungarisky. Oroch is closely related to the Nanai and Udege languages. It is classified as 'nearly extinct'.

The Oroch people originally called themselves нани ("man of the earth, people"), but now call themselves орочи ("deer-possessing/raising"), although they do not raise deer. This name is thought to have been spread by J.F. Laperouse, a French sailor who visited the area where they live in 1787.

A way of writing Oroch was devised at the beginning of the 21st century.

Oroch alphabet and pronunciation

Notes

д = [dʒ] and н = [ɲ] before я, е, ё, и, ю and ь
е = [æ:~ie] before consonants except д and н
к= [ʰq] (also written as к') when between а and another vowel e.g. ак'ими [αʰqimi]
Vowel harmony: 1. hard vowels are а, о and у; 2. soft vowels are э and у; 3. neutral vowels are е and и e.g. угдавани [ʊɢdαvαɲi], хуӈкэвэни [xuŋkəvəɲi], отоӈговони [ɔtɔɴɢɔvɔɲi]
г [ɢ~ʁ], к = [q] ӈ = [ɴ] and х [χ] when next to а, о and у
г = [ɣ] or [ʁ] (differs according to vowel harmony) between vowels and syllable/word-finally
Long vowels can be marked with a macron
Letters in (parentheses) are used in loanwords from Russian

Information about Oroch pronunciation provided by 이윤호

Sample text in Oroch

Нима̄пу
Нима̄пу даӈса ду.
Нима̄пу даӈса ду.
Наму дагга хэм ая ба̄тунгу
Ниду сулакиду ӈоними игги,
ӈочкони игги туксаиду мападу.
Хоё, лака.
Бая, дёчонку.
Дяггу.
Амбани хитэ.
Дю экэ.
Тэ̄луӈду.

Information about Oroch | Numbers in Oroch

Links

Information about Oroch
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oroch_language
https://www.ethnologue.com/language/oac
http://lingsib.iea.ras.ru/en/languages/oroch.shtml

Tungusic languages

Even, Evenki, Jurchen, Kili, Manchu, Nanai, Negidal, Oroch, Orok / Uilta, Oroqen, Udege Ulch, Xibe

Languages written with the Cyrillic alphabet

Abaza, Abkhaz, Adyghe, Aghul, Akhvakh, Akkala Sámi, Aleut, Altay, Alyutor, Andi, Archi, Assyrian / Neo-Assyrian, Avar, Azeri, Bagvalal, Balkar, Bashkir, Belarusian, Bezhta, Bosnian, Botlikh, Budukh, Bulgarian, Buryat, Chamalal, Chechen, Chelkan, Chukchi, Chulym, Chuvash, Crimean Tatar, Dargwa, Daur, Dolgan, Dungan, Enets, Erzya, Even, Evenki, Gagauz, Godoberi, Hinukh, Hunzib, Ingush, Interslavic, Itelmen, Juhuri, Kabardian, Kaitag, Kalderash Romani, Kalmyk, Karaim, Karakalpak, Karata, Karelian, Kazakh, Ket, Khakas, Khanty, Khinalug, Khorasani Turkic, Khwarshi, Kildin Sámi, Kili, Komi, Koryak, Krymchak, Kryts, Kubachi, Kumandy, Kumyk, Kurdish, Kyrgyz, Lak, Lezgi, Lingua Franca Nova, Lithuanian, Ludic, Macedonian, Mansi, Mari, Moksha, Moldovan, Mongolian, Montenegrin, Nanai, Negidal, Nenets, Nganasan, Nivkh, Nogai, Old Church Slavonic, Oroch, Orok, Ossetian, Pontic Greek, Romanian, Rushani, Russian, Rusyn, Rutul, Selkup, Serbian, Shor, Shughni, Siberian Tatar, Sirenik, Slovio, Soyot, Tabassaran, Tajik, Talysh, Tat, Tatar, Teleut, Ter Sámi, Tindi, Tofa, Tsakhur, Tsez, Turkmen, Tuvan, Ubykh, Udege, Udi, Udmurt, Ukrainian, Ulch, Urum, Uyghur, Uzbek, Veps, Votic, Wakhi, West Polesian, Xibe, Yaghnobi, Yakut, Yazghulami, Yukaghir (Northern / Tundra), Yukaghir (Southern / Kolyma), Yupik (Central Siberian)

Languages written with the Latin alphabet

Page last modified: 27.11.23

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