Seto is spoken mainly in the Setomaa region of southeast Estonia. It is classified as a dialect of South Estonian, or as a dialect of Eastern Võro, however the Seto people (Setokõsõq) consider themselves culturally distinct from the Võro people (Võrokõsõq). In 2011 there were about 12,500 speakers of Seto, most of whom are older people. Younger people are more likely to speak Estonian.
People started writing Seto during the early 21st century. There is no standard way to do so, and each writer has their own spelling system. Some spelling systems are based on Estonian, others are based on Võro.
There is a weekly news program on the radio in Seto, and the language is used to some extent in newspapers and books. There is also a strong tradition of singing in Seto, particularly of choral singing, which is known as leelo.
Download an alphabet chart for Seto (Excel)
Kõik inemiseq sünnüseq avvo ja õiguisi poolõst ütesugumaidsist. Näile om annõt mudsu ja süämetun'stus ja nä piät ütstõõsõga vele muudu läbi kjauma.
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They
are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another
in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)
Information about the Seto language and people
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seto_dialect
https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idioma_seto
https://www.visitsetomaa.ee/et/seto-kiil
Seto Instituut
http://www.setoinstituut.ee
Estonian, Finnish, Karelian, Kven, Livvi-Karelian, Livonian, Ludic, Meänkieli, Seto, Veps, Võro, Votic
Languages written with the Latin alphabet
Page last modified: 01.08.23
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