Finno-Ugric language family. Linguistic Encyclopedic Dictionary

The book tells about the languages, peoples, migratory movements of the Finno-Ugric peoples. About how the Finno-Ugric community arises, beliefs, customs, rituals are formed. Various historical and ethnographic sources are involved. Brief grammars of some Finno-Ugric languages ​​are given.

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The following excerpt from the book Finno-Ugric peoples. Languages, peoples, migrations, customs (Andrey Tikhomirov) provided by our book partner - the company LitRes.

Compiler Andrey Tikhomirov

ISBN 978-5-4490-9797-2

Created with the intelligent publishing system Ridero

Finno-Ugric languages

The Finno-Ugric languages ​​(or Finno-Ugric languages) are a group of languages ​​that are closely related to the Samoyedic languages ​​and, together with the latter, form a large genetic Uralic language family.

The Finno-Ugric languages ​​are divided into the following branches: Hungarian, represented by the Hungarian language; Ob-Ugric, consisting of the Mansi and Khanty languages ​​spoken in the northern part of the Ob River basin; Baltic-Finnish with languages: Finnish, Estonian, Liv, Vod, Veps, Izhora and Karelian; Sami, represented by the Sami language, which is spoken by the Sami (Lapps) living on the Kola Peninsula, in the northern part of Finland, Sweden and Norway; Mordovian with two main dialects - Erzya and Moksha; Mari, consisting of meadow-eastern and mountain dialects; Perm, including the Udmurt language and the Komi language with the Komi-Zyryan, Komi-Permyak and Komi-Yazva dialects.

Samoyedic languages, a family (according to other classifications, a group) of languages ​​as part of the genetic community of the Uralic languages. Includes languages: Nenets, Enets, Nganasan, Selkup, almost extinct Kamasin, extinct Mator (Motor), Karagas and Taigi. Samoyeds, outdated. - Samoyeds, (annalistic - Samoyed) (from Sameemne, in the Sami language - the land of the Saami), 1) The old Russian name for the Saami and other peoples of the North of Russia and Siberia. 2) An obsolete name for all Samoyed peoples.

In addition, the so-called Ural race stands out, which occupies an intermediate position between the Mongoloid and Caucasoid races. Characterized by straight dark hair, dark eyes, sometimes a flat face, a strongly developed epicanthus (narrow nose with a concave back). It is now distributed in western Siberia (Khanty, Mansi, northern Altaians, etc.).

Siy Eniko, Hungarian Language Course, Second Edition. Tankyonkiado, Budapest, 1981, p. 10. Szíj Enikő, Magyar nyelvkönyv, Második kiadas, Tankönyvkiadó, Budapest, 1981, oldal 9

The Hungarian language is in close genetic relationship with the Ob-Ugric languages, making up the Ugric group of Finno-Ugric languages. The Hungarians, who once lived close to the Khanty and Mansi, occupied the modern territory only in the 9th century. All other Finno-Ugric languages ​​form the Finnish group or the Baltic-Finno-Permian group.

Hungarian, Finnish and Estonian are developed literary languages, I have old writing on them. Mordovian, Mari, Udmurt, Komi, Khanty and Mansi as literary languages ​​were formed only in the 20-30s. 20th century.

In the 2nd half of the 14th century. In the Komi language, ancient Permian writing was created, which fell into decay in the 18th century. Ancient Permian writing - writing created in the 14th century. missionary Stefan of Perm on the basis of one of the ancient dialects of the Komi language. A special alphabet was compiled on the model of Greek and Slavic-Russian, translations of some liturgical books were made. Now out of use. At present, small monuments of it have survived in the form of inscriptions on icons and in handwritten books, lists of alphabets, etc. A valuable source for the study of ancient Permian writing is the list of liturgy (the so-called Evgeniev-Lepekhinsky texts), rewritten in the 17th century. Russian alphabet from Old Perm, which is a coherent text of about 600 words. This writing in the 14-17 centuries. enjoyed a certain popularity among Russian Moscow scribes, who used it as a secret writing.

Ancient Permian writing

The most ancient written monuments are Hungarian (13th century), Komi (14th century),

Finnish (15th-16th centuries).

Common to modern Finno-Ugric languages ​​are some conjugation, declension and word-formation affixes inherited from the Finno-Ugric language, as well as several hundred common roots. In the Finno-Ugric vocabulary for individual languages, regular sound correspondences are observed. However, the modern Finno-Ugric languages, due to a long isolated development, have diverged far from each other.

friend both in their grammatical structure and in the composition of the vocabulary; they also differ greatly in sound characteristics. From common grammatical features the following can be noted: agglutinative grammatical structure, the use of postpositions (instead of the prepositions of the Indo-European languages), the absence of prefixes (the exception is the Hungarian language), the invariability of adjectives in the position before the word being defined (the exception is the Baltic-Finnish languages). Most Finno-Ugric languages ​​have vowel harmony. The vocabulary of individual languages ​​was influenced by the various languages ​​of neighboring peoples, as a result of which the composition of foreign borrowings is not the same in different languages; so, for example, in the Hungarian language there are many Turkic and Slavic words, and in the Finnish language there are many Baltic, Germanic, Swedish and ancient Russian borrowings.

Modern Finns (suomalayset) speak Finnish, which belongs to the western, Baltic-Finnish group of Finno-Ugric languages. Anthropologically, they belong to the Baltic type of the Caucasoid race.

Arkhipova N.P. and Yastrebov E.V. in the book “How the Ural Mountains were discovered”, Chelyabinsk, 2nd ed., South Ural book publishing house, 1982, p. 146-149, tell about the journey of the Hungarian linguist and geographer Antal Reguli to the Northern Urals in the 40s. 19th century: "Back in student years Reguli thought about the origin of the Hungarian language and the Hungarian people. Why does his country speak a language so different from the languages ​​of neighboring countries? Where are the origins of the Hungarian language, where did the ancestors of modern Hungarians come from in South-Eastern Europe? Reguli heard that the Hungarians allegedly come from the Urals. However, this had to be proven. Having visited Northern Finland, he was struck by the relationship between the Finnish and Sami (Lapland) languages, on the one hand, and Hungarian, on the other. To continue studying Finno-Ugric languages ​​and ethnic ties, Reguli decided to go to Russia. The Hungarian Academy of Sciences gave him 200 forints (which was equal to 200 gold rubles) to carry out scientific research. In 1841, he arrived in St. Petersburg, where he quickly mastered the Russian language, and continued to improve his knowledge of the languages ​​of the northern peoples.

Reguli realized that in order to find out the position of the Hungarian language in the system of languages ​​of the Finno-Ugric group, its origin, one should penetrate into the central and eastern regions European Russia, in the Urals and in the Trans-Urals. The mysterious Mansi people (Voguls), then little known in Europe, lived there. On October 9, 1843, the traveler left for the Urals through Moscow. On October 27 he arrived in Kazan. Along the way, Reguli collects material about the language and life of the Mari (Cheremis), Udmurts (Votiaks) and Chuvash. November 14, 1843 Reguli arrives in Perm, from where he began his wanderings through unexplored lands. Having left Solikamsk on November 20, 1843, Reguli crossed the watershed Ural mountains , reached the upper reaches of the Tura River, from where he headed along the eastern slope of the ridge to the north to the upper reaches of the Lozva River. After living for about three months among the Mansi, he leaves for Verkhoturye, then to Irbit and further to the Tavda and Tobol rivers. In the spring of 1844, along the waterway, in places on horseback or on foot next to a loaded horse, Reguli headed up the Konda River, then up the Pelyma River. Following along the eastern slope of the Urals along the Severnaya Sosva River, it reaches the headwaters of the Lyapina River and its tributary Khulga in the Subpolar Urals. Along the way, Reguli collects valuable material about the way of life, life and language of the Mansi and Khanty. The fairy tales and songs recorded by him reveal the spiritual world of these peculiar northern peoples. Wandering through a sparsely populated area, almost unknown to geographers, Reguli draws up schematic maps indicating the names of mountains, rivers and settlements. On September 29, 1844, having reached the Arctic Circle, Reguli arrived in Obdorsk (now Salekhard), then a small village consisting of only 40 houses. By that time, the Ob had already frozen over, and Reguli on deer along the tundra was heading to the northern tip of the Ural Mountains, reaching on October 21, 1844, the coast of the Kara Sea and the Yugorsky Shar Strait. This was the northernmost point (69°45" N) of his journey. In November, he arrives in the basin of the Usa River, in the region inhabited by the Komi (Zyryans), and continues his research here. From there, having crossed the Ural Mountains, Reguli goes to the mountains. Berezovo, but does not linger here, and along the Northern Sosva it goes up to the mouth of the Kempage. Following further along the Northern Sosva, he reaches the sources of this river (at 62 ° N), inhabited by the Mansi, and only after that again goes to the mountains. Berezovo. Here Reguli winters, putting his diaries in order. Reguli's trip through the Urals and Trans-Urals took place in very difficult conditions: there was not enough equipment, there were no necessary instruments. The Hungarian scientist traveled by boat along turbulent rivers, on horseback along mountain steeps, in sleds pulled by deer or dogs, and often on foot. Usually he was accompanied by guides - Mansi, Khanty or Nenets. The inquisitive researcher was always close to the feelings and thoughts of ordinary people, he singled out and highly appreciated the noble features of their behavior and morals. Contrary to the prevailing ideas about “savages” at that time, Reguli argued: “There are features in the life of uncultured peoples that deserve universal recognition. In their social life there are such phenomena that indicate compassion and the absence of malevolence. From Berezovo, Reguli sends information about his research to the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and to St. Petersburg. In a letter to K. M. Baer, ​​he reports that he has established an undoubted connection between the Mansi language and the Hungarian language. In the Mansi-Hungarian dictionary compiled by Reguli, there were 2600 Mansi words.

Routes of A. Reguli (compiled by N. P. Arkhipova): 1 - the first part; 2 - the second part; northern borders: 3 - agriculture; 4 - scaffolding established by Reguli

Reguli processed the most valuable material brought from the Urals throughout his subsequent life. He also prepared the main work "Vogulskaya country and its inhabitants", published in 1864 in Hungarian in Budapest after the death of the author. Reguli attached great importance the study of the name of the area, in a modern toponymy, which makes it possible to judge the settlement of peoples in the past. He also built his ideas about the origin and history of such settlement on the basis of comparative analysis languages, taking into account ethnographic data. Reguli established the genetic connection of the Finno-Ugric languages, which include the languages ​​of the Hungarians, Finns, Mansi, Khanty, Komi and Mari. He was particularly struck by the similarities between the Mansi and Hungarian languages. He came to the conclusion that the Hungarians descended from ancestors who lived long ago in the Northern Urals and in the Trans-Urals, in the territory now inhabited by the Mansi. These statements of Reguli are basically accepted by modern linguists. According to them, the ancestral home of the Ugrians was located in a wooded area in the Kama basin and somewhat to the south. In the first half of the first millennium BC, tribes emerged from the Ugric community, which later became the ancestors of the Hungarians. The rest of the Ugrians remained in this territory for a long time, and in the XII-XV centuries, part of the tribes moved beyond the Urals. In general, Reguli's journey through the Urals and the Urals lasted about a year and a half (arrival in Solikamsk - November 1843, departure from Berezovo - March 1845). The length of his path was 5.5 thousand km. Previously, not a single scientist has conducted such lengthy and detailed studies here, nor has he explored such a vast territory. Reguli's journey through the little-known territory aroused interest in the study of the nature and population of the Northern Urals and contributed to the development of the study of the Finno-Ugric peoples.

The Finno-Ugric languages ​​are related to modern Finnish and Hungarian. The peoples who speak them make up the Finno-Ugric ethno-linguistic group. Their origin, territory of settlement, commonality and difference in external features, culture, religion and traditions are the subjects of global research in the field of history, anthropology, geography, linguistics and a number of other sciences. This review article will briefly cover this topic.

The peoples included in the Finno-Ugric ethno-linguistic group

Based on the degree of proximity of languages, researchers divide the Finno-Ugric peoples into five subgroups.

The basis of the first, the Baltic-Finnish, are the Finns and Estonians - peoples with their own states. They also live in Russia. Setu - a small group of Estonians - settled in the Pskov region. The most numerous of the Baltic-Finnish peoples of Russia are the Karelians. In everyday life they use three autochthonous dialects, while Finnish is considered their literary language. In addition, the same subgroup includes Veps and Izhors - small peoples who have retained their languages, as well as Vods (there are less than a hundred of them left, their own language has been lost) and Livs.

The second is the Sami (or Lappish) subgroup. The main part of the peoples who gave it its name is settled in Scandinavia. In Russia, the Saami live on the Kola Peninsula. The researchers suggest that in old times these peoples occupied a larger territory, but were subsequently pushed back to the north. At the same time, their own language was replaced by one of the Finnish dialects.

The third subgroup that makes up the Finno-Ugric peoples - the Volga-Finnish - includes the Mari and Mordovians. The Mari are the main part of Mari El, they also live in Bashkortostan, Tatarstan, Udmurtia and a number of other Russian regions. They distinguish two literary languages ​​(with which, however, not all researchers agree). Mordva - the autochthonous population of the Republic of Mordovia; at the same time, a significant part of the Mordvins settled throughout Russia. This people includes two ethnographic groups, each with its own literary written language.

The fourth subgroup is called the Permian. It includes as well as the Udmurts. Even before October 1917, in terms of literacy (albeit in Russian), the Komi were approaching the most educated peoples of Russia - Jews and Russian Germans. As for the Udmurts, their dialect has been preserved for the most part in the villages of the Udmurt Republic. Residents of cities, as a rule, forget both the indigenous language and customs.

The fifth, Ugric, subgroup includes Hungarians, Khanty and Mansi. Although the lower reaches of the Ob and northern Ural separates many kilometers from the Hungarian state on the Danube, these peoples are actually the closest relatives. Khanty and Mansi belong to the small peoples of the North.

Disappeared Finno-Ugric tribes

The Finno-Ugric peoples also included tribes, the mention of which is currently preserved only in the annals. So, the Merya people lived in the interfluve of the Volga and Oka in the first millennium of our era - there is a theory that they later merged with the Eastern Slavs.

The same thing happened with Muroma. This is an even more ancient people of the Finno-Ugric ethno-linguistic group, who once inhabited the Oka basin.

The long-disappeared Finnish tribes that lived along the Northern Dvina are called Chud by researchers (according to one of the hypotheses, they were the ancestors of modern Estonians).

Commonality of languages ​​and culture

Having declared the Finno-Ugric languages ​​as a single group, researchers emphasize this commonality as main factor, which unites the peoples who speak them. However, the Uralic ethnic groups, despite the similarity in the structure of their languages, still do not always understand each other. So, a Finn, of course, will be able to communicate with an Estonian, an Erzya resident with a Moksha resident, and an Udmurt with a Komi. However, the peoples of this group, geographically distant from each other, should make quite a lot of effort to identify common features in their languages ​​that would help them to carry on a conversation.

The linguistic relationship of the Finno-Ugric peoples is primarily traced in the similarity of linguistic structures. This significantly affects the formation of thinking and worldview of peoples. Despite the difference in cultures, this circumstance contributes to the emergence of mutual understanding between these ethnic groups.

At the same time, a peculiar psychology, conditioned by the thought process in these languages, enriches the universal culture with their unique vision of the world. So, unlike the Indo-European, the representative of the Finno-Ugric people is inclined to treat nature with exceptional respect. The Finno-Ugric culture in many ways also contributed to the desire of these peoples to peacefully adapt to their neighbors - as a rule, they preferred not to fight, but to migrate, preserving their identity.

Also characteristic peoples of this group - openness to ethno-cultural interchange. In search of ways to strengthen relationships with kindred peoples, they maintain cultural contacts with all those around them. Basically, the Finno-Ugric peoples managed to preserve their languages, the main cultural elements. The connection with ethnic traditions in this area can be traced in their national songs, dances, music, traditional dishes, and clothes. Also, many elements of their ancient rituals have survived to this day: wedding, funeral, memorial.

A Brief History of the Finno-Ugric Peoples

The origin and early history of the Finno-Ugric peoples are still the subject of scientific discussions. Among researchers, the most common opinion is that in ancient times there was a single group of people who spoke a common Finno-Ugric proto-language. The ancestors of the current Finno-Ugric peoples until the end of the third millennium BC. e. maintained relative unity. They were settled in the Urals and the western Urals, and possibly also in some areas adjacent to them.

In that era, called the Finno-Ugric, their tribes were in contact with the Indo-Iranians, which was reflected in myths and languages. Between the third and second millennium BC. e. the Ugric and Finno-Permian branches separated from each other. Among the peoples of the latter, who settled in a western direction, independent subgroups of languages ​​(Baltic-Finnish, Volga-Finnish, Permian) gradually stood out and became isolated. As a result of the transition of the autochthonous population of the Far North to one of the Finno-Ugric dialects, the Saami were formed.

The Ugric group of languages ​​fell apart by the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. The separation of the Baltic-Finnish occurred at the beginning of our era. Perm existed a little longer - until the eighth century. The contacts of the Finno-Ugric tribes with the Baltic, Iranian, Slavic, Turkic, and Germanic peoples played an important role in the course of the separate development of these languages.

Territory of settlement

Finno-Ugric peoples today mainly live in North-Western Europe. Geographically, they are settled on a vast territory from Scandinavia to the Urals, the Volga-Kama, the lower and middle Tobol region. The Hungarians are the only people of the Finno-Ugric ethno-linguistic group that formed their own state away from other related tribes - in the Carpatho-Danube region.

The number of Finno-Ugric peoples

The total number of peoples speaking the Uralic languages ​​(these include Finno-Ugric along with Samoyed) is 23-24 million people. The most numerous representatives are Hungarians. There are more than 15 million of them in the world. They are followed by Finns and Estonians (5 and 1 million people, respectively). Most of the other Finno-Ugric ethnic groups live in modern Russia.

Finno-Ugric ethnic groups in Russia

Russian settlers massively rushed to the lands of the Finno-Ugric peoples in the 16th-18th centuries. Most often, the process of their settlement in these parts took place peacefully, however, some indigenous peoples (for example, the Mari) long and fiercely resisted the annexation of their region to the Russian state.

The Christian religion, writing, urban culture, introduced by the Russians, eventually began to displace local beliefs and dialects. People moved to the cities, moved to the Siberian and Altai lands - where the main and common language was Russian. However, he (especially his northern dialect) absorbed a lot of Finno-Ugric words - this is most noticeable in the field of toponyms and names of natural phenomena.

In places, the Finno-Ugric peoples of Russia mixed with the Turks, adopting Islam. However, a significant part of them were still assimilated by the Russians. Therefore, these peoples do not constitute a majority anywhere - even in those republics that bear their name.

However, according to the 2002 census, there are very significant Finno-Ugric groups in Russia. These are Mordovians (843 thousand people), Udmurts (almost 637 thousand), Mari (604 thousand), Komi-Zyryans (293 thousand), Komi-Permyaks (125 thousand), Karelians (93 thousand). The number of some peoples does not exceed thirty thousand people: Khanty, Mansi, Veps. The Izhors number 327 people, and the Vod people - only 73 people. Hungarians, Finns, Estonians, Saami also live in Russia.

Development of Finno-Ugric culture in Russia

In total, sixteen Finno-Ugric peoples live in Russia. Five of them have their own national-state formations, and two - national-territorial. Others are dispersed throughout the country.

In Russia, considerable attention is paid to the preservation of the original cultural traditions of its inhabitants. Programs are being developed at the national and local levels, with the support of which the culture of the Finno-Ugric peoples, their customs and dialects are studied.

So, Sami, Khanty, Mansi are taught in primary school, and Komi, Mari, Udmurt, Mordovian languages ​​- in secondary schools of those regions where they live large groups respective ethnic groups. There are special laws on culture, on languages ​​(Mari El, Komi). Thus, in the Republic of Karelia, there is a law on education that secures the right of Vepsians and Karelians to study in their native language. The priority of the development of the cultural traditions of these peoples is determined by the Law on Culture.

Also in the republics of Mari El, Udmurtia, Komi, Mordovia, in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug there are their own concepts and programs national development. The Foundation for the Development of the Cultures of the Finno-Ugric Peoples (on the territory of the Republic of Mari El) has been created and is operating.

Finno-Ugric peoples: appearance

The ancestors of the current Finno-Ugric peoples occurred as a result of a mixture of Paleo-European and Paleo-Asiatic tribes. Therefore, in the appearance of all the peoples of this group, there are both Caucasoid and Mongoloid features. Some scientists even put forward a theory about the existence of an independent race - the Urals, which is "intermediate" between Europeans and Asians, but this version has few supporters.

The Finno-Ugric peoples are anthropologically heterogeneous. However, any representative of the Finno-Ugric people possesses characteristic "Ural" features to one degree or another. This, as a rule, is of medium height, very light hair color, broad face, sparse beard. But these features manifest themselves in different ways. So, Mordvin-Erzya are tall, owners of blond hair and blue eyes. Moksha Mordvins - on the contrary, shorter, broad-cheeked, with darker hair. The Udmurts and Mari often have characteristic "Mongolian" eyes with a special fold at the inner corner of the eye - the epicanthus, very wide faces, and a thin beard. But at the same time, their hair, as a rule, is blond and red, and their eyes are blue or gray, which is typical for Europeans, but not Mongoloids. The "Mongolian fold" is also found among the Izhors, Vodi, Karelians and even Estonians. Komi look different. Where there are mixed marriages with the Nenets, the representatives of this people are slanted and black-haired. Other Komi, on the contrary, are more like Scandinavians, but more broad-faced.

Finno-Ugric traditional cuisine in Russia

Most of the dishes of the traditional cuisines of the Finno-Ugric and Trans-Urals, in fact, have not been preserved or have been significantly distorted. However, ethnographers manage to trace some general patterns.

The main food product of the Finno-Ugric peoples was fish. It was not only processed in different ways (fried, dried, boiled, fermented, dried, eaten raw), but each type was prepared in its own way, which would better convey the taste.

Before the advent of firearms, snares were the main method of hunting in the forest. They caught mainly forest birds (black grouse, capercaillie) and small animals, mainly a hare. Meat and poultry were stewed, boiled and baked, much less often - fried.

From vegetables, they used turnips and radishes, from spicy herbs - watercress growing in the forest, cow parsnip, horseradish, onions, and young goatweed. Western Finno-Ugric peoples practically did not consume mushrooms; at the same time, for the eastern, they constituted an essential part diet. The oldest types of grain known to these peoples are barley and wheat (spelt). They prepared porridge, hot kissels, as well as stuffing for homemade sausages.

The modern culinary repertoire of the Finno-Ugric peoples contains very few national features, as it has been strongly influenced by Russian, Bashkir, Tatar, Chuvash and other cuisines. However, almost every nation has preserved one or two traditional, ritual or festive dishes that have survived to this day. Together, they make it possible to general idea about Finno-Ugric cuisine.

Finno-Ugric peoples: religion

Most Finno-Ugric peoples profess the Christian faith. Finns, Estonians and Western Sami are Lutherans. Catholics predominate among Hungarians, although Calvinists and Lutherans can also be found.

The Finno-Ugric peoples living in are predominantly Orthodox Christians. However, the Udmurts and Mari in some places managed to preserve the ancient (animistic) religion, and the Samoyed peoples and inhabitants of Siberia - shamanism.

All Finno-Ugric languages ​​are represented in the USSR and the vast majority of peoples who speak these languages ​​live. The exceptions are the Finns, Hungarians and Saami, most of whom are settled outside Soviet Union. In addition to the Khanty and Mansi living in Western Siberia, all other Finno-Ugric peoples of the USSR live in the European part of the country. Their languages ​​are divided into the following branches: 1) Baltic-Finnish, consisting of two groups - northern (finnish, Izhorian, Karelian and Vepsian) and southern (Estonian, Votic and Liv); 2) Sami - Sami language; 3) Mordovian - Erzya and Moksha languages; 4) Mari - the Mari language; 5) Perm - Udmurt and Komi languages; 7) Ob-Ugric-Khanty and Mansi languages; 8) Hungarian-Hungarian language. The Ob-Ugric and Hungarian branches are usually combined into the Ugric group, the remaining branches into the Finnish group.

There is a significant difference between the Finno-Ugric languages ​​of different branches, approximately the same as between the languages ​​​​of individual branches of the Indo-European family of languages ​​- for example, French and German. On the other hand, the proximity of languages ​​belonging to the same branch to each other is approximately the same as we observe in the languages ​​of the same branch of the Indo-European language family, for example, in Russian and Polish. The Samoyedic languages ​​are genetically related to the Finno-Ugric languages, together with which they form the Uralic family of languages.

The Finno-Ugric languages ​​have a number of common features in grammar, phonetics and vocabulary, going back to a single source - the Finno-Ugric language - the basis, which was spoken by the most ancient Finno-Ugric tribes.

Most scientists consider Eastern Europe, the region of the middle reaches of the Volga and Kama, the area lying between the bend of the Volga and the Ural Range, to be the original homeland of the Finno-Ugric peoples.

The people who spoke the Finno-Ugric language-based, for thousands of years lived in this territory in the vicinity of the Indo-Iranian peoples, who were south of the Finno-Ugric peoples. The Indo-Iranians had a significant influence on the Finno-Ugric language-base. Part of the borrowings penetrated into the common Finno-Ugric language from the pre-Indo-Iranian language (for example, the name of a pig: Udm. pars, Finnish. porsas\ honey: Komi zha, Finnish. mesi), the other * part, of a later origin, came from the common Indo-Iranian language (for example, words denoting with a hundred;: udm. syu, mord, syado, Finnish. sata, Hung. szaz etc., with a horn) - udm. sur, mar. ijur, mord, suro, finnish. sarvi, Hung. szarv) etc.

The Finno-Ugric language-the basis, probably, was divided into territorial dialects. In the process of settling over a vast territory of Eastern Europe speakers of individual dialects began to gradually separate from the main mass of the Finno-Ugric peoples, to lose contact with the latter; as a result, their dialects developed into independent languages.

Approximately 2.5 thousand years BC. e. (and, perhaps, even earlier) the eastern branch of the Finno-Ugric languages ​​\u200b\u200bseparated, which later served as the basis for the formation of peoples speaking Ugric languages, that is, Hungarian, Khanty and Mansi; the languages ​​of that part of the tribes that remained after the separation of the Ugrians constituted a linguistic unity for a long time (the so-called Baltic-Finnish-Permian unity).

In the first millennium BC. e. the Permian branch stood out, which included the languages ​​of the common ancestors of the Komi and Udmurts. Later, probably long before our era, two other branches stood out: the Baltic-Finnish and the Volga.

The peoples who speak Finno-Ugric languages ​​have had contact with neighboring peoples throughout their history. This is indicated by numerous borrowings, both in general in the entire language family, and in individual branches and languages. So, for example, in the Baltic-Finnish language, the Baltic borrowings are distinguished, which penetrated in the last centuries BC. e.; the second layer is made up of ancient Germanic borrowings, which began to penetrate into the Baltic-Finnish languages ​​at the turn of our era, and the third layer is ancient Slavic borrowings (V-VIII centuries AD), which appeared after the collapse of the Baltic-Finnish language - basics.

The Udmurt, Komi and Mari languages ​​adopted a certain number of both ancient Chuvash (VII-XIII centuries) and later words of the Chuvash language.

The Mari, Udmurt and Mordovian languages ​​were strongly influenced by the Tatar language, whose speakers appeared in the Volga region in the 13th century. n. e. The Mordvins and the Mari were in contact with the eastern groups of the ancient Balts.

Karelians and Vepsians, who once lived in the immediate vicinity of the Komi (X-XV centuries AD), had a noticeable influence on the Komi language and, finally, all East Finnish languages ​​were strongly influenced by Eastern Slavs, especially Russians, with whom they live side by side for a number of centuries. Sometimes there was also a change of languages. So, for example, the Sami originally spoke one of the Samoyedic languages. They adopted Finno-Ugric speech from their southern neighbors no later than the common Baltic-Finnish era.

The languages ​​of the Finno-Ugric peoples continued their development during the period of isolated life. As a result, they diverged so much from each other that they retained in their language from the Finno-Ugric base language only a small layer in the form of common grammatical features, words of common origin and sound correspondences.

So, for example, the characteristic archaic short consonant affricates с, с' have been preserved to some extent in all Finno-Ugric languages: in some to a greater extent (for example, in Perm), and in others to a lesser extent (for example, in the Baltic -Finnish and Ob-Ugric). At the same time, the palatal consonants s’, V, n’ completely disappeared in the Baltic-Finnish languages ​​and was completely preserved in the Permian languages. Long consonants (kk,tt and pp), which were found in the Finno-Ugric proto-language, in the middle of the word were preserved only in the Baltic-Finnish and Sami languages.

Due to the numerous changes in consonants that took place in different Finno-Ugric languages ​​in various directions, the consonant systems of modern languages ​​began to differ significantly from each other. If some of the consonants have been preserved unchanged (for example, sonorants), then the other part of the sounds in modern Finno-Ugric languages ​​is presented in the form of regular sound correspondences. So, for example, the word 'mouse' sounds in Finnish hiire, Hung. egir, muzzle, neck (sejer), udm. shir.

In the field of vowel sounds in the Finno-Ugric languages, the situation is even more complicated. The ancient vowel system is best preserved in the Baltic-Finnish and Sami languages, while in other languages ​​there have been major shifts: in the Mordovian, Mari and Perm languages, for example, the distinction between long and short vowels has been lost; middle vowels were formed (Komi $, e, a); in Mari, Moksha-Mordovian, and in some dialects of the Udmurt language, the reduction of the voices х (d, §, etc.) took place; in the Mordovian dialects and in most dialects of the Permian languages, the labialized front vowel (й) has disappeared, etc.

The characteristic limited use of labialized vowels in the non-first syllable is observed not only in modern Baltic-Finnish, but also in some other Finno-Ugric languages ​​(for example, in Udmurt and Komi). Currently, in the Finno-Ugric languages, labialized and long (where available) vowels are also found in the non-first syllable, but these categories of vowels appeared in them later, as a result of the independent development of the sound system of these languages.

The law of vowel harmony is directly related to the vocalism of the first and non-first syllables, which is expressed in the agreement of the vowels of suffix syllables with the vowels of the stem of the word: if the stem is a front vowel, then a front vowel appears in the suffixes (Finnish. kddessd with in hand 5); the back vowel of the stem corresponds to the back vowel in the suffix syllable (Finnish. Sanassa c in word 5). Vowel harmony is characteristic of all Finno-Ugric languages, with the exception of the Udmurt, Komi and Sami languages.

Most modern linguists tend to believe that in the proto-language the stress was necessarily on the first syllable and that the former place of stress was preserved in the Baltic-Finnish languages, Sami, Hungarian and Mansi, excluding the southern dialects; the peculiarities of the stress of the rest of the Finno-Ugric languages ​​(Permian, Mordovian, Mari and Khanty), where it is not associated with the first syllable, in their opinion, are explained by the separate development of these languages ​​- the influence of the Turkic languages ​​(for example, in South Mansi and Udmurt, in which it usually rests on the last syllable), changes in the vowel system, and so on. However, it is equally valid to assume that in the most ancient base language, the stress was not lexically fixed, but more or less free.

The Finno-Ugric proto-language was characterized by a two-syllable stem of the word, ending in a short vowel e or less often a-a. It is well preserved in the Finnish language. In other languages, there have been large changes in the stem of the word due to the disappearance of final vowels and under the influence of other factors (for example, Finnish. vere-, Saami, varra, muzzle, ver, mar., vur, hung. vir, Komi and Udm. vir with blood>).

In modern Finno-Ugric languages, a word begins with one consonant or (more rarely) with one vowel sound. The confluence of consonants or vowels at the beginning of a word is usually found in borrowed and figurative words.

Ancient case indicators have been preserved in almost all modern Finno-Ugric languages: in some as case endings, in others as part of complex case forms, in others as part of adverbs and postpositions. Most modern Finno-Ugric languages ​​are multi-case (Hungarian has 21 cases, Finnish -15, Komi -16, Udmurt -15, Mordovian -12, etc.). In multi-case languages, a number of case endings arose either from postpositions and ancient case endings, or from a combination of different primary case affixes.

The ancient dual number was preserved only in the Mansi, Khanty and Sami languages.

The Finno-Ugric language-base belonged entirely to the agglutative languages. Meanwhile in modern languages along with agglutination, there are already some features of an inflectional character.

Let us also note the following features of the Finno-Ugric languages. In almost all modern Finno-Ugric languages: a) there is one type of declension and one type of conjugation, only in some languages ​​(for example, in Mari and Udmurt) two types of conjugation apparently developed later; b) the present and future tenses of the verb do not differ from each other in their form (cf. Komi gizha with I write and I will write 5); c) the presence of a special negative verb that changes in the same way as other verbs (cf. Mar. om lud s do not read 5, from lud s do not read 5, ogeg lud s do not read 5, etc.); in Hungarian, the conjugated forms of the negative verb have been lost; d) word formation and inflection is carried out, as a rule, with the help of suffixes; prefixes found in some modern languages ​​are neoplasms; e) adjective-definition precedes the word being defined and does not agree with it (mord, od kudo with a new house 5, od kudoso with in a new house 5, od kudot with new houses 5, etc.); the exception is the Baltic-Finnish languages, in which there is an agreement of the adjective-definition with the word being defined (cf. Finnish. uudessa kirjassa c in new book 5, uudesta kirjasta c from the new book 5).

Currently, there is writing in Hungarian, Estonian, Mordovian (Erzya and Moksha), Mari (in the meadow-eastern and mountain dialects), Udmurt and Komi (in the Komi-Zyryan and Komi-Permyak dialects).

The Estonian spoken language is divided into three dialects: coastal, north Estonian and south Estonian. Coastal dialects are common in the coastal strip along the Gulf of Finland, especially in its eastern part.

The most numerous group of Estonian dialects is the North Estonian dialect. It is distributed in northern and central Estonia, over a vast area stretching from the Baltic Sea to Lake Peipsi. On the basis of the northern dialect (mainly the Middle Northern dialect of this dialect), the modern Estonian literary language has developed.

The South Estonian dialect is divided into three dialects: Western, Tartu and Võru.

Writing in Estonian appeared in the 16th century. The first printed book was published in 1535. In the XVI-XVIII centuries. Literature was published in two dialects: South Estonian and North Estonian. The literary language was under strong German influence. In the 19th century in the process of forming the Estonian nation, a transition was made from two literary languages ​​to a single one with its simultaneous democratization. Enormous merit in the development of the national literary language belongs to the writer-educator F. R. Kreutzwald. At present, individual dialects of the Estonian language, under the influence of the school, the press, and the radio, have noticeably converged and are developing under the strong influence of the literary language.

The Mordovian literary languages, Erzya and Moksha, mainly serve the Mordovian population of the Mordovian ASSR. They formed after October revolution. On the territory of the Mordovian ASSR, Moksha dialects are combined into three dialect groups: northern, southwestern and southeastern. The northern dialects of the Mordovian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic are widespread in the northwestern regions: Temnikovsky, Krasnoslobodsky and some others. The southwestern dialects are in the territory of Zubovo-Polyansky, Shiringushsky, Torbeevsky and some other regions. The southeastern group of dialects (otherwise Insar) is distributed on the territory of the Insar, Ruzaevsky, and partly Staroshaigovsky regions of the Mordovian ASSR. The Moksha-Mordovian literary language is based on one of the northern Moksha dialects. The Erzya-Mordovian literary language is based on the dialects spoken mainly in the Ardatovsky region of the Mordovian ASSR.

Mordovian literary languages ​​are close and differ from each other in much the same way as Ukrainian from Belarusian. The Moksha literary language is characterized by the presence of a front vowel a and a reduced vowel d, as well as voiceless consonants l x, p x, l X, /?b x, x x. These sounds are absent in the Erzya literary language. There is also a well-known difference in vocabulary and grammar.

There are three dialects in the Mari language: meadow, eastern and mountain, on the basis of which two literary languages ​​were formed - meadow-eastern and mountain. The meadow dialect covers mainly the territory of the Mari ASSR and adjacent regions of the Kirov region. The southern border runs along the river. Volga, western - along the rivers Bolshaya Kokshaga, Mamoksha and Yaranka, eastern - along the line of the Mariets plant, Mosara, Mari Kitnya, Easy Morko and further to the last Mari settlements.

The Eastern dialect is widespread on the territory of the Tatar, Udmurt and Bashkir Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republics, Sverdlovsk and Perm regions, as well as in the southeastern part of the Kirov region. The Eastern dialect is quite close to the meadow dialect, so the representatives of these dialects use a single literary language.

The mountain dialect exists only in the area of ​​​​Sanchursk, Yaransk (Kirov region), Kilemar (Mari ASSR) and nearby territories. In this dialect, two dialects are distinguished: southern (Kozmodemyansky) and northern (Iranian). The basis of the literary language is the southern dialect. At present, the Mari are striving to switch to a single meadow-eastern literary language, which is used by 80% of the population.

The main difference between the three dialects is expressed mainly in phonetics, for example, in the eastern dialect there is a phoneme a, in the mountain dialect there is a phoneme and a reduced front vowel s, in the meadow there are no these sounds. The mountain dialect differs from the meadow and eastern dialects much more than the latter from each other. This difference is expressed not only in phonetics, but also in grammar and vocabulary, for example, the form plural in the mountain dialect it is formed with the help of a special suffix -ela; there are several hundred words of the main vocabulary fund, incomprehensible to representatives of other dialects.

The Mari had a written language even before the revolution, starting from the 18th century, but they did not have a well-developed literary language: a small literature of predominantly religious content was published in different dialects and had different graphics and spelling.

The Udmurt language is divided into three dialects: northern, southern and southwestern.

The dialect of the Besermians, a small group living in the northwestern part of the Udmurt Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic among the Udmurts who speak the northern dialect, stands out somewhat. It differs markedly from other dialects of the Udmurt language. There is reason to believe that the Besermian dialect is a revitalized language of some Turkic people. The bulk of the Udmurts speak the northern and southern dialects.

The difference between the dialects of the Udmurt language is expressed both in vocabulary and in grammar and phonetics. The following phenomena are characteristic of the northern dialect: the use at the beginning of many words before a bilabial w (vaz instead of az with early 5 other dialects); in many dialects of this dialect, there is a middle vowel в instead of ы in other dialects (shvr instead of gayr with mouse 5); special vocabulary: chachcha C forest \ zdk big 5, etc. The southern dialect is characterized by the presence of a special nasal consonant g] (ng): bag], ‘person 5; special vocabulary: nylpi with children\atai with father 5 idr. The southwestern dialect is characterized by the presence of front-middle rows b, y, close to German b, d; at the beginning of the word q instead of th in other dialects (dd instead of yb with ice 5); in the affricates z, h the explosive element is very weak; specific words: aldar with a liar \ tenke with a ruble; and etc.

Writing in the Udmurt language appeared in the 18th century, but before the revolution, unified norms of the literary language did not take shape.

The dialectal basis of the Udmurt literary language, which has developed over a number of decades in various dialectal environments, is currently not entirely clear. In terms of its grammatical structure and phonetics, it is closer to the dialects of the middle zone of Udmurtia and contains elements of other dialects both in vocabulary and grammar (for example, along with walesta, the form of southern dialects valyesyz ‘horses 5) is allowed.

The Komi language is divided into three dialects: Komi-Zyryan, Komi-Perm and Komi-Yazva. On the basis of the first two of them, special literary languages ​​were formed after the October Revolution, and the Komi-Yazva people do not have their own written language. The Komi-Zyryan dialect is divided into dialects: Lower Vychegodsk, Syktyvkar, Upper Vychegodsk, Middle Sysolsky, Upper Sysolsky, Luz-Letsky, Udorsky (Vashko-Mezensky), Izhemsky and Pechora. The Komi-Zyryansk literary language is based on the Syktyvkar dialect.

The Komi-Permyak dialect consists of three main dialects: Kosinsko-Kama (northern), Inven (southern) and Zyuzda (in the upper reaches of the Kama, Kirov region). The first two dialects are common in the Komi-Permyatsky district of the Perm region. The northern dialect is characterized by the presence of the sound l, which is absent in the southern dialect (northern wolf, southern airborne horse 5, northern lok, southern wok ^ go 5); the exceptions are the Nerdvinsky and Onkovsky dialects, which are territorially adjacent to the southern dialect, but have the sound l. The Komi-Permyak literary language, serving the national population of the Komi-Permyak district, basically has the Kudymkar-Inven dialect, but with the use of the l sound in the form in which it is used in the Komi-Zyryansky literary language. Such a moderate use of the consonant l was introduced into the literary language in order to bring together the two main Komi-Permyak dialects.

The difference between the Komi-Zyryan and Komi-Permyak languages ​​is insignificant, it is expressed in some phonetic differences.

The Komi-Yazva dialect differs markedly from other dialects in its phonetics: there are front-mid vowels o, y, a wide back vowel e, a special stress system and a number of special words: mountain with a voice 5, kesek with meat 5, code with a well 5 , vepnv C say 5 etc.

In the XIV century. missionary Stefan created writing in the ancient Komi language based on Greek and Slavic letters and translated some church books. Ancient Komi writing to the 17th century. was forgotten, it was replaced by Russian-based graphics. In the XVII-XX centuries. Before the October Revolution, there was some literature in the Komi language, but it was published in different dialects and did not have uniform orthographic norms.

Thus, the Mordvins, Mari, Udmurts and Komi are young peoples; their literary languages ​​took shape only after the October Revolution. In the years Soviet power a rather large literature has been created in these languages ​​and a huge amount of work has been done to normalize the language and to study it scientifically. Newspapers and magazines, textbooks for primary schools, develops fiction all genres: poems, plays, novels, etc.

Karelians, Vepsians, Vods, Livs, Izhors do not currently have written language in their native language. Experiments to create writing in these languages ​​were made several times, but historically they were not fixed. These were mainly translations of religious books and individual examples of literary creativity.

In the 1930s, an attempt was made to create writing, textbooks and schools in the Karelian, Veps and Izhorian languages. This attempt played some role in the process of eradicating illiteracy. Karelians currently use Russian or Finnish (mainly the northern part of Karelia) literary languages, Veps - Russian, Vod - Russian or Estonian, Livs - Latvian, Izhorians - Russian or Finnish.

The Karelian language, which is widespread in the Karelian ASSR, as well as in the Kalinin and Novgorod regions (where Karelians moved from the north in the 17th century), is divided into dialects: Karelian proper (the northern part of the Karelian ASSR, Kalinin and Novgorod regions), Ludikov (southern -east of the Karelian ASSR) and Livvikovsky (southwest of the Karelian ASSR).

The Izhorian language is genetically closest to the Karelian language and to the eastern dialects of the Finnish language. The main dialects are Soykinsky, Khevasky, Lower Luzhsky and Upper Luzhsky.

Veps live surrounded by the Russian population in the Leningrad and Vologda regions and in Karelia on the shores of Lake Onega. The Onega group is territorially separated from the rest of the Vepsians. The following dialects of the Vepsian language are distinguished: Southern Vepsian, Middle Vepsian and Prionezhsky.

The Vot language is currently spoken by several dozen people, mostly old people, living in the Leningrad region, near the northern border with Estonia.

The Liv language serves as a home medium of communication for only 400-500 people who are bilingual; their second language is Latvian, which is used outside the home.

The Sami (Lapp) language is divided into three rather distant dialects (Western, Southern and Eastern). In the Soviet Union, a small group of Saami live on the Kola Peninsula, speaking the eastern dialect (Lovozero, Notozero and other dialects). The foreign Saami in Finland, Sweden and Norway (there are more than 30 thousand) from the 17th century. there is a written language, which, however, has a very limited use, and a small number of books and newspapers are currently being published. In the 1930s, an attempt was made to create a written language for the Saami of the USSR based on the Latin alphabet. Currently, the Saami of the Kola Peninsula use the Russian literary language.

Who are the Finno-Ugric peoples?

It is believed that the ancestral home of the Finno-Ugric peoples is located to the west of the Ural Mountains, in the region of Udmurtia, Perm, Mordovia and Mari El. By 3000 B.C. e. the Baltic-Finnish subgroup did not move west along the coast of the Baltic Sea. Around the same time, the Sami moved inland to the northeast, reaching the shores of the Atlantic Ocean. The Magyars (Hungarians) made the longest and most recent journey from the territory of the Ural Mountains to their real homeland in central Europe, only in 896 AD. e.

What is the age of the Finno-Ugric peoples?

The culture of pit-comb ceramics (The name was given by the method of decorating ceramic finds characteristic of this culture, which looks like imprints of combs.), which flourished in 4200-2000 BC. e. between the Urals and the Baltic Sea, in general, it is presented as the oldest clear evidence of early Finno-Ugric communities. The settlements of this culture are always accompanied by burials of representatives of the Ural race, in the phenotype of which a mixture of Mongoloid and Caucasian elements is found.

But does the culture of pit-comb ceramics represent the beginning of the life of the Finno-Ugric people, or is this distinctive pattern just a new artistic tradition among the already old Finno-Ugric civilization at that time?

So far, archaeologists have no answer to this question. They found settlements in the area that date back to before the end of the last ice age, but so far scientists do not have sufficient evidence to suggest that these were settlements of Finno-Ugric or other peoples known to us. Since two or more peoples can live in the same territory, geographical information alone is not enough. In order to establish the ownership of these settlements, it is necessary to show a certain connection, for example, similar artistic traditions, which are an indicator of a common culture. Since these early settlements are 10,000 years old, archaeologists simply don't have enough evidence to make a guess, so the origin of these settlements remains a mystery. What is the age of the Finno-Ugric peoples? At present, it is not possible to give an exact answer to this question. We can only say that the Finno-Ugric peoples appeared west of the Ural Mountains between the end of the last ice age and 8000-4200 BC. e.

Let's look at this time period in perspective:
Writing was invented by the Sumerians around 3800 BC. e.
The Egyptian pyramids were built in 2500 BC. e.
Stonehenge in England was built in 2200 BC. e.
The Celts, the ancestors of the Irish and Scots, landed in the British Isles around 500 BC. e.
The British landed in the British Isles after 400 AD. e.
Turks began to move into what is now Turkey around 600 AD. e.

As a result, anthropologists call the Finno-Ugric peoples the oldest permanent inhabitants of Europe and the oldest surviving inhabitants of northeastern Europe.

However, it is no longer possible to separate the history of the Finno-Ugric peoples from the history of another people, the Indo-European Slavs.

By 600 A.D. e. there was a division of the Slavs into three branches: southern, western and eastern. A slow process of resettlement and resettlement began. In the 9th century, the Eastern Slavs formed a center in Kievan Rus and Novgorod. By the middle of the 16th century, with the conquest of the Kazan Khanate by Russia, almost all Finno-Ugric peoples, not counting the Saami, Finns, Estonians and Hungarians, came under the control of Rus'.

Today, the majority of Finno-Ugric peoples live on the territory of the Russian Federation, and their future is forever connected with their large Slavic neighbor.

Finno-Ugric languages

“Language diversity is an integral part of human heritage. Each language embodies the unique cultural wisdom of a people. Thus, the loss of any language is a loss for all mankind.”
UNESCO, United Nations Educational Science and Culture Organization

Estonian philologist Mall Hellam found only one sentence that is understandable in the three most common Finno-Ugric languages: Hungarian, Finnish and Estonian. Live fish swim in the water

"Eleven hal úszkál a víz alatt." (Hungarian)
"Elava kala ui veden alla." (Finnish)
"Elav kala ujub vee all." (Estonian)

To these languages, you can add the Erzya "Ertstsya Kaloso ukshny after all Alga" (Erzya)

As part of the Finno-Ugric languages, they usually distinguish following groups and languages:

Compare Finno-Ugric languages

As in any family, some members are more similar to each other, and some have only a distant resemblance. But we are united by a common language roots, this is what defines us as a family and creates the basis for discovering cultural, artistic and philosophical ties.

Account in Finno-Ugric languages

And others, were not successful, although some scientists believe that some similarities of a systemic nature indicate the existence of a Nostratic proto-language (see Nostratic languages), which genetically unites the Uralic (Finno-Ugric and Samoyedic), Indo-European, Altaic, Dravidian, Yukaghir and other languages.

Ugh. I. distributed in the territory, the extreme boundaries of which are the Ob basin in the east, the northern part of Norway in the north, the territory of Hungary in the west and the northern part of Yugoslavia in the south. Toponymy and hydronymy testify to the wider areas of distribution of individual Finno-Ugric peoples in the past: the Karelians lived in territories reaching the Northern Dvina, where individual Komi settlements also reached; traces of Mordovian settlements, reflected in toponymy, are in the Gorky, Penza and Ryazan regions; the territory occupied by the Ob-Ugric peoples and the Saami was more extensive.

As a result of the research of E. N. Setial, J. Sinney, E. Becke, D. R. Fokosh-Fuchs, M. Zhirai, V. Steinitz, L. Kettunen, B. Collinder, E. Itkonen, D. V. Bubrikh , V. I. Lytkin and others, the main contours of the phonetic and grammatical structure of the Finno-Ugric parent language were determined. The vowels of the first syllable included phonemes: palatal (front row) a, e, ü, i, velar (back row) a, o, u. It is possible that there was also a velar vowel e̮. Among the mid and high vowels listed were the long vowels ē, ī, ō, ū (presumably e̮). Outside the first syllable, there could only be short vowels - three non-labialized vowels: α, ä, e (possibly also e̮). There was a harmony of vowels (see Synharmonism). The composition of consonants is described: č̣, č′ (ć), δ, δ′, j, k, l, l′, m, n̥, ń, ŋ, p, r, s, ś, š, t, w. Voiced consonants, as well as δ and ŋ, did not occur at the beginning of a word. In Finno-Ugric studies, there are two theories about the composition of the original vowel system. According to Steinitz, vowels were divided into 2 groups: full vowels - a, ɔ (open o̮), o, u, i̮, ä, e, i; reduced vowels - ŏ, ĕ, ö, presumably (ä). Scientists of the Finnish school (Itkonen), on the contrary, believe that the vowels of the Finno-Ugric parent language were long and short. Proto-Finno-Ugric vocalism was, in their opinion, identical to the Baltic-Finnish vocalism.

The degree of closeness between the languages ​​included in the same group is not the same. The Saami language, with its numerous dialects, gravitates towards the Baltic-Finnish languages, although it is not included in this branch. The difference between the languages ​​of the Volga branch is quite large. The Hungarian language is very different from its related Ob-Ugric languages. The understanding between speakers of the Udmurt language and the Komi language is excluded. Some dialects of the Khanty language relate to each other more as related languages, and not as dialects.

Ugh. I. reveal many features that testify to the commonality of their origin: common layers of vocabulary, material relationship of inflectional and derivational formatives, the presence of possessive suffixes, a significant number of suffixes expressing the repetition or instantaneousness of an action, etc. At the same time, some modern F.-u . I. are of great originality. People with pronounced agglutinating languages ​​(Permian, Mordovian languages, Mari), there are languages ​​with highly developed elements of inflection, especially the Sami language and to a certain extent Baltic-Finnish, there are Various types stresses are different and on the first, last and penultimate syllables. There are languages ​​that are noted for their richness of vowels and diphthongs, such as Finnish; other languages ​​have many different types of consonants and few diphthongs, such as Permian. The total number of cases ranges from 3 (Khanty) to 20 or more (Hungarian). The systems of past tenses are typologically different. In Finnish and Estonian, the system of past tenses is similar to the system of past tenses in the Latvian language (some scholars incorrectly believe that with the corresponding system in the Germanic languages), while in the Mari and Perm languages ​​it resembles the Tatar and Chuvash systems. The Mordovian languages ​​have a complex system of inclinations, while in other languages ​​it is mainly the conditional mood. Negation with a verb in a number of F.-u. I. is expressed by forms of a specially negative verb, but there are languages ​​where the negation of the verb is expressed by negative particles (Ugric and Estonian).

Big differences are observed in syntax. In the Baltic-Finnish, Sami, Hungarian, Mordovian and Komi-Zyryan languages, the influence of the Indo-European languages ​​\u200b\u200bis strongly influenced - Swedish, German and Russian, especially in the ways of constructing complex subordinate clauses, while in the Ob-Ugric and partly in the Udmurt and Mari languages, some archaic features that typologically bring the syntax of these languages ​​closer to the syntax of the Turkic languages.

• Languages ​​of the peoples of the USSR, vol. 3, M., 1966;
• Fundamentals of Finno-Ugric linguistics, c. 1-3, M., 1974-76;
• Kaidu P., Ural languages ​​and peoples, trans. from Hung., M., 1985;
• collinder B., Comparative grammar of the Uralic languages, Stockh., 1960;
• Haidu P., Finnugor népék és nyelvek, Budapest, 1962;
• Decsy Gy., Einführung in die finnisch-ugrische Sprachwissenschaft, Wiesbaden, 1965.

B. A. Serebrennikov.