SOCIOLINGUISTIC SITUATION IN THE NATIVE AREA OF THE DISTRICT OF THE ANDIAN LANGUAGES
Magomed A. Magomedov
G. Tsadasa Institute of Language, Literature and Art, Dagestan Federal Research Centre of the RAS, Russian Federation
Mesedu M. Magomedova
G. Tsadasa Institute of Language, Literature and Art, Dagestan Federal Research Centre of the RAS, Russian Federation
Abstract
The historical area of residence of representatives of the Andian languages is located on the territory of the present Tsumadа, Botlikh, Akhvakh districts of the Republic of Dagestan. The original area of distribution of the Andian languages historically, apparently, was much wider than it is currently represented. The ethno-linguistic unity of the Avar-Andians is so strong that the representatives of the Andean languages, having their own independent languages, have always called themselves Avars outside their ethnic territory. The areas of residence of the Andean peoples, as well as other ethnic territories of Dagestan, are subject to an increased influence of the Russian language, as a result of which irreversible processes of displacement of the Avar language as a language of intertribal communication, its devastation in the function of the language of the literary language, as well as the processes of weakening of the Andean languages themselves, in the person of younger and younger generations. In the mono-ethnic villages of the region, the Avar language is being replaced by the local language, as a result of which school-age children and young people have mainly passive knowledge of the Avar language. The Russian language is gradually replacing Avar from all spheres in the function of intertribal communication. The problems of the small (minority) languages of Dagestan (including Andian) are not reduced to their functioning as state languages (although all languages of Dagestan are state ones), but to their elementary survival.
Keywords: languages of Dagestan, Avar-Andian-Tsez languages, functioning, sociolinguistic situation, distribution area
For citation: Magomedov, M.A., Magomedova, M.M. Sociolinguistic situation in the native area of the district of the Andian languages [online] // Sociolinguistics. 2021. No. 3 (7). Pp. 59–68. (In Russ.) DOI: 10.37892/2713-2951-3-7-59-68