Language in Azerbaijan

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 550.

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Copyright © 2015 by
John Christman <jpc11@psu.edu>

The official language is Azerbaijani or "Azeri", a Turkic language. In 1994 it was estimated that some 82% of Azerbaijan's citizens speak Azerbaijani as their first language. In addition, 43% of Azerbaijanis speak English fluently .

The Azerbaijani language is part of the 'Oghuz', or 'Western Turkic', group of Turkic languages, together with Anatolian Turkish (spoken in Turkey) and Turkmen (spoken in Turkmenistan). Dialectical differences between Azerbaijani and Anatolian Turkish have been attributed to Mongolian and Turkic influences. Despite these differences, Anatolian Turkish speakers and Azerbaijanis can often understand one another if they speak carefully. Spoken Azerbaijani includes several dialects. Since the nineteenth century, Russian loanwords (particularly technical terms) and grammatical and lexical structures have entered the Azerbaijani language in Russian-controlled Azerbaijan, as have Persian words in Iranian Azerbaijan. The resulting variants remain mutually intelligible, however.

Azeri Society & Culture