The Mansi Alphabet

Q: What is the Mansi language?

Mansi (historically called Vogul, ISO 639-3: mns) is a critically endangered Ob-Ugric Uralic language [1] spoken by the Mansi people of Western Siberia, chiefly in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug of Russia. It is one of the two Ob-Ugric languages, the other being Khanty (Ostyak). The literary language is based on the northern Mansi dialect. The Institute for Linguistic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences [1] and UiT The Arctic University [2] document Mansi, which has fewer than a thousand fluent speakers remaining.

Q: What alphabet does Mansi use?

Mansi is written in a Cyrillic alphabet [1] based on the Russian letters, extended with Ӈ (velar nasal) and Ӯ (U with macron, marking a long vowel). Vowel length is meaningful in Mansi, so the macron letter is important for distinguishing words. The Institute for Linguistic Studies (RAS) [1] documents the Mansi orthography, and ELAR [3] archives materials illustrating how the Cyrillic system represents the Mansi sound system .

Q: Is Mansi related to Hungarian?

Yes. Mansi belongs to the Ob-Ugric branch of Uralic [1] , which together with Hungarian forms the Ugric group. Mansi is therefore, alongside Khanty, one of the closest linguistic relatives of Hungarian, even though it is spoken in Siberia and Hungarian in Central Europe. The relationship is deep and genetic rather than one of mutual intelligibility, but it is visible in shared basic vocabulary and grammar. UiT The Arctic University [2] and the Institute for Linguistic Studies (RAS) [1] study these Ugric connections .

Q: Why is Mansi also called Vogul?

Vogul is the older Russian name for Mansi [3] . It appears in earlier linguistic literature and in comparative Uralic studies. Modern usage prefers "Mansi", the self-designation of the people, but "Vogul" still refers to exactly the same language.

Q: Where is Mansi spoken?

Mansi is spoken in Western Siberia [1] , chiefly in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug (Yugra) of Russia, along the tributaries of the Ob river on the eastern slopes of the Ural Mountains. Speakers are now few and scattered across a number of settlements.

Q: What is the special letter Ӯ in Mansi?

The letter Ӯ (U with macron) marks a long u-vowel [3] . Because vowel length distinguishes words in Mansi, the macron is used to show that the vowel is long, contrasting with the plain letter У for the short vowel. This length marking is a key feature of Mansi orthography.

Q: How many people speak Mansi?

Mansi has fewer than 1,000 fluent speakers [3] , making it critically endangered. The majority of Mansi people now speak Russian as their main language, and the language is used mostly by older speakers. Because of this urgency, the Institute for Linguistic Studies (RAS) [1] , UiT The Arctic University [2] and ELAR [3] all work to document Mansi, supporting both research and any future revitalisation of the language .

Q: What is the ISO code for Mansi?

The ISO 639-3 code for Mansi is mns [1] . It covers the Mansi language including its dialects. The historical name "Vogul" refers to the same language and the same ISO code.

Q: How is Mansi being documented and preserved?

Mansi is documented by several institutions: the Institute for Linguistic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences [1] (phonology and orthography research), UiT The Arctic University of Norway [2] (Ob-Ugric typology), and the Endangered Languages Archive (ELAR) [3] (field recordings). As one of the most endangered Uralic languages, Mansi is a priority for documentation. Together these institutions preserve the Mansi Cyrillic writing system and the spoken language for research and for the Mansi community itself .

Mansi Alphabet at a Glance

Mansi (historically called Vogul, ISO 639-3: mns) is a critically endangered Ob-Ugric Uralic language ^[1] spoken by the Mansi people of Western Siberia, chiefly in the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug of Russia. It is one of the two Ob-Ugric languages, the other being Khanty
The Mansi alphabet is based on Cyrillic, extended with special characters including Ӈ (velar nasal) and Ӯ (U with macron, a long u-vowel). Vowel length is phonemically important in Mansi and is marked in the writing system ^[3]
The Institute for Linguistic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences ^[1] researches the Ob-Ugric languages, documenting Mansi phonology, its dialects and the Cyrillic orthography with its length and nasal distinctions
UiT The Arctic University of Norway ^[2] studies the languages of northern Eurasia, including Mansi, contributing to the typological understanding of the Ob-Ugric branch and the vitality of Western Siberian indigenous languages
The Endangered Languages Archive (ELAR) ^[3] at SOAS University of London holds Mansi documentation, offering field recordings and transcribed texts that illustrate the spoken language and its Cyrillic writing
Mansi belongs to the Ob-Ugric branch of Uralic ^[1], which together with Hungarian forms the Ugric group. Mansi is therefore, alongside Khanty, one of the closest linguistic relatives of Hungarian, despite being spoken in Siberia

Mansi Vowels

Mansi has 10 vowel letters: А, Е, Ё, И, О, У, Ы, Э, Ю, Я, plus the long vowel letter Ӯ. Vowel length is a distinctive feature of Mansi, and the macron letter Ӯ marks a long u-vowel that contrasts with the short У ^[1].

The Institute for Linguistic Studies (RAS) ^[1] documents the Mansi vowel system with its length distinctions. UiT The Arctic University ^[2] studies these vowels within Ob-Ugric and wider northern Eurasian language typology.

[AH]

[YEH]

[YO]

[EE]

[OH]

[OO]

[IH]

[EH]

[YOO]

[YAH]

[AH]

as in "father"

[YEH]

as in "yet"

[YO]

as in "yore"

[EE]

as in "see"

[OH]

as in "more"

[OO]

as in "moon"

[IH]

back unrounded vowel, like a dark "i"

[EH]

as in "bed"

[YOO]

as in "you"

[YAH]

as in "yard"

Mansi Consonants

Mansi consonant letters include the distinctive Ӈ (velar nasal). Mansi has a relatively small consonant inventory compared with some other Uralic languages, and the standard northern Mansi variety forms the basis of the literary language ^[3].

The Institute for Linguistic Studies (RAS) ^[1] documents the Mansi consonant system, and UiT The Arctic University ^[2] studies Mansi consonants within Ob-Ugric typology, comparing them with the related Khanty consonant system.

[B]

[V]

[G]

[D]

[Y]

[K]

[L]

[M]

[N]

[NG]

[P]

[R]

[S]

[T]

[KH]

[SH]

[B]

as in "bat"

[V]

as in "van"

[G]

as in "go"

[D]

as in "dog"

[Y]

as in "yes"

[K]

as in "key"

[L]

as in "lamp"

[M]

as in "man"

[N]

as in "not"

[NG]

velar nasal, as in "sing"

[P]

as in "pen"

[R]

rolled r

[S]

as in "sun"

[T]

as in "top"

[KH]

as in Scottish "loch"

[SH]

as in "ship"

[NG]

[OO (long)]

Mansi Digits

Mansi uses Arabic numerals (0–9). Northern Mansi number words: нул (0), акв (1), китыг (2), хурум (3), нила (4), ат (5), хот (6), сат (7), нёл (8), онтэлов (9).

Mansi numerals such as хурум (3) can be compared with Khanty хурэм (3), evidence of shared Ob-Ugric ancestry documented by the Institute for Linguistic Studies (RAS) ^[1] and UiT The Arctic University ^[2] in their Ob-Ugric comparative studies.

[нул]

[акв]

[китыг]

[хурум]

[нила]

[ат]

[хот]

[сат]

[нёл]

[онтэлов]

[нул]

Mansi: нул

[акв]

Mansi: акв

[китыг]

Mansi: китыг

[хурум]

Mansi: хурум

[нила]

Mansi: нила

[ат]

Mansi: ат

[хот]

Mansi: хот

[сат]

Mansi: сат

[нёл]

Mansi: нёл

[онтэлов]

Mansi: онтэлов

[AH]

[B]

[V]

[G]

[D]

[YEH]

[YO]

[EE]

[Y]

[K]

[L]

[M]

[N]

[NG]

[OH]

[P]

[R]

[S]

[T]

[OO]

[OO (long)]

[KH]

[SH]

[IH]

[EH]

[YOO]

[YAH]

Expand All Collapse All

What is the Mansi language?

What alphabet does Mansi use?

Is Mansi related to Hungarian?

Why is Mansi also called Vogul?

Where is Mansi spoken?

What is the special letter Ӯ in Mansi?

How many people speak Mansi?

What is the ISO code for Mansi?

How is Mansi being documented and preserved?

References:

[1] Institute for Linguistic Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences (ILS RAS), St Petersburg. "Ob-Ugric Languages Research — Mansi" — the institute researches the Ob-Ugric branch of Uralic (Mansi and Khanty), documenting Mansi phonology, morphology and its extended Cyrillic alphabet with special characters. Retrieved from Institute for Linguistic Studies, RAS
[2] UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Department of Language and Culture. "Northern Eurasian Language Documentation — Mansi" — UiT conducts research on the Ob-Ugric languages of Western Siberia, including Mansi, contributing to understanding the vitality and endangerment of indigenous Uralic languages of Russia. Retrieved from UiT The Arctic University of Norway
[3] Endangered Languages Archive (ELAR), SOAS University of London. "Mansi Language Documentation" — ELAR holds documentation of Mansi (Vogul, ISO 639-3: mns), a critically endangered Ob-Ugric Uralic language of Western Siberia, Russia, including field recordings of its Cyrillic writing system. Retrieved from Endangered Languages Archive (ELAR)