Ulch (Нани)

Ulch belongs to the Southern (Amur or Ulch) branch of the Manchu-Tungus languages. It is spoken by about 150 speakers in Siberia, mainly in the Khabarovsk region on the lower reaches of the Amur river, and is also known as Olcha, and the native name is Нани (Nani), which means 'local people'.

Ulch was first written in the 1930s with a version of the Latin alphabet for Nanai. It is now sometimes written with a version of the Cyrillic alphabet. It is taught in some primary schools.

Ulch alphabet

Notes

Ulch has Vowel harmony; High [i, ə, u], Low [ɪ, a, ʊ, o, e], e.g. хадюн/χadʒʊn/, куӈгилтэ/kuŋgiltə/
к=[q] х=[χ] when adjacent with Low vowels (sometimes also spelled as қ and ҳ, respectively), e.g. ҳаваси/χawasɪ/̇
е = [ɛ:] in the middle of words after г, к, д’, н, п, and с, e.g. ген /gɛ:n/ пе /pɛ:/
After д and н, е = [ə] ё = [o] ю = [u~ʊ] and я = [a]
/ʥ/ is written д’, дя, де, дё, дю, д’и, and /ɲ/ is written н’, ня, не, нё, ню, н’и
Unlike Nanai, ди = [di] and ни = [ni] (these differ from д’и and н’и)
Long vowels can marked with a macron (-) above the letter

Sample text

Хосимбу сагдиңгузи йосоңдами ңэнэхэти. Тара талза наму геолиқтами, пулиқктэм, геоксава йосоми, пулиқтити. Ум пас зувэ ойолони дусэ осира, ти хэйэктин, ти пулиқтин. Ти зувэ хавас ңэнин, тавас ңэни. Тара эси-гдэл ти мапа зувэти ңэнини. Пурэмди геоли гурсэли қас ңэлэчи.

Translation (Russian)

Со своим старшим Хосимбу нерповать отправились. Потом вдали от берега моря на веслах ходят, на нерпу охотясь, ездят. На одном куске льда тигр оказался, так по течению (льдину) носит да носит. Та льдина куда идет, туда (и тигр) идет. И тогда старик к льдине едет (на лодке). Охотники-напарники, гребущие веслами люди, очень боятся.

Source: http://lingsib.iea.ras.ru/ru/languages/ulch.shtml

Information compiled by 이윤호

Ulch phrases

Сородэ! = Hello
Хони бису? Хон-ка балдису? = How are you?
Кэси банха. Улэ бипу. / Кэси банха. Улэ, ая бити. = Fine thanks, and you?
Си(э) гэлбуси нгуй? Син гэлбуси хон бини? = What's your name?
Мин гэлбуи ... = My name is ...
Си(э) нан’идами урчулундиси? Нан’и хэсэвэни сарисе? = Do you speak Ulch?
И, би хэрэ сарии нан’и хэсэвэни. = Yes, a little
Хон нан’идам вэмбуву? = How do you say ... in Ulch?
Сарасимбэ = I don't know
Кэси банха = Thank you
Пэдэм дэрэдюксу = Goodbye

Sources:
- Луча-Нани Урчулумбуку. Русско-Ульчскйи Разговорник. с. Богородское. Хабаровск – 1993.
- Т.И. Петрова: Ульчскйи Диалект Нанайсково Языка. Москва – 1936.
- Г.Г. Вальдю: Словарь Ульчско-Русскйи и Русско-Ульчскйи. с. Богородское. Хабаровск - 2005.

Contributed by Wolfgang Kuhl

Sample video in Ulch

Information about Ulch | Phrases | Numbers

Links

Information about the Ulch language
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulch_language
http://uk.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ульцька_мова
http://lingsib.iea.ras.ru/ru/languages/ulch.shtml

Ульчский диалект нанайского языка / Т.И.Петрова (Ulch grammar)
http://www.emaproject.com/lib_view.html?id=pb00003027#p2|1|n

Вальдю Г.Г. Словарь ульчско-русский и русско-ульчский (Ulch-Russian dictionary)
http://www.twirpx.com/file/1267455/

Ulch phrases
http://lingweb.eva.mpg.de/numeral/Ulcha.htm
http://uk.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ульцька_мова

Tungusic languages

Even, Evenki, Jurchen, Kili, Manchu, Nanai, Negidal, Oroch, Orok / Uilta, Oroqen, Udege Ulch, Xibe

Languages written with the Cyrillic alphabet

Abaza, Abkhaz, Adyghe, Aghul, Akhvakh, Akkala Sámi, Aleut, Altay, Alyutor, Andi, Archi, Assyrian / Neo-Assyrian, Avar, Azeri, Bagvalal, Balkar, Bashkir, Belarusian, Bezhta, Bosnian, Botlikh, Budukh, Bulgarian, Buryat, Chamalal, Chechen, Chelkan, Chukchi, Chulym, Chuvash, Crimean Tatar, Dargwa, Daur, Dolgan, Dungan, Enets, Erzya, Even, Evenki, Gagauz, Godoberi, Hinukh, Hunzib, Ingush, Interslavic, Itelmen, Juhuri, Kabardian, Kaitag, Kalderash Romani, Kalmyk, Karaim, Karakalpak, Karata, Karelian, Kazakh, Ket, Khakas, Khanty, Khinalug, Khorasani Turkic, Khwarshi, Kildin Sámi, Kili, Komi, Koryak, Krymchak, Kryts, Kubachi, Kumandy, Kumyk, Kurdish, Kyrgyz, Lak, Lezgi, Lingua Franca Nova, Lithuanian, Ludic, Macedonian, Mansi, Mari, Moksha, Moldovan, Mongolian, Montenegrin, Nanai, Negidal, Nenets, Nganasan, Nivkh, Nogai, Old Church Slavonic, Oroch, Orok, Ossetian, Pontic Greek, Romanian, Rushani, Russian, Rusyn, Rutul, Selkup, Serbian, Shor, Shughni, Siberian Tatar, Sirenik, Slovio, Soyot, Tabassaran, Tajik, Talysh, Tat, Tatar, Teleut, Ter Sámi, Tindi, Tofa, Tsakhur, Tsez, Turkmen, Tuvan, Ubykh, Udege, Udi, Udmurt, Ukrainian, Ulch, Urum, Uyghur, Uzbek, Veps, Votic, Wakhi, West Polesian, Xibe, Yaghnobi, Yakut, Yazghulami, Yukaghir (Northern / Tundra), Yukaghir (Southern / Kolyma), Yupik (Central Siberian)

Languages written with the Latin alphabet

Page last modified: 27.11.23

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