Cuman language


Cuman was a Kipchak Turkic language spoken by the Cumans and Kipchaks; the language was similar to today's various languages of the Kipchak-Cuman branch. Cuman is documented in medieval works, including the Codex Cumanicus and it was a literary language in Central and Eastern Europe that left a rich literary inheritance. The language became the main language of the Golden Horde.

History

The Cumans were nomadic people who lived on the steppes of Eastern Europe, north of the Black Sea, before the Golden Horde. Many Turkic peoples including the Crimean Tatars, Karachays, Kumyks and Balkars are descended from the Cumans. Today, the speakers of these various languages belonging to the Kipchak-Cuman branch speak variations closely related to the Cuman language.
The Cuman language became extinct in the early 17th century in the region of Cumania in Hungary, which was its last stronghold. Tradition holds that the last speaker of the Cuman language was István Varró, a resident of Karcag who died in 1770.
The Cuman-Kipchaks had an important role in the history of Kazakhstan, Russia, Georgia, Hungary, Romania, Moldavia, Bessarabia and Bulgaria.

Sample

From the book known as the Codex Cumanicus, a Cuman Kipchak Turkic Pater Noster:
In Oghuz, or Western, Turkish, same text is written as: