Doctoral Dissertation Research: Discovering Patterns of Language Change through the study of the Koryak Language and its Dialects

University Of California-Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara CA

Investigators

Abstract

This project will document several dialects of Koryak, a severely endangered Chukotko-Kamchatkan language spoken in the Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia by 1,670 speakers spread across at least eight dialects. The researcher will gather data that will greatly enhance our understanding of the Chukotko-Kamchatkan family and lead to cross-dialect and cross-linguistic comparison. The Chukotko-Kamchatkan language family is of interest because it shares features with languages on either side of the Bering Strait, which bridges the Old and New Worlds. Under the direction of Marianne Mithun from the University of California, Santa Barbara, Dibella Wdzenczny will document dialects of Koryak, including Paren, Achaivayam, Kamen, and Srednie Pakhachi, all severely endangered, under- documented, and surprisingly distinctive in their grammars. Through comparative analysis of the grammar and lexicon of these divergent dialects, Wdzenczny will attempt a reconstruction of Proto-Koryak grammar and trace the historical spread of the Koryak language and people throughout the peninsula. Speakers are keenly aware of language loss and are very interested in preservation efforts. To support these efforts, Wdzenczny is working with Kamchatkan-run institutions, such as the Palana Okrug Archive, to preserve and archive recordings of different Koryak dialects. Her work will also provide data for pedagogical and reading materials being created for various Koryak dialects.