Template:Short description {{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template otherTemplate:Main other Merya or Meryanic (Template:Langx) is an extinct Finno-Ugric language, which was spoken by the Meryans.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Helimski" /> Merya began to be assimilated by East Slavs when their territory became incorporated into Kievan Rus' in the 10th century.<ref name="Janse 2000 A108">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Smol">Template:Cite book</ref> However some Merya speakers might have even lived in the 18th century.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> There is also a theory that the word for "Moscow" originates from the Merya language.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The Meryan language stretched to the western parts of Vologda Oblast and Moscow.<ref name="Rahkonen">Template:Cite thesis</ref>
ClassificationEdit
There is no general agreement on the relationship of Merya with its neighboring Uralic languages.
- A traditional account places Merya as a member of the Volga-Finnic group, comprising also the Mordvinic and Mari languages.<ref name="Janse 2000 A108" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> However, Volga Finnic is today considered obsolete.
- T. Semenov and Max Vasmer believed Merya to be a close relative of Mari.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref> Vasmer saw that many Merya toponyms have Mari parallels.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
- One hypothesis classifies the Merya as a western branch of the Mari people rather than as a separate tribe. Their ethnonyms are basically identical, Merya being a Russian transcription of the Mari self-designation, Мäрӹ (Märӛ).<ref>Petrov A., KUGARNYA, Marij kalykyn ertymgornyzho, #12 (850), 2006, March, the 24th.</ref> According to Template:Ill, the ethnonym Merya in toponyms becomes Mari moving to the east.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- Eugene Helimski supposed that the Merya language was part of a "northwest" group of Finno-Ugric, including also Balto-Finnic and Sami. Helimski argued that even though there are Mari parallels, they do not justify a close relationship with Mari and could be due to adjacency of the language areas.<ref name="Helimski">Template:Cite book</ref>
- Gábor Bereczki supposed that the Merya language was a part of the Balto-Finnic group.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
- Mordvinian author Aleksandr Sharonov claimed that Merya is an Erzyan dialect; however this is not well supported.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Rahkonen (2013)<ref name="Rahkonen" /> argues that the likewise unattested and unclassified-within-Uralic Muromian language was a close relative of Merya, perhaps even a dialect of Meryan.
A probable characteristic of the Merya language, which some researchers have noted, is the plural -k, as in Hungarian, while most Uralic languages use -t for the plural.<ref name=":4" />
ReconstructionEdit
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There have been attempts to re-construct Merya based on toponyms, onomastics and words in Russian dialects by O. B. Tkachenko, Arja Ahlqvist and A. K. Matveev among others. The first reconstructions were done in 1985 by O. B. Tkachenko. The latest book about Merya reconstructions was published in 2019.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="auto">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=":4">”Allikas: Ткаченко О. Б., Мерянский язык, Kiova 1985.”</ref> As an example: in Russian toponyms around where Merya was spoken, an ending {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Template:Tlit) is regularly seen in names relating to lakes. This also resembles, but does not exactly match, the words for 'lake' in western Uralic languages, such as Finnish {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}, Northern Sami {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}, Erzya {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Template:Tlit'), Meadow Mari {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Template:Tlit) (from a common proto-form {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}). From these it can be inferred that {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} likely continues the Meryan word for 'lake', which may have had a shape such as Template:Transliteration<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
According to Rahkonen, in Merya areas there is a word {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}, which is probably cognate with the Komi word {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} (Template:Tlit) 'middle river', and similar also to an element {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} which appears in Finnish toponyms. From Merya toponyms it can also be seen that words such as {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} 'down' (Finnish: {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}), {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} 'give' (Finnish: {{#invoke:Lang|lang}}) existed in the Merya language.<ref name="Rahkonen" /><ref name="auto" /> From this it can be concluded that Finnish {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} corresponds to {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} or {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} in the Merya language. Another thing that can be observed is the Finnish sound "a" corresponding to a Merya "o", for example a hydronym Template:Transliteration can be seen, which can be compared to Finnish {{#invoke:Lang|lang}} 'fish'. In the Muroma-Merya territory a word Template:Transliteration can be observed, which can be compared to Finnic *ülä ‘upper’.<ref name="Rahkonen" /><ref name="auto" />
PhonologyEdit
Meryan phonology has been studied only in general terms, relying on Russian dialects in the Kostroma and Yaroslavl regions. Helimski suggests<ref name="Helimski"/> that Merya likely developed massive reduction of word-final syllables. The Merya language only allowed one consonant at the beginning of words, and likely placed stress on the first syllable of the word. It likely did not feature vowel harmony. The vowels /ö/, /ä/ and /y/ likely existed in the Merya language.<ref name=":4" />
See alsoEdit
ReferencesEdit
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