Abstract:

Kryz is a small language made of four to five distinct dialects. It belongs to the Lezgic branch of the East Caucasian family, and shows typical features thereof. Its speakers originate from the highlands to the East of Mount Shahdagh in the region of Quba in Northern Azerbaijan, where their subsistence is mainly based on cattle breeding. Their ancestral culture, reflected in basic vocabulary and original folklore, has been shifting towards common Azerbaijani mainstream with the relocation of most families in the plain, and their unwritten language has now become severely endangered.

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