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Yeniseian languages
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Distribution of Paleo-Siberian languages.
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Yeniseian languages

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Also known as: Yenisey-Ostyak languages, Yeniseyan languages
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Article History
Also spelled:
Yeniseyan
Formerly called:
Yenisey-Ostyak languages

Yeniseian languages, small group of languages generally classified among the Paleo-Siberian languages. That category includes Yeniseian languages with three other genetically unrelated groups—Nivkh, Luorawetlan languages, and Yukaghir (itself now sometimes considered to be a distant relative of the Uralic languages).

The Yeniseian group contains at least four languages—Ket, Kott, Arin (Arrin), and Assan—but only Ket is a living language; Ket was classified as “moribund” in the early 21st century. It has been hypothesized that Yeniseian languages are distantly related to the Na-Dené languages (Tlingit and Athabaskan-Eyak but not Haida) of northwest North America; whereas some scholars believe that that proposal has merit, a majority do not, finding the evidence inadequate to support the hypothesized relationship.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Kathleen Kuiper.