Concept
Mordovia
Related concepts (4)
Mordvins
Mordvins (also Mordvinians, Mordovians; Mordva; no equivalents in Moksha and Erzya) is an official term used in the Russian Federation to refer both to Erzyas and Mokshas since 1928. Soviet people According to recent Oxford studies: In Mordovia, policies aiming at the revival of the Mordvin languages started late. The language law and the education law were adopted only in 1998. Even these measures were controversial, as opinions differ concerning the status of the two standardized main language varieties and ethnic (sub) groups, Erzya and Moksha.
Mordvinic languages
The Mordvinic languages, also known as the Mordvin, Mordovian or Mordvinian languages (мордовские языки, mordovskiye yazyki), are a subgroup of the Uralic languages, comprising the closely related Erzya language and Moksha language, both spoken in Mordovia. Previously considered a single "Mordvin language", it is now treated as a small language grouping. Due to differences in phonology, lexicon, and grammar, Erzya and Moksha are not mutually intelligible. The two Mordvinic languages also have separate literary forms.
Mokshas
The Mokshas (also Mokshans, Moksha people, in Мокшет/Mokšet) comprise a Mordvinian ethnic group belonging to the Volgaic branch of the Finno-Ugric peoples. They live in the Russian Federation, mostly near the Volga River and the Moksha River, a tributary of the Oka River. Their native language is Mokshan, one of the two surviving members of the Mordvinic branch of the Uralic language family. According to a 1994 Russian census, 49% of the autochthonal Finnic population in Mordovia identified themselves as Mokshas, totaling more than 180,000 people.
Finnic peoples
The Finnic or Fennic peoples, sometimes simply called Finns, are the nations who speak languages traditionally classified in the Finnic (now commonly Finno-Permic) language family, and which are thought to have originated in the region of the Volga River. The largest Finnic peoples by population are the Finns (or more precisely the Suomi, 6 million), the Estonians (1 million), the Mordvins (800,000), the Mari (570,000), the Udmurts (550,000), the Komis (330,000) and the Sami (100,000).