KIRGHIZ (Kyrghyzstan)

Family
Central-(Kipchak)-Turkish

Country
Kyrghyzstan

Language code
KDO

Continent
Asia

Alternate language names
KARA-KIRGIZ, KIRGIZ

Dialect names
NORTHERN KIRGIZ, SOUTHERN KIRGIZ

Genetic affiliation
Altaic, Turkic, Western, Aralo-Caspian

Geographical region
Kyrghyzstan, and in the mountains of surrounding republics of the former USSR

Population
1,906,000 in Kyrghyzstan (1979 census), 98% speak it as mother tongue; 141,549 in China (1990 census); 500 in Afghanistan; 1,137 in Turkey (1982); 2,049,200 total

Bilingual in
Russian

New Testament printings
in press (1990)

Printings of whole books of Bible
1982-1987

Remarks
Has status of literary language. Cyrillic script. Increasing education. Increasing feelings of Islamic brotherhood. The names 'Eastern Kirghiz' and 'Western Kirghiz' have been erroneously applied to Kazakh. Newspapers, books, radio programs, TV, theaters, films, schools in Kirghiz. 29% speak Russian as second language

Geological type
Mountain slope

Newspapers
Yes

Radio use
Yes

Total speakers
2,049,200

Religion
Sunni Muslim, some Lamaism

Also in
China, Afghanistan, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan