Livvinkarjala

Livvi-Karelian

Uralic

FamilyUralic Speakers~14K (severely endangered) ScriptLatin CountriesRussia Official inNo (recognized regional) Vitalityseverely endangered ISO 639-3olo

Livvi-Karelian (Olonets Karelian, autonymously Livvinkarjala or Livgiläine) is a Finnic language of the Uralic family, spoken by around 14,000 people in the Olonets/Aunus district of the Republic of Karelia, Russia, south of Lake Ladoga. Linguistically, Livvi sits between Karelian Proper (krl) to the north and Veps (vep) to the south — sharing Karelian core vocabulary but exhibiting Veps-influenced features like reduced consonant gradation and distinctive case syncretism. Some classifications group Livvi as a Karelian dialect, while modern Russian and Finnish scholarship typically treats it as a separate language. The community survived Soviet-era Russification but was severely affected by 20th-century language shift; the post-1991 era brought a written standard and limited school instruction. The Pyöli (1996) dictionary is the major modern lexicographic work.

Where it is spoken

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87 core words in Livvi-Karelian

Water

vezi

ˈvezi

Fire

tuli

ˈtuli

Sun

päivy

ˈpæivy

Moon

kuudam

ˈkuːdɑm

Star

tiähti

ˈtiæxti

Night

yö

yø

Rain

vihmu

ˈvihmu

Snow

lumi

ˈlumi

Wind

tuuli

tuːli

Earth

mua

mua

Stone

kivi

ˈkivi

Mountain

mägi

ˈmæɡi

Sea

meri

ˈmeri

Mother

mama

ˈmama

Father

tuatto

ˈtuatto

Daughter

tytär

ˈtytær

I

minä

ˈminæ

You

sinä

ˈsinæ

We

myö

myø

Name

nimi

ˈnimi

Person

ristikanzu

ˈristikanzu

Head

piä

piæ

Eye

silmy

ˈsilmy

Ear

korvu

ˈkɔrvʊ

Nose

nenä

ˈnenæ

Mouth

suu

suː

Tooth

hammas

ˈhamːas

Tongue

kieli

ˈkieli

Hand

käzi

ˈkæzi

Foot

jalgu

ˈjalɡu

Heart

syväin

ˈsyvæin

Bone

luu

luː

Blood

veri

ˈveri

Poop

šittu

ˈʃittu

Love

suvaita

ˈsuvaita

Tree

puu

puː

Dog

koiru

ˈkoiru

Cat

kaži

ˈkɑʒi

Fish

kala

ˈkala

Bird

lindu

lindu

Butterfly

liipukku

ˈliːpukːu

Egg

jäiččy

ˈjæitʃːʏ

Bear

kondii

kondiː

Horse

hebo

ˈhebo

House

kodi

ˈkodi

Milk

maido

ˈmaido

Honey

mezi

ˈmezi

Salt

suolu

ˈsuolu

Wine

viinu

ˈviːnu

Rice

riissu

ˈriːssu

Chocolate

šokoluadu

ˈʃokoluadu

Iron

raudu

ˈraudu

Wheel

ratas

ˈratas

Silk

šulku

ˈʃulku

Book

kirju

ˈkirju

Eat

syvvä

ˈsyvvæ

Drink

juvva

ˈjuvva

Sleep

muata

ˈmuata

One

yksi

ˈyksi

Two

kaksi

ˈkaksi

Three

kolme

ˈkolme

Four

nelli

ˈnelːi

Five

viizi

viːzi

Hundred

sada

ˈsada

Hello

terveh

ˈterveh

Thank you

passibo

ˈpassibo

Good

hyvä

ˈhyvæ

New

uuzi

uːzi

Red

ruskei

ˈruskei

White

valgei

ˈvalɡei

Black

mustu

ˈmustu

Green

vihandu

ˈvihandu

Blue

sinine

ˈsinine

Cuckoo

kägöi

ˈkæɡøi

Computer

tiedokoneh

ˈtiedokoneh

Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi

Tea

čuaju

ˈtʃuɑju

Coffee

koufei

ˈkoufei

Sugar

zuahari

ˈzuɑhɑri

Orange

apel'siini

apelʲˈsiːni

Ninety-nine

yheksäkymmen yheksä

yheksækymːen yheksæ

Sources

Words compared

Compared with languages in the same classification: Uralic

Meaning Livvi-KarelianKarelianVoticVepsMeänkieliKven FinnishFinnish
Water vezi /ˈvezi/ vesi /ˈvesʲi/ vesi /ˈvesi/ vezi /ˈvezi/ vesi /ˈʋesi/ vesi /ˈʋesi/ vesi /ʋesi/
Fire tuli /ˈtuli/ tuli /ˈtuli/ tuli /ˈtuli/ lämoi /ˈlæmoi/ tuli /ˈtuli/ tuli /ˈtuli/ tuli /tuli/
Sun päivy /ˈpæivy/ päivä /ˈpæivæ/ päivä /ˈpæivæ/ päiväine /ˈpæivæine/ aurinko /ˈɑuriŋko/ aurinko /ˈɑuriŋko/ aurinko /ɑuriŋko/
Moon kuudam /ˈkuːdɑm/ kuu /kuː/ kuu /kuː/ ku /ku/ kuu /kuː/ kuu /kuː/ kuu /kuː/
Star tiähti /ˈtiæxti/ tähti /ˈtʲæhtʲi/ tähti /ˈtæhti/ tähtaz /ˈtæhtaz/ tähti /ˈtæhti/ tähti /ˈtæhti/ tähti /ˈtæhti/
Night yö /yø/ yö /yø/ öö /øː/ ö /ø/ yö /yø/ yö /yø/ yö /yø/
Rain vihmu /ˈvihmu/ vihma /ˈvihmɑ/ vihma /ˈvihma/ vihm /ˈvihm/ sae /sae/ sađet /ˈsɑðet/ sade /ˈsɑde/
Snow lumi /ˈlumi/ lumi /lumi/ lumi /ˈlumi/ lumi /lumi/ lumi /ˈlumi/ lumi /ˈlumi/ lumi /lumi/
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