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Vezhuan: Difference between revisions
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The Vezhuan language, referred to by its speakers as the ''Dzvada Vezhua Dlin'', "true humans speak this way", is a language | The Vezhuan language, referred to by its speakers as the ''Dzvada Vezhua Dlin'', "true humans speak this way", is a minority language spoken in Romania and parts of Hungary. Throughout most of the language's history, it was confined chiefly to the Carpathian Mountains. The language is also known as ''Dezvadian'' given to it by the 18th century British explorer Sir Edward James Hampton; this name is actually the exonym of the Dzvada people, whereas the word ''vezhua'' from which Vezhuan comes, actually means "We speak." | ||
Today there are approximately 24,000 speakers of the language total, a number that has remained fairly stable since the end of the Industrial Revolution. A minority language in both Romania and Hungary, it has only recently acquired official status. Some speakers have left their traditional homeland in search of a better standard of living amongst the general populace in both countries. A small diaspora also exists, chiefly centered in parts of Greece and Macedonia, and an even smaller population in Lazio, Italy. | Today there are approximately 24,000 speakers of the language total, a number that has remained fairly stable since the end of the Industrial Revolution. A minority language in both Romania and Hungary, it has only recently acquired official status. Some speakers have left their traditional homeland in search of a better standard of living amongst the general populace in both countries. A small diaspora also exists, chiefly centered in parts of Greece and Macedonia, and an even smaller population in Lazio, Italy. | ||
The language is classified as an isolate. Theories of connections to a larger Rhaetian or Vasconic family had been proposed, but later were dismissed due to insufficient or even contradictory evidence. | |||
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