Kamassian Project

Дарооўа!

This site is dedicated to Kamassian and having it spoken again.

Did we add something to the language?

We formed an official alphabet which may be used in writing, as there exists no official one. Kamassian was never a literary language.

Do Kamasins still exist?

A few people with ancestry from the Kamasins are still alive and aware of their ancestry, we also know that some Khakas people are intermixed with the Kamasins.

How well is Kamassian documented?

We know close to 1600 words and most of the grammar. However, there are some problems with phonology, which is mostly because Kamassian had much "freedoms" in speaking. We see as an example the word for language/tongue could be spelled: шǝкǝ, шǝккǝ, шекǝ, шиккǝ and all would be correct. However we do have audio recordings of the last native speaker which may help.

How hard is Kamassian?

Despite being an Uralic Language, which are know for being difficult to learn, Kamassian may be slightly easier compared to other Uralic Languages. As an example the case system is easier then in Finnish or Hungarian, having only 7 cases unlike the Finnish with 15. The plural for each case is done the same and with the same ending, thus you don't have to memorize a different plural ending for each case unlike in Finnish. However, Kamassian verbs are slightly harder due to the objective-subjecive system meaning that you have to learn 2 forms for each tense/mood, but there are only 6 of them:

Present tense

Future tense

Preterite tense 

Conjuctive  

Imperative

(Pluperfect doesn't have its own ending but actions which have been completed are expressed by the word ўа´(льом) )

(A continous action is expressed by putting the word 'be' to the end of the word)

"man maleigem" = i am speaking.

How many people speak Kamassian?

No fluent speakers exist, though some have learned it to some degree.