Võro (võro kiilʼ)

Võro is part of the Finnic branch of the Finno-Ugric languages and is spoken by about 70,000 people in Estonia. Officially it is considered a dialect of Estonian, but it has it's own literary standard and speakers are seeking to have it recognised as a regional language of Estonia.

The language went into decline in the late 19th century, but a revival started during the 1980s. Today Võro is taught in some schools; there is a Võro newspaper that is published twice a month, and some poems, plays and novels are also written in the language.

Võro is a descendent of the old South Estonian language, which first appeared in writing in 1686 in a translation of the New Testament.

Võro alphabet (võro tähistü)

Võro alphabet<

Very little information is available online about the pronunciation of Võro, so any corrections you can provide would be welcome.

Sample text in Võro

Kyik' inemiseq sünnüseq avvo ja õiguisi poolõst ütesugumaidsis. Näile om annõt mudsu ja süämetunnistus ja nä piät üts'tõõsõgaq vele muudu läbi käümä.

Translation

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
(Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights)

Numbers in Võro

Links

Information about the Võro language and people
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Võro_language
http://www.tooyoo.l.u-tokyo.ac.jp/Russia/Votian/Votian1.html
http://www.eki.ee/books/redbook/votes.shtml

Võro Instituut' - an organisation dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the Võro language and culture (in Võro, Estonian and English): http://www.wi.ee

Võro-eesti Synaraamat (Võro-Estonian dictionary)
http://www.folklore.ee/Synaraamat/

Uma Leht - Võro language newspaper
http://www.umaleht.ee

Finno-Ugric languages

Enets, Erzya, Estonian, Finnish, Hungarian, Karelian, Khanty, Komi, Kven, Livonian, Mansi, Mari, Moksha, Nenets, Saami, Udmurt, Veps, Võro, Votic

Other languages written with the Latin alphabet

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