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Table of Contents
Tatar in the Russian Federation
Language designations:
- In the language itself: татар теле
- ISO 639-3 language code: tat
Language vitality:
| UNESCO | Ethnologue | Endangered Languages |
|---|---|---|
| no data available |  | no data available |
Linguistic aspects:
- Linguistic classification: Turkic → Kipchak
- Script: Cyrillic. A dispute exists between the Russian federal government and the republic of Tatarstan: the republic wishes to revert to the Latin script, but the Russian government disagrees1).
Language standardization:
Demographics
Language Area
Tatarstan is a republic of the Russian Federation.
operating instructions
Various functions are available as part of the map.
mouse/touch operation
- moving by grabbing the map with a mouse-click you can move the map around
- overview map using the < button in the bottom right of the map you can expand an overview map
- zooming in and out using the + and - buttons in the top left of the map you can obtain more or less detail in the map
- switching themes or maps clicking on the ≡ icon on the right-hand side of the map you can view and select available maps and themes
- retrieving information the map may contain elements that contain more information, by clicking these a popup will show this information
- fullscreen display using the ⛶ button the map can be maximized to fullscreen display, use the ▢ button to return to page display.
keyboard operation
Keyboard operation becomes available after activating the map using the tab key (the map will show a focus indicator ring).
- moving using the arrow keys you can move the map
- overview map using the + button in the bottom right of the map you can expand an overview map
- zooming in and out using the + and - buttons in the top left of the map or by using the + and - keys you can obtain more or less detail in the map
- switching themes or maps clicking on the ≡ icon on the right-hand side of the map you can view and select available maps and themes
- retrieving information the map may contain elements that contain more information, using the i key you can activate a cursor that may be moved using the arrow keys, pressing the enter will execute an information retrieval. press the i or the escape key to return to navigation mode
- fullscreen display using the ⛶ button the map can be maximized to fullscreen display, use the ▢ button to return to page display.
It's possible that some of the functions or buttons describe above have been disabled by the page author or the administrator
| id | symbol | latitude | longitude | description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Property Boundaries | ||||
Speaker numbers
Russian Census of 2010, population in Tatarstan according to ethnicity:
| Population | |
|---|---|
| Tatars | 2,012,571 |
| Total population | 3,786,488 |
Education of the language
History of language education:
Historically, Tatars had a fairly strong education linked to religious institutions; in 1926, literacy rates among Tatars were about 48.2% in comparison to other Turkic groups living in the USSR – Azerbaijan SSR – 25.2%, Uzbek SSR – 10.6% 2)).
In 1926, USSR policy forced the Tatars to change from Arabic script, in use since 920 AD, to Latin script. The late 1930s saw a gradual shift toward Russification of the nation (a process of forced or voluntary assimilation into the Russian culture), including another script change to Cyrillic. This Russification, and state control over publications in Tatar, led to a reduction of programs/schools with Tatar-medium of instruction from 96% in 1930–1931 to 7% in the 1980s. Tatar language gradually fell into the group of minority languages definitely endangered.3)
A major shift occurred after the fall of the USSR: Tatarstan adopted a law on the State Languages of the Tatarstan Republic in 1992, and ratified the official status of Tatar on a par with the Russian language in the new Tatarstan Constitution. These policy changes brought about the growth of Tatar-medium schools, and introduced a compulsory Tatar language class for all students of grades 1–11 in Tatarstan.4)
Despite some positive changes, the ‘trend towards a decrease in Tatar language knowledge and use among ethnic Tatars’ remained 5). Several recent measures have not helped, such as federal educational policies, especially starting from 2001 onwards6), and implementation of the Unified State Examination (USE) or ‘Yediniy Gosudarstvenniy Ekzamen’ administered only in the Russian language, elimination of the ‘national-regional’ component in the school curriculum for teaching history and languages of ethnic minorities in Russia7).
Concerning the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
Read more about Russia and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages.
Federal legislation
Read more about Russian federal legislation concerning minority languages.
Legislation of the Republic of Tatarstan:
Tatarstan's Law No 1560-XII, “On the State Languages of the Republic of Tatarstan and Other Languages in the Republic of Tatarstan” (1992) ratifies the official status of Tatar on par with the Russian language in the new Tatarstan Constitution.
Educational legislation:
Tatarstan's Law No 1560-XII, “On the State Languages of the Republic of Tatarstan and Other Languages in the Republic of Tatarstan”, (1992) states that:
- there should be a compulsory Tatar language class for all students of grades 1-11 in Tatarstan.
- there should be an equal number of Russian and Tatar language classes.
The Federal Education law (2007) states that:
- the Unified State Exam (USE), a series of tests that students must take, in order to be allowed into university, should be administered in Russian.
Inspection of compliance with educational legislation:
Education in practice
| % of children learning Tatar | 1994 | 2006 |
|---|---|---|
| Children in tatarstan | 12% | 51% |
| In pre-school education | 10.6% | 65% |
| In secondary education | 100% |
source8)