Sireniks

Sirenik or Sireniki (Sirenik Yupik: сиӷы́ныгмы̄́ӷий Sirenik Yupik pronunciation: [siˈʁənəɣˈməːʁij]) are an Eskaleut-speaking ethnic group of Chukotka Autonomous Okrug and former speakers of a divergent Eskimo-Aleut language in Siberia, before its extinction in 1997. The total language death of this language means that now the cultural identity of Sirenik Yupik is maintained through other aspects: slight dialectal difference in the adopted Siberian Yupik language; sense of place, including appreciation of the antiquity of their settlement Sirenik.

At the beginning of the 20th century, speakers of the Sirenik language inhabited the settlements of Sirenik, Imtuk, and some small villages stretching to the west from Sirenik along south-eastern coasts of the Chukchi Peninsula. As early as in 1895, Imtuk was already a settlement with mixed population of Sirenik Yupik and Ungazigmit (the latter belonging to Siberian Yupik).

The Yupik population of settlement of Сиреники (Sireniki, plural of Sirenik) formerly spoke an Eskaleut language with several unique traits. For example, dual number is not known in Sirenik, while most Eskimo–Aleut languages have dual, including the neighboring Siberian Yupik relatives. These differences amounted to mutual unintelligibility with Siberian Yupik and the Sirenik language's nearest language relatives. The language is now extinct.

Language differences (even from its neighboring Yupik relatives) meant Sirenik Yupik had to speak either Siberian Yupik or Chukchi, an unrelated language, to communicate with the neighboring (linguistically related) Siberian Yupik. These were distinct, mutually unintelligible languages.

The linguistic classification of Sirenik language is still under debate. It is sometimes regarded as a third branch of Eskimo (along with Inuit and Yupik), but is also sometimes classified as a Yupik language.

The last native speaker of Sirenik, Vyie (Valentina Wye) (Russian: Выйе) died in January 1997. Thus, the language is extinct, and today Sirenik Yupik speak Siberian Yupik language and/or Russian.

Little is known about Sirineki history, besides some conjectures based on linguistical consideration. Sirenik Yupik culture has been influenced by that of Chukchi (witnessed also by folktale motifs).

Sireniki is an old settlement; it has existed at least for 2500 years. It is the only Yupik village in Siberia that has not been relocated, even during the assimilation policy. This fact is a part of establishing recent cultural identity of Sireniki Yupik.