ABSTRACT
This Palaeo-Siberian language (also known as Gilyak) is difficult to classify and is generally regarded as a language isolate, with no obvious relatives. Some connection with American Indian languages and with the Tungus family has been pointed out. Within the Nivkh community of about 4,000 people (living on the lower Amur and on the island of Sakhalin) the language is losing ground, and it is spoken as a native language by barely a quarter of the population.
