Central Yupik

Central Yupik is a Yupik Eskimo language spoken in Alaska. It is one of the two major dialects of the Yupik language, the other being Siberian Yupik. Central Yupik is spoken in the following areas: * Alaska: on St. Lawrence Island and in the villages of Gambell, Savoonga, and Brevig Mission; and in the Pribilof Islands * Russia: in the villages of Sireniki and Uelen According to the 2010 United States census, 4,377 people reported speaking Central Yupik at home. Central Yupik has been declining in use since the mid-20th century. In 1980, Central Yupik was estimated to have about 1,500 speakers. By 2010, that number had decreased to about 1,000. The reasons for this decline are not entirely clear, but may be due to a combination of factors such as assimilation to English and other languages, and the loss of younger speakers. Efforts are being made to revitalize the Central Yupik language. In 2012, the first ever Central Yupik language immersion program was established in Gambell, Alaska. The goal of the program is to help preserve the language by teaching it to a new generation of speakers.