Ethnologue: Languages of the World
A website with a list of all known languages, continuously updated as new information arrives. Ethnologue maintains a variety of datasets made available to subscribers. Ethnologue is one of the primary sources used to attribute ISO codes to different languages
Additional Description
Ethnologue is a comprehensive reference work that catalogs all known living languages. It is the world’s most comprehensive catalogue of languages and provides statistics and other information on the living languages of the world. Ethnologue has been an active research project for more than 70 years. Thousands of linguists and other researchers all over the world rely on and have contributed to Ethnologue. The publication is available both in print and online.
Ethnologue includes alternative names and autonyms, the number of L1 and L2 speakers, language prestige, domains of use, literacy rates, locations, dialects, language classification, linguistic affiliations, typology, language maps, country maps, publication and use in media, availability of the Bible in each language and dialect described, religious affiliations of speakers, a cursory description of revitalization efforts where reported, intelligibility and lexical similarity with other dialects and languages, writing scripts, an estimate of language viability using the Expanded Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale (EGIDS), and bibliographic resources. Coverage varies depending on languages. For instance, as of 2008, information on word order was present for 15% of entries while religious affiliations were mentioned for 38% of languages.
The Ethnologue Global Dataset provides access to Ethnologue data. The Dataset can be purchased as a downloadable CSV file, enabling researchers to analyze the information with their preferred statistical software. Several types of licensing are available.
Ethnologue is an important resource for researchers, linguists, and anyone interested in the world’s languages. It provides a wealth of information on the living languages of the world, including their distribution, classification, and characteristics. The publication is updated regularly to reflect changes in the status of languages, and new editions are published periodically. Ethnologue is an essential tool for anyone working in the field of linguistics, and it is widely used by researchers, educators, and language enthusiasts around the world.
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