Courses: Department of Central Eurasian Studies

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U320 Uralic Peoples
Gyula Décsy

The course--open to both undergraduate and graduate students--provides basic information on all seventeen Uralic peoples. These include, besides the Hungarians, Finns and Estonians, a number of minority nations living in the territory of the former Soviet Union (northeast Europe and northwest Siberia).

The location of the primordial Uralic home and the subsequent differentiation of the Uralic peoples will be discussed, followed by a detailed presentation of the geographical boundaries, ethnic statistics, political and social systems, language and dialects, literature (literary life), folklore, arts, religion, educational, economic system, and media of each of these peoples.

Special attention will be paid to such topics as contacts with Slavs, Turks and the Germanic peoples, and the influence of English-American on the present-day Uralic languages.

Exams: Midterm and final examinations.

Papers: Graduate students are expected to prepare a paper on a subject chosen in consultation with the instructor.

Texts:

Vuorela, T., The Finno-Ugric Peoples. Indiana University Publications, Vol. 39, Uralic and Altaic Series, Bloomington, Indiana. l964.
Décsy, Gyula, The Uralic Protolanguage, Bloomington, 1990.
Décsy, Gyula, The Linguistic Identity of Europe, 2000.

Additional/Optional Readings:

Décsy, Gyula, Global Linguistic Connections. Bloomington, Indiana, l983.
Décsy, Gyula, Einführung in die Finnish-ugrische Sprachwissenschaft. Wiesbaden, 1965 (for graduate students only).

Days and Time: Tuesday and Thursday, 11:15-12:30.