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How are Turkic languages classified into Oghuz, Kipchak, Uyghur-Chagatai, and Siberian branches?
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Turkic languages are classified into four primary branches based on linguistic, historical, and geographic criteria: southwestern, northwestern, southeastern, and northeastern.1
The Four Main Branches
- Southwestern (Oghuz): This branch is divided into West Oghuz (including Turkish, Azerbaijani, and Gagauz), East Oghuz (including Turkmen and Khorāsān Turkic), and a southern group consisting of Afshar and related dialects.1
- Northwestern (Kipchak): This branch comprises the South Kipchak group (including Kazakh and Kyrgyz), the North Kipchak group (including Tatar and Bashkir), and the West Kipchak group (including Crimean Tatar and Karaim).1
- Southeastern (Uyghur-Chagatai): This branch includes a western group (Uzbek) and an eastern group, which comprises Uyghur and Eastern Turki dialects.1
- Northeastern (Siberian): This branch consists of the North Siberian group (Sakha and Dolgan) and the heterogeneous South Siberian group, which includes languages such as Tyvan and Altay.1
Additionally, Chuvash and Khalaj form two separate, strongly deviant branches.1