Linguistic Geography of Tundra Nenets: the History of the Western Groups

Abstract The article examines the historical geographic distribution of the Tundra Nenets language in the western part of its distribution and visualizes it using detailed maps. The article covers the period from the 16th century onwards, when the first more or less reliable data on the distribution of the Nenets and their language in the European part of Russia appeared. The discussion begins by outlining the earlier ethnolinguistic situation of the territories concerned. Then, individual groups/regions of the European Nenets are examined in detail, from the Arkhangelsk region to the territories where the Nenets appeared only in the 19th century (the Kola Peninsula, the Kolguev Islands and Novaya Zemlya). Each region’s settlement history from the 16th to the 21st centuries is analysed in detail, with accompanying demographic data provided for these periods. The conclusion offers a comprehensive overview of population trends among the individual Nenets groups by the year.