View source for Social:Tatar language

{{Short description|Turkic language spoken by Tatars}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Tatar
| nativename       = {{lang|tt|{{lang|tt-Cyrl|татар теле}}<br/>{{lang|tt-Latn|tatar tele}}<br/>{{lang|tt-Arab|تاتار تئلئ}} • {{lang|tt-Arab|تاتار تلی}}}}
| region           = [[Place:Volga region|Volga region]]
| ethnicity        = Volga Tatars
| speakers         = {{sigfig|5.2|2}} million
| date             = 2010 census
| ref              = e18
| image            = Tatar.png
| imagecaption     = Tatar in Cyrillic, Latin, and Perso-Arabic scripts
| speakers2        = (may include some L2 speakers)
| agency           = [http://www.ijli.antat.ru/language.html Institute of Language, Literature and Arts of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan]
| script           = [[Social:Tatar alphabet|Tatar alphabet]] ([[Social:Cyrillic script|Cyrillic]], Latin, formerly Arabic)
| familycolor      = Altaic
| fam1             = [[Social:Turkic languages|Turkic]]
| fam2             = [[Social:Common Turkic languages|Common Turkic]]
| fam3             = [[Social:Kipchak languages|Kipchak]]
| fam4             = Kipchak–Bulgar
| ancestor         = [[Social:Old Tatar language|Old Tatar language]]
| dia1             = Mishar Tatar
| dia2             = Nagaibak
| nation           = Tatarstan ({{wipe|Russia}})
| minority         = {{wipe|China}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://fujian.gov.cn/hdjl/hdjlzsk/mzzjt/mz/202209/t20220913_5991001.htm|title=少数民族的语言文字有哪些？|language=zh|website=fujian.gov.cn|date=September 13, 2022|access-date=October 28, 2022|author=Ethnic Groups and Religious department, Fujian Provincial Government}}</ref><br>
{{wipe|Poland}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=ACT of 6 January 2005 on national and ethnic minorities and on the  regional languages |url=http://ksng.gugik.gov.pl/english/files/act_on_national_minorities.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191205133312/http://ksng.gugik.gov.pl/english/files/act_on_national_minorities.pdf |archive-date=2019-12-05}}</ref><br />
| iso1             = tt
| iso2             = tat
| iso3             = tat
| glotto           = tata1255
| glottorefname    = Tatar
| lingua           = 44-AAB-be
| notice           = IPA
| map              = Verbreitungsgebiet_der_Tataren.PNG
| map2 = Lang Status 80-VU.svg
| mapcaption2 =
}}
[[File:Borongi bolgarlar Gaziz cover.jpg|thumb|right|Tatar book written in the Arabic script entitled ''Ancient Bulgars''.]]

'''Tatar''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|t|ɑː|t|əɹ}} {{respell|TAH|tər}};<ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|Tatar}}</ref> {{lang|tt|{{lang|tt-Cyrl|татар теле}}, {{lang|tt-Latn|tatar tele}}}} or {{lang|tt|{{lang|tt-Cyrl|татарча}}, {{lang|tt-Latn|tatarça}}}}) is a [[Social:Turkic languages|Turkic language]] spoken by the Volga Tatars mainly located in modern Tatarstan (European Russia), as well as Siberia. It should not be confused with [[Social:Crimean Tatar language|Crimean Tatar]] or [[Social:Siberian Tatar language|Siberian Tatar]], which are closely related but belong to different subgroups of the [[Social:Kipchak languages|Kipchak languages]].

==Geographic distribution==
The Tatar language is spoken in {{wipe|Russia}} by about 5.3 million people, [[Place:Azerbaijan|Azerbaijan]], {{wipe|China}}, {{wipe|Finland}}, [[Place:Georgia (country)|Georgia]], [[Place:Israel|Israel]], Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, [[Place:Turkey|Turkey]], {{wipe|Ukraine}}, the US, Uzbekistan, and several other countries. Globally, there are more than 7 million speakers of Tatar.

Tatar is also the mother tongue for several thousand Mari, a Finnic people; Mordva's Qaratay group also speak a variant of Kazan Tatar.

In the 2010 census, 69% of Russian Tatars claimed at least some knowledge of the Tatar language.<ref>Russian Census 2010. [http://www.gks.ru/free_doc/new_site/perepis2010/croc/Documents/Vol4/pub-04-06.pdf Владение языками населением] {{in lang|ru}}</ref> In Tatarstan, 93% of Tatars and 3.6% of Russians claimed to have at least some knowledge of the Tatar language. In neighbouring Bashkortostan, 67% of Tatars, 27% of Bashkirs, and 1.3% of Russians claimed to understand basic Tatar language.<ref>Russian Census 2010. [http://www.gks.ru/free_doc/new_site/perepis2010/croc/Documents/Vol4/pub-04-07.pdf Владение языками населением наиболее многочисленных национальностей по субъектам Российской Федерации] {{in lang|ru}}</ref>

===Official status===
[[File:Kazan Millennium tamğa.svg|thumb|upright=0.9|The word ''Qazan'' – قازان is written in Arabic script in the semblance of a Zilant.]]
[[File:Söyälmäskä.jpg|upright=0.9|thumb|Bilingual guide in Kazan Metro]]
[[File:Kazan metro sign.JPG|thumb|right|upright=0.9|A subway sign in Tatar (top) and Russian]]

Tatar, along with Russian, is the official language of the Republic of Tatarstan. The official script of Tatar language is based on the [[Social:Cyrillic script|Cyrillic script]] with some additional letters. The Republic of Tatarstan passed a law in 1999, which came into force in 2001, establishing an official Tatar Latin alphabet. A Russian federal law overrode it in 2002, making Cyrillic the sole official script in Tatarstan since. Unofficially, other scripts are used as well, mostly Latin and Arabic. All official sources in Tatarstan must use Cyrillic on their websites and in publishing. In other cases, where Tatar has no official status, the use of a specific alphabet depends on the preference of the author.

The Tatar language was made a ''de facto'' official language in Russia in 1917, but only within the Tatar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. Tatar is also considered to have been the official language in the short-lived [[Place:Idel-Ural State|Idel-Ural State]], briefly formed during the Russian Civil War.

The usage of Tatar declined from during the 20th century. By the 1980s, the study and teaching of Tatar in the public education system was limited to rural schools. However, Tatar-speaking pupils had little chance of entering university because higher education was available in Russian almost exclusively.

As of 2001 Tatar was considered a potentially endangered language while Siberian Tatar received "endangered" and "seriously endangered" statuses, respectively.<ref>{{Cite book
|publisher = Unesco Pub.
|isbn = 978-92-3-103798-6
|last = Wurm
|first = S
|author2=Unesco
 |title = Atlas of the world's languages in danger of disappearing
|location = Paris
|year = 2001
}}</ref> Higher education in Tatar can only be found in Tatarstan, and is restricted to the [[Social:Humanities|humanities]]. In other regions Tatar is primarily a spoken language and the number of speakers as well as their proficiency tends to decrease. Tatar is popular as a written language only in Tatar-speaking areas where schools with Tatar language lessons are situated. On the other hand, Tatar is the only language in use in rural districts of Tatarstan.

Since 2017, Tatar language classes are no longer mandatory in the schools of Tatarstan.<ref>{{cite news|publisher=BBC Russia|url=http://www.bbc.com/russian/features-42186885|title=Без языка: Казань отказалась от обязательных уроков татарского|date=2017-12-01|lang=ru}}</ref> According to the opponents of this change, it will further endanger the Tatar language and is a violation of the Tatarstan Constitution which stipulates the equality of Russian and Tatar languages in the republic.<ref>{{cite news|publisher=БИЗНЕС Online|url=https://www.business-gazeta.ru/article/358446|title=Татарский язык становится «ящиком Пандоры»|date=2017-09-22|lang=ru}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|publisher=БИЗНЕС Online|url=https://www.business-gazeta.ru/article/363554|title=Исмагил Хуснутдинов: «Под лозунгом добровольности татарский язык пытаются изгнать из школ»|date=2017-11-12|lang=ru}}</ref>

==Dialects==
There are two main dialects of Tatar:
* Central or Middle (Kazan)
* Western (Mişär or Mishar)

All of these dialects also have subdivisions. Significant contributions to the study of the Tatar language and its dialects, were made by a scientist Gabdulkhay Akhatov, who is considered to be the founder of the modern Tatar dialectological school.

Spoken idioms of Siberian Tatars, which differ significantly from the above two,  are often considered as the third dialect group of Tatar by some, but as an independent language on its own by others.

=== Central or Middle ===
The Central or Middle dialectal group is spoken in Kazan and most of Tatarstan and is the basis of the standard literary Tatar language. Middle Tatar includes the Nagaibak dialect.

=== Mishar ===
The Western (Mişär) dialect is distinguished from the Central dialect especially by the absence of the uvular ''q'' and ''ğ'' and the rounded ''å'' of the first syllable. Letters ''ç'' and ''c'' are pronounced as affricates.<ref>{{cite book|title=Jazyki Rossijskoi Federatsii i sosednih gosudarstv|volume=3|pages=67–68|location=Moscow|publisher=Nauka|year=2005|isbn=5-02-011237-2}}</ref> Regional differences exist also.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|last=Zakiev|first=M. Z.|editor-last=Tenišev|editor-first=Ėdchjam R.|title=Tatar|encyclopedia=Tjurkskije jazyki|series=Jazyki mira|page=371|location=Moscow|publisher=Indrik|year=1997| isbn=5-85759-061-2}}</ref>

Mishar is the dialect spoken by the Tatar minority of Finland.<ref>{{cite book|last=Leitzinger|first=Antero|title=Mishäärit – Suomen vanha islamilainen yhteisö|location=Helsinki|publisher=Kirja-Leitzinger|year=1996|isbn=952-9752-08-3}}</ref>

=== Siberian Tatar ===
{{Main|Social:Siberian Tatar language}}
Two main isoglosses that characterize Siberian Tatar are ''ç'' as {{IPAblink|ts}} and ''c'' as {{IPAblink|j}}, corresponding to standard {{IPAblink|ɕ}} and {{IPAblink|ʑ}}. There are also grammatical differences within the dialect, scattered across Siberia.<ref>[http://www.helsinki.fi/~tasalmin/nasia_report.html#SibTatar Information about Siberian Tatar]</ref>

Many linguists claim the origins of Siberian Tatar dialects are actually independent of Volga–Ural Tatar; these dialects are quite remote both from Standard Tatar and from each other, often preventing mutual comprehension. The claim that this language is part of the modern Tatar language is typically supported by linguists in Kazan, Moscow<ref>Nikolai Baskakov Тюркские языки / Отв. ред. Г. Д. Санжеев; Институт языкознания АН СССР. — М.: Издательство восточной литературы, 1960. — 248 с.</ref> and by Siberian Tatar linguists<ref>{{cite book|last=Утяшева|first=Гузель Чахваровна|title=Русские заимствования в тоболо-иртышском диалекте сибирских татар|location=Тобольск|year=2006|oclc=1042797537}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Рахимова|first=Роза Нуретдиновна|title=Тюменский говор в системе диалектов сибирских татар: фонетико-морфологическая характеристика|location=Тюмень|year=2007|oclc=1042799247}}</ref><ref>{{cite conference|last=Рамазанова| first=Д. Б.|title=Сибирско-татарские диалекты и говоры татарского языка|book-title=Материалы IX Всероссийской научно-практической конференции «Сулеймановские чтения — 2006»|location=Тюмень|year=2006|pages=89–90|url=http://atlas.antat.ru/upload/ramazanova/dialekt.pdf}}</ref> and denounced by some Russian and Tatar<ref>{{cite book|last=Валеев|first=Фоат Тач-Ахметович|title=Западносибирские татары во второй половине XIX — начале XX в. (Историко-этнографические очерки)|location=Казань|year=1980|oclc=63230819}}</ref> ethnographs.

Over time, some of these dialects were given distinct names and recognized as separate languages (e.g. the [[Social:Chulym language|Chulym language]]) after detailed linguistic study. However, the Chulym language was never classified as a dialect of Tatar language. Confusion arose because of the endoethnonym "Tatars" used by the Chulyms. The question of classifying the Chulym language as a dialect of the Khakass language was debatable. A brief linguistic analysis shows that many of these dialects exhibit features which are quite different from the Volga–Ural Tatar varieties, and should be classified as Turkic varieties belonging to several sub-groups of the Turkic languages, distinct from [[Social:Kipchak languages|Kipchak languages]] to which Volga–Ural Tatar belongs.{{citation needed|date=December 2018}}

==Phonology==
===Vowels===
[[File:Tatar vowels F1 F2.png|thumb|Tatar vowel formants F1 and F2]]
There exist several interpretations of the Tatar vowel phonemic inventory. In total Tatar has nine or ten native vowels, and three or four loaned vowels (mainly in Russian loanwords).<ref name="Harrison&Kaun">{{Cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WdI5AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA194|title=Current Trends in Caucasian, East European and Inner Asian Linguistics|last1=Harrison|first1=K. David|last2=Kaun|first2=Abigail R.|year=2003|editor-last=Holisky|editor-first=Dee Ann|pages=194–198|chapter=Vowels and Vowel Harmony in Namangan Tatar|publisher=John Benjamins |isbn=9789027275257|editor-last2=Tuite|editor-first2=Kevin}}</ref><ref name="Berta">{{Cite book|title=The Turkic languages|last=Berta|first=Árpád|chapter=Tatar and Bashkir|year=1998|editor-last=Johanson|editor-first=Lars |editor-last2=Csató|editor-first2=Éva Á.|publisher=Routledge|pages=283–300}}</ref>

According to Baskakov (1988) Tatar has only two vowel heights, high and low. There are two low vowels, front and back, while there are eight high vowels: front and back, round (R+) and unround (R−), normal and short (or reduced).<ref name="Harrison&Kaun" />
{| style="text-align:center;" class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |
! colspan="2" |Front
! colspan="2" |Back
|-
!R−
!R+
!R−
!R+
|-
! rowspan="2" |High
!Normal
|i
|ü
|ï
|u
|-
!Short
|e
|ö
|ë
|o
|-
! colspan="2" |Low
|ä
|
|a
|
|}

Poppe (1963) proposed a similar yet slightly different scheme with a third, higher mid, height, and with nine vowels.<ref name="Harrison&Kaun" />

{| style="text-align:center;" class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" |
! colspan="2" |Front
! colspan="2" |Back
|-
!R−
!R+
!R−
!R+
|-
!High
|i
|ü
|
|u
|-
!Higher Mid
|e
|ö
|ï
|o
|-
!Low
|ä
|
|a
|
|}

According to Makhmutova (1969) Tatar has three vowel heights: high, mid and low, and four tongue positions: front, front-central, back-central and back (as they are named when cited).<ref name="Harrison&Kaun" />
{| style="text-align:center;" class="wikitable"
! rowspan="3" |
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |Front
! colspan="4" |Central
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |Back
|-
! colspan="2" |Front
! colspan="2" |Back
|-
!R−
!R+
!R−
!R+
!R−
!R+
!R−
!R+
|-
!High
|i
|ü
|
|
|
|
|ï
|u
|-
!Mid
|
|
|e
|ö
|ë
|o
|
|
|-
!Low
|ä
|
|
|
|
|
|a
|
|}

The mid back unrounded vowel ''''ë'' is usually transcribed as ''ı'', though it differs from the corresponding Turkish vowel.

The tenth vowel ''ï'' is realized as the diphthong ''ëy'' ({{IPA|tt|ɯɪ|IPA}}), which only occurs word-finally, but it has been argued to be an independent phoneme.<ref name="Harrison&Kaun" /><ref name="Berta" />

Phonetically, the native vowels are approximately thus (with the Cyrillic letters and the usual Latin romanization in angle brackets):
{| style="text-align:center;" class="wikitable"
!
! colspan="2" |Front
! colspan="2" |Back
|-
!
!R−
!R+
!R−
!R+
|-
!High
|'''и'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''i'''⟩<br />{{IPAblink|i}}
|'''ү'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''ü'''⟩<br />[{{IPA link|y}}~{{IPA link|ʉ}}]
|'''ый'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''ıy'''⟩<br />[{{IPA link|ɯ}}{{IPA link|ɪ}}]
|'''у'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''u'''⟩<br />{{IPAblink|u}}
|-
!Mid
|'''э,{{nbsp}}е'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''e'''⟩<br />[{{IPA link|e|ĕ}}~{{IPA link|ɘ|ɘ̆}}]
|'''ө'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''ö'''⟩<br />[{{IPA link|ø|ø̆}}~{{IPA link|ɵ|ɵ̆}}]
|'''ы'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''ı'''⟩<br />[{{IPA link|ɤ|ɤ̆}}~{{IPA link|ʌ|ʌ̆}}]
|'''о'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''o'''⟩<br />{{IPAblink|o|ŏ}}
|-
!Low
|'''ә'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''ä'''⟩<br />[{{IPA link|æ}}~{{IPA link|a}}]
|
|'''а'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''a'''⟩<br />{{IPAblink|ɑ}}
|
|}

In polysyllabic words, the front-back distinction is lost in reduced vowels: all become mid-central.<ref name="Harrison&Kaun" /> The mid reduced vowels in an unstressed position are frequently elided, as in кеше ''keşe'' {{IPA|[kĕˈʃĕ]}} > {{IPA|[kʃĕ]}} 'person', or кышы ''qışı'' {{IPA|[qɤ̆ˈʃɤ̆]}} > {{IPA|[qʃɤ̆]}} '(his) winter'.<ref name="Berta" /> Low back {{IPAslink|ɑ}} is rounded {{IPAblink|ɒ}} in the first syllable and after {{IPAblink|ɒ}}, but not in the last, as in бала ''bala'' {{IPA|[bɒˈlɑ]}} 'child', балаларга ''balalarğa'' {{IPA|[bɒlɒlɒrˈʁɑ]}} 'to children'.<ref name="Berta" /> In Russian loans there are also {{IPAblink|ɨ}}, {{IPAblink|ɛ}}, {{IPAblink|ɔ}}, and {{IPAblink|ä}}, written the same as the native vowels: '''ы, е/э, о, а''' respectively.<ref name="Berta" />

====Historical shifts====
Historically, the Old Turkic mid vowels have raised from mid to high, whereas the Old Turkic high vowels have become the Tatar reduced mid series. (The same shifts have also happened in [[Social:Bashkir language|Bashkir]].)<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Turkic languages|last=Johanson|first=Lars|chapter=The History of Turkic|year=1998|editor-last=Johanson|editor-first=Lars |editor-last2=Csató|editor-first2=Éva Á.|publisher=Routledge|page=92}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
!Vowel
!Old Turkic
!Kazakh
!Tatar
!Bashkir
!Gloss
|-
|*e
|*et
|et
|it
|it
|'meat'
|-
|*ö
|*söz
|söz
|süz
|hüź {{IPA|ba|hyθ|}}
|'word'
|-
|*o
|*sol
|sol
|sul
|hul
|'left'
|-
|*i
|*it
|it
|et
|et
|'dog'
|-
|*ï
|*qïz
|qız
|qëz {{IPA|tt|qɤ̆z|}}
|qëź {{IPA|ba|qɤ̆θ|}}
|'girl'
|-
|*u
|*qum
|qum
|qom
|qom
|'sand'
|-
|*ü
|*kül
|kül
|köl
|köl
|'ash'
|}

===Consonants===
{| class="wikitable"
|+caption | '''The consonants of Tatar'''<ref name="Berta" />
|-
! colspan="2"|
! Labial
! Dental
! Post-<br />alveolar
! Palatal
! Velar
! Uvular
! Glottal
|- align=center
! colspan="2"|Nasals
| м{{nbsp}}⟨m⟩<br />{{IPAslink|m}}
| н{{nbsp}}⟨n⟩<br />{{IPAslink|n̪|n}}
|
|
| ң{{nbsp}}⟨ñ⟩<br />{{IPAslink|ŋ}}
| 
|
|- align=center
! rowspan="2"| Plosives
! <small>Voiceless</small>
| п{{nbsp}}⟨p⟩<br />{{IPAslink|p}}
| т{{nbsp}}⟨t⟩<br />{{IPAslink|t̪|t}}
|
|
| к{{nbsp}}⟨k⟩<br />{{IPAslink|k}}
| къ{{nbsp}}⟨q⟩<br />{{IPAslink|q}}{{ref|uvular|‡}}
| э/ь{{nbsp}}⟨ʼ⟩<br />{{IPAslink|ʔ}}{{ref|loan|*}}
|- align="center"
! <small>Voiced</small>
| б{{nbsp}}⟨b⟩<br />{{IPAslink|b}}
| д{{nbsp}}⟨d⟩<br />{{IPAslink|d̪|d}}
|
|
| г{{nbsp}}⟨g⟩<br />{{IPAslink|ɡ}}
|
|
|- align=center
!rowspan="2"| Affricates
! <small>Voiceless</small>
|
| ц{{nbsp}}⟨ts⟩<br />{{IPAslink|ts}}{{ref|loan|*}}{{ref|dialect|†}}
|
| ч{{nbsp}}⟨ç⟩<br />{{IPAslink|tɕ}}{{ref|loan|*}}{{ref|dialect|†}}
|
|
|
|- align=center
! <small>Voiced</small>
|
|
|
| җ{{nbsp}}⟨c⟩<br />{{IPAslink|dʑ}}{{ref|dialect|†}}
|
|
|
|- align=center
!rowspan="2"| Fricatives
! <small>Voiceless</small>
| ф{{nbsp}}⟨f⟩<br />{{IPAslink|f}}{{ref|loan|*}}
| с{{nbsp}}⟨s⟩<br />{{IPAslink|s̪|s}}
| ш{{nbsp}}⟨ş⟩<br />{{IPAslink|ʃ}}
| ч{{nbsp}}⟨ś⟩<br />{{IPAslink|ɕ}}
|
| х{{nbsp}}⟨x⟩<br />{{IPAslink|χ}}
| һ{{nbsp}}⟨h⟩<br />{{IPAslink|h}}{{ref|loan|*}}
|- align=center
! <small>Voiced</small>
| в{{nbsp}}⟨v⟩<br />{{IPAslink|v}}{{ref|loan|*}}
| з{{nbsp}}⟨z⟩<br />{{IPAslink|z̪|z}}
| ж{{nbsp}}⟨j⟩<br />{{IPAslink|ʒ}}{{ref|loan|*}}
| җ{{nbsp}}⟨ź⟩<br />{{IPAslink|ʑ}}
|
| гъ{{nbsp}}⟨ğ⟩<br />{{IPAslink|ʁ}}{{ref|uvular|‡}}
|
|- align=center
!colspan="2"| Trill
|
| р{{nbsp}}⟨r⟩<br />{{IPAslink|r}}
|
|
|
|
|
|- align=center
! colspan="2"| Approximants
|
| л{{nbsp}}⟨l⟩<br />{{IPAslink|l}}
|
| й{{nbsp}}⟨y⟩<br />{{IPAslink|j}}
|у/ү/в{{nbsp}}⟨w⟩<br />{{IPAslink|w}}
|
|
|}
;Notes
:{{note|loan|*}} The phonemes {{IPAslink|v}}, {{IPAslink|ts}}, {{IPAslink|tɕ}}, {{IPAslink|ʒ}},  {{IPAslink|h}}, {{IPAslink|ʔ}} are only found in loanwords. {{IPAslink|f}} occurs more commonly in loanwords, but is also found in native words, e.g. ''yafraq'' 'leaf'.<ref name="Berta" /> {{IPAslink|v}}, {{IPAslink|ts}}, {{IPAslink|tɕ}}, {{IPAslink|ʒ}} may be substituted with the corresponding native consonants {{IPAslink|w}}, {{IPAslink|s̪|s}}, {{IPAslink|ɕ}}, {{IPAslink|ʑ}} by some Tatars.

:{{note|dialect|†}} {{IPAslink|dʑ}} and {{IPAslink|tɕ}} are the dialectal Western (Mişär) pronunciations of '''җ'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''c'''⟩{{nbsp}}{{IPAslink|ʑ}} and '''ч'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''ç'''⟩{{nbsp}}{{IPAslink|ɕ}}, the latter are in the literary standard and in the Central (Kazan) dialect. {{IPAslink|ts}} is the variant of '''ч'''{{nbsp}}⟨'''ç'''⟩{{nbsp}}{{IPAslink|ɕ}} as pronounced in the Eastern (Siberian) dialects and some Western (Mişär) dialects. Both {{IPAslink|tɕ}} and {{IPAslink|ts}} are also used in Russian loanwords (the latter written '''ц''').
:{{note|uvular|‡}} {{IPAslink|q}} and {{IPAslink|ʁ}} are usually considered allophones of {{IPAslink|k}} and {{IPAslink|ɡ}} in the environment of back vowels, so they are never written in the Tatar Cyrillic orthography in native words, and only rarely in loanwords with '''къ''' and '''гъ'''. However, {{IPAslink|q}} and {{IPAslink|ʁ}} also appear before front {{IPAslink|æ}} in Perso-Arabic loanwords which may indicate the phonemic status of these uvular consonants.

====Palatalization====
Tatar consonants usually undergo slight palatalization before front vowels. However, this allophony is not significant and does not constitute a phonemic status. This differs from Russian where palatalized consonants are not allophones but [[Social:Phoneme|phoneme]]s on their own. There are a number of Russian loanwords which have palatalized consonants in Russian and are thus written the same in Tatar (often with the "soft sign" '''ь'''). The Tatar standard pronunciation also requires palatalization in such loanwords; however, some Tatar may pronounce them non-palatalized.

===Syllables===
In native words there are six types of syllables ('''C'''onsonant, '''V'''owel, '''S'''onorant):
* V ('''ı'''-lıs, '''u'''-ra, '''ö'''-rä)
* VC ('''at'''-law, '''el'''-geç, '''ir'''-kä)
* CV ('''qa'''-la, '''ki'''-ä, '''su'''-la)
* CVC ('''bar'''-sa, '''sız'''-law, '''köç'''-le, '''qoş'''-çıq)
* VSC ('''ant'''-lar, '''äyt'''-te, '''ilt'''-kän)
* CVSC ('''tört'''-te, '''qart'''-lar, '''qayt'''-qan)

Loanwords allow other types: CSV ('''gra'''-mota), CSVC (käs-'''trül'''), etc.

===Prosody===
Stress is usually on the final syllable.  However, some suffixes cannot be stressed, so the stress shifts to the syllable before that suffix, even if the stressed syllable is the third or fourth from the end. A number of Tatar words and grammatical forms have the natural stress on the first syllable. Loanwords, mainly from Russian, usually preserve their original stress (unless the original stress is on the last syllable, in such a case the stress in Tatar shifts to suffixes as usual, e.g. ''sovét'' > ''sovetlár'' > ''sovetlarğá'').

===Phonetic alterations===
Tatar phonotactics dictate many pronunciation changes which are not reflected in the orthography.

* Unrounded vowels ''ı'' and ''e'' become rounded after ''o'' or ''ö'':
::коры/''qorı'' > [qoro]
::борын/''borın'' > [boron]
::көзге/''közge'' > [közgö]
::соры/''sorı'' > [soro]

* Nasals are assimilated to the following stops:
::унбер/''unber'' > [umber]
::менгеч/''mengeç'' > [meñgeç]

* Stops are assimilated to the preceding nasals (this is reflected in writing):
::урманнар/''urmannar'' ( < ''urman'' + ''lar'')
::комнар/''komnar'' ( < ''kom'' + ''lar'')

* Voicing may also undergo assimilation:
::күзсез/''küzsez'' > [küssez]

* Unstressed vowels may be syncopated or reduced:
::урыны/''urını''> [urnı]
::килене/''kilene'' > [kilne]

* Vowels may also be elided:
::кара урман/''qara urman'' > [qarurman]
::килә иде/''kilä ide'' > [kiläyde]
::туры урам/''turı uram'' > [tururam]
::була алмыйм/''bula almıym'' > [bulalmıym]

* In consonant clusters longer than two phones, '''ı''' or '''e''' (whichever is dictated by [[Social:Vowel harmony|vowel harmony]]) is inserted into speech as an epenthetic vowel.
::банк/''bank'' > [bañqı]

* Final consonant clusters are simplified:
::артист/''artist'' > [artis]

* Final devoicing is also frequent:
::табиб/''tabib'' > [tabip]

==Grammar==
Like other Turkic languages, Tatar is an [[Social:Agglutinative language|agglutinative language]].<ref name=Tatar11>{{cite web|url=http://www.tatar.com.ru/grammatika.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200503111707/http://www.tatar.com.ru/grammatika.php|archive-date=2020-05-03|title=Грамматика татарского языка}}</ref>

===Nouns===
Tatar nouns are inflected for cases and numbers. Case suffixes change depending on last consonants of the noun, while nouns ending in п/к are voiced to б/г (кита'''б'''ым) when a possessive suffix was added. Suffixes below are in back vowel, with front variant can be seen at #Phonology section.

{|class=wikitable
! Case
! After voiced consonants
! After nasals
! After unvoiced consonants
! Special endings
|-
! Nominative ({{lang|tt|баш килеш}})
| colspan=4 |–
|-
! Accusative ({{lang|tt|төшем килеше}})
| colspan=3 | -ны ''-nı''
| -н ''-n''
|-
! Genitive ({{lang|tt|иялек килеше}})
| colspan=4 | -ның ''-nıñ''
|-
! Dative ({{lang|tt|юнәлеш килеше}})
| colspan=2 | -га ''-ğa''
| -ка ''-qa''
| -а, -на ''-a'', ''-na''
|-
! Locative ({{lang|tt|урын-вакыт килеше}})
| colspan=2 | -да ''-da''
| -та ''-ta''
| -нда ''-nda''
|-
! Ablative  ({{lang|tt|чыгыш килеше}})
| -дан ''-dan''
| -нан ''-nan''
| -тан ''-tan''
| -ннан ''-nnan''
|-
! colspan=5 | Plural
|-
! Nominative
| -лар ''-lar''
| -нар ''-nar''
| colspan=2 | -лар ''-lar''
|-
! Accusative 
| -ларны ''-larnı''
| -нарны ''-narnı''
| colspan=2 | -ларны ''-larnı''
|-
! Genitive
| -ларның ''-larnıñ''
| -нарның ''-narnıñ''
| colspan=2 | -ларның ''-larnıñ''
|-
! Dative
| -ларга ''-larğa''
| -нарга ''-narğa''
| colspan=2 | -ларга ''-larğa''
|-
! Locative
| -ларда ''-larda''
| -нарда ''-narda''
| colspan=2 | -ларда ''-larda''
|-
! Ablative
| -лардан ''-lardan''
| -нардан ''-nardan''
| colspan=2 | -лардан ''-lardan''
|}

The declension of possessive suffixes is even more irregular, with the dative suffix -а used in 1st singular and 2nd singular suffixes, and the accusative, dative, locative, and ablative endings -н, -на, -нда, -ннан is used after 3rd person possessive suffix. Nouns ending in -и, -у, or -ү, although phonologically vowels, take consonantic endings.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://ibt.org.ru/sites/default/files/files/TTR_Gram_R_web.pdf|title=Tatar Grammar: А Grammar of the Contemporary Tatar Literary Language|first=Gustav|last=Burbiel|year=2018|publisher=Institute for Bible Translation|isbn=978-5-93943-259-7}}</ref>

{|class=wikitable
! Person
! After consonants
! After vowels
|-
! 1st singular
| -ым ''-ım''
| -м ''-m''
|-
! 2nd singular
| -ың ''-ıñ''
| -ң ''-ñ''
|-
! 3rd
| -ы ''-ı''
| -сы ''-sı''
|-
! 1st plural
| -ыбыз ''-ıbız''
| -быз ''-bız''
|-
! 2nd plural
| -ыгыз ''-ığız''
| -гыз ''-ğız''
|}

=== Declension of pronouns ===
Declension of personal and demonstrative pronouns tends to be irregular. Irregular forms are in '''bold'''.
{|class="wikitable" style="margin:auto;width:90%;"
|+ Personal pronouns
|-
! rowspan="2" | Case !! colspan="3" | Singular !! colspan="3" | Plural
|-
! I || you (sg.), thou || he, she, it || we || you (pl.) || they
|-
! Nominative 
| мин ''min'' || син ''sin'' || ул ''ul'' || без ''bez'' || сез ''sez'' || алар ''alar''
|-
! Accusative 
| '''мине''' ''mine'' || '''сине''' ''sine'' || '''аны''' ''anı'' || безне ''bezne'' || сезне ''sezne'' || аларны ''alarnı''
|-
! Genitive 
| '''минем''' ''minem'' || '''синең''' ''sineñ'' || '''аның''' ''anıñ'' || безнең ''bezneñ'' || сезнең ''sezneñ'' || аларның ''alarnıñ''
|-
! Dative 
| '''миңа''' ''miña'' || '''сиңа''' ''siña'' || '''аңа''' ''aña'' || безгә ''bezgä'' || сезгә ''sezgä'' || аларга ''alarğa''
|-
! Locative 
| миндә ''mindä'' || синдә ''sindä'' || '''анда''' ''anda'' || бездә ''bezdä'' || сездә ''sezdä'' || аларда ''alarda''
|-
! Ablative 
| миннән ''minnän'' || синнән ''sinnän'' || '''аннан''' ''annan'' || бездән ''bezdän'' || сездән ''sezdän'' || алардан ''alardan''
|}

{{Clear}}
{|class="wikitable" style="margin:auto;width:90%;"

|+ Demonstrative pronouns
|-
! rowspan="2" | Case !! colspan="2" | Singular !! colspan="2" | Plural
|-
! "This" || "That" || "These" || "Those"
|-
! Nominative 
| бу ''bu'' || шул ''şul'' || болар ''bolar'' || шулар ''şular''
|-
! Accusative 
| '''моны''' ''monı'' || '''шуны''' ''şunı'' || боларны ''bolarnı'' || шуларны ''şularnı''
|-
! Genitive 
| '''моның''' ''monıñ'' || '''шуның''' ''şunıñ'' || боларның ''bolarnıñ'' || шуларның ''şularnıñ''
|-
! Dative 
| '''моңа''' ''moña'' || '''шуңа''' ''şuña'' || боларга ''bolarğa'' || шуларга ''şularğa''
|-
! Locative 
| '''монда''' ''monda'' || '''шунда''' ''şunda'' || боларда ''bolarda'' || шуларда ''şularda''
|-
! Ablative 
| '''моннан''' ''monnan'' || '''шуннан''' ''şunnan'' || болардан ''bolardan'' || шулардан ''şulardan''
|}

{{Clear}}
{|class="wikitable" style="margin:auto;width:90%;"

|+ Interrogative pronouns
|-
! Case !! Who? !! What?
|-
! Nominative 
| кем ''kem'' || нәрсә ''närsä''
|-
! Accusative 
| кемне ''kemne'' || нәрсәне ''närsäne''
|-
! Genitive 
| кемнең ''kemneñ'' || нәрсәнең ''närsäneñ''
|-
! Dative 
| кемгә ''kemgä'' || нәрсәгә ''närsägä''
|-
! Locative 
| кемдә ''kemdä'' || нәрсәдә ''närsädä''
|-
! Ablative 
| кемнән ''kemnän'' || нәрсәдән ''närsädän''
|}

===Verbs===
{|class=wikitable
! Tense
! After voiced consonants
! After unvoiced consonants
! After vowels
|-
! Present
| colspan=2 | -а ''-a''
| -ый ''-ıy''
|-
! Definite past
| -ды ''-dı''
| -ты ''-tı''
| -ды ''-dı''
|-
! Indefinite past
| -ган ''-ğan''
| -кан ''-qan''
| -ган ''-ğan''
|-
! Definite future
| colspan=2 | -ачак ''-açaq''
| -ячак ''-yaçaq''
|-
! Indefinite future
| colspan=2 | -ар/ыр ''-ar/-ır''
| -р ''-r''
|-
! Conditional
| colspan=3 | -са ''-sa''
|-
! colspan=4 | Non-finite tenses
|-
! Present participle
| colspan=3 | -учы ''-uçı''
|-
! Past participle
| -ган ''-ğan''
| -кан ''-qan''
| -ган ''-ğan''
|-
! Future participle
| colspan=2 | -асы ''-ası''
| -ыйсы ''-ıysı''
|-
! Definite future participle
| colspan=3 | -ачак ''-açaq''
|-
! Indefinite future participle
| colspan=2 | -ар/-ыр ''-ar/ır''
| -р ''-r''
|-
! Verbal participle
| colspan=2 | -ып ''-ıp''
| -п ''-p''
|-
! Pre-action gerund
| -ганчы ''-ğançı''
| -канчы ''-qançı''
| -ганчы ''-ğançı''
|-
! Post-action gerund
| -гач ''-ğaç''
| -кач ''-qaç''
| -гач ''-ğaç''
|-
! Verbal noun
| colspan=3 | -у
|-
! rowspan=2 | Infinitive
| colspan=3 | -мак ''-maq''
|-
| colspan=2 | -арга/-ырга ''-arğa/ırğa''
| -рга ''-rğa''
|}
The distribution of present tense suffix is complicated, with the former (also with vowel harmony) is used with verb stems ending in consonants, and latter is used with verb stem ending in vowels (with the last vowel being deleted, {{wikt-lang|tt|эшләү}} — эшл'''и''', compare [[Social:Turkish language|Turkish]] ''işlemek'' — continuous ''işl'''iyor'''''). The distribution of indefinite future tense is more complicated in consonant-ending stems, it is resolved by -арга/-ырга infinitives (язарга — яз'''ар'''). However, because some have verb citation forms in verbal noun (-у), this rule becomes somewhat unpredictable.

Tenses are negated with -ма, however in the indefinite future tense and the verbal participle they become -мас and -мыйча instead, respectively. Alongside with vowel-ending stems, the suffix also becomes -мый when negates the present tense. To form interrogatives, the suffix -мы is used.

{|class=wikitable
|+ Personal inflections
! Type
! 1st singular
! 2nd singular
! 3rd singular
! 1st plural
! 2nd plural
! 3rd plural
|-
! I
| -мын/-м ''-mın/-m''
| -сың ''-sıñ''
| -∅
| -быз ''-bız''
| -сыз ''-sız''
| -лар/-нар ''-lar/-nar''
|-
! II
| -м ''-m''
| -ң ''-ñ''
| -∅
| -к ''-q, -k''
| -гыз ''-ğız''
| -лар/-нар ''-lar/-nar''
|-
! Imperative
| -ыйм ''-ıym''
| -∅
| -сын ''-sın''
| -ыйк ''-ıyq''
| -(ы)гыз ''-ığız''
| -сыннар ''-sınnar''
|}

Definite past and conditional tenses use type II personal inflections instead. When in the case of present tense, short ending (-м) is used. After vowels, the first person imperative forms deletes the last vowel, similar to the present tense does ({{wikt-lang|tt|эшләү}} — эшл'''им'''). Like plurals of nouns, the suffix -лар change depending the preceding consonants (-алар, but -ганнар).

Some verbs, however, have irregular imperative forms by adding a final historic vowel ({{wikt-lang|tt|уку}} — ук'''ы''', {{wikt-lang|tt|төзү}} — төз'''е'''), instead of leaving the verb's stem.

===Predicatives===
{| class="wikitable"
!
! After voiced consonants
! After unvoiced consonants
|-
! 1st singular
| colspan=2 | -мын ''-mın''
|-
! 2nd singular
| colspan=2 | -сың ''-sıñ''
|-
! 3rd
| -дыр ''-dır''
| -тыр ''-tır''
|-
! 1st plural
| colspan=2 | -быз ''-bız''
|-
! 2nd plural
| colspan=2 | -сыз ''-sız''
|}

These predicative suffixes now fallen into disuse, or rarely used.<ref>{{cite book |title= Татар грамматикасы|volume= 2|edition= 2|last= Зәкиев|first= М.З.|publisher= Казан: ТӘһСИ|year= 2016|pages= 56{{hyphen}}57|url= http://antat.ru/ru/iyli/publishing/book/2016/%D0%93%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%BC%D0%BC%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B0_2.pdf#page=55}}</ref>

==Writing system==
[[File:Tatar Latin Janalif Arabic 1928.png|thumb|upright=0.9|right|Tatar Latin (Jaꞑalif) and Arabic scripts, 1927]]
[[File:Tatar guide in Latin.jpg|right|upright=0.9|thumb|Some guides in Kazan are in Latin script, especially in fashion boutiques]]
[[File:Nizhny-Novgorod-Mosque-inscription-C0274.jpg|thumb|Tatar sign on a madrasah in Nizhny Novgorod, written in both Arabic and Cyrillic Tatar scripts]]

During its history, Tatar has been written in Arabic, Latin and [[Social:Cyrillic script|Cyrillic script]]s.

Before 1928, Tatar was mostly written with in Arabic script (Иске имля/İske imlâ, "Old orthography", to 1920; Яңа имла/Yaña imlâ, "New orthography", 1920–1928).

During the 19th century Russian Christian missionary Nikolay Ilminsky devised the first Cyrillic alphabet for Tatar. This alphabet is still used by Christian Tatars (Kryashens).

In the [[Place:Soviet Union|Soviet Union]] after 1928, Tatar was written with a Latin alphabet called [[Social:Yañalif|Jaꞑalif]].

In 1939, in Tatarstan and all other parts of the Soviet Union, a [[Social:Cyrillic script|Cyrillic script]] was adopted and is still used to write Tatar. It is also used in Kazakhstan.

The Republic of Tatarstan passed a law in 1999 that came into force in 2001 establishing an official Tatar Latin alphabet. A Russian federal law overrode it in 2002, making Cyrillic the sole official script in Tatarstan since. In 2004, an attempt to introduce a Latin-based alphabet for Tatar was further abandoned when the Constitutional Court ruled that the federal law of 15 November 2002 mandating the use of Cyrillic for the state languages of the republics of the Russian Federation<ref name="FederalLaw">{{cite book|last=Spolsky|first=Bernard|title=Language Policy|isbn=978-0-521-01175-4|year=2004|publisher=Cambridge University Press|page=2}}</ref> does not contradict the Russian constitution.<ref name="RussianConstitutionalCourt">{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4016571.stm|title=Russia court sticks to letter law|date=16 November 2004|access-date=20 February 2012|work=BBC News}}</ref> In accordance with this Constitutional Court ruling, on 28 December 2004, the Tatar Supreme Court overturned the Tatarstani law that made the Latin alphabet official.<ref name="TatarSupremeCourt">{{cite web|url=http://www.usefoundation.org/view/517|title=The Tatar language will continue to be written through the Cyrillic alphabet|date=February 2005|access-date=20 February 2012|work=U.S. English Foundation|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430044601/http://www.usefoundation.org/view/517|archive-date=30 April 2011}}</ref>

In 2012 the Tatarstan government adopted a new Latin alphabet but with limited usage (mostly for Romanization).

* Tatar [[Social:Persian alphabet|Perso-Arabic alphabet]] (before 1928):
{| style="font-size:1.4em; border-color:black; border-width:1px; border-style:solid; border-collapse:collapse; background-color:#F8F8EF"
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | آ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ا
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ب
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | پ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ت
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ث
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ج
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | چ
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ح
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | خ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | د
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ذ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ر
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ز
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ژ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | س
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ش
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ص
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ض
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ط
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ظ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ع
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | غ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ف
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ق
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ك
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | گ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | نك
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ل
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | م
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ن
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ه
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | و
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ۇ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ڤ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ی
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ئ
| 
| 
| 
|}

* Tatar Old Latin (Jaꞑalif) alphabet (1928 to 1940), including a digraph in the last position:
{| style="font-size:1.4em; border-color:black; border-width:1px; border-style:solid; border-collapse:collapse; background-color:#F8F8EF"
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | A a
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | B ʙ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | C c
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ç ç
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | D d
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | E e
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ə ə
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | F f
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | G g
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ƣ ƣ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | H h
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | I i
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | J j
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | K k
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | L l
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | M m
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | N n
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ꞑ ꞑ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | O o
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ɵ ɵ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | P p
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Q q
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | R r
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | S s
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ş ş
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | T t
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | U u
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | V v
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | X x
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | У y
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Z z
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ƶ ƶ
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | [[Social:I with bowl|Ь ь]]
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ьj ьj
|
|
|
|
|
|}

* Tatar Old Cyrillic alphabet (by Nikolay Ilminsky, 1861; the letters in parentheses are not used in modern publications):
{| style="font-size:1.4em; border-color:#000000; border-width:1px; border-style:solid; border-collapse:collapse; background-color:#F8F8EF"
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | А а
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ӓ ӓ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Б б
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | В в
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Г г
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Д д
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Е е
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ё ё
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ж ж
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | З з
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | И и
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | (Іі)
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Й й
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | К к
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Л л
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | М м
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Н н
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ҥ ҥ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | О о
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ӧ ӧ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | П п
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Р р
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | С с
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Т т
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | У у
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ӱ ӱ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ф ф
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Х х
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ц ц
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ч ч
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ш ш
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Щ щ
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ъ ъ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ы ы
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ь ь
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | (Ѣѣ)
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Э э
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ю ю
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Я я
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | (Ѳѳ)
|}

* Tatar Cyrillic alphabet (1939; the letter order adopted in 1997):
{| style="font-size:1.4em; border-color:black; border-width:1px; border-style:solid; border-collapse:collapse; background-color:#F8F8EF"
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | А а
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ә ә
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Б б
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | В в
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Г г
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Д д
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Е е
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ё ё
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ж ж
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Җ җ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | З з
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | И и
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Й й
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | К к
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Л л
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | М м
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Н н
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ң ң
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | О о
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ө ө
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | П п
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Р р
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | С с
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Т т
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | У у
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ү ү
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ф ф
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Х х
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Һ һ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ц ц
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ч ч
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ш ш
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Щ щ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ъ ъ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ы ы
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ь ь
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Э э
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ю ю
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Я я
| 
|}

* 1999 Tatar Latin alphabet, made official by a law adopted by Tatarstani authorities but annulled by the Tatar Supreme Court in 2004:<ref name="TatarSupremeCourt" />
{| style="font-size:1.4em; border-color:black; border-width:1px; border-style:solid; border-collapse:collapse; background-color:#F8F8EF"
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | A a
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ə ə
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | B b
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | C c
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ç ç
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | D d
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | E e
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | F f
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | G g
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ğ ğ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | H h
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | I ı
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | İ i
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | J j
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | K k
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Q q
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | L l
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | M m
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | N n
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ꞑ ꞑ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | O o
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ɵ ɵ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | P p
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | R r
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | S s
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ş ş
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | T t
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | U u
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ü ü
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | V v
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | W w
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | X x
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Y y
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Z z
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ʼ
| 
| 
| 
| 
| 
|}

* 2012 Tatar Latin alphabet<ref name="Zamanälif-2">{{Cite web |url= https://cdnstatic.rg.ru/uploads/attachments/73/99/43/pril.pdf |title= Law of the Republic of Tatarstan "On the use of the Tatar language as the state language of the Republic of Tatarstan" with an appendix (correspondence table)}}</ref>
{| style="font-size:1.4em; border-color:black; border-width:1px; border-style:solid; border-collapse:collapse; background-color:#F8F8EF"
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | A a
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ä ä
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | B b
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | C c
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ç ç
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | D d
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | E e
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | F f
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | G g
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ğ ğ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | H h
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | I ı
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | İ i
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | J j
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | K k
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Q q
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | L l
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | M m
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | N n
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ñ ñ
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | O o
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ö ö
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | P p
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | R r
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | S s
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ş ş
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | T t
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | U u
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Ü ü
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | V v
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | W w
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | X x
|-
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Y y
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | Z z
| style="width:3em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | ʼ
| 
| 
| 
| 
| 
|}

==History==
[[File:Tatar vs. Crimean Tatar - Family member names.webm|thumb|Kazan Tatar and Crimean Tatar compare their native languages (2022).]]
Tatar's ancestors are the extinct [[Social:Bulgar language|Bulgar]] and [[Social:Kipchak languages|Kipchak languages]].

The literary Tatar language is based on the Middle Tatar dialect and on the [[Social:Old Tatar language|Old Tatar language]] (''İske Tatar Tele''). Both are members of the Volga-Ural subgroup of the [[Social:Kipchak languages|Kipchak]] group of [[Social:Turkic languages|Turkic languages]], although they also partly derive from the ancient Volga [[Social:Bulgar language|Bulgar language]].

Most of the [[Social:Uralic languages|Uralic languages]] in the Volga River area have strongly influenced the Tatar language,<ref>[http://www.princeton.edu/~turkish/aatt/tatar.htm Tatar language – Princeton University] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061213002624/http://www.princeton.edu/~turkish/aatt/tatar.htm |date=13 December 2006 }}</ref> as have the [[Social:Arabic language|Arabic]], [[Social:Persian language|Persian]] and [[Social:Russian language|Russian]] languages.<ref>
{{in lang|ru}} [http://www.languages-study.com/tatar.html Татарский язык в Интернете: информация о методах и средствах обучения]
</ref>

[[Social:Crimean Tatar language|Crimean Tatar]], although similar by name, belongs to another subgroup of the Kipchak languages. Unlike Kazan Tatar, Crimean Tatar is heavily influenced by [[Social:Turkish language|Turkish]] (mostly its Ottoman variety with [[Social:Arabic|Arabic]] and [[Social:Persian language|Persian]] influences) and [[Social:Nogai language|Nogai]] languages.

==Examples==
[[Philosophy:Universal Declaration of Human Rights|Universal Declaration of Human Rights]], Article 1:

{{interlinear|indent=2
|Барлык кешеләр дә азат һәм үз абруйлары һәм хокуклары ягыннан тиң булып туалар. Аларга акыл һәм вөҗдан бирелгән һәм бер-берсенә карата туганнарча мөнасәбәттә булырга тиешләр.
|Barlıq keşelär dä azat häm üz abruyları häm xoquqları yağınnan tiñ bulıp tualar. Alarğa aqıl häm wöcdan birelgän häm ber-bersenä qarata tuğannarça mönasäbättä bulırğa tiyeşlär
|}}

==See also==
*Corpus of Written Tatar
*[[Social:Tatar alphabet|Tatar alphabet]]
*Tatar name
*Tatars

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==

* {{cite book|isbn=978-0-7007-1077-5|title=Historical anthology of Kazan Tatar verse: voices of eternity |last1=Bukharaev |first1=Ravilʹ |last2=Matthews |first2=D. J. |last3=Matthews |first3=David John |date=29 November 2023 |publisher=Psychology Press }}
* {{cite journal|doi=10.1111/weng.12324 |title=Language education for glocal interaction: English and Tatar |date=2018 |last1=Gilmetdinova |first1=Alsu |last2=Malova |first2=Irina |journal=World Englishes |volume=37 |issue=4 |pages=624–634 |s2cid=149975557 }}
*PEN (Organization). (1998). ''Tatar literature today''. Kazan: Magarif Publishers.
*Poppe, N. N. (1963). ''Tatar manual: descriptive grammar and texts with a Tatar-English glossary''. Bloomington: Indiana University.
*{{in lang|ru}} Ахатов Г. Х. Татарская диалектология (учебник для студентов вузов). — Казань, 1984.
*{{in lang|ru}} Татарская грамматика. В 3-х т. / Гл. ред. М. З. Закиев. — Казань, 1993.

==External links==
* {{in lang|ru}} [http://atlas.antat.ru/ Atlas of Tatar dialects]
* [http://pauctle.com/tttr Tatar<>Turkish dictionary]
{{InterWiki|code=tt}}
{{Wikivoyage|Tatar phrasebook}}

{{Languages of Russia}}
{{Languages of China}}
{{Turkic languages}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Tatar Language}}
[[Category:Agglutinative languages]]
[[Category:Languages of China]]
[[Category:Languages of Russia]]
[[Category:Vowel-harmony languages]]

{{Sourceattribution|Tatar language}}