A TYPOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION OF UZBEK DIALECTS INTO OGUZ, KIPCHAK, AND KARLUK SUBGROUPS

Abstract

Uzbek, a Turkic language spoken by approximately 35 million people primarily in Uzbekistan and across Central Asia, exhibits significant internal dialectal variation that has not yet been comprehensively systematised within a single typological framework. Existing classifications, developed largely in Soviet-era dialectology, distinguish three principal dialect subgroups, such as Oguz, Kipchak, and Karluk on the basis of genealogical Turkic descent, phonological features, and morphological patterns. However, these classifications have been inconsistently applied in post-independence scholarship, and the linguistic criteria underlying them have rarely been subject to rigorous contemporary scrutiny. This article undertakes a systematic typological re-examination of Uzbek dialect subgroups, drawing on phonological, morphological, lexical, and syntactic evidence to define, compare, and map the three principal subgroups. The analysis reveals that the Oguz-Kipchak-Karluk tripartite model retains substantial descriptive validity, though the boundaries between subgroups are significantly more permeable than classical accounts suggest, particularly in urbanised transitional zones and areas of sustained contact with Tajik, Russian, and Karakalpak.