The Yupik languages are the several distinct languages of the several Yupik (юпик) peoples of western and southcentral Alaska and northeastern Siberia. The Yupik languages differ enough from one another that speakers of different ones cannot understand each other, although they may understand the general idea of a conversation of speakers of another of the languages. One of them, Sirenik, has been a dead language since 1997.
The Yupik languages are in the family of Eskimo–Aleut languages. The Aleut and Eskimo languages diverged about 2000 BC; within the Eskimo classification, the Yupik languages diverged from each other and from the Inuit language about 1000 AD.
Read more about Yupik Languages: Geographic Distribution of Yupik Languages, Grammar, Writing Systems
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“People in places many of us never heard of, whose names we can’t pronounce or even spell, are speaking up for themselves. They speak in languages we once classified as “exotic” but whose mastery is now essential for our diplomats and businessmen. But what they say is very much the same the world over. They want a decent standard of living. They want human dignity and a voice in their own futures. They want their children to grow up strong and healthy and free.”
—Hubert H. Humphrey (1911–1978)