Chukchi (Chukchee) is a
Palaeosiberian language spoken by
Chukchi people in the easternmost extremity of
Siberia, mainly in
Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. According to the
Russian Census of 2002, about 7,700 of the 15,700 Chukchi people speak Chukchi; knowledge of the Chukchi language is decreasing, and most Chukchis now speak the
Russian language (fewer than 500 report not speaking Russian at all). Chukchi is closely related to
Koryak, which is spoken by about half as many as speak Chukchi. The language, together with Koryak,
Kerek,
Alutor, and
Itelmen, forms the
Chukotko-Kamchatkan language family.