Yakutia
/ˌjɑːˈkuːtiə/noun
A large region of northeastern Siberia in Russia, officially known as the Sakha Republic.
Did you know?The region’s Indigenous Sakha people generally call their homeland Sakha, while Yakutia comes through Russian usage from the exonym Yakut, whose deeper origin remains debated.
Etymological Timeline
Before the 17th Century
Sakha
Sakha
“The Indigenous name associated with the Sakha people and their homeland; its ultimate etymology is debated.”
17th Century
Evenki
yako
“A name used by Evenki speakers for the Sakha people; scholars commonly connect it with the later Russian exonym, though the transmission history is not fully certain.”
17th Century
Russian
якуты (yakuty)
“The Russian plural name for the Sakha people, borrowed through Siberian contact terminology.”
17th–18th Century
Russian
Якутия (Yakutiya)
“The territorial name formed from Якут (Yakut), meaning the land or region associated with the Yakuts.”
Modern English
English
Yakutia
“The conventional English name for the Sakha Republic, a vast northeastern Siberian region of Russia.”