Despite its decreasing popularity, the local media in Dagestan have managed to perform a literary experiment. This resulted in the production of a local newspaper in Aghul. Aghul is a language that is spoken by less than 28,000 people in the whole world, yet it is now being taught as a subject in the school curriculum in Dagestan. Translation of parts of the Bible in Aghul are available.
Aghul or Agul, as it is sometimes spelled, is mainly spoken by the Dagestan of Russia and also in Azerbaijan. It belongs to the Lezgic category under the Northeast Caucasian language family. Due to the isolation of the Aghul people from other ethnic groups as a result of the rugged terrain of Dagestan, the Aghul have been able to preserve their culture but unfortunately, not their language. This language is primarily spoken within the home or family. Little or no literacy of the language, coupled with the fact that most of its speakers prefer to use other languages means that fewer people can speak the language. Other languages spoken by the people in this community includes Russian, Lak, Dargwa, Lezgian and Tabasaran. Aghul has never been used as a written language. Writing is done using Russian or Lezgin.
The Aghul occupy 21 villages located in four valleys. In most instances, men left their villages to seek work in other areas. This resulted in their exposure as they interacted with people from different ethnic groups. Consequently, most Aghul men know Lak, Tabasaran and Dargin. In contrast, most of the women were monolingual. This is largely because most of them remained in the village with the children and elderly people throughout the year. However, this is changing as more and more women are becoming educated. Also, the government encourages speakers to use other languages. Other outside interferences on the group include the 18th century Arab conquest of Aghul people. This resulted in most of them being converted to Islam. Most villages now have a square with a mosque in the middle.
