The work is a study of Arctic languages written in an interdisciplinary manner. Following an introduction, it goes on to deal with the concepts of the Arctic and its peoples, describing their ethnonyms and patterns of settlement and socio-economic structuring. General data are given on their history and traditional culture and on the system of Arctic languages. The study depicts the contemporary situation from the viewpoint of written and literary language and the legal status, social functions and uses in education and the mass media of these languages. Their role as a factor of cultural identity of the peoples is emphasized.