The Mari language (Mari: марий йылме, marij jəlme; Russian: марийский язык, mariyskiy yazyk), spoken by approximately 400,000 people, belongs to the Uralic language family. It is spoken primarily in the Mari Republic (Mari: Марий Эл, Marii El, i.e., 'Mari land') of the Russian Federation as well as in the area along the Vyatka river basin and eastwards to the Urals.