Ter Sami: Spoken by only two elderly people in the Kola peninsula in the north-west of Russia. Had about 450 speakers at the end of the 19th century until it was prohibited in schools in the 1930s.
Kayardild: Kayardildis spoken fluently by four people — all elderly Aboriginals — on Bentinck and Mornington Islands in Queensland, Australia.
Lengilu Language from the north-eastern area of Kalimantan, Indonesia. It was at one stage spoken by 10 people. Today, there are four.
Mabire: Three people reportedly speak Mabire in the Oulek village of Chad. The chief of the Mabire is the only Mabire speaker in his village so people doubt whether he is still fluent.
Tehuelche: Originally the language of nomadic hunters in Chile. The last four speakers live in Patagonia, Argentina.— © Guardian Newspapers Limited, 2011
