The Northwestern Mari (self definition: йөтнӫмӓл-кӓсвел маре, Russian: северо-западные марийцы) are a subgroup of the Mari people and the indigenous people of the Kirov and Nizhny Novgorod Oblasts of Russia. As other Mari subgroups they belonging to the Volgaic branch of the Finno-Ugric peoples. Their native language is Northwestern Mari, one of the four surviving members of the Mari branch of the Uralic language family.