Lezgic languages
Northeast Caucasian language family
Lezgic | |
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Geographic distribution | Dagestan Azerbaijan |
Linguistic classification | Northeast Caucasian
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Subdivisions |
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Glottolog | lezg1248 |
Lezgic |
The Lezgic languages are one of seven branches of the Northeast Caucasian language family. Lezgin and Tabasaran are literary languages.
Classification
- Peripheral: Archi – 1700 speakers[1]
- Samur[2] (Nuclear Lezgic)
- Eastern Samur[1]
- Udi – 6,600 speakers
- Lezgin–Aghul–Tabasaran[2]
- Lezgin – 410,000 speakers
- Aghul – 33,200 speakers
- Tabasaran – 143,600 speakers
- Southern Samur
- Kryts – 5,000 speakers
- Budukh – 200 speakers
- Jek – 1500 speakers
- Western Samur
- Rutul – 36,400 speakers
- Tsakhur – 22,300 speakers
- Eastern Samur[1]
The voicing of ejective consonants
The Lezgic languages are relevant to the glottalic theory of Indo-European, because several have undergone the voicing of ejectives that have been postulated but widely derided as improbable in that family. The correspondences have not been well worked out (Rutul is inconsistent in the examples), but a few examples are:
- Non-Lezgic: Avar tstsʼar; Lezgic: Rutul dur, Tsakhur do 'name'
- Non-Lezgic: Archi motʃʼor, Lak tʃʼiri; Lezgic: Rutul mitʃʼri, Tabassaran midʒir, Aɡul mudʒur 'beard'
- Non-Lezgic: Avar motsʼ; Lezgic: Tabassaran vaz 'moon'
A similar change has taken place in non-initial position in the Nakh languages.[3]
See also
References
- ^ a b 7. НАСЕЛЕНИЕ НАИБОЛЕЕ МНОГОЧИСЛЕННЫХ НАЦИОНАЛЬНОСТЕЙ ПО РОДНОМУ ЯЗЫКУ
- ^ a b Languages in the Caucasus, by Wolfgang Schulze (2009) Archived 2011-06-10 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Paul Fallon, 2002. The synchronic and diachronic phonology of ejectives, p 245.
External links
- Lezgic basic lexica at the Global Lexicostatistical Database