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Georgian (Georgian: ქართული, Kartuli) is a South Caucasian, or Kartvelian, language spoken by about 4.1 million people primarily in Georgia, but also in Russia, Turkey, Iran, and Azerbaijan. It is a highly standardized language, with the first attempts to establish literary and linguistic norms dating back to the 5th century AD.[1] Yet, at least eighteen dialects can be identified that fall into two major groups: Western and Eastern. Standard Georgian is largely based on Kartlian dialect of the Eastern (Central) group,[2] with more or less noticeable contributions from several other dialects. In its turn, Standard Georgian has significantly influenced, especially through educational system and the mass media, all dialects except for those spoken outside Georgia. However, dialects still retain many of their unique features.[3] In spite of considerable regional variations in certain aspects of phonology, morphology, syntax, and vocabulary, the Georgian dialects are mostly intelligible with each other. The three other South Caucasian/Kartvelian languages – Mingrelian, Laz, and Svan – are sisters to Georgian, but are mutually unintelligible.
Some of the basic variations among the Georgian dialects include:
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ა ბ გ დ ე ვ ზ ჱ თ ი კ ლ მ ნ ჲ ო პ ჟ რ ს ტ ჳ უ ფ ქ ღ ყ შ ჩ ც ძ წ ჭ ხ ჴ ჯ ჰ ჵ ჶ ჷ ჺ ჸ ჹ ჼ ჻ |
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The Georgian dialects are classified according to their geographic distribution, reflecting a traditional ethnographic subdivision of the Georgian people. Beyond the Western and Eastern categories, some scholars have also suggested a Southern group. These can be further subdivided into five main dialect groups (Gigineishvili, Topuria and K’avtaradze [1961]):[4]
This group is spoken by the mountaineers in northeast Georgia.
Two of these dialects, Ingiloan and Fereidanian, are spoken outside Georgia, the former by the indigenous Georgians in northwest Azerbaijan, and the latter by the descendants of the 17th-century Georgian deportees in Iran.
The Central dialects, sometimes considered part of the Eastern group, are spoken in central and southern Georgia, and provide the basis for Standard Georgian language.