Abaza language

The Abaza language (абаза бызшва, abaza byzšwa; Adyghe: абазэбзэ) is a language of the Caucasus mountains in the Russia and many of the exiled communities in Turkey. In fact the language has gone through several different orthographies based primarily on Arabic, Roman, and Cyrillic letters. The syntax and phonology are rather unique as its consonant to vowel ratio is remarkably high; making it quite similar to many other languages from the same parent chain. The language evolved during its popularity in the mid to late 1800s and eventually started to die out. ^[3]

Abaza is spoken by approximately 35,000 people in Russia, where it is written in a Cyrillic alphabet, as well as another 10,000 in Turkey, where the Latin script is used. It consists of two dialects, the Ashkherewa dialect and the T'ap'anta dialect, which is the literary standard. The language also consists of five sub dialects known as Psyzh-Krasnovostok, Abazakt, Apsua, Kubin-Elburgan and Kuvin.^[4]

Abaza, like its relatives in the family of Northwest Caucasian languages, is a highly agglutinative language. For example, the verb in the English sentence "He couldn't make them give it back to her" contains four arguments (a term used in valency grammar): he, them, it, to her. Abaza marks arguments morphologically, and incorporates all four arguments as pronominal prefixes on the verb.^[5] The Abaza language contains two dialects in accordance to the Tapanta and Shkaraua familial districts. The subdialects include Abazakt, Apsua, Kubin-Elburgan, Kuvin and Psyzh-Krasnovostok.^[6]

It has a large consonantal inventory (63 phonemes) coupled with a minimal vowel inventory (two vowels). It is very closely related to Abkhaz,^[7] but it preserves a few phonemes which Abkhaz lacks, such as a voiced pharyngeal fricative. Work on Abaza has been carried out by W. S. Allen, Brian O'Herin, and John Colarusso.

History

The Abaza language has slowly died out. Different forms of cultural annihilation contributed to its fall, in areas of Russia, and over time its overall endangerment. The language can be broken into 5 different dialects and has several unique grammatical approaches to languages. The Abaza Language was at its peak usage in the mid to late 1800s.

Abaza speakers along the Greater and Lesser Laba, Urup, and Greater and Lesser Zelenchuk rivers are from a wave of migrants in the 17th to 18th centuries who represent the Abaza speakers of today. The end of the Great Caucasian War in 1864 provided Russia with power and control of the local regions and contributed to the decrease in the popularity of pre-existing local languages prior to the war. People who speak the language are often referred to as the Abazan people and primarily Christian in faith.^[8]

Geographic Distribution

The Abaza language is spoken in Russia and Turkey. Although it is endangered, it is still spoken in several regions across in Russia. These include Kara-Pago, Kubina, Psikh, El'burgan, Inzhich-Chukun, Koi-dan, Abaza-Khabl', Malo-Abazinka, Tapanta, Krasnovostochni, Novokuvinski, Starokuvinski, Abazakt and Ap-sua.^[9]

Phonology

The vowels /o, a, u/ may have a /j/ in front of it.

Orthography

Since 1938, Abaza has been written with the version of the Cyrillic alphabet shown below.^[12][13]

Grammar

For most mainstream languages the main clause is typically in the final part of the language. In the case of the Abaza language, it is the first clause that is there. Furthermore, within the clause the verbal complex is final. In the verbal structure for the usage of multiple pronouns certain pronouns are treated as nominal forms that a place makers. Th existence of only two vowels makes it so that the main stressed syllables are highly important in differentiating verbiage. "Phonology Manual". 

References

Further reading

• Генко А. Н. Абазинский язык. Грамматический очерк наречия Тапанта. Москва-Лениград: АН СССР, 1955. (in Russian)
• Ломтатидзе К. В. Тапантский диалект абхазского языка (с текстами). Тбилиси: Издательство Академии Наук Грузинской ССР, 1944. (in Russian)
• Ломтатидзе К. В. Ашхарский диалект и его место среди других абхазско-абазинских диалектов. С текстами. Тбилиси: Издательство Академии Наук Грузинской ССР, 1954. (in Russian)
• Мальбахова-Табулова Н. Т. Грамматика абазинского языка. Фонетика и морфология. Черкесск, 1976. (in Russian)
• Чирикба В. А. Абазинский язык. В: Языки Российской Федерации и Соседних Государств. Энциклопедия. В трех томах. Т. 1. A-И. Москва: Наука, 1998, с. 1-8. (in Russian)
• Allen, W.S. Structure and system in the Abaza verbal complex. In: Transactions of the Philological Society (Hertford), Oxford, 1956, p. 127-176.
• Bouda K. Das Abasinische, eine unbekannte abchasische Mundart. In: ZDMG, BD. 94, H. 2 (Neue Folge, Bd. 19), Berlin-Leipzig, 1940, S. 234—250. (in German)
• O’Herin, B. Case and agreement in Abaza. Summer Institute of Linguistics, September 2002.

External links

Abaza language test of Wikipedia at Wikimedia Incubator

• The first in the world Abaza–Russian and Russian–Abaza online dictionaries
• Abaza basic lexicon at the Global Lexicostatistical Database
• Recordings in Abaza language
• World Atlas of Language Structures information on Abaza

Languages of the Caucasus
Caucasian (areal)	Caspian Avar–Andic Andic Akhvakh Bagvalal–Tindi Botlix–Godoberi Chamalal Karata Literary Andi Avar Dargic Literary Dargwa and dialects Chirag Itsari Kajtak Kubachi Didoic Bezhta–Hunzib–Khwarshi Hinukh–Literary Tsez Lezgic Aghul Archi Budukh Kryts Lezgian Rutul Tabasaran Tsakhur Udi Nakh Bats Chechen–Ingush Other Khinalug Lak Kartvelian Karto-Zan–Svan Georgian Svan Zan Laz Mingrelian Pontic Abazgi–Adyghe Abkhaz–Abaza Circassian
Indo-European	Armenian Armenian Germanic German Hellenic Pontic Greek Iranic Northern Ossetian Western Judæo-Tat Talysh Tat Persian Slavic Russian Ukrainian
Mongolic	Kalmyk
Turkic	Kipchak–Cuman Karachay–Balkar Kumyk Urum Kipchak–Nogai Nogai Oghuz Azerbaijani Turkish Turkmen
Afro-Asiatic	Semitic Assyrian Neo-Aramaic Bohtan Neo-Aramaic
See also: Languages of Armenia  Languages of Azerbaijan  Languages of Georgia  Languages of Russia

State languages of Russia
Federal language	Russian
State languages of federal subjects	Abaza Adyghe Agul Altai Avar Azerbaijani Bashkir Buryat Chechen Chuvash Crimean Tatar Dargwa Erzya Ingush Kabardian Kalmyk Karachay-Balkar Khakas Komi Kumyk Lak Lezgian Mari Hill Meadow Moksha Nogai Ossetic Rutul Sakha Tabasaran Tat Tatar Tsakhur Tuvan Ukrainian Udmurt
Languages with official status	Chukchi Dolgan Even Evenki Finnish Karelian Kazakh Khanty Komi-Permyak Mansi Nenets Selkup Veps Yukaghir
Scripts	Cyrillic Cyrillic Braille