Kartvelian languages

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Kartvelian
ქართველური
Geographic
distribution
Western Trans-Caucasus, Northeast Anatolia
Linguistic classificationOne of the world's primary language families
Proto-languageProto-Kartvelian
Subdivisions
ISO 639-5ccs
Glottologkart1248[1]
{{{mapalt}}}

The Kartvelian languages (/kɑːrtvɛlɪɑːn/; Georgian: ქართველური ენები, translit.: kartveluri enebi, also known as Iberian[2] and formerly[3] South Caucasian[4]) are a language family indigenous to the Caucasus and spoken primarily in Georgia, with large groups of native speakers in Russia, Iran, the United States, the European Union, Israel,[5] and northeastern parts of Turkey.[6] There are approximately 5.2 million speakers of Kartvelian languages worldwide. The Kartvelian family is not known to be related to any other language family, making it one of the world's primary language families.[7] The first literary source in a Kartvelian language is the Old Georgian inscriptions of Bir el Qutt, written in ancient Georgian Asomtavruli script at the once-existing Georgian monastery near Bethlehem,[8] which dates back to c. 430 AD.[9]

The Georgian script is the writing system used to write all Kartvelian languages, though the Laz language in Turkey is also written using a Latin script.

Social and cultural status[edit]

Georgian is the official language of Georgia (spoken by 90% of the population) and the main language for literary and business use for all Kartvelian speakers in Georgia. It is written with an original and distinctive alphabet, and the oldest surviving literary text dates from the 5th century AD—the only Caucasian language with an ancient literary tradition[citation needed]. The old Georgian script seems to have been derived from Aramaic, with Greek influences.[10]

Mingrelian has been written with the Georgian alphabet since 1864, especially in the period from 1930 to 1938, when the Mingrelians enjoyed some cultural autonomy, and after 1989.

The Laz language was written chiefly between 1927 and 1937, and now again in Turkey, with the Latin alphabet. Laz, however, is disappearing as its speakers are integrating into mainstream Turkish society.

Classification[edit]

Part of a series on
Georgians
ქართველები
Nation
Georgia
Ancient Kartvelian people
Subgroups
Culture
Languages
Religion
Symbols
History of Georgia

The Kartvelian language family consists of four closely related languages which form a dialect continuum:[4][11][12][13][14][15]

  • Svan (ლუშნუ ნინ, lušnu nin), with approximately 35,000–40,000 native speakers mainly in the northwestern mountainous region of Svaneti, Georgia, and in the Kodori Gorge of Abkhazia, Georgia.
  • Georgian-Zan (also called Karto-Zan)
    • Georgian (ქართული ენა, kartuli ena) with approximately 4.5 million native speakers, mainly in Georgia. There are Georgian-speaking communities in Russia, Turkey, Iran, Israel, and EU countries, but the current number and distribution of them are unknown.
    • Zan (also called Colchian)

Genealogical tree[edit]


Proto-Kartvelian
Proto-Karto-Zan
Zan
SvanMingrelianLazGeorgian

The connection between these languages was first reported in linguistic literature by Johann Anton Güldenstädt in his 1773 classification of the languages of the Caucasus, and later proven by G. Rosen, Marie-Félicité Brosset, Franz Bopp and others during the 1840s. Zan is the branch that contains the Mingrelian and Laz languages.

On the basis of glottochronological analysis, Georgi Klimov dates the split of the Proto-Kartvelian into Svan and Proto-Karto-Zan to the 19th century BC,[15][16] and the further division into Georgian and Zan to the 8th century BC,[16] although with the reservation that such dating is very preliminary and substantial further study is required.[15]

The older name "South Caucasian" is no longer much used, as it derives from the idea that Kartvelian is related to the Northwest Caucasian and Northeast Caucasian languages, a position which is no longer maintained.

Higher-level connections[edit]

No relationship with other languages, including the two North Caucasian language families, has been demonstrated so far.[10] Some linguists, such as Tamaz V. Gamkrelidze, have proposed that the Kartvelian family is part of a much larger Nostratic language family, but both the concept of a Nostratic family and Georgian's relation to it are not considered likely by linguists.[17]

Certain grammatical similarities with Basque, especially in the case system, have often been pointed out. However, the hypothesis of a relationship, which also tends to link the Caucasian languages with other non-Indo-European and non-Semitic languages of the Near East of ancient times, is generally considered to lack conclusive evidence.[10] Any similarities to other linguistic phyla may be due to areal influences. Heavy borrowing in both directions (i.e. from North Caucasian to Kartvelian and vice versa) has been observed; therefore, it is likely that certain grammatical features have been influenced as well. If the Dené–Caucasian hypothesis, which attempts to link Basque, Burushaski, the North Caucasian families and other phyla, is correct, then the similarities to Basque may also be due to these influences, however indirect. Certain Kartvelian–Indo-European lexical links are revealed at the protolanguage level,[18] which are ascribed to the early contacts between Proto-Kartvelian and Proto-Indo-European populations.[19]

Comparative grammar[edit]

Regular correspondences[edit]

Vowels[20]
Proto-Kartv. Geo. Zan Svan
*ა (*a)
[ɑ]
a
[ɑ]
o
[ɔ]
a
[ɑ]
*ე (*e)
[ɛ]
e
[ɛ]
a
[ɑ]
e
[ɛ]
*ი (*i)
[i]
i
[i]
i
[i]
i
[i]
*ო (*o)
[ɔ]
o
[ɔ]
o
[ɔ]
o
[ɔ]
*უ (*u)
[u]
u
[u]
u
[u]
u
[u]
Consonants[21]
Proto-Kartv. Geo. Zan Svan
Voiced
stops
*ბ (*b)
[b]
b
[b]
b
[b]
b
[b]
*დ (*d)
[d]
d
[d]
d
[d]
d
[d]
*გ (*g)
[ɡ]
g
[ɡ]
g
[ɡ]
g / ǯ
[ɡ] / [d͡ʒ]
Voiced
affricates
*ძ (*ʒ)
[d͡z]
ʒ
[d͡z]
ʒ
[d͡z]
ʒ / z
[d͡z] / [z]
*ძ₁ (*ʒ₁)
[d͡ʐ]
ǯ
[d͡ʒ]
ǯ / ž
[d͡ʒ] / [ʒ]
*ჯ (*ǯ)
[d͡ʒ]
ǯ
[d͡ʒ]
ǯg / ʒg
[d͡ʒɡ] / [d͡zɡ]
ǯg / sg
[d͡ʒɡ] / [sɡ]
Voiced
fricatives
*ზ (*z)
[z]
z
[z]
z
[z]
z
[z]
*ზ₁ (*z₁)
[ʐ]
ž
[ʒ]
ž
[ʒ]
*ღ (*ɣ)
[ɣ]
ɣ
[ɣ]
ɣ
[ɣ]
ɣ
[ɣ]
*უ̂ (*w)
[w]
v
[v]
v
[v]
w
[w]
Ejective
stops
*პ (*ṗ)
[pʼ]

[pʼ]

[pʼ]

[pʼ]
*ტ (*ṭ)
[tʼ]

[tʼ]

[tʼ]

[tʼ]
*კ (*ḳ)
[kʼ]

[kʼ]

[kʼ]
ḳ / č'
[kʼ] / [t͡ʃʼ]
*ყ (*qʼ)
[qʼ]

[qʼ]
qʼ / ʔ / ḳ
[qʼ] / [ʔ] / [kʼ]

[qʼ]
Ejective
affr.
*წ (*ċ)
[t͡sʼ]
ċ
[t͡sʼ]
ċ
[t͡sʼ]
ċ
[t͡sʼ]
*წ₁ (*ċ₁)
[t͡ʂʼ]
čʼ
[t͡ʃʼ]
čʼ
[t͡ʃʼ]
*ლʼ (*ɬʼ)
[t͡ɬʼ]
h
[h]
*ჭ (*čʼ)
[t͡ʃʼ]
čʼ
[t͡ʃʼ]
čʼḳ / ċḳ
[t͡ʃʼkʼ] / [t͡sʼkʼ]
čʼḳ / šḳ
[t͡ʃʼkʼ] / [ʃkʼ]
Voiceless
stops
and affr.
*ფ (*p)
[p]
p
[p]
p
[p]
p
[p]
*თ (*t)
[t]
t
[t]
t
[t]
t
[t]
*ც (*c)
[t͡s]
c
[t͡s]
c
[t͡s]
c
[t͡s]
*ც₁ (*c₁)
[t͡ʂ]
č
[t͡ʃ]
č
[t͡ʃ]
*ჩ (*č)
[t͡ʃ]
č
[t͡ʃ]
čk
[t͡ʃk]
čk / šg
[t͡ʃk] / [ʃɡ]
*ქ (*k)
[k]
k
[k]
k
[k]
k / č
[k] / [t͡ʃ]
*ჴ (*q)
[q]
x
[x]
x
[x]
q
[q]
Voiceless
fricatives
*ხ (*x)
[x]
x
[x]
*შ (*š)
[ʃ]
š
[ʃ]
šk / sk
[ʃk] / [sk]
šg / sg
[ʃɡ] / [sɡ]
*ს (*s)
[s]
s
[s]
s
[s]
s
[s]
*ს₁ (*s₁)
[ʂ]
š
[ʃ]
š
[ʃ]
*ლʿ (*lʿ)
[ɬ]
l
[l]
Liquids *ლ (*l)
[l]
l
[l]
l
[l]
*რ (*r)
[r]
r
[r]
r
[r]
r
[r]
Nasals *მ (*m)
[m]
m
[m]
m
[m]
m
[m]
*ნ (*n)
[n]
n
[n]
n
[n]
n
[n]

Noun classification[edit]

The Kartvelian languages classify objects as intelligent ("who"-class) and unintelligent ("what"-class) beings. Grammatical gender does not exist.

Noun classification scheme
Concrete Abstract
Animate Inanimate
Human and "human-like" beings (e.g. God, deities, angels) Animals Inanimate physical entities Abstract objects
Intelligent Unintelligent
"who"-class "what"-class

Declension[edit]

Grammatical case markers
Case Singular Plural
Mingrelian Laz Georgian Svan Mingrelian Laz Georgian Svan
Nominative -i -i/-e -i -i -ep-i -ep-e -eb-i -är
Ergative -k -k -ma -d -ep-k -epe-k -eb-ma -är-d
Dative -s -s -s -s -ep-s -epe-s -eb-s -är-s
Genitive - - -is - -ep-iš -epe-š(i) -eb-is -are-š
Lative -iša -iša N/A N/A -ep-iša -epe-ša N/A N/A
Ablative -iše -iše N/A N/A -ep-iše -epe-še(n) N/A N/A
Instrumental -it -ite -it -šw -ep-it -epe-te(n) -eb-it -är-šw
Adverbial -o(t)/-t -ot -ad/-d -d -ep-o(t) N/A -eb-ad -är-d
Finalis -išo(t) N/A -isad -išd -ep-išo(t) N/A -eb-isad -är-išd
Vocative N/A N/A -o (/-v) N/A N/A N/A -eb-o N/A
Example adjective declension
Stem: ǯveš- (Min.), mǯveš- (Laz), ʒvel- (Geo.), ǯwinel- (Svan) – "old"
Case Singular Plural
Mingrelian Laz Georgian Svan Mingrelian Laz Georgian Svan
Nominative ǯveš-i mǯveš-i ʒvel-i ǯwinel ǯveš-ep-i mǯveš-ep-e ʒvel-eb-i ǯwinel-är
Ergative ǯveš-k mǯveš-i-k ʒvel-ma ǯwinel-d ǯveš-ep-k mǯveš-epe-k ʒvel-eb-ma ǯwinel-är-d
Dative ǯveš-s mǯveš-i-s ʒvel-s ǯwinel-s ǯveš-ep-s mǯveš-i-epe-s ʒvel-eb-s ǯwinel-är-s
Genitive ǯveš- mǯveš- ʒvel-is ǯwinl- ǯveš-ep-iš mǯveš-epe-š ʒvel-eb-is ǯwinel-är-iš
Lative ǯveš-iša mǯveš-iša N/A N/A ǯveš-ep-iša mǯveš-epe-ša N/A N/A
Ablative ǯveš-iše mǯveš-iše N/A N/A ǯveš-ep-iše mǯveš-epe-še N/A N/A
Instrumental ǯveš-it mǯveš-ite ʒvel-it ǯwinel-šw ǯveš-ep-it mǯveš-epe-te ʒvel-eb-it ǯwinel-är-šw
Adverbial ǯveš-o mǯveš-ot ʒvel-ad ǯwinel-d ǯveš-ep-o N/A ʒvel-eb-ad ǯwinel-är-d
Finalis ǯveš-išo N/A ʒvel-isad ǯwinel-išd ǯveš-ep-išo N/A ʒvel-eb-isad ǯwinel-är-išd
Vocative N/A N/A ʒvel-o N/A N/A N/A ʒvel-eb-o N/A

Verb[edit]

Kartvelian verbs can indicate one, two, or three grammatical persons. A performer of an action is called the subject and affected persons are objects (direct or indirect). The person may be singular or plural. According to the number of persons, the verbs are classified as unipersonal, bipersonal or tripersonal.

  • Unipersonal verbs have only a subject and so are always intransitive.
  • Bipersonal verbs have a subject and one object, which can be direct or indirect. The verb is:
    • transitive when the object is direct;
    • intransitive if the object is indirect.
  • Tripersonal verbs have one subject and both direct and indirect objects and are ditransitive.
Verb personality table
Unipersonal Bipersonal Tripersonal
intransitive transitive intransitive ditransitive
Subject + + + +
Direct object + +
Indirect object + +

Subjects and objects are indicated with special affixes.

Personal markers
Subject set
Singular Plural
Old Geo. Mod. Geo. Ming./Laz Svan Old Geo. Mod. Geo. Ming./Laz Svan
S1 v- v- v- xw- v-...-t v-...-t v-...-t xw-...-(š)d (excl.)

l-...-(š)d (incl.)

S2 x/h- ∅,(h/s)- x-/∅ x/h-...-t ∅,(h/s)-...-t ∅-...-t x/∅-...-(š)d
S3 -s,-a/o,-n,-ed -s,-a/o -s,-u,-n (l)-...-s/(a) -an,-en,-es,-ed -en,-an,-es -an,-es (l)-...-x
Object set
O1 m- m- m- m- m- (excl.)

gv- (incl.)

gv- m-...-t,-an,-es n- (excl.)

gw- (incl.)

O2 g- g- g- ǯ- g- g-...-t g-...-t,-an,-es ǯ-...-x
O3 x/h,∅- ∅,s/h/∅- ∅,x- x/h,∅- ∅,s/h/∅-...-t ∅-...-t,-an,-es ∅,x-...-x

By means of special markers Kartvelian verbs can indicate four kinds of action intentionality ("version"):

  • subjective—shows that the action is intended for oneself,
  • objective—the action is intended for another person,
  • objective-passive—the action is intended for another person and at the same time indicating the passiveness of subject,
  • neutral—neutral with respect to intention.
Version markers
Version Mingrelian Laz Georgian Svan
Subjective -i- -i- -i- -i-
Objective -u- -u- -u- -o-
Objective-passive -a- -a- -e- -e-
Neutral -o-/-a- -o- -a- -a-

Examples from inherited lexicon[edit]

Cardinal Numbers
  Proto-Kartv.

form

Karto-Zan Svan
Proto-form Georgian Mingrelian Laz
1. one, 2. other *s₁xwa
[ʂxwɑ]
*s₁xwa
[ʂxwɑ]
sxva
[sxvɑ]
(other)
šxva
[ʃxva]
(other)
čkva / škva
[t͡ʃkvɑ] / [ʃkvɑ]
(other, one more)
e-šxu
[ɛ-ʃxu]
(one)
one n/a *erti
[ɛrti]
erti
[ɛrti]
arti
[ɑrti]
ar
[ɑr]
n/a
two *yori
[jɔri]
*yori
[jɔri]
ori
[ɔri]
žiri / žəri
[ʒiri] / [ʒəri]
žur / ǯur
[ʒur] / [d͡ʒur]
yori
[jɔri]
three *sami
[sɑmi]
*sami
[sɑmi]
sami
[sɑmi]
sumi
[sumi]
sum
[sum]
semi
[sɛmi]
four *o(s₁)txo
[ɔ(ʂ)txɔ]
*otxo
[ɔtxɔ]
otxi
[ɔtxi]
otxi
[ɔtxi]
otxo
[ɔtxɔ]
w-oštxw
[w-ɔʃtxw]
five *xu(s₁)ti
[khu(ʂ)ti]
*xuti
[xuti]
xuti
[xuti]
xuti
[xuti]
xut
[xut]
wo-xušd
[wɔ-xuʃd]
six *eks₁wi
[ɛkʂwi]
*eks₁wi
[ɛkʂwi]
ekvsi
[ɛkvsi]
amšvi
[ɑmʃwi]
aši
[ɑʃi]
usgwa
[usɡwɑ]
seven *šwidi
[ʃwidi]
*šwidi
[ʃwidi]
švidi
[ʃvidi]
škviti
[ʃkviti]
škvit
[ʃkvit]
i-šgwid
[i-ʃɡwid]
eight *arwa
[ɑrwɑ]
*arwa
[ɑrwɑ]
rva
[rvɑ]
ruo / bruo
[ruɔ] / [bruɔ]
ovro / orvo
[ɔvrɔ] / [ɔrvɔ]
ara
[ɑrɑ]
nine *ts₁xara
[t͡ʂxɑrɑ]
*ts₁xara
[t͡ʂxɑrɑ]
tsxra
[t͡sxrɑ]
čxoro
[t͡ʃxɔrɔ]
čxoro
[t͡ʃxɔrɔ]
čxara
[t͡ʃxɑrɑ]
ten *a(s₁)ti
[ɑ(ʂ)ti]
*ati
[ɑti]
ati
[ɑti]
viti
[viti]
vit
[vit]
ešd
[ɛʃd]
twenty n/a *ots₁i
[ɔt͡ʂi]
otsi
[ɔt͡si]
etsi
[ɛt͡ʃi]
etsi
[ɛt͡ʃi]
n/a
hundred *as₁i
[ɑʂi]
*as₁i
[ɑʂi]
asi
[ɑsi]
oši
[ɔʃi]
oši
[ɔʃi]
-ir
[ɑʃ-ir]
Pronouns
Personal Pronouns
  Proto-Kartv. Georgian Mingrelian Laz Svan
I *me
[mɛ]
me
[mɛ]
ma
[mɑ]
ma(n)
[mɑ]
mi
[mi]
You (sg.) *sen
[sɛn]
šen
[ʃɛn]
si
[si]
si(n)
[si]
si
[si]
That *e-
[ɛ-]
e-sa
[ɛ-sɑ]
e-na
[ɛ-nɑ]
(h)e-ya
[(h)ɛ-jɑ]
e-ǯa
[ɛ-d͡ʒɑ]
We *čwen
[t͡ʃwɛn]
čven
[t͡ʃvɛn]
čki(n) / čkə(n)
[t͡ʃki(n)] / [t͡ʃkə(n)]
čkin / čku / šku
[t͡ʃkin] / [t͡ʃku] / [ʃku]
näy

[næj]

You (pl.) *stkwen
[stkwɛn]
tkven
[tkvɛn]
tkva(n)
[tkvɑ(n)]
tkvan
[tkvɑn]
sgäy
[sɡæj]
Possessive Pronouns
  Proto-Kartv. Georgian Mingrelian Laz Svan
My *č(w)e-mi
[t͡ʃ(w)ɛ-mi]
če-mi
[t͡ʃɛ-mi]
čki-mi
[t͡ʃki-mi]
čki-mi / ški-mi
[t͡ʃki-mi] / [ʃki-mi]
mi-šgu
[mi-ʃɡu]
Your (sg.) *š(w)eni
[ʃ(w)ɛni]
šeni
[ʃɛni]
skani
[skɑni]
skani
[skɑni]
i-sgu
[i-sɡu]
His/her/its *m-is₁
[m-iʂ]
m-is-i
[m-is-i]
mu-š-i
[mu-ʃ-i]
(h)e-mu-š-i
[(h)ɛ-mu-ʃ-i]
m-ič-a
[m-it͡ʃ-ɑ]
Our *čweni
[t͡ʃwɛni]
čveni
[t͡ʃvɛni]
čkini / čkəni
[t͡ʃkini] / [t͡ʃkəni]
čkini / čkuni / škuni
[t͡ʃkini] / [t͡ʃkuni] / [ʃkuni]
gu-šgwey (excl.)
[ɡu-ʃɡwɛj]

ni-šgwey (incl.)
[ni-ʃɡwɛj]

Your (pl.) *stkweni
[stkwɛni]
tkveni
[tkvɛni]
tkvani
[tkvɑni]
tkvani
[tkvɑni]
i-sgwey
[i-sɡwɛj]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Kartvelian". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
  2. ^ Caucasian languages Encyclopædia Britannica
  3. ^ Bernard Laks, Origin and Evolution of Languages: Approaches, Models, Paradigms, Equinox, 2008, p. 46
  4. ^ a b Boeder (2002), p. 3
  5. ^ Languages of Israel
  6. ^ Ethnologue entry about the Kartvelian language family
  7. ^ Dalby (2002), p. 38
  8. ^ Lang (1966), p. 154
  9. ^ Hewitt (1995), p. 4.
  10. ^ a b c Encyclopædia Britannica, 15th edition (1986): Macropedia, "Languages of the World", see section titled "Caucasian languages".
  11. ^ Boeder (2005), p. 6
  12. ^ Gamkrelidze (1966), p. 69
  13. ^ Fähnrich & Sardzhveladze (2000)
  14. ^ Kajaia (2001)
  15. ^ a b c Klimov (1998b), p. 14
  16. ^ a b Klimov (1994), p. 91
  17. ^ Allan R. Bomhard, John C. Kerns. (1994) The Nostratic Macrofamily: A Study in Distant Linguistic Relationship.
  18. ^ Gamkrelidze & Ivanov (1995), pp. 774–776
  19. ^ Gamkrelidze & Ivanov (1995), p. 768
  20. ^ Fähnrich (2002), p. 5
  21. ^ Fähnrich (2002), p. 5-6

References[edit]

  • Boeder, W. (2002). Speech and thought representation in the Kartvelian (South Caucasian) languages. In: Güldemann, T., von Roncador, M. (Eds.), Reported Discourse. A Meeting-Ground of Different Linguistic Domains. Typological Studies in Language, vol. 52. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: Benjamins, pp. 3–48.
  • Boeder, W. (2005). "The South Caucasian languages", Lingua, Vol. 115, Iss. 1–2 (Jan.-Feb.), Pages 5–89
  • Dalby, A. (2002). Language in Danger; The Loss of Linguistic Diversity and the Threat to Our Future. Columbia University Press.
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