Template:Short description Template:Redirect-distinguish Template:Use dmy datesTemplate:Infobox language family Template:Contains special characters The Berber languages, also known as the Amazigh languagesTemplate:Efn or Tamazight,Template:Efn are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Ekkehard Wolff-2013"/> They comprise a group of closely related but mostly mutually unintelligible languages<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> spoken by Berber communities, who are indigenous to North Africa.<ref name="Hayward-2000">Hayward, Richard J., chapter Afroasiatic in Heine, Bernd & Nurse, Derek, editors, African Languages: An Introduction Cambridge 2000. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref name="Brett" /> The languages are primarily spoken and not typically written.<ref name="Campbell-2012b"/> Historically, they have been written with the ancient Libyco-Berber script, which now exists in the form of Tifinagh.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Punic" /> Today, they may also be written in the Berber Latin alphabet or the Arabic script, with Latin being the most pervasive.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="choice" /><ref name="Silverstein-2004">Template:Cite journal</ref>
The Berber languages have a similar level of variety to the Romance languages, although they are sometimes referred to as a single collective language, often as "Berber", "Tamazight", or "Amazigh".<ref name="Kossmann-2020b" /><ref name="Ridouane-2014" /><ref name="Ekkehard Wolff-2013" /><ref name="Peab" /> The languages, with a few exceptions, form a dialect continuum.<ref name="Kossmann-2020b" /> There is a debate as to how to best sub-categorize languages within the Berber branch.<ref name="Kossmann-2020b" /><ref name="Kossmann-2012a" /> Berber languages typically follow verb–subject–object word order.<ref name="Kossmann-2007d" /><ref name="Mettouchi-2010" /> Their phonological inventories are diverse.<ref name="Kossmann-2012a" />
Millions of people in Morocco and Algeria natively speak a Berber language, as do smaller populations of Libya, Tunisia, northern Mali, western and northern Niger, northern Burkina Faso and Mauritania and the Siwa Oasis of Egypt.<ref name="Maddy-Weitzman-2011b">Template:Cite book</ref> There are also probably a few million speakers of Berber languages in Western Europe.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Tashlhiyt, Kabyle, Central Atlas Tamazight, Tarifit, and Shawiya are some of the most commonly spoken Berber languages.<ref name="Maddy-Weitzman-2011b" /> Exact numbers are impossible to ascertain as there are few modern North African censuses that include questions on language use, and what censuses do exist have known flaws.<ref name="Kossmann-2013d">Template:Cite book</ref>
Following independence in the 20th century, the Berber languages have been suppressed and suffered from low prestige in North Africa.<ref name="Kossmann-2013d" /> Recognition of the Berber languages has been growing in the 21st century, with Morocco and Algeria adding Tamazight as an official language to their constitutions in 2011 and 2016 respectively.<ref name="Kossmann-2013d" /><ref name="Madanin-2012" /><ref name="BBC News-2016" />
Most Berber languages have a high percentage of borrowing and influence from the Arabic language, as well as from other languages.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> For example, Arabic loanwords represent 35%<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> to 46%<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> of the total vocabulary of the Kabyle language and represent 44.9% of the total vocabulary of Tarifit.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Almost all Berber languages took from Arabic the pharyngeal fricatives /ʕ/ and /ħ/, the (nongeminated) uvular stop /q/, and the voiceless pharyngealized consonant /ṣ/.<ref>Template:Citation</ref> Unlike the Chadic, Cushitic, and Omotic languages of the Afro-Asiatic phylum, Berber languages are not tonal languages.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
TerminologyEdit
Template:See also"Tamazight" and "Berber languages" are often used interchangeably.<ref name="Ridouane-2014">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Ekkehard Wolff-2013">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> However, "Tamazight" is sometimes used to refer to a specific subset of Berber languages, such as Central Tashlhiyt.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> "Tamazight" can also be used to refer to Standard Moroccan Tamazight or Standard Algerian Tamazight, as in the Moroccan and Algerian constitutions respectively.<ref name="Constitution bill-2016" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In Morocco, besides referring to all Berber languages or to Standard Moroccan Tamazight, "Tamazight" is often used in contrast to Tashelhit and Tarifit to refer to Central Atlas Tamazight.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
The use of Berber has been the subject of debate due to its historical background as an exonym and present equivalence with the Arabic word for "barbarian."<ref name="Maddy-Weitzman-2011a2">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Vourlias-2010a2">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Block-20192">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Cheref-20212">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> One group, the Linguasphere Observatory, has attempted to introduce the neologism "Tamazic languages" to refer to the Berber languages.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Amazigh people typically use "Tamazight" when speaking English.<ref name="Brenzinger-20152">Template:Cite book</ref> Historically, Berbers did not refer to themselves as Berbers/Amazigh but had their own terms to refer to themselves. For example, the Kabyles use the term "Leqbayel" to refer to their own people, while the Chaouis identified themselves as "Ishawiyen" instead of Berber/Amazigh.<ref name=":7">Template:Cite book</ref>
OriginEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} Since modern Berber languages are relatively homogeneous, the date of the Proto-Berber language from which the modern group is derived was probably comparatively recent, comparable to the age of the Germanic or Romance subfamilies of the Indo-European family. In contrast, the split of the group from the other Afroasiatic sub-phyla is much earlier, and is therefore sometimes associated with the local Mesolithic Capsian culture.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A number of extinct populations are believed to have spoken Afroasiatic languages of the Berber branch. According to Peter Behrens and Marianne Bechaus-Gerst, linguistic evidence suggests that the peoples of the C-Group culture in present-day southern Egypt and northern Sudan spoke Berber languages.<ref name="Bechaus-Gerst">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Lbant">Template:Cite book</ref> The Nilo-Saharan Nobiin language today contains a number of key loanwords related to pastoralism that are of Berber origin, including the terms for sheep and water/Nile. This in turn suggests that the C-Group population—which, along with the Kerma culture, inhabited the Nile valley immediately before the arrival of the first Nubian speakers—spoke Afroasiatic languages.<ref name="Bechaus-Gerst"/>
OrthographyEdit
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Berber languages are primarily oral languages without a major written component.<ref name="Campbell-2012b">Template:Cite book</ref> Historically, they were written with the Libyco-Berber script. Early uses of the script have been found on rock art and in various sepulchres; the oldest known variations of the script dates to inscriptions in Dugga from 600 BC.<ref name="Campbell-2012b"/><ref name="Mitchell-2013">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Usage of this script, in the form of Tifinagh, has continued into the present day among the Tuareg people.<ref name="Elmedlaoui-2012a">Template:Cite book</ref> Following the spread of Islam, some Berber scholars also utilized the Arabic script.<ref name="sec14">Template:Cite journalTemplate:Rp</ref> The Berber Latin alphabet was developed following the introduction of the Latin script in the nineteenth century by the West.<ref name="Elmedlaoui-2012a" /> The nineteenth century also saw the development of Neo-Tifinagh, an adaptation of Tuareg Tifinagh for use with other Berber languages.<ref name="Campbell-2012b"/><ref name="Aïtel-2014">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Maddy-Weitzman-2011c">Template:Cite book</ref>
There are now three writing systems in use for Berber languages: Tifinagh, the Arabic script, and the Berber Latin alphabet, with the Latin alphabet being the most widely used today.<ref name="choice">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Silverstein-2004" />
SubclassificationEdit
With the exception of Zenaga, Tetserret, and Tuareg, the Berber languages form a dialect continuum. Different linguists take different approaches towards drawing boundaries between languages in this continuum.<ref name="Kossmann-2020b">Template:Cite book</ref> Maarten Kossmann notes that it is difficult to apply the classic tree model of historical linguistics towards the Berber languages:
[The Berber language family]'s continuous history of convergence and differentiation along new lines makes any definition of branches arbitrary. Moreover, mutual intelligibility and mutual influence render notions such as "split" or "branching" rather difficult to apply except, maybe, in the case of Zenaga and Tuareg.<ref name="Kossmann-2020a">Template:Cite book</ref>
Kossmann roughly groups the Berber languages into seven blocks:<ref name="Kossmann-2020a" />
- Berber
- Western (Zenaga, Tetserret)
- Tuareg
- Western Moroccan
- southwestern and central Moroccan languages (Tashelhiyt, most of Central Atlas Tamazight)
- northwestern Moroccan languages (Ghomara, Senhadja de Sraïr)
- Zenatic (a dialect continuum stretching from eastern Morocco to the Siwa Oasis)
- Kabyle
- Ghadames
- Awjila
The Zenatic block is typically divided into the Zenati and Eastern Berber branches, due to the marked difference in features at each end of the continuum.<ref name="König-2008" /><ref name="Kossmann-2020a" /><ref name="Blažek-2010">Template:Cite journal</ref> Otherwise, subclassifications by different linguists typically combine various blocks into different branches. Western Moroccan languages, Zenati languages, Kabyle, and Ghadames may be grouped under Northern Berber; Awjila is often included as an Eastern Berber language alongside Siwa, Sokna, and El Foqaha. These approaches divide the Berber languages into Northern, Southern (Tuareg), Eastern, and Western varieties.<ref name="König-2008" /><ref name="Blažek-2010" />
PopulationEdit
The vast majority of speakers of Berber languages are concentrated in Morocco and Algeria.<ref name="Brenzinger-2007">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Penchoen-1973">Template:Cite book</ref> The exact population of speakers has been historically difficult to ascertain due to lack of official recognition.<ref name="Dalby-1998">Template:Cite book</ref>
MoroccoEdit
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Morocco is the country with the greatest number of speakers of Berber languages.<ref name="Brenzinger-2007" /><ref name="Penchoen-1973" /><ref name="Ennaji-2005">Template:Cite book</ref> As of 2022, Ethnologue estimates there to be 13.8 million speakers of Berber languages in Morocco, based on figures from 2016 and 2017.<ref name="Morocco-2022">Template:Cite book</ref>
In 1960, the first census after Moroccan independence was held. It claimed that 32 percent of Moroccans spoke a Berber language, including bi-, tri- and quadrilingual people.<ref name="Bladi.net-2013">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The 2004 census found that 3,894,805 Moroccans over five years of age spoke Tashelhit, 2,343,937 spoke Central Atlas Tamazight, and 1,270,986 spoke Tarifit, representing 14.6%, 8.8%, and 4.8% respectively of the surveyed population, or roughly 28.2% of the surveyed population combined.<ref name="RGPH-2004">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The 2014 census found that 14.1% of the population spoke Tashelhit, 7.9% spoke Central Atlas Tamazight, and 4% spoke Tarifit, or about 26% of the population combined.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The 2024 census found that 14.2% of the population spoke Tashelhit, 7.4% spoke Central Atlas Tamazight, and 3.2% spoke Tarifit, which represents 24.8% of the population.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
These estimates, as well as the estimates from various academic sources, are summarized as follows:
| Source | Date | Total | Tashelhit | Central Atlas Tamazight | Tarifit | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moroccan census<ref name="Bladi.net-2013" /> | 1960 | 3.5 million | – | – | – | Calculated via reported percentages. | |
| Tamazight of the Ayt Ndhir<ref name="Penchoen-1973" /> | 1973 | 6 million | – | – | – | Extrapolating from Basset's 1952 La langue berbère based on overall population changes. | |
| Ethnologue<ref name="Brenzinger-20152"/><ref name="Brenzinger-2007" /> | 2001 | 7.5 million | 3 million | 3 million | 1.5 million | -- | |
| Moroccan census<ref name="RGPH-2004" /> | 2004 | 7.5 million | 3.9 million | 2.3 million | 1.3 million | Also used by Ethnologue in 2015.<ref name="Ethnologue-2015">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> Only individuals over age 5 were included. |
| Multilingualism, Cultural Identity, and Education in Morocco<ref name="Ennaji-2005" /> | 2005 | 15 million | 6.8 million | 5.2 million | 3 million | Also used in Semitic and Afroasiatic: Challenges and Opportunities in 2012.<ref name="Elmedlaoui-2012-2" /> | |
| Moroccan census<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> |
2014 | 8.8 million | 4.8 million | 2.7 million | 1.4 million | Calculated via reported percentages. As in the 2004 census, only individuals over age 5 were surveyed for language. |
| Ethnologue<ref name="Morocco-2022" /> | 2022 | 13.8 million | 5 million | 4.6 million | 4.2 million | Additional Berber languages include Senhaja Berber (86,000 speakers) and Ghomara (10,000 speakers). | |
| Moroccan census<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation | CitationClass=web
}}</ref> |
2024 | 9.1 million | 5.2 million | 2.7 million | 1.2 million | Calculated via reported percentages. As in the 2004 and 2014 census, only individuals over age 5 were surveyed for language. |
AlgeriaEdit
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Algeria is the country with the second greatest number of speakers of Berber languages.<ref name="Brenzinger-2007" /><ref name="Penchoen-1973" /> In 1906, the total population speaking Berber languages in Algeria, excluding the thinly populated Sahara region, was estimated at 1,305,730 out of 4,447,149, or 29%.<ref name="Gautier-1913">Template:Cite journal</ref> Secondary sources disagree on the percentage of self-declared native Berber speakers in the 1966 census, the last Algerian census containing a question about the mother tongue. Some give 17.9%<ref name="Richard F. Nyrop, American University (Washington, D.C.). Foreign Area Studies">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Souriau">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Lesch">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Wolfgang Weissleder">Template:Cite book</ref> while other report 19%.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Citation</ref>
Kabyle speakers account for the vast majority of speakers of Berber languages in Algeria. Shawiya is the second most commonly spoken Berber language in Algeria. Other Berber languages spoken in Algeria include: Shenwa, with 76,300 speakers; Tashelhit, with 6,000 speakers; Ouargli, with 20,000 speakers; Tamahaq, with 71,400 speakers; Tugurt, with 8,100 speakers; Tidikelt, with 1,000 speakers; Gurara, with 11,000 speakers; and Mozabite, with 150,000 speakers.<ref name="Ethnologue-2022b">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Population estimates are summarized as follows:
| Source | Date | Total | Kabyle | Shawiya | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annales de Géographie<ref name="Gautier-1913" /> | 1906 | 1.3 million | – | – | – |
| Textes en linguistique berbère<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> | 1980 | 3.6 million | -- | -- | -- |
| International Encyclopedia of Linguistics<ref name="William Frawley">Template:Cite book</ref> | 2003 | -- | 2.5 million | -- | -- |
| Language Diversity Endangered<ref name="Matthias Brenzinger">Template:Cite book</ref> | 2015 | 4.5 million | 2.5 million - 3 million | 1.4 million | 0.13 million - 0.190 million |
| Journal of African Languages and Literatures<ref name="Mettouchi p=N. 2 (2021): Journal of African Languages and Literatures">Template:Cite journal</ref> | 2021 | -- | 3 million | -- | -- |
Other countriesEdit
As of 1998, there were an estimated 450,000 Tawellemmet speakers, 250,000 Air Tamajeq speakers, and 20,000 Tamahaq speakers in Niger.<ref name="Ethnologue-2022c">Template:Cite book</ref>
As of 2018 and 2014 respectively, there were an estimated 420,000 speakers of Tawellemmet and 378,000 of Tamasheq in Mali.<ref name="Ethnologue-2022c" /><ref name="Ethnologue-2022e">Template:Cite book</ref>
As of 2022, based on figures from 2020, Ethnologue estimates there to be 285,890 speakers of Berber languages in Libya: 247,000 speakers of Nafusi, 22,800 speakers of Tamahaq, 13,400 speakers of Ghadamés, and 2,690 speakers of Awjila. The number of Siwi speakers in Libya is listed as negligible, and the last Sokna speaker is thought to have died in the 1950s.<ref name="Ethnologue-2022f">Template:Cite book</ref>
There are an estimated 50,000 Djerbi speakers in Tunisia, based on figures from 2004. Sened is likely extinct, with the last speaker having died in the 1970s. Ghadamés, though not indigenous to Tunisia, is estimated to have 3,100 speakers throughout the country.<ref name="Ethnologue-2022g">Template:Cite book</ref> Chenini is one of the rare remaining Berber-speaking villages in Tunisia.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
There are an estimated 20,000 Siwi speakers in Egypt, based on figures from 2013.<ref name="Ethnologue-2022h">Template:Cite book</ref>
As of 2018 and 2017 respectively, there were an estimated 200 speakers of Zenaga and 117,000 of Tamasheq in Mauritania.<ref name="Ethnologue-2022i">Template:Cite book</ref>
As of 2009, there were an estimated 122,000 Tamasheq speakers in Burkina Faso.<ref name="Ethnologue-2022j">Template:Cite book</ref>
There are an estimated 1.5 million speakers of various Berber languages in France.<ref name="Ethnologue-2022k">Template:Cite book</ref> A small number of Tawellemmet speakers live in Nigeria.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
In total, there are an estimated 3.6 million speakers of Berber languages in countries outside of Morocco and Algeria, summarized as follows:
| Total | Niger | Mali | Libya | Tunisia | Egypt | Mauritania | Burkina Faso | France |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3,577,300 | 720,000<ref name="Ethnologue-2022c" /> | 798,000<ref name="Ethnologue-2022e" /> | 247,000<ref name="Ethnologue-2022f" /> | 53,100<ref name="Ethnologue-2022g" /> | 20,000<ref name="Ethnologue-2022h" /> | 117,200<ref name="Ethnologue-2022i" /> | 122,000<ref name="Ethnologue-2022j" /> | 1,500,000<ref name="Ethnologue-2022k" /> |
StatusEdit
After independence, all the Maghreb countries to varying degrees pursued a policy of Arabisation, aimed partly at displacing French from its colonial position as the dominant language of education and literacy. Under this policy the use of the Berber languages was suppressed or even banned. This state of affairs has been contested by Berbers in Morocco and Algeria—especially Kabylie—and was addressed in both countries by affording the language official status and introducing it in some schools.
MoroccoEdit
Template:See also After gaining independence from France in 1956, Morocco began a period of Arabisation through 1981, with primary and secondary school education gradually being changed to Arabic instruction, and with the aim of having administration done in Arabic, rather than French. During this time, there were riots amongst the Amazigh population, which called for the inclusion of Tamazight as an official language.<ref>Template:Citation</ref>
The 2000 Charter for Education Reform marked a change in policy, with its statement of "openness to Tamazight."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Planning for a public Tamazight-language TV network began in 2006; in 2010, the Moroccan government launched Tamazight TV.<ref name="Vourlias-2010a2"/>
On July 29, 2011, Tamazight was added as an official language to the Moroccan constitution.<ref name="Madanin-2012">Template:Cite book</ref>
AlgeriaEdit
Template:See also After gaining independence from France in 1962, Algeria committed to a policy of Arabisation, which, after the imposition of the Circular of July 1976, encompassed the spheres of education, public administration, public signage, print publication, and the judiciary. While primarily directed towards the erasure of French in Algerian society, these policies also targeted Berber languages, leading to dissatisfaction and unrest amongst speakers of Berber languages, who made up about one quarter of the population.<ref name="Bassiouney-2009" />
After the 1994-1995 general school boycott in Kabylia, Tamazight was recognized for the first time as a national language.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In 2002, following the riots of the Black Spring, Tamazight was recognized for the second time as a national language, though not as an official one.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:In lang – « Loi n° 02-03 portent révision constitutionnelle » Template:Webarchive, adopted on April 10, 2002, allotting in particular to "Tamazight" the status of national language.</ref> This was done on April 8, 2003.<ref name="Bassiouney-2009">Template:Citation</ref>
Tamazight has been taught for three hours a week through the first three years of Algerian middle schools since 2005.<ref name="Bassiouney-2009" />
On January 5, 2016, it was announced that Tamazight had been added as a national and official language in a draft amendment to the Algerian constitution; it was added to the constitution as a national and official language on February 7, 2016.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Constitution bill-2016">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="BBC News-2016">Template:Cite news</ref>
LibyaEdit
Although regional councils in Libya's Nafusa Mountains affiliated with the National Transitional Council reportedly use the Berber language of Nafusi and have called for it to be granted co-official status with Arabic in a prospective new constitution,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref> it does not have official status in Libya as in Morocco and Algeria. As areas of Libya south and west of Tripoli such as the Nafusa Mountains were taken from the control of Gaddafi government forces in early summer 2011, Berber workshops and exhibitions sprang up to share and spread the Berber culture and language.<ref>Waiting game for rebels in western Libya Template:Webarchive, BBC News, John Simpson, 5 July 2011</ref>
Other countriesEdit
In Mali and Niger, some Tuareg languages have been recognized as national languages and have been part of school curriculums since the 1960s.<ref name="Elmedlaoui-2012-2">Template:Cite book</ref>
PhonologyEdit
NotationEdit
In linguistics, the phonology of Berber languages is written with the International Phonetic Alphabet, with the following exceptions:<ref name="Elmedlaoui-2012-3">Template:Cite book</ref>
| Notation | Meaning |
|---|---|
| /š/ | unvoiced anterior post-alveolar, as in Slavic languages and Lithuanian |
| /ž/ | voiced anterior post-alveolar, also in Slavic languages and Lithuanian |
| /ɣ/ | voiced uvular fricative (in IPA, this represents the voiced velar fricative) |
| /◌͑/ | voiced pharyngeal fricative |
| /h/ | laryngeal voiced consonant |
| /◌͗/ | glottal stop |
| /ř/ | strident flap or /r̝/, as in Czech |
| ! | indicates the following segment is emphatic |
ConsonantsEdit
The influence of Arabic, the process of spirantization, and the absence of labialization have caused the consonant systems of Berber languages to differ significantly by region.<ref name="Kossmann-2012a">Template:Cite book</ref> Berber languages found north of, and in the northern half of, the Sahara have greater influence from Arabic, including that of loaned phonemes, than those in more southern regions, like Tuareg.<ref name="Kossmann-2012a" /><ref name="Kossmann-2013">Template:Cite book</ref> Most Berber languages in northern regions have additionally undergone spirantization, in which historical short stops have changed into fricatives.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Northern Berber languages (which is a subset of but not identical to Berber languages in geographically northern regions) commonly have labialized velars and uvulars, unlike other Berber languages.<ref name="Kossmann-2013" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Two languages that illustrate the resulting range in consonant inventory across Berber languages are Ahaggar Tuareg and Kabyle; Kabyle has two more places of articulation and three more manners of articulation than Ahaggar Tuareg.<ref name="Kossmann-2012a" />
There is still, however, common consonant features observed across Berber languages. Almost all Berber languages have bilabial, dental, palatal, velar, uvular, pharyngeal, and laryngeal consonants, and almost all consonants have a long counterpart.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Kossmann-1997">Template:Cite journal</ref> All Berber languages, as is common in Afroasiatic languages, have pharyngealized consonants and phonemic gemination.<ref name="Kossmann-2012a" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The consonants which may undergo gemination, and the positions in a word where gemination may occur, differ by language.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> They have also been observed to have tense and lax consonants, although the status of tense consonants has been the subject of "considerable discussion" by linguists.<ref name="Kossmann-1997" /> Three (Kabyle, Tarifit and Shawiya) of the most spoken five Tamazight languages have the interdental consonants Template:IPAblink and Template:IPAblink which are considered rare cross-linguistically.
VowelsEdit
The vowel systems of Berber languages also vary widely, with inventories ranging from three phonemic vowels in most Northern Berber languages, to seven in some Eastern Berber and Tuareg languages.<ref name="Kossman-2012">Template:Cite book</ref> For example, Taselhiyt has the vowels /i/, /a/, and /u/, while Ayer Tuareg has the vowels /i/, /ə/, /u/, /e/, /ɐ/, /o/, and /a/.<ref name="Kossman-2012" /><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Contrastive vowel length is rare in Berber languages. Tuareg languages had previously been reported to have contrastive vowel length, but this is no longer the leading analysis.<ref name="Kossman-2012" /> A complex feature of Berber vowel systems is the role of central vowels, which vary in occurrence and function across languages; there is a debate as to whether schwa is a proper phoneme of Northern Berber languages.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
SuprasegmentalsEdit
Most Berber languages:
- allow for any combination of CC consonant clusters.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
- have no lexical tones.<ref name="Maarten-2012">Template:Cite book</ref>
- either have no lexical stress (Northern Berber languages) or have grammatically significant lexical stress.<ref name="Maarten-2012" />
Phonetic correspondencesEdit
Phonetic correspondences between Berber languages are fairly regular.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Some examples, of varying importance and regularity, include [g/ž/y]; [k/š]; [l/ř/r]; [l/ž, ll/ddž]; [trill/ vocalized r]; [šš/ttš]; [ss/ttš]; [w/g/b]; [q/ɣ]; [h/Ø]; and [s-š-ž/h].<ref name="Elmedlaoui-2012-3" /> Words in various Berber languages are shown to demonstrate these phonetic correspondences as follows:<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
| Tahaggart Template:Small |
Tashlhiyt Template:Small |
Kabyle Template:Small |
Figuig Template:Small |
Central Atlas Tamazight Template:Small |
Tarifit Template:Small |
Gloss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| !oska | !uskay | !uššay | (Arabic loan) | !usça | !uššay | "greyhound" |
| t-a-!gzəl-t | t-i-!gzzl-t | t-i-!gzzəl-t | t-i-!yžəl-t | t-i-!ḡzəl-t | θ-i-!yzzətš | "kidney" |
| a-gelhim | a-glzim | a-gəlzim | a-yəlzim | a-ḡzzim | a-řizim | "axe" |
| éhéder | i-gidr | i-gider | (Arabic loan) | yidər | žiða: | "eagle" |
| t-adhan-t | t-adgal-t | t-addžal-t | t-ahžžal-t | t-adžal-t | θ-ažžat | "window" |
| élem | ilm | a-gwlim | ilem | iləm | iřem | "skin" |
| a-!hiyod | a-!žddid | a-!žəddžid | – | a-!ḡddžid | a-!žžið | "scabies" |
| a-gûhil | i-gigil | a-gužil | a-yužil | a-wižil | a-yužiř | "orphan" |
| t-immé | i-gnzi | t-a-gwənza | t-a-nyər-t | t-i-nir-t | θ-a-nya:-θ | "forehead" |
| t-ahor-t | t-aggur-t | t-abbur-t | (Arabic loan) | t-aggur-t | θ-!awwa:-θ | "door" |
| t-a-flu-t | t-i-flu-t | t-i-flu-t | – | t-iflu-t | -- | |
| a-fus | a-fus | a-fus | a-fus | (a-)fus | fus | "hand" |
GrammarEdit
Berber languages characteristically make frequent use of apophony in the form of ablaut.<ref name="Kossmann-2007" /> Berber apophony has been historically analyzed as functioning similarly to the Semitic root, but this analysis has fallen out of favor due to the lexical significance of vowels in Berber languages, as opposed to their primarily grammatical significance in Semitic languages.<ref name="Kossmann-2007" />
The lexical categories of all Berber languages are nouns, verbs, pronouns, adverbs, and prepositions. With the exception of a handful of Arabic loanwords in most languages, Berber languages do not have proper adjectives. In Northern and Eastern Berber languages, adjectives are a subcategory of nouns; in Tuareg, relative clauses and stative verb forms are used to modify nouns instead.<ref name="Kossmann-2012f">Template:Cite book</ref>
The gender, number, and case of nouns, as well as the gender, number, and person of verbs, are typically distinguished through affixes.<ref name="Kossmann-2007-2" /><ref name="Kossmann-2012c" /> Arguments are described with word order and clitics.<ref name="Kossmann-2012d">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Kossmann-2007d">Template:Cite book</ref> When sentences have a verb, they essentially follow verb–subject–object word order, although some linguists believe alternate descriptors would better categorize certain languages, such as Taqbaylit.<ref name="Kossmann-2007d" /><ref name="Mettouchi-2010">Template:Cite book</ref>
PronounsEdit
Berber languages have both independent and dependent pronouns, both of which distinguish between person and number. Gender is also typically distinguished in the second and third person, and sometimes in first person plural.<ref name="Kossmann-2012d" />
Linguist Maarten Kossmann divides pronouns in Berber languages into three morphological groups:<ref name="Kossmann-2012d" />
- Independent pronouns
- Direct object clitics
- Indirect object clitics; prepositional suffixes; adnominal suffixes
When clitics precede or follow a verb, they are almost always ordered with the indirect object first, direct object second, and andative-venitive deictic clitic last. An example in Tarifit is shown as follows:<ref name="Kossmann-2012d" />
The allowed positioning of different kinds of clitics varies by language.<ref name="Kossmann-2012d" />
NounsEdit
Nouns are distinguished by gender, number, and case in most Berber languages, with gender being feminine or masculine, number being singular or plural, and case being in the construct or free state.<ref name="Kossmann-2007" /><ref name="König-2008">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Kossmann-2007-2">Template:Cite book</ref> Some Arabic borrowings in Northern and Eastern Berber languages do not accept these affixes; they instead retain the Arabic article regardless of case, and follow Arabic patterns to express number and gender.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="Kossmann-2012-54-55">Template:Cite book</ref>
Gender can be feminine or masculine, and can be lexically determined, or can be used to distinguish qualities of the noun.<ref name="Kossmann-2007" /> For humans and "higher" animals (such as mammals and large birds), gender distinguishes sex, whereas for objects and "lesser" animals (such as insects and lizards), it distinguishes size. For some nouns, often fruits and vegetables, gender can also distinguish the specificity of the noun.<ref name="Kossmann-2007" /><ref name="Kossmann-2012e">Template:Cite book</ref> The ways in which gender is used to distinguish nouns is shown in as follows, with examples from Figuig:<ref name="Kossmann-2007">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Kossmann-2012e" />
| Noun type | Feminine | Masculine | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feature | Figuig example | Example gloss | Feature | Figuig example | Example gloss | |
| humans; higher animals | female | ta-sli-t | "bride" | male | a-sli | "groom" |
| objects; lesser animals | small | ta-ɣənžay-t | "spoon" | large | a-ɣənža | "large spoon" |
| varies, but typically fruits and vegetables | unit noun | ta-mlul-t | "(one) melon" | collective noun | a-mlul | "melons (in general)" |
| ti-mlal (plural) | "(specific) melons" | |||||
An example of nouns with lexically determined gender are the feminine t-lussi ("butter") and masculine a-ɣi ("buttermilk") in Figuig.<ref name="Kossmann-2007" /> Mass nouns have lexically determined gender across Berber languages.<ref name="Kossmann-2012e" />
Most Berber languages have two cases, which distinguish the construct state from the free state.<ref name="König-2008" /><ref name="Kossmann-2007c">Template:Cite book</ref> The construct state is also called the "construct case, "relative case," "annexed state" (état d'annexion), or the "nominative case"; the free state (état libre) is also called the "direct case" or "accusative case."<ref name="König-2008" /> When present, case is always expressed through nominal prefixes and initial-vowel reduction.<ref name="König-2008" /><ref name="Kossmann-2007c" /> The use of the marked nominative system and constructions similar to Split-S alignment varies by language.<ref name="Mettouchi-2010" /><ref name="König-2008" /> Eastern Berber languages do not have case.<ref name="König-2008" /><ref name="Kossmann-2007c" />
Number can be singular or plural, which is marked with prefixation, suffixation, and sometimes apophony. Nouns usually are made plural by one of either suffixation or apophony, with prefixation applied independently. Specifics vary by language, but prefixation typically changes singular a- and ta- to plural i- and ti- respectively.<ref name="Kossmann-2007-2" /> The number of mass nouns are lexically determined. For example, in multiple Berber languages, such as Figuig, a-ɣi ("buttermilk") is singular while am-an ("water") is plural.<ref name="Kossmann-2012e" />
Nouns or pronouns—optionally extended with genitival pronominal affixes, demonstrative clitics, or pre-nominal elements, and then further modified by numerals, adjectives, possessive phrases, or relative clauses—can be built into noun phrases.<ref name="Kossmann-2007f">Template:Cite book</ref> Possessive phrases in noun phrases must have a genitive proposition.<ref name="Kossmann-2012f" /><ref name="Kossmann-2007f" />
There are a limited number of pre-nominal elements, which function similarly to pronoun syntactic heads of the noun phrase, and which can be categorized into three types as follows:<ref name="Kossmann-2007f" />
- The pluralizer id-
- The four pre-nominal elements roughly meaning "son(s) of" and "daughter(s) of", which commonly denote group identity and origin
- Pre-nominal elements which expand on the meaning of the noun
VerbsEdit
Verb bases are formed by stems that are optionally extended by prefixes, with mood, aspect, and negation applied with a vocalic scheme. This form can then be conjugated with affixes to agree with person, number, and gender, which produces a word.<ref name="Kossmann-2012c">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref>
Different linguists analyze and label aspects in the Berber languages vary differently. Kossman roughly summarizes the basic stems which denote aspect as follows:<ref name="Kossmann-2007e">Template:Cite book</ref>
- Aorist, also called aoriste, without a preceding particle:
- imperative
- unmarked (taking aspect from preceding verb)
- Aorist, with the preceding article ad:
- irrealis (adhortative, future)
- Preterite, or accompli:
- past tense, in dynamic use
- states (such as "to want, to know"), in stative use
- Intensive Aorist, also called habitative or inaccompli:
- dynamic present
- habitative and iterative
- habitative imperative
- negation of any imperative
Different languages may have more stems and aspects, or may distinguish within the above categories. Stem formation can be very complex, with Tuareg by some measures having over two hundred identified conjugation subtypes.<ref name="Kossmann-2007e" />
The aspectual stems of some classes of verbs in various Berber languages are shown as follows:<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
| Figuig | Ghadames | Ayer Tuareg | Mali Tuareg | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aorist | əlmədatəf | ălmədatəf | əlmədatəf | əlmədaləm |
| Imperfective | ləmmədttatəf | lămmădttatăf | -- | lămmădtiləm |
| Secondary imperfective | -- | -- | lámmădtátăf | lámmădtiləm |
| Negative imperfective | ləmmədttitəf | ləmmədttitəf | ləmmədtitəf | ləmmədtiləm |
| Perfective | əlmədutəf | əlmădutăf | əlmădotăf | əlmădolăm |
| Secondary perfective | -- | -- | əlmádotáf | əlmádolám |
| Negative perfective | əlmidutif | əlmedutef | əlmedotef | əlmedolem |
| Future | -- | əlmădutăf | -- | -- |
Verb phrases are built with verb morphology, pronominal and deictic clitics, pre-verbal particles, and auxiliary elements. The pre-verbal particles are ad, wər, and their variants, which correspond to the meanings of "non-realized" and "negative" respectively.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
NumeralsEdit
Many Berber languages have lost use of their original numerals from three onwards due to the influence of Arabic; Tarifit has lost all except one. Languages that may retain all their original numerals include Tashelhiyt, Tuareg, Ghadames, Ouargla, and Zenaga.<ref name="Corpus-2015">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Kossmann-2012b">Template:Cite book</ref>
Original Berber numerals agree in gender with the noun they describe, whereas the borrowed Arabic forms do not.<ref name="Corpus-2015" /><ref name="Kossmann-2012b" />
The numerals 1–10 in Tashelhiyt and Mali Tuareg are as follows:<ref>Hans Stumme: Handbuch des Schilhischen von Tazerwalt. Hinrichs, Leipzig 1899, § 169; Transcription modified.</ref><ref>Galand (1988, 4.11).</ref><ref name="Kossmann-2012b" />
| Tashelhiyt | Mali Tuareg | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Small | Template:Small | Template:Small | Template:Small | |
| 1 | yan | yat | iyăn | iyăt |
| 2 | sin | snat | əssin | sănatăt |
| 3 | kraḍ | kraṭṭ | kăraḍ | kăraḍăt |
| 4 | kkuẓ | kkuẓt | akkoẓ | ăkkoẓăt |
| 5 | smmus | smmust | sămmos | sămmosăt |
| 6 | sḍis | sḍist | səḍis | səḍisăt |
| 7 | sa | sat | ăssa | ăssayăt |
| 8 | tam | tamt | ăttam | ăttamăt |
| 9 | tẓa | tẓat | tăẓẓa | tăẓẓayăt |
| 10 | mraw | mrawt | măraw | mărawăt |
Sentence structureEdit
Sentences in Berber languages can be divided into verbal and non-verbal sentences. The topic, which has a unique intonation in the sentence, precedes all other arguments in both types.<ref name="Kossmann-2007d" />
Verbal sentences have a finite verb, and are commonly understood to follow verb–subject–object word order (VSO).<ref name="Kossmann-2007d" /><ref name="Mettouchi-2010" /> Some linguists have proposed opposing analyses of the word order patterns in Berber languages, and there has been some support for characterizing Taqbaylit as discourse-configurational.<ref name="Mettouchi-2010" />
Existential, attributive, and locational sentences in most Berber languages are expressed with non-verbal sentences, which have no finite verb. In these sentences, the predicate follows the noun, with the predicative particle d sometimes in between. Two examples, one without and one with a subject, are given from Kabyle as follows:<ref name="Kossmann-2007d" /> Template:Interlinear
Template:InterlinearNon-verbal sentences may use the verb meaning "to be," which exists in all Berber languages. An example from Tarifit is given as follows:<ref name="Kossmann-2007d" />Template:Interlinear
LexiconEdit
Above all in the area of basic lexicon, the Berber languages are very similar.Template:Citation needed However, the household-related vocabulary in sedentary tribes is especially different from the one found in nomadic ones: whereas Tahaggart has only two or three designations for species of palm tree, other languages may have as many as 200 similar words.<ref>Basset 1952, S. 45</ref> In contrast, Tahaggart has a rich vocabulary for the description of camels.<ref>J.-M. Cortade, M. Mammeri: Lexique français-touareg, dialecte de l’Ahaggar. Paris 1967, 91–93</ref>
Some loanwords in the Berber languages can be traced to pre-Roman times. The Berber words te-ḇăyne "date" and a-sḇan "loose woody tissue around the palm tree stem" originate from Ancient Egyptian, likely due to the introduction of date palm cultivation into North Africa from Egypt.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Around a dozen Berber words are probable Phoenician-Punic loanwords, although the overall influence of Phoenician-Punic on Berber languages is negligible.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> A number of loanwords could be attributed to Phoenician-Punic, Hebrew, or Aramaic. The similar vocabulary between these Semitic languages, as well as Arabic, is a complicating factor in tracing the etymology of certain words.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Words of Latin origin have been introduced into Berber languages over time. Maarten Kossman separates Latin loanwords in Berber languages into those from during the Roman empire ("Latin loans"), from after the fall of the Roman empire ("African Romance loans"), precolonial non-African Romance loans, and colonial and post-colonial Romance loans. It can be difficult to distinguish Latin from African Romance loans.<ref name="Kossmann-2013b">Template:Cite book</ref> There are about 40 likely Latin or African Romance loanwords in Berber languages, which tend to be agricultural terms, religious terms, terms related to learning, or words for plants or useful objects.<ref name="Kossmann-2013b" /><ref name="Kossmann-2013c">Template:Cite book</ref> Use of these terms varies by language. For example, Tuareg does not retain the Latin agricultural terms, which relate to a form of agriculture not practiced by the Tuareg people. There are some Latin loans that are only known to be used in Shawiya.<ref name="Kossmann-2013c" />
The Berber calendar uses month names derived from the Julian calendar. Not every language uses every month. For example, Figuig appears to use only eight of the months.<ref name="Kossmann-2013c" /> These names may be precolonial non-African Romance loans, adopted into Berber languages through Arabic, rather than from Latin directly.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The most influential external language on the lexicon of Berber languages is Arabic. Maarten Kossmann calculates that 0-5% of Ghadames and Awdjila's core vocabularies, and over 15% of Ghomara, Siwa, and Senhadja de Sraïr's core vocabularies, are loans from Arabic. Most other Berber languages loan from 6–15% of their core vocabulary from Arabic.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Salem Chaker estimates that Arabic loanwords represent 38% of Kabyle vocabulary, 25% of Tashelhiyt vocabulary, and 5% of Tuareg vocabulary, including non-core words.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
On the one hand, the words and expressions connected to Islam were borrowed, e.g. Tashlhiyt bismillah "in the name of Allah" < Classical Arabic bi-smi-llāhi, Tuareg ta-mejjīda "mosque" (Arabic masjid); on the other, Berber adopted cultural concepts such as Kabyle ssuq "market" from Arabic as-sūq, tamdint "town" < Arabic madīna. Even expressions such as the Arabic greeting as-salāmu ʿalaikum "Peace be upon you!" were adopted (Tuareg salāmu ɣlīkum).<ref>Textes touaregs en prose de Charles de Foucauld et Adolphe de Calassanti-Motylinski. Édition critique avec traduction par Salem Chaker, Hélène Claudot, Marceau Gast. Edisud, Aix-en-Provence 1984, Template:Falsche ISBN, S. 302</ref>
Influence on other languagesEdit
The Berber languages have influenced local Arabic dialects in the Maghreb. Although Maghrebi Arabic has a predominantly Semitic and Arabic vocabulary,<ref name="Abdou Elimam2">Template:Cite book</ref> it contains a few Berber loanwords which represent 2–3% of the vocabulary of Libyan Arabic, 8–9% of Algerian Arabic and Tunisian Arabic, and 10–15% of Moroccan Arabic.<ref name=":022">Template:Cite book</ref> Their influence is also seen in some languages in West Africa. F. W. H. Migeod pointed to strong resemblances between Berber and Hausa in such words and phrases as these:
| Berber | Hausa | gloss |
|---|---|---|
| lang}} | lang}} | his father |
| lang}} | lang}} | he was lost |
| lang}} | lang}} | he called |
In addition he notes that the genitive in both languages is formed with n = "of" (though likely a common inheritance from Proto-Afro-Asiatic; cf. A.Eg genitive n).<ref>Migeod, F. W. H., The Languages of West Africa. Kegan, Paul, Trench & Trübner, London 1913. pages 232, 233.</ref>
Extinct languagesEdit
A number of extinct populations are believed to have spoken Afro-Asiatic languages of the Berber branch. According to Peter Behrens (1981) and Marianne Bechaus-Gerst (2000), linguistic evidence suggests that the peoples of the C-Group culture in present-day southern Egypt and northern Sudan spoke Berber languages.<ref name="Bechaus-Gerst"/><ref name="Lbant"/> The Nilo-Saharan Nobiin language today contains a number of key pastoralism related loanwords that are of Berber origin, including the terms for sheep and water/Nile. This in turn suggests that the C-Group population—which, along with the Kerma culture, inhabited the Nile valley immediately before the arrival of the first Nubian speakers—spoke Afro-Asiatic languages.<ref name="Bechaus-Gerst"/>
Additionally, historical linguistics indicate that the Guanche language, which was spoken on the Canary Islands by the ancient Guanches, likely belonged to the Berber branch of the Afro-Asiatic family.<ref name="Hawyard">Richard Hayward, 2000, "Afroasiatic", in Heine & Nurse eds, African Languages, Cambridge University Press</ref>
See alsoEdit
- List of Berber-language television channels
- Amazigh Cultural Association in America
- Shilha literature
NotesEdit
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
Template:Sister projectTemplate:Sister project Template:Sister project Template:Sister project Template:Incubator Template:Incubator Template:Sister project
- Tamazight-English Dictionary
- "What does Berber sound like?" (Thamazight poems as text & MP3)
- Map of Berber language from the LL-Map Project (archived 24 June 2011)
- The Berber Language Profile (archived 2 October 2010)
- Etymology of "Berber"
- Etymology of "Amazigh"
- Early Christian history of Berbers
- Tifinagh
- Ancient Scripts (archived 26 August 2017)
- Imyura Kabyle site about literature (archived 12 August 2013)
- Amawal: The online open source Berber dictionary
Template:Languages of the Maghreb Template:Afro-Asiatic languages Template:Authority control