Editing Lower Sorbian language

{{Short description|West Slavic language of eastern Germany}}
{{redirect|Lower Sorbian|the people|Lower Sorbs}}
{{distinguish|Serbian language}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Lower Sorbian
| nativename       = {{lang|dsb|dolnoserbšćina, dolnoserbski}}
| ethnicity        = [[Sorbs]]
| pronunciation    = {{IPA|dsb|ˈdɔlnɔˌsɛrskʲi|}}
| states           = [[Germany]]
| region           = [[Brandenburg]]
| script           = [[Latin script|Latin]] ([[Sorbian alphabet]])
| speakers         = {{sigfig|5,000|2}}
| date             = 2010
| ref              = {{Infobox language/ref|<ref>{{cite book|title=Sorabicon}}</ref>}}
| familycolor      = Indo-European
| fam2             = [[Balto-Slavic languages|Balto-Slavic]]
| fam3             = [[Slavic languages|Slavic]]
| fam4             = [[West Slavic languages|West Slavic]]
| fam5             = [[Sorbian languages|Sorbian]]
| iso2             = dsb
| iso3             = dsb
| glotto           = lowe1385
| glottorefname    = Lower Sorbian
| lingua           = 53-AAA-ba < [[Sorbian languages|53-AAA-b]] < [[West Slavic languages|53-AAA-b...-d]] (varieties: 53-AAA-baa to 53-AAA-bah)
| notice           = IPA
}}

'''Lower Sorbian''' ({{langx|dsb|label=[[endonym]]|dolnoserbšćina}}) is a [[West Slavic languages|West Slavic]] [[minority language]] spoken in eastern [[Germany]] in the historical province of [[Lower Lusatia]], today part of [[Brandenburg]].

Standard Lower Sorbian is one of the two literary [[Sorbian languages]], the other being the more widely spoken [[Upper Sorbian]]. The Lower Sorbian literary standard was developed in the 18th century, based on a southern form of the Cottbus dialect.<ref name=:0>{{Cite book |author = Björn Rothstein, Rolf Thieroff |title = Mood in the Languages of Europe |year = 2010|isbn = 9789027205872 |publisher = John Benjamins Publishing |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=o3L8oKcbZtoC | pages=376–377 |language = en}}</ref> The [[standard language|standard variety]] of Lower Sorbian has received structural influence from Upper Sorbian.<ref name=:0 />

Lower Sorbian is spoken in and around the city of [[Cottbus]] in [[Brandenburg]]. Signs in this region are typically bilingual, and Cottbus has a ''[[Lower Sorbian Gymnasium Cottbus|Lower Sorbian Gymnasium]]'' where one language of instruction is Lower Sorbian. It is a heavily [[endangered language]].<ref>{{cite book|editor-last=Moseley|editor-first=Christopher|title=Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger|date=2010|publisher=UNESCO Publishing|location=Paris|isbn=978-92-3-104096-2|edition=3rd|url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/languages-atlas/index.php}}</ref> Most native speakers today belong to the older generations.

==Phonology==
[[File:Bilinguale Straßenbeschilderung Cottbus.jpg|thumb|Bilingual road sign in [[Cottbus]], Germany]]

The phonology of Lower Sorbian has been greatly influenced by [[language contact|contact]] with [[German language|German]], especially in Cottbus and larger towns. For example, German-influenced pronunciation tends to have a [[voiced uvular fricative]] {{IPA|[ʁ]}} instead of the alveolar trill {{IPA|[r]}}. In villages and rural areas, German influence is less marked, and the pronunciation is more "typically Slavic".

===Consonants===

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
|+ Consonant phonemes{{sfnp|Stone|2002|p=605}}{{sfnp|Zygis|2003|pp=180–181}}
!colspan=2 rowspan=2 | 
!colspan=2 | [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
!colspan=2 | [[Dental consonant|Dental]]/<br>[[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
!colspan=2 | [[Postalveolar consonant|Postalveolar]]
!colspan=2 | [[Dorsal consonant|Dorsal]]
!rowspan=2 | [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-class=small
! [[Tenuis consonant|hard]]
! [[Palatalization (phonetics)|soft]]
! [[Tenuis consonant|hard]]
! [[Palatalization (phonetics)|soft]]
! [[Tenuis consonant|hard]]
! [[Palatalization (phonetics)|soft]]
! [[Tenuis consonant|hard]]
! [[Palatalization (phonetics)|soft]]
|-
!colspan=2| [[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
| {{IPA link|m}}
| ({{IPA link|mʲ}})
| {{IPA link|n}}
| {{IPA link|nʲ}}
|
|
| ({{IPA link|ŋ}})
| ({{IPA link|ŋʲ}})
|
|- 
!rowspan=2| [[Stop consonant|Plosive]]
! {{small|[[voicelessness|voiceless]]}}
| {{IPA link|p}}
| ({{IPA link|pʲ}})
| {{IPA link|t̪|t}}
| ({{IPA link|tʲ}})
|
|
| {{IPA link|k}}
| ({{IPA link|kʲ}})
|
|-
! {{small|[[voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
| {{IPA link|b}}
| ({{IPA link|bʲ}})
| {{IPA link|d̪|d}}
| ({{IPA link|dʲ}})
|
|
| {{IPA link|ɡ}}
| ({{IPA link|ɡʲ}})
|
|- 
! colspan="2" | [[Affricate consonant|Affricate]]
|
|
| {{IPA link|t̪͡s̪|t͡s}}
|
| {{IPA link|t͡ʂ|t͡ʃ}}
| {{IPA link|t͡ɕ}}
|
|
|
|-
!rowspan=2| [[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
! {{small|[[voicelessness|voiceless]]}}
| {{IPA link|f}}
| ({{IPA link|fʲ}})
| {{IPA link|s̪|s}}
|
| {{IPA link|ʂ|ʃ}}
| {{IPA link|ɕ}}
| {{IPA link|x}}
| ({{IPA link|xʲ}})
| {{IPA link|h}}
|- 
! {{small|[[voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
| {{IPA link|v}}
| ({{IPA link|vʲ}})
| {{IPA link|z̪|z}}
|
| {{IPA link|ʐ|ʒ}}
| {{IPA link|ʑ}}
|
|
| rowspan="3" |
|-
! colspan=2| [[Trill consonant|Trill]]
|
|
| {{IPA link|r}}
| {{IPA link|rʲ}}
|
|
|
|
|- 
! colspan=2| [[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
| {{IPA link|w}}
| {{IPA link|ɥ|wʲ}}
| {{IPA link|l}}
| ({{IPA link|lʲ}})
|
|
|
| {{IPA link|j}}
|}

* {{IPA|/m, mʲ, p, pʲ, b, bʲ/}} are [[Bilabial consonant|bilabial]], whereas {{IPA|/f, v/}} are [[Labiodental consonant|labiodental]],{{sfnp|Stone|2002|p=605}} {{IPA|/w, wʲ/}} are [[Labialized_velar_consonant|labiovelar]],<ref>{{citation|title = Niedersorbische Aussprache|publisher = [[Sorbian Institute|Serbski Institut]]}}</ref> although the latter may be a [[labial–palatal approximant]].
* Consonants in parentheses are allophones of another consonant before another consonant or vowel, for example {{IPA|/m/}} may [[Palatalization_(sound_change)|palatalize]] to {{IPA|/mʲ/}} before front vowels or {{IPA|/j/}}, and {{IPA|/n/}} may [[Assimilation_(phonology)|assimilate]] to {{IPA|/ŋ/}} before [[velar consonants]].
* The [[Proto-Slavic]] contrasts between {{IPA|/m, p, b, v/}} and their palatalized counterparts has been lost phonetically in Lower Sorbian, with the marginal phonemes occurring only before certain vowels. The contrasts between {{IPA|/t, d/}} and their palatalized counterparts has evolved into a contrast between {{IPA|/t, d/}} and {{IPA|/ɕ, ʑ/}}. The contrast between {{IPA|/l/}} and its palatalized counterpart has evolved into a contrast between {{IPA|/w, l/}} while the contrasts between {{IPA|/n, r/}} and their palatalized counterparts has remained intact and the contrasts between {{IPA|/s, z/}} and their palatalized counterparts no longer exists.<ref>{{citation|title=Sound Change and the Structure of Synchronic Variability: Phonetic and Phonological Factors in Slavic Palatalization|author=Iskarous, Khalil, and Kavitskaya, Darya|publisher=[[Linguistic Society of America]]|url=https://www.linguisticsociety.org/sites/default/files/Iskarous&Kavitskaya.pdf}}</ref>
* {{IPA|/n, nʲ, l, r, rʲ/}} are alveolar {{IPA|[{{IPAplink|n}}, nʲ, {{IPAplink|l}}, {{IPAplink|r}}, rʲ]}}, whereas {{IPA|/t, d, t͡s, s, z/}} are dental {{IPA|[{{IPAplink|t̪}}, {{IPAplink|d̪}}, {{IPAplink|t̪͡s̪}}, {{IPAplink|s̪}}, {{IPAplink|z̪}}]}}.{{sfnp|Stone|2002|p=605}}
* {{IPA|/t͡ʃ, ʃ, ʒ/}} have been variously transcribed with {{angbr IPA|t͡ʃ, ʃ, ʒ}}{{sfnp|Hannusch|1998}}{{sfnp|Stone|2002}} and {{angbr IPA|t͡ʂ, ʂ, ʐ}}.{{sfnp|Zygis|2003}} Their actual phonetic realization is flat postalveolar {{IPA|[{{IPAplink|t͡ʂ|t͡ʃ˖}}, {{IPAplink|ʂ|ʃ˖}}, {{IPAplink|ʐ|ʒ˖}}]}}<ref>This transcription follows {{Harvcoltxt|Laver|1994|pp=251–252}}. Other scholars may transcribe these sounds differently.</ref> in all of the Lower Sorbian-speaking area. This is unlike in standard Upper Sorbian, where these are [[Palato-alveolar consonant|palato-alveolar]] {{IPA|[{{IPAplink|t͡ʃ}}, {{IPAplink|ʃ}}, {{IPAplink|ʒ}}]}}.{{sfnp|Zygis|2003|pp=180–181, 190–191}}{{sfnp|Schuster-Šewc|1984|pp=40–41}}

====Final devoicing and assimilation====
Lower Sorbian has both [[final devoicing]] and regressive [[phonation|voicing]] [[assimilation (linguistics)|assimilation]]:{{sfnp|Hannusch|1998|p=12}} 
*''dub'' {{IPA|/dub/}} "oak" is pronounced {{IPA|[dup]}}
*''susedka'' {{IPA|/ˈsusedka/}} "(female) neighbor" is pronounced {{IPA|[ˈsusetka]}}
*''licba'' {{IPA|/ˈlit͡sba/}} "number" is pronounced {{IPA|[ˈlʲid͡zba]}}

The hard postalveolar fricative {{IPA|/ʃ/}} is assimilated to {{IPA|[ɕ]}} before {{IPA|/t͡ɕ/}}:{{sfnp|Hannusch|1998|p=13}}
*''šćit'' {{IPA|/ʃt͡ɕit/}} "protection" is pronounced {{IPA|[ɕt͡ɕit]}}

===Vowels===
The vowel inventory of Lower Sorbian is exactly the same as that of Upper Sorbian.{{sfnp|Stone|2002|p=600}} It is also very similar to the vowel inventory of [[Slovene language|Slovene]].

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Vowel phonemes{{sfnp|Stone|2002|p=600}}
!
! [[Front vowel|Front]]
! [[Central vowel|Central]]
! [[Back vowel|Back]]
|-
! align="left" | [[Close vowel|Close]]
| align="center" | {{IPA link|i}}
| align="center" | ({{IPA link|ɨ}})
| align="center" | {{IPA link|u}}
|-
! align="left" | [[Close-mid vowel|Close-mid]]
| align="center" | {{IPA link|e}}
|
| align="center" | {{IPA link|o}}
|-
! align="left" | [[Open-mid vowel|Open-mid]]
| align="center" | {{IPA link|ɛ}}
|
| align="center" | {{IPA link|ɔ}}
|-
! align="left" | [[Open vowel|Open]]
|
| align="center" | {{IPA link|ä|a}}
|
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|- class="Diphthong"
! [[Diphthong]]
! i-
! -j
! -w
|-
! align="left" | Close
|style="text-align:center"| {{IPA|iɪ}}
|style="text-align:center"| {{IPA|ij&nbsp;&nbsp;ɨj&nbsp;&nbsp;uj}}
|style="text-align:center"| {{IPA|iw&nbsp;&nbsp;ɨw&nbsp;&nbsp;uw}}
|-
! align="left" | Mid
|
|style="text-align:center"| {{IPA|ej&nbsp;&nbsp;ɔj}}
|style="text-align:center"| {{IPA|ɛw&nbsp;&nbsp;ow}}
|-
! align="left" | Open
|
|style="text-align:center"| {{IPA|aj}}
|style="text-align:center"| {{IPA|aw}}
|}

* {{IPA|/i/}} is retracted to {{IPA|[ɨ]}} after hard consonants.
* {{IPA|/e, o/}} are diphthongized to {{IPA|[i̯ɛ, u̯ɔ]}} in slow speech.{{sfnp|Stone|2002|p=600}}
* The {{IPA|/e–ɛ/}} and {{IPA|/o–ɔ/}} distinctions are weakened or lost in unstressed syllables.{{sfnp|Stone|2002|pp=606–607}}
* {{IPA|/a/}} is phonetically central {{IPAblink|ä}}.{{sfnp|Stone|2002|p=600}}

===Stress===
[[Stress (linguistics)|Stress]] in Lower Sorbian normally falls on the first [[syllable]] of the word:{{sfnp|Hannusch|1998|p=14}}

* {{lang|dsb|Łužyca}} {{IPA|[ˈwuʒɨt͡sa]}} "[[Lusatia]]"
* {{lang|dsb|pśijaśel}} {{IPA|[ˈpɕijaɕɛl]}} "friend"
* {{lang|dsb|Chóśebuz}} {{IPA|[ˈxɨɕɛbus]}} "[[Cottbus]]"

In [[loanword]]s, stress may fall on any of the last three syllables:{{sfnp|Hannusch|1998|p=14}}

* {{lang|dsb|internat}} {{IPA|[intɛrˈnat]}} "boarding school"
* {{lang|dsb|kontrola}} {{IPA|[kɔnˈtrɔla]}} "control"
* {{lang|dsb|september}} {{IPA|[sɛpˈtɛmbɛr]}} "September"
* {{lang|dsb|policija}} {{IPA|[pɔˈlʲit͡sija]}} "police"
* {{lang|dsb|organizacija}} {{IPA|[ɔrɡanʲiˈzat͡sija]}} "organization"

Most one-syllable prepositions attract the stress to themselves when they precede a noun or pronoun of one or two syllables:{{sfnp|Hannusch|1998|p=14}}

* {{lang|dsb|na dwórje}} {{IPA|[ˈna dwɨrʲɛ]}} "on the courtyard"
* {{lang|dsb|pśi mnjo}} {{IPA|[ˈpɕi mnʲɔ]}} "near me"
* {{lang|dsb|do města}} {{IPA|[ˈdɔ mʲɛsta]}} "into the city" (the {{IPA|[iɪ̯]}} of {{lang|dsb|město}} {{IPA|[ˈmʲiɪ̯stɔ]}} becomes {{IPA|[ɛ]}} when unstressed)

However, nouns of three or more syllables retain their stress:

* {{lang|dsb|pśed wucabnikom}} {{IPA|[pɕɛd ˈut͡sabnʲikɔm]}} "in front of the teacher"
* {{lang|dsb|na drogowanju}} {{IPA|[na ˈdrɔɡowanʲu]}} "on a journey"

==Orthography==
{{Expand section|date=August 2024}}
The [[Sorbian alphabet]] is based on the [[Latin script]] but uses [[diacritic]]s such as the [[acute accent]] and [[caron]].

{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="37" | Lower Sorbian Alphabet
|-
| a
| b
| c
| č
| ć
| d
| e
| ě
| f
| g
| h
| ch
| i
| j
| k
| ł
| l
| m
| n
| ń
| o
| p
| r
| ŕ
| s
| š
| ś
| t
| u
| w
| y
| z
| ž
| ź
|-
| A
| B
| C
| Č
| Ć
| D
| E
| Ě
| F
| G
| H
| Ch
| I
| J
| K
| Ł
| L
| M
| N
| Ń
| O
| P
| R
| Ŕ
| S
| Š
| Ś
| T
| U
| W
| Y
| Z
| Ž
| Ź
|-
| a
| b
| ts
| tʃ
| tɕ
| d
| ɛ
| iɪ̯
| f
| g
| h
| x
| i
| j
| k
| w
| l
| m
| n
| nʲ
| ɔ
| p
| r
| rʲ
| s
| ʃ
| ɕ
| t
| u
| w
| ɨ
| z
| ʒ
| ʑ
|}

==Sample==
Article 1 of the [[Universal Declaration of Human Rights]] in Lower Sorbian:

<blockquote>{{lang|dsb|Wšykne luźe su lichotne roźone a jadnake po dostojnosći a pšawach. Woni maju rozym a wědobnosć a maju ze sobu w duchu bratšojstwa wobchadaś.}}

(All people are born free and equal in their dignity and rights. They are given reason and conscience and they shall create their relationships to one another according to the spirit of brotherhood.)<ref>[http://www.omniglot.com/writing/sorbian.htm Omniglot]</ref></blockquote>

==See also==
* [[Upper Sorbian language]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
{{refbegin}}
* {{citation|last=Hannusch|first=Erwin|title=Niedersorbisch praktisch und verständlich
|year=1998|publisher=Domowina-Verlag|place=Bautzen|isbn=3-7420-1667-9}}
* {{citation|last=Howson|first=Phil|year=2017|title=Foreign language acquisition of perceptually similar segments: evidence from Lower Sorbian|url=https://open-research-europe.ec.europa.eu/articles/3-56|journal=Open Research Europe|volume=3 |page=56 |doi=10.12688/openreseurope.14895.2|doi-access=free |pmid=38532923 |pmc=10964000}}
* {{citation|last=Laver|first=John|title=Principles of Phonetics|location=Cambridge|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1994|isbn=0-521-45655-X}}
* {{citation|last=Schuster-Šewc|first=Heinz|author-link=Heinz Schuster-Šewc |year=1984|title=Gramatika hornjoserbskeje rěče|place=Budyšin|publisher=Ludowe nakładnistwo Domowina}}
* {{citation|last=Stone|first=Gerald|chapter=Sorbian (Upper and Lower)|title=The Slavonic Languages|editor1-last=Comrie|editor1-first=Bernard|editor2-last=Corbett
|editor2-first=Greville G.|year=2002|pages=593–685|location=London and New York
|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9780415280785}}
* {{citation|last=Zygis|first=Marzena|year=2003|title=Phonetic and Phonological Aspects of Slavic Sibilant Fricatives|journal=ZAS Papers in Linguistics|volume=3
|pages=175–213|doi=10.21248/zaspil.32.2003.191|url=http://www.zas.gwz-berlin.de/fileadmin/material/ZASPiL_Volltexte/zp32/zaspil32-zygis.pdf|access-date=2015-04-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011125931/http://www.zas.gwz-berlin.de/fileadmin/material/ZASPiL_Volltexte/zp32/zaspil32-zygis.pdf|archive-date=2017-10-11|url-status=dead}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{InterWiki|code=dsb|prefix=Wp}}
{{wiktionary category}}
{{wikibooks|Lower Sorbian}}
* [https://sprachkurs.sorbischlernen.de/#/welcome Online course for Lower and Upper Sorbian] (English, Sorbian, German)
* [http://www.rbb-online.de/radio/sorbisches_programm/sorbisches_programm.html Dolnoserbski radio program] ([[RealAudio]]) {{in lang|de|dsb}}
* [http://wold.clld.org/vocabulary/10 Lower Sorbian Vocabulary List] (from the World Loanword Database)
* [https://doreco.huma-num.fr/languages/lowe1385 Lower Sorbian DoReCo corpus] compiled by Hauke Bartels and Marcin Szczepański. Audio recordings of narrative texts, with transcriptions time-aligned at the phone level and translations.

===Dictionaries===

====Czech-Lower Sorbian and Lower Sorbian-Czech====
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20161004132431/http://slovnik.vancl.eu/indexDLS2.php Slovník DolnoLužická Srbština <=> Čeština] {{in lang|cs|dsb}}

====German–Lower Sorbian====
* [http://www.dolnoserbski.de/dnw/ Deutsch-Niedersorbisches Wörterbuch] at dolnoserbski.de {{in lang|de|dsb}}
* [http://genie.coli.uni-saarland.de/ Korpus GENIE – GEsprochenes NIEdersorbisch/Wendisch] {{in lang|de|dsb}}

==== Lower Sorbian–German ====
* [http://dolnoserbski.de/ndw/ Dolnoserbsko-nimske słowniki] at dolnoserbski.de] {{in lang|de|dsb}}
* [https://sorb.philol.uni-leipzig.de/de/studium/materialien/lexikalische-uebungen-und-terminologie/ Lexikalische Übungen und Terminologie] at the Universität Leipzig {{in lang|de|dsb}}

{{Languages of Germany}}
{{Slavic languages}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lower Sorbian Language}}
[[Category:Lower Sorbian language| ]]
[[Category:Endangered Slavic languages]]
[[Category:Languages of Germany|Sorbian, Lower]]
[[Category:Sorbian languages]]
[[Category:West Slavic languages|Sorbian, Lower]]
[[Category:Slavic languages written in Latin script]]