Tsakhur language
Encyclopedia
Tsakhur is a language spoken by the Tsakhurs, an ethnic group, which populates northern Azerbaijan
and southwestern Dagestan
(Russia
). It is spoken by about 13,000 people in Azerbaijan and by about 9,770 people in Dagestan. The word Tsakhur derives from the name of a Dagestani village where speakers of this language make up the majority.
While Tsakhur is endangered
in communities in closest contact with Azerbaijani
, it is vigorous in other communities, gaining prominence in the region, seen in the growth of interest in learning Tsakhur in school and a growing body of Tsakhur-learning materials. Tsakhur is classified as "definitely endangered" by UNESCO
's Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger.
of the Northeast Caucasian language family
. The Tsakhurs call their language C'aiχna miz.
. The first description of Tsakhur grammar was published by Adolf Dirr in 1913.
In the 1930s, a literary
form of Tsakhur was developed. Starting from 1934, the language was taught in primary schools in Azerbaijan
and Dagestan
. In 1938, the use of literary Tsakhur in Azerbaijan was discontinued but regained its status in 1989.
The writing system of Tsakhur in Azerbaijan is based on Latin alphabet
, while in Dagestan the language uses Cyrillic alphabet
. In the past (as early as the 11th century) there have been attempts to write in Tsakhur using Arabic alphabet
.
appears to be the closest one to Tsakhur. Other than these two, there are eight more languages in the Lezgic group, namely: Lezgian, Tabasaran
, Aghul
, Budukh
, Kryts
, Khinalugh, Udi
, and Archi
.
). Its first in-depth phonological description was provided by Nikolai Trubetzkoy
in 1931. Tsakhur has 18 grammatical case
s and has retained suffixaufnahme
. Verbs may have singular and plural forms, and 7 grammatical mood
s. The tense system is complex. In contrast to the related languages, Tsakhur sentences can be formed by affective construction.
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
and southwestern Dagestan
Dagestan
The Republic of Dagestan is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus region. Its capital and the largest city is Makhachkala, located at the center of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea...
(Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
). It is spoken by about 13,000 people in Azerbaijan and by about 9,770 people in Dagestan. The word Tsakhur derives from the name of a Dagestani village where speakers of this language make up the majority.
While Tsakhur is endangered
Endangered language
An endangered language is a language that is at risk of falling out of use. If it loses all its native speakers, it becomes a dead language. If eventually no one speaks the language at all it becomes an "extinct language"....
in communities in closest contact with Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani language
Azerbaijani or Azeri or Torki is a language belonging to the Turkic language family, spoken in southwestern Asia by the Azerbaijani people, primarily in Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran...
, it is vigorous in other communities, gaining prominence in the region, seen in the growth of interest in learning Tsakhur in school and a growing body of Tsakhur-learning materials. Tsakhur is classified as "definitely endangered" by UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
's Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger.
Classification
Tsakhur belongs to the Lezgic groupLezgic languages
The Lezgic languages are one the seven branches of the Northeast Caucasian language family. Lezgian and Tabasaran are literary languages.-Classification:* Peripheral: Archi – 1200 speakers* Samur ** Eastern Samur*** Udi – 5000 speakers...
of the Northeast Caucasian language family
Northeast Caucasian languages
The Northeast Caucasian languages constitute a language family spoken in the Russian republics of Dagestan, Chechnya, Ingushetia, northern Azerbaijan, and in northeastern Georgia, as well as in diaspora populations in Russia, Turkey, and the Middle East...
. The Tsakhurs call their language C'aiχna miz.
History
The first written documentation of Tsakhur dates back to 1895 and is attributed to Roderich von ErckertRoderich von Erckert
Roderich von Erckert - was a German ethnographer and officer. His work on the Caucasian languages includes: Der Kaukasus und seine Völker ; Die Sprachen des kaukasischen Stammes ; Wanderungen und Siedelungen der germanischen Stämme in Mitteleuropa ....
. The first description of Tsakhur grammar was published by Adolf Dirr in 1913.
In the 1930s, a literary
Literary language
A literary language is a register of a language that is used in literary writing. This may also include liturgical writing. The difference between literary and non-literary forms is more marked in some languages than in others...
form of Tsakhur was developed. Starting from 1934, the language was taught in primary schools in Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
and Dagestan
Dagestan
The Republic of Dagestan is a federal subject of Russia, located in the North Caucasus region. Its capital and the largest city is Makhachkala, located at the center of Dagestan on the Caspian Sea...
. In 1938, the use of literary Tsakhur in Azerbaijan was discontinued but regained its status in 1989.
The writing system of Tsakhur in Azerbaijan is based on Latin alphabet
Latin alphabet
The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most recognized alphabet used in the world today. It evolved from a western variety of the Greek alphabet called the Cumaean alphabet, which was adopted and modified by the Etruscans who ruled early Rome...
, while in Dagestan the language uses Cyrillic alphabet
Cyrillic alphabet
The Cyrillic script or azbuka is an alphabetic writing system developed in the First Bulgarian Empire during the 10th century AD at the Preslav Literary School...
. In the past (as early as the 11th century) there have been attempts to write in Tsakhur using Arabic alphabet
Arabic alphabet
The Arabic alphabet or Arabic abjad is the Arabic script as it is codified for writing the Arabic language. It is written from right to left, in a cursive style, and includes 28 letters. Because letters usually stand for consonants, it is classified as an abjad.-Consonants:The Arabic alphabet has...
.
Geographic distribution
Tsakhur is spoken mostly in rural areas of Azerbaijan's Zagatala and Gakh rayons, as well as mountainous parts of Dagestan's Rutul region. There are 15,900 Tsakhurs in Azerbaijan (1999 census) and 10,400 in Russia (2002 census). In 1989, 93% of them reported Tsakhur as their first language.Official status
In Azerbaijan and Russia, Tsakhur is taught as a subject in primary schools (grades 1 to 4) in Tsakhur-populated regions. Newspapers and radio broadcast in Tsakhur are also available. However the language does not have an official status.Related languages
Among the languages of the Lezgic group, RutulRutul language
Rutul is a language spoken by the Rutuls, an ethnic group living in Dagestan and some parts of Azerbaijan. It is spoken by 29,400 people in Dagestan and the remaining 110 in Azerbaijan...
appears to be the closest one to Tsakhur. Other than these two, there are eight more languages in the Lezgic group, namely: Lezgian, Tabasaran
Tabasaran language
Tabasaran is a Northeast Caucasian language of the Lezgic branch. It is spoken by the Tabasaran people in southern part of the Russian Republic of Dagestan. There are two main dialects: North and South Tabasaran. It has a literary language based on the Southern dialect, one of six in the Dagestan...
, Aghul
Aghul language
Aghul, also spelled Agul, is a language spoken by the Aguls who live in southern Dagestan, Russia and in Azerbaijan. It is spoken by about 28,300 people .-Classification:...
, Budukh
Budukh language
Budukh or Budugh is a Samur language of the Northeast Caucasian language family spoken in parts of the Quba Rayon of Azerbaijan. It was reportedly spoken by approximately 1,000 Budukhs in 1990, but Authier reports at most 200 speakers....
, Kryts
Kryts language
Kryts , or Jek , is a Samur language of the Northeast Caucasian language family spoken in parts of the Quba Rayon of Azerbaijan by 6,000 people in 1975....
, Khinalugh, Udi
Udi language
The Udi language, spoken by the Udi people, is a member of the Lezgic branch of the Northeast Caucasian language family. It is believed an earlier form of it was the main language of Caucasian Albania, which stretched from south Dagestan to current day Azerbaijan.The language is spoken by about...
, and Archi
Archi language
Archi is a Northeast Caucasian language spoken by the 1,200 Archis in the village of Archib, southern Dagestan, Russia and the six surrounding smaller villages...
.
Grammar
Similar to many Northeast Caucasian languages, Tsakhur is known for its complex phonology and a large number of vowel phonemes (including 7 simple, 5 pharyngealized and 3 umlauted vowelsVowel harmony
Vowel harmony is a type of long-distance assimilatory phonological process involving vowels that occurs in some languages. In languages with vowel harmony, there are constraints on which vowels may be found near each other....
). Its first in-depth phonological description was provided by Nikolai Trubetzkoy
Nikolai Trubetzkoy
Prince Nikolai Sergeyevich Trubetzkoy was a Russian linguist and historian whose teachings formed a nucleus of the Prague School of structural linguistics. He is widely considered to be the founder of morphophonology...
in 1931. Tsakhur has 18 grammatical case
Grammatical case
In grammar, the case of a noun or pronoun is an inflectional form that indicates its grammatical function in a phrase, clause, or sentence. For example, a pronoun may play the role of subject , of direct object , or of possessor...
s and has retained suffixaufnahme
Suffixaufnahme
Suffixaufnahme is a linguistic phenomenon used in forming a genitive construction, whereby prototypically a genitive noun agrees with its head noun...
. Verbs may have singular and plural forms, and 7 grammatical mood
Grammatical mood
In linguistics, grammatical mood is a grammatical feature of verbs, used to signal modality. That is, it is the use of verbal inflections that allow speakers to express their attitude toward what they are saying...
s. The tense system is complex. In contrast to the related languages, Tsakhur sentences can be formed by affective construction.
See also
- Tsakhur people
- Appendix:Cyrillic script
- Northeast Caucasian languagesNortheast Caucasian languagesThe Northeast Caucasian languages constitute a language family spoken in the Russian republics of Dagestan, Chechnya, Ingushetia, northern Azerbaijan, and in northeastern Georgia, as well as in diaspora populations in Russia, Turkey, and the Middle East...
- Languages of AzerbaijanLanguages of AzerbaijanMany different languages have dominated in the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan.-Present-day:The main language of Azerbaijan is Azerbaijani. The Azerbaijani language is spoken by 96.6 % of the population , while English and Russian play significant roles as languages of education and...
External links
- Appendix:Cyrillic script