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Kabyle language

Kabyle (/kəˈbl/) or Kabylian (/kəˈbɪljən/; native name: Taqbaylit [θɐqβæjlɪθ] ) is a Berber language spoken by the Kabyle people in the north and northeast of Algeria. It is spoken primarily in Kabylia, east of the capital Algiers and in Algiers itself, but also by various groups near Blida, such as the Beni Salah and Beni Bou Yaqob.(extinct?)

Kabyle
Kabylian
Taqbaylit / ⵜⴰⵇⴱⴰⵢⵍⵉⵜ
Pronunciation[θɐqβæjlɪθ]
Native toAlgeria
RegionKabylia (Provinces of Béjaïa, Bouira, Boumerdes, Tizi Ouzou)
EthnicityKabyles
Native speakers
3 million in Algeria (2004, 9.4% of the population)[1][a]
1 million diaspora[2]
Standard forms
Latin,[3] Tifinagh (limited use), Arabic[4]
Language codes
ISO 639-2kab
ISO 639-3kab
Glottologkaby1243
Percentage of Kabyle speakers in northern Algeria[image reference needed]

Estimating the number of Berber speakers is very difficult and figures are often contested.[5][6] A 2004 estimate was that 9.4% of the population speaks Kabyle.[1][a] The diaspora population has been estimated at 1 million.[2]

Classification Edit

A Kabyle speaker, recorded in Algeria.

Kabyle is one of the Berber languages, a family within the Afroasiatic languages. It is believed to have broken off very early from Proto-Berber, although after the Zenaga language did so.[8][9]

Distribution Edit

Geographical distribution Edit

Kabyle Berber is native to Kabylia. It is present in seven Algerian districts. Approximately one-third of Algerians are Berber-speakers, clustered mostly near Algiers, in Kabylian and Shawi, but with some communities related to Kabyle in the west (Shenwa languages), east and south of the country.[1] The populations of Béjaïa (Bgayet), Bouïra (Tubirett) and Tizi Ouzou (Tizi Wezzu) provinces are in majority Kabyle-speaking. In addition, Kabyle is mainly spoken in the provinces of Boumerdès, and as well as in Bordj Bou Arréridj, Jijel, and in Algiers where it coexists with Algerian Arabic.[citation needed]

Kabyle Berber is also spoken as a native language among the Algerian Kabyle-descended diaspora in European and North American cities (mainly France). It is estimated that half of Kabyles live outside the Kabylian region.[citation needed]

Number of speakers Edit

French ethnologist Camille Lacoste-Dujardin [fr] estimates four million Kabyle speakers in 2001 in Algeria.[10] According to the International Encyclopedia of Linguistics there were 2.5 million speakers in Kabylia in 2003 out of 3.1 million worldwide.[11] In 2004, Canadian linguist Jacques Leclerc (linguist) [fr] estimated that there were 3.1 million Kabyle speakers in Algeria (9.4% of the total Algerian population)[1] and 500,000 in France.[12] Salem Chaker estimated there were 5.5 million speakers in 2004, including 3 to 3.5 in Kabylia.[13] The Encyclopædia Universalis gives 7 million Kabyle speakers.[14][15] The French Ministry of Culture estimated there were one million Kabyle speakers in France in 2013.[16] Linguist Matthias Brenzinger estimates the number of Kabyle speakers in Algeria at between 2.5 to 3 million in 2015.[17] Bruce Maddy-Weitzman's 2018 estimate is more than 5 million Kabyle speakers in Kabylie.[18][19] Linguist Asya Pereltsvaig gives 5.6 million Kabyle speakers worldwide in 2020, mostly in Algeria.[20] In 2021, Amina Mettouchi, professor of Berber linguistics, estimated the number of speakers at five million worldwide and more than three million in Algeria.[21] In 2022, according to Ethnologue there were 7.5 million speakers worldwide, including 6.4 million in Algeria.[2]

Dialects Edit

 
Geographic distribution of Kabyle dialects[22]

Many[who?] identify two dialects: Greater Kabylie (west) and Lesser Kabylie (east), but the reality is more complex than that, Kabyle dialects constitute a dialect continuum that can be divided into four main dialects (from west to east):

  • Far-western: villages such as Tizi-Ghennif, Boghni and Draa el Mizan.
  • Western: villages such as At Menguellat, At Yiraten, At Aïssi, At Yanni,
  • Eastern:
    • Eastern-West: villages such as At Mlikeche, Eastern-center : At Aïdel, At Khiar
    • Eastern-East: villages such as At Sliman.
  • Far-eastern: villages such as Aokas, Melbou, At Smail. Also known as Tasaḥlit and considered as a separate language by some according to Ethnologue.[23] Mutual intelligibility with Far-western is difficult to absent.
Phonological differences
Far-western Western Eastern Far-eastern
West East
Gemination of [w] geminated [bʷ] geminated [bʷ] geminated [gʷ] geminated [β] preserved
Assimilation of n+w geminated [bʷ] geminated [bʷ] geminated [gʷ] preserved
Labialization
Assimilation of n+y geminated [g] geminated [g] geminated [g] geminated [y] [y]
affricates [ts] and [dz]
Grammatical differences
Far-western Western Eastern Far-eastern
West East Aokas
Verb-framing with n
Possessive pronouns
(ex: 3rd m)
-nnes -is, -ines -is, -ines -is
Aorist preverb ad ad ad ad ad di

Lexical differences Edit

At the exception of the far-eastern dialect, much of the vocabulary of Kabyle is common among its dialects, though some lexical differences exist, e.g. the word dream in English (from west to east): bargu, argu, argu, bureg.

Status and usage Edit

 
Entrance arch in Taourga with welcome sign (Ansuf yiswen) in Kabyle.

Multilingualism and language shift Edit

Almost all Berber speakers are multilingual, in Arabic and often also in French.[24] Kabyle is still strong in villages but Kabyles are increasingly shifting to Arabic in cities. A 2013 study found that half of Kabyles in Oran spoke Arabic to their siblings.[25]

Official status Edit

After the 2001–02 widespread Kabyle protests known as the Black Spring, the Berber (Amazigh) language (with all its Algerian dialects and varieties) was recognized as a 'national language' in the 2002 Algerian Constitution, but not as an 'official language' until 2016 after a long campaign by activists.[26] The Arabic language is still the only de jure official language of Algeria. French is not recognized in any legal document of Algeria but enjoys a de facto position of an official language as it is used in every Algerian official administration or institution, at all levels of the government, sometimes much more than Arabic.

The Berber (Amazigh) language faces an unfavourable environment, despite a public radio (Channel II, which dates back to the Algerian War), as well as a public TV channel (Channel IV or Tamazight TV). Since private ownership of TV channels is illegal in Algeria, Kabyles have launched a private Kabyle speaking TV channel, called Berbère Television, that broadcasts from France.[27] There is no Kabyle newspaper. Some Algerian newspapers such as La Dépêche de Kabylie [fr] offer a small Kabyle section.[27][28]

In 1994, Kabyle pupils and students boycotted Algerian schools for a year, demanding the officialization of Berber, leading to the symbolic creation of the "Haut commissariat à l'amazighité" (HCA) in 1995. Berber was subsequently taught as a non-compulsory language in Berber speaking areas. The course being optional, few people attend.[27]

President Bouteflika has frequently stated that "Amazigh (the Berber language) will never be an official language, and if it has to be a national language, it must be submitted to a referendum".[29] In 2005, President Bouteflika, stated that "there is no country in the world with two official languages" and "this will never be the case of Algeria".[30] Nevertheless, after four decades of pacific struggle, riots, strikes, and social mobilization, including the Berber spring (1980, riots and strikes in the Kabylie region of Tizi Ouzou, Bouira and Bejaïa, as well as Algiers) and the Black Spring in 2001, President Bouteflika and his government stepped back and submitted to the Kabylie pressure by recognising Amazigh (Berber) as a "national language" without a referendum.

In February 2016, the Algerian constitution passed a resolution that made Berber an official language alongside Arabic.[31]

Phonology Edit

The phonemes below reflect the pronunciation of Kabyle.

Vowels Edit

Kabyle has three phonemic vowels:

Tamazight vowel phonemes[32]
Front Central Back
Close i u
Open a

⟨e⟩ is used to write the epenthetic schwa vowel [ə] which occurs frequently in Kabyle. Historically, it is thought to be the result of a pan-Berber reduction or merger of three other vowels.

The phonetic realization of the vowels, especially /a/, is influenced by the character of the surrounding consonants; emphatic consonants invite a more open realization of the vowel, e.g. aẓru = [azˤru] 'stone' vs. amud = [æmud] 'seed'. Often /a, i, u/ are realized as [æ, ɪ, ʊ].

Consonants Edit

Kabyle consonant phonemes
Labial Dental Alveolar Post-
alveolar
Palatal Velar Uvular Pharyn-
geal
Glottal
plain lab. plain emph. plain emph. plain emph. plain lab. plain lab. plain lab.
Plosive/
Affricate
voiceless (t []) [] tt [ts] č [] (k [k]) k [] q [q] q []
voiced (b [b]) b [] (d []) zz [dz] ǧ [] (g [ɡ]) g [ɡʷ] (q [ɢ])
Fricative voiceless f [f] t [θ] s [s] [] c [ʃ] c [ʃˤ] k [ç] k [çᶣ] x [χ] x [χʷ] [ħ] h [h]
voiced b [β] d [ð] [ðˤ] z [z] [] j [ʒ] j [ʒˤ] g [ʝ] g [ʝᶣ] ɣ [ʁ] ɣ [ʁʷ] ɛ [ʕ]
Nasal m [m] n [n]
Trill r [r] []
Approximant l [l] l [] y [j] w [w]

Assimilation Edit

In the Kabyle language there are various accents which are the result of assimilations (these accents are generally divided into western and eastern Kabyle). Some of these assimilations are present among all Kabyle "dialects" and some not. These assimilations are not noted in writing, such as:

  • Axxam n wergaz ("the house of the man") is pronounced either « axxam n wergaz », « axxam bb wergaz » or « axxam pp wergaz ». (N+W=BB)
  • D taqcict ("it's a girl") is pronounced « tsaqcict ». (D+T=TS)
  • Here is a list of some of these assimilations: D/T+T=TS, N+W=BB/PP, I+Y=IG.

Gemination affects the quality of certain consonants, turning semivowels and fricatives into stops; in particular, geminated ɣ becomes qq, geminated y becomes gg, and geminated w becomes bb.

Fricatives vs. stops Edit

Kabyle is mostly composed of fricatives, phonemes which are originally stops in other Berber languages, but in writing there is no difference between fricatives and stops. Below is a list of fricatives vs. stops and when they are pronounced (note that gemination turns fricatives into stops).

Consonant B /β/ D /ð/ G /ʝ/ K /ç/ T /θ/
Fricative [β] [ð] [ʝ] [ç] [θ]
Stop [b] [d̪] [ɡ] [k] [t̪]
Is a stop after m l,n b,j,r,z,ɛ f,b,s,l,r,n,ḥ,c,ɛ l,n
Is a stop in the words
(and their derivatives)
ngeb, ngeḥ, ngeẓwer, angaẓ, ngedwi, nages, ngedwal

Writing system Edit

 
A trilingual sign in Algeria, written in Arabic, Kabyle (using Tifinagh), and French.
 
Kabyle language edition of Wikipedia.

The most ancient Berber writings were written in the Libyco-Berber script, mostly from Numidian and Roman times. This script was an abjad, and is not yet completely deciphered today.[33] Deciphered scripts are mostly funerary, following a simple formula of "X son of Y" (X u Y) which is still used to this day in the Kabyle language.[33] Such writings have been found in Kabylie (also known as Kabylia) and continue to be discovered by archeologists. The Tifinagh script of the Tuaregs was a direct continuation of this earlier script.

The Libyco-Berber alphabet disappeared in the region of Kabylia by the sixth century, when Latin became the official and administrative language in North Africa, as in rest of the former Roman empire.

Kabyle became a mostly spoken language after the Arabic conquest of North Africa, and while many examples of the Kabyle language written in a form of Berber-Arabic script survive, the number of Kabyle texts was relatively much smaller than those written in other Berber languages such as Shilha, Mozabite, and Nafusi.

The first French–Kabyle dictionary was compiled by a French ethnologist in the 18th century. It was written in Latin script with an orthography based on that of French.

However, the Kabyle language really became a written language again in the beginning of the 19th century. Under French influence, Kabyle intellectuals began to use the Latin script. "Tamacahutt n wuccen" by Brahim Zellal was one of the first Kabyle books written using this alphabet.

After the independence of Algeria, some Kabyle activists tried to revive the Libyco-Berber script, which is still in use by the Tuareg. Attempts were made to modernize the writing system by modifying the shape of the letters and by adding vowels. This new version of Tifinagh has been called Neo-Tifinagh and has been adopted as the official script for Berber languages in Morocco. However, a majority of Berber activists (both in Morocco and Algeria) prefer the Latin script and see the Tifinagh as a hindrance to literacy in Berber. Kabyle literature continues to be written in Latin script. The use of Tifinagh is limited to logos.

Mouloud Mammeri codified a new orthography for the Kabyle language which avoided using French orthography. His script has been adopted by all Berber linguists,[citation needed] the INALCO,[citation needed] and the Algerian HCA.[citation needed] It uses diacritics and two letters from the extended Latin alphabet: Čč Ɛɛ Ǧǧ Ɣɣ Ḥḥ ẓ.

Grammar Edit

Nouns Edit

Kabyle has two genders: masculine and feminine. As in most Berber languages, masculine nouns and adjectives generally start with a vowel (a-, i-, u-), while feminine nouns generally start with t- and end with a -t, e.g. aqcic 'boy' vs. taqcict 'girl'.

Plurals generally are formed by replacing initial a- with i-, and either suffixing -en ("regular/external" plurals), changing vowels within the word ("broken/internal" plurals), or both. Examples:

argaz → irgazen "men"
adrar → idurar "mountains"
afus → ifassen "hands"

As in all Berber languages, Kabyle has two types of states or cases of the noun: free state and construct state (or 'annexed state'). The free state is morphologically unmarked. The construct state is derived either by changing initial /a-/ to /u-/, loss of initial vowel in some feminine nouns, addition of a semi-vowel word-initially, or in some cases no change occurs at all:

adrar → wedrar "mountain"
tamdint → temdint "town"
tamurt → tmurt "country"
asif → wasif "river"
iles → yiles "tongue"
taddart → taddart "village"

As in Central Morocco Tamazight, construct state is used for subjects placed after their verbs, after prepositions, in noun complement constructions, and after certain numerals. Kabyle also places nouns in construct state when they head a noun phrase containing a co-referential bound pronoun earlier in the utterance.[34]

Examples:

  • Free: Yewwet aqcic. "He has beaten a boy". (Verb–object)
  • Annexed: Yewwet weqcic. "The boy has beaten". (Verb–subject)

After a preposition (with the exception of "ar" and "s"), all nouns take their annexed state:

  • Free state: Aman (water), Kas n waman (a glass of water).

Verbs Edit

Verbs are conjugated for three tenses: the preterite (past), intensive aorist (present perfect, present continuous, past continuous) and the future (ad+aorist). Unlike other Berber languages, the aorist alone is rarely used in Kabyle (in the other languages it is used to express the present).

  • "Weak verbs" have a preterite form that is the same as their aorist. Examples of weak verbs that follow are conjugated at the first person of the singular:
Verb Preterite Ad + aorist Intensive aorist
If (to outdo) ifeɣ ad ifeɣ ttifeɣ
Muqel (to observe) muqleɣ ad muqleɣ ttmuquleɣ
Krez (to plough) kerzeɣ ad kerzeɣ kerrzeɣ
  • "Strong verbs" or "irregular verbs":
Verb Preterite Ad + aorist Intensive aorist
Aru (to write) uriɣ ad aruɣ ttaruɣ
Kabyle subject affixes
Person sg. pl.
1 ... -ɣ n-...
2 m t-... -ḍ t-... -m
f t-... -mt
3 m i/y-... ... -n
f t-... ... -nt

Verbs are conjugated for person by adding affixes. These suffixes are static and identical for all tenses (only the theme changes). The epenthetic vowel e may be inserted between the affix and the verb. Verbs are always marked for subject and may also inflect for person of direct and indirect object.

Examples:

« Yuɣ-it. » – "He bought it." (He.bought-it)
« Yenna-yas. » – "He said to him." (He.said-to.him)
« Yefka-yas-t. » – "He gave it to him." (He.gave-to.him-it)

Kabyle is a satellite-framed based language, Kabyle verbs use two particles to show the path of motion:

  • d orients toward the speaker, and could be translated as "here".
  • n orients toward the interlocutor or toward a certain place, and could be translated as "there".

Examples:

  • « iruḥ-d » (he came), « iruḥ-n » (he went).
  • « awi-d aman» (bring the water), « awi-n aman » (carry away the water).

Kabyle usually expresses negation in two parts, with the particle ur attached to the verb, and one or more negative words that modify the verb or one of its arguments. For example, simple verbal negation is expressed by « ur » before the verb and the particle « ara » after the verb:

  • « Urareɣ » ("I played") → « Ur urareɣ ara » ("I did not play")

Other negative words (acemma... etc.) are used in combination with ur to express more complex types of negation. This system developed via Jespersen's cycle.

Verb derivation is performed by adding affixes. There are three types of derivation forms: causative, reflexive and passive.

  • Causative: obtained by prefixing the verb with s- / sse- / ssu-:
ffeɣ "to go out" → ssuffeɣ "to make to go out"
kcem "to enter" → ssekcem "to make to enter, to introduce"
irid "to be washed" → ssired "to wash".
  • Reflexive: obtained by prefixing the verb with m- / my(e)- / myu-:
ẓer "to see" → mẓer "to see each other"
ṭṭef "to hold" → myuṭṭaf "to hold each other".
  • Passive: is obtained by prefixing the verb with ttu- / ttwa- / tt- / mm(e)- / n- / nn-:
krez "to plough" → ttwakrez "to be ploughed"
ečč "to eat" → mmečč "to be eaten".
  • Complex forms: obtained by combining two or more of the previous prefixes:
enɣ "to kill" → mmenɣ "to kill each other" → smenɣ "to make to kill each other"

Two prefixes can cancel each other:

enz "to be sold" → zzenz "to sell" → ttuzenz "to be sold" (ttuzenz = enz !!).

Every verb has a corresponding agent noun. In English it could be translated into verb+er. It is obtained by prefixing the verb with « am- » or with « an- » if the first letter is b / f / m / w (there are exceptions, however).

  • Examples:
ṭṭef "to hold" → anaṭṭaf "holder"
inig "to travel" → iminig "traveller"
eks "to graze" → ameksa "shepherd"

Verbal nouns are derived differently from different classes of verbal stems (including 'quality verbs'). Often a- or t(u)- is prefixed:

ffer "to hide" → tuffra "hiding" (stem VI), « Tuffra n tidett ur telhi » – "Hiding the truth is bad".
ɣeẓẓ "to bite" → aɣẓaẓ
zdi "to be united" → azday
ini "to say" → timenna

Pronouns Edit

Pronouns may either occur as standalone words or bound to nouns or verbs.

Person Singular Plural
1st (m) nekk / nekkini nekni
1st (f) nekk / nekkini nekkenti
2nd (m) kečč / kečči / keččini kunwi / kenwi
2nd (f) kemm / kemmi / kemmini kunnemti / kennemti
3rd (m) netta / nettan / nettani nutni / nitni
3rd (f) nettat nutenti / nitenti

Example: « Ula d nekk. » – "Me too."

Possessive pronouns are bound to the modified noun.

Person Singular Plural
1st (m) (i)w / inu nneɣ
1st (f) (i)w / inu nnteɣ
2nd (m) (i)k / inek nwen
2nd (f) (i)m / inem nkent
3rd (m) (i)s / ines nsen
3rd (f) (i)s / ines nsent

Example : « Axxam-nneɣ. » – "Our house." (House-our)

There are three demonstratives, near-deictic ('this, these'), far-deictic ('that, those') and absence. They may either be suffixed to nouns, or appear in isolation. Examples: « Axxam-a / Axxam-agi» – "This house.", (House-this), «Wagi yelha» – "This is nice." (This is-nice).

Prepositions Edit

Prepositions precede their objects: « i medden » "to the people", « si taddart » "from the village". All words preceded by a preposition (except « s » and « ar », "towards", "until" ) take the annexed state.

Some prepositions have two forms: one is used with pronominal suffixes and the other form is used in all other contexts, e.g. ger 'between' → gar.

Some prepositions have a corresponding relative pronoun (or interrogative), for example:

« i » "for/to" → « iwumi » "to whom"
« Tefka aksum i wemcic » "she gave meat to the cat" → « Amcic iwumi tefka aksum » "The cat to whom she gave meat."

Syntax Edit

Negation

Predicative particle 'd'

The predicative particle 'd' is an indispensable tool in speaking Kabyle (or any other Amazigh language). "d" is equivalent to both "it is + adjective" and "to be + adjective", but cannot be replaced by the verb "ili" (to be). It is always followed by a noun in free state.

Examples:

  • D taqcict 'it's a girl'
  • D nekk 'it's me'
  • Nekk d argaz 'I'm a man'
  • Idir d anelmad 'Idir is a student'
  • Idir yella d anelmad 'Idir was a student'

The predicative particle "d" should not be confused with the particle of coordination "d"; indeed, the latter is followed by a noun at its annexed state while the first is always followed by a noun at its free state.

Vocabulary Edit

Kabyle has absorbed Arabic, French, Latin, Greek and Punic vocabulary.[35] Arabic loanwords representing 22.7% to 46%[36] of the total Kabyle vocabulary, with many estimates putting it at about 35%.[37] The number of French loanwords has not been studied yet. These loanwords are sometimes Berberized and sometimes kept in their original form. The Berberized words follow the regular grammar of Kabyle (free and annexed state).

Examples of Berberized Arabic or French words:

kitāb (Ar.) > taktabt "book"
machine (Fr.) > tamacint "machine"

Many loanwords from Arabic have often a different meaning in Kabyle:

al-māl "property" (Ar.) > lmal "domestic animals" (cf. the etymologies of English cattle and fee)

All verbs of Arabic origin follow a Berber conjugation and verbal derivation:

fahim (Ar.) > fhem "to understand" > ssefhem "to explain".

There are yiwen (f. yiwet) "one", sin (f. snat) "two". The noun being counted follows it in the genitive: sin n yirgazen "two men".[38]

Sample text Edit

In Moulieras (Auguste), Les fourberies de Si Djeh'a.

Yiwen

One

wass,

day,

Ǧeḥḥa

Jehha

yefka-yas

he.gave-to.him

baba-s

father-his

frank,

cent,

akken

so.that

ad

he.buys

d-yaɣ aqerruy n tixsi.

head of ewe.

Yuɣ-it-id,

He.bought-it-here,

yečča

he.ate

akk

all

aksum-is.

meat-its.

Yeqqim-d

Stayed-here

uceqlal

carcass

d

it.is

ilem,

empty,

yewwi-yas-t-id

he.brought-to.him-it-here

i

to

baba-s.

father-his.

Ihi,

Then,

mi

when

t-iwala

it-he.saw

yenna-yas:

he.said-to.him:

"acu-t

"what-it

wa?"

that?"

yenna-yas:

he.said-to.him:

"d aqerruy n tixsi".

"head of ewe".

Yiwen wass, Ǧeḥḥa yefka-yas baba-s frank, akken ad {d-yaɣ aqerruy n tixsi}. Yuɣ-it-id, yečča akk aksum-is. Yeqqim-d uceqlal d ilem, yewwi-yas-t-id i baba-s. Ihi, mi t-iwala yenna-yas: "acu-t wa?" yenna-yas: {"d aqerruy n tixsi".}

One day, Jehha he.gave-to.him father-his cent, so.that he.buys {head of ewe}. He.bought-it-here, he.ate all meat-its. Stayed-here carcass it.is empty, he.brought-to.him-it-here to father-his. Then, when it-he.saw he.said-to.him: "what-it that?" he.said-to.him: {"head of ewe".}

One day, Jehha's father gave him one cent, to buy a ewe head. He bought it, and ate it all till only an empty carcass was left and brought it to his father. When his father saw that, he said: "what is that?" Jehha said: "a ewe head".

-A

-Oh

ccmata,

vile,

anida

where

llan

are

imeẓẓuɣen-is?

ears-its?

-A ccmata, anida llan imeẓẓuɣen-is?

-Oh vile, where are ears-its?

-You vile (boy), where are its ears (the ewe)?

-Tella

-She.was

d

it.is

taɛeẓẓugt.

deaf.

-Tella d taɛeẓẓugt.

-She.was it.is deaf.

-It was deaf.

-Anida

-Where

llant

are

wallen-is?

eyes-its?

-Anida llant wallen-is?

-Where are eyes-its?

-Where are its eyes?

-Tella

-She.was

d

it.is

taderɣalt.

blind.

-Tella d taderɣalt.

-She.was it.is blind.

-It was blind.

-Anida

-Where

yella

is

yiles-is?

tongue-its?

-Anida yella yiles-is?

-Where is tongue-its?

-Where is its tongue?

-Tella

-She.was

d

it.is

tagugamt.

dumb.

-Tella d tagugamt.

-She.was it.is dumb.

-It was dumb.

-I

-And

weglim

skin

n

of

uqerruy-is,

head-its,

anida

where

yella?

it.is?

-I weglim n uqerruy-is, anida yella?

-And skin of head-its, where it.is?

-And the skin of its head, where is it?

-Tella

-She.was

d

it.is

taferḍast.

bald.

-Tella d taferḍast.

-She.was it.is bald.

-It was bald.

Note: the predicative particle d was translated as "it.is", the particle of direction d was translated as "here".

Notes Edit

  1. ^ a b If that percentage held in 2022, the number of Kabyle speakers in Algeria would be 4.3 million.[7]

References Edit

  1. ^ a b c d Leclerc, Jacques; Jean, Lionel (2022-04-22). "Algérie: Situation géographique et démolinguistique" (in French). Université Laval. Retrieved 2023-02-26.
  2. ^ a b c Kabyle language at Ethnologue (26th ed., 2023)  
  3. ^ "Nouria Benghabrit : l'enseignement de Tamazight sera élargi à 10 autres wilayas et bénéficiera de 300 nouveaux postes budgétaires". Rafio Algérienne. la graphie Tifinagh pour le Targui, Latine pour la Kabylie et Arabe pour le M'Zab et les Aurès
  4. ^ "Kabyle in Arabic Script: A History without Standardisation".
  5. ^ Chaker 1983, p. 7.
  6. ^ Campbell, George L. (2013). Compendium of the World's Languages. Gareth King (3 ed.). Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. p. 223. ISBN 978-0-203-10653-2. OCLC 854759616.
  7. ^ "World Population Dashboard -Algeria". United Nations Population Fund. Retrieved 2023-02-26.
  8. ^ 'The Saharan Berber diaspora and the southern frontiers of Vandal and Byzantine North Africa', J. Conant and S. Stevens (eds),North Africa under Byzantium and Early Islam, ca. 500 – ca. 800 (Dumbarton Oaks Byzantine Symposia and Colloquia. Washington, D.C.)
  9. ^ Elizabeth Fentress; Andrew Wilson (2016). "The Saharan Berber Diaspora and the Southern Frontiers of Byzantine North Africa". In Stevens, Susan; Conant, Jonathan (eds.). North Africa under Byzantium and Early Islam. Dumbarton Oaks. p. 52. ISBN 978-0-88402-408-8.
  10. ^ Lacoste-Dujardin, Camille (2001). "Géographie culturelle et géopolitique en Kabylie La révolte de la jeunesse kabyle pour une Algérie démocratique". Hérodote (in French). 103 (4): 61. doi:10.3917/her.103.0057. ISSN 0338-487X.
  11. ^ Frawley, William (May 2003). International Encyclopedia of Linguistics: 4-Volume Set. Oxford University Press, USA. ISBN 978-0-19-513977-8.
  12. ^ "France: 1) généralités". www.axl.cefan.ulaval.ca. Retrieved 2023-02-22.
  13. ^ Chaker, S. (2004-05-01). "Kabylie : La langue". Encyclopédie berbère (in French) (26): 4055–4066. doi:10.4000/encyclopedieberbere.1431. ISSN 1015-7344.
  14. ^ "Définition de kabyle - Encyclopædia Universalis". Encyclopædia Universalis. Retrieved 2022-12-23.
  15. ^ Redjala, M'Barek; Semmoud, Bouziane. "Kabyle". In Quinsat, Gilles (ed.). Encyclopædia Universalis (in French). Retrieved 2023-02-23.
  16. ^ "Rapport du Comité consultatif pour la promotion des langues régionales et de la pluralité linguistique interne (2013)". www.culture.gouv.fr (in French). Retrieved 2022-12-25.
  17. ^ Brenzinger, Matthias (2015). Brenzinger, Matthias (ed.). Language Diversity Endangered. Berlin: De Gruyter. p. 133. doi:10.1515/9783110905694. ISBN 978-3-11-090569-4. OCLC 979749010.
  18. ^ Maddy-Weitzman, Bruce (2018-09-20). Rowe, Paul S (ed.). "The Berbers (Amazigh)". Routledge Handbook of Minorities in the Middle East: 314. doi:10.4324/9781315626031-23. ISBN 9781315626031. S2CID 187966078.
  19. ^ Maddy-Weitzman, Bruce (2015-12-30). "Berbers (Amazigh)". In Smith, Anthony D; Hou, Xiaoshuo; Stone, John; Dennis, Rutledge (eds.). The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Race, Ethnicity, and Nationalism. Oxford, UK: Wiley. p. 1. doi:10.1002/9781118663202.wberen411. ISBN 978-1-118-66320-2. Retrieved 2022-12-23.
  20. ^ Pereltsvaig, Asya (2020-09-03). "6.3 Berber languages". Languages of the World: An Introduction. Cambridge University Press. p. 203. doi:10.1017/9781108783071. ISBN 978-1-108-78307-1.
  21. ^ Mettouchi, Amina (2021). "Negation in Kabyle (Berber)". Journal of African Languages and Literatures. doi:10.6092/JALALIT.V2I2.8059. Retrieved 22 Feb 2023. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  22. ^ Naït-Zerrad, K. (2004-05-01). "Kabylie : Dialectologie". Encyclopédie berbère (in French) (26): 4067–4070. doi:10.4000/encyclopedieberbere.1433. ISSN 1015-7344.
  23. ^ "Amazigh".
  24. ^ Souag, Lameen (2020-05-20). Berber. Language Science Press. p. 406. ISBN 978-3-96110-251-8.
  25. ^ Souag, Lameen (2020-05-20). Berber. Language Science Press. p. 404. ISBN 978-3-96110-251-8.
  26. ^ "Algeria reinstates term limit and recognises Berber language". BBC News. 7 February 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  27. ^ a b c Leclerc, Jacques; Jean, Lionel (2021-07-27). "Algérie: Les droits linguistiques des berbérophones". Université Laval.
  28. ^ "Tamazight". La Dépêche de Kabylie (in French). Retrieved 2023-02-26.
  29. ^ "Boutefliqa et l'amazighophobie" (in French). Amazigh World. n.d. Retrieved 2010-03-19.
  30. ^ Benchabane (2005)
  31. ^ Constitution of Algeria.
  32. ^ Abdel-Massih (1971b:11)
  33. ^ a b "Libyco-Berber". mnamon.sns.it. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
  34. ^ Creissels (2006:3–4)
  35. ^ Baldauf, Richard B.; Kaplan, Robert B. (2007-01-01). Language Planning and Policy in Africa. Multilingual Matters. ISBN 978-1-84769-011-1.
  36. ^ Kossmann, Maarten (2013-07-18). The Arabic Influence on Northern Berber. BRILL. p. 98. ISBN 978-90-04-25309-4.
  37. ^ Baldauf, Richard B.; Kaplan, Robert B. (2007-01-01). Language Planning and Policy in Africa. Multilingual Matters. ISBN 978-1-84769-011-1.
  38. ^ Tessa (July 30, 2015). "Blog: Les chiffres berbères". Blog. Retrieved 2021-01-18.

Bibliography Edit

  • Abdel-Massih, Ernest T. (1971b). A Reference Grammar of Tamazight. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan. ISBN 0-932098-05-3.
  • Achab, R. : 1996 – La néologie lexicale berbère (1945–1995), Paris/Louvain, Editions Peeters, 1996.
  • Achab, R. : 1998 – Langue berbère. Introduction à la notation usuelle en caractères latins, Paris, Editions Hoggar.
  • F. Amazit-Hamidchi & M. Lounaci : Kabyle de poche, Assimil, France, ISBN 2-7005-0324-4
  • Benchabane, A. (2005). "Bouteflika ébranle la Kabylie" (in French). Algeria-Watch. Retrieved 2010-03-19.
  • Creissels, Denis (2006). (PDF). 36th Colloquium on African Languages and Linguistics. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-28. Retrieved 2010-03-21.
  • Dallet, Jean-Marie. 1982. Dictionnaire kabyle–français, parler des At Mangellet, Algérie. Études etholinguistiques Maghreb–Sahara 1, ser. eds. Salem Chaker, and Marceau Gast. Paris: Société d'études linguistiques et anthropologiques de France.
  • Hamid Hamouma. n.d. Manuel de grammaire berbère (kabyle). Paris: Edition Association de Culture Berbère.
  • Kamal Nait-Zerrad. Grammaire moderne du kabyle, tajerrumt tatrart n teqbaylit. Editions KARTHALA, 2001. ISBN 978-2-84586-172-5
  • Lucas, Christopher (2007b), "Jespersen's Cycle in Arabic and Berber" (PDF), Transactions of the Philological Society, 105 (3): 398–431, doi:10.1111/j.1467-968X.2007.00189.x, retrieved 2010-03-22[permanent dead link]
  • Mammeri, M. : 1976 – Tajerrumt n tmaziɣt (tantala taqbaylit), Maspero, Paris.
  • Naït-Zerrad, K. : 1994 – Manuel de conjugaison kabyle (le verbe en berbère), L’Harmattan, Paris.
  • Naït-Zerrad, K. : 1995 – Grammaire du berbère contemporain, I – Morphologie, ENAG, Alger.
  • Chaker, Salem (1983). Un parler berbère d'Algérie (Kabylie) : syntaxe (in French). Aix en Provence: Publications Université de Provence. ISBN 2-85399-075-3. OCLC 11317509.
  • Tizi-Wwuccen. Méthode audio-visuelle de langue berbère (kabyle), Aix-en-Provence, Edisud, 1986.

External links Edit

  • , The negative preterite in Kabyle Berber.

kabyle, language, confused, with, kabiye, language, khabi, language, this, article, need, rewritten, comply, with, wikipedia, quality, standards, help, talk, page, contain, suggestions, 2015, kabyle, kabylian, native, name, taqbaylit, θɐqβæjlɪθ, berber, langua. Not to be confused with Kabiye language or Khabi language This article may need to be rewritten to comply with Wikipedia s quality standards You can help The talk page may contain suggestions May 2015 Kabyle k e ˈ b aɪ l or Kabylian k e ˈ b ɪ l j en native name Taqbaylit 8ɐqbaejlɪ8 is a Berber language spoken by the Kabyle people in the north and northeast of Algeria It is spoken primarily in Kabylia east of the capital Algiers and in Algiers itself but also by various groups near Blida such as the Beni Salah and Beni Bou Yaqob extinct KabyleKabylianTaqbaylit ⵜⴰⵇⴱⴰⵢⵍⵉⵜPronunciation 8ɐqbaejlɪ8 Native toAlgeriaRegionKabylia Provinces of Bejaia Bouira Boumerdes Tizi Ouzou EthnicityKabylesNative speakers3 million in Algeria 2004 9 4 of the population 1 a 1 million diaspora 2 Language familyAfro Asiatic BerberNorthern BerberKabyleStandard formsStandard Algerian BerberWriting systemLatin 3 Tifinagh limited use Arabic 4 Language codesISO 639 2 span class plainlinks kab span ISO 639 3 a href https iso639 3 sil org code kab class extiw title iso639 3 kab kab a Glottologkaby1243Percentage of Kabyle speakers in northern Algeria image reference needed Estimating the number of Berber speakers is very difficult and figures are often contested 5 6 A 2004 estimate was that 9 4 of the population speaks Kabyle 1 a The diaspora population has been estimated at 1 million 2 Contents 1 Classification 2 Distribution 2 1 Geographical distribution 2 2 Number of speakers 2 3 Dialects 2 3 1 Lexical differences 3 Status and usage 3 1 Multilingualism and language shift 3 2 Official status 4 Phonology 4 1 Vowels 4 2 Consonants 4 2 1 Assimilation 4 2 2 Fricatives vs stops 5 Writing system 6 Grammar 6 1 Nouns 6 2 Verbs 6 3 Pronouns 6 4 Prepositions 6 5 Syntax 7 Vocabulary 8 Sample text 9 Notes 10 References 11 Bibliography 12 External linksClassification Edit source source source source source source source source source source source source A Kabyle speaker recorded in Algeria Kabyle is one of the Berber languages a family within the Afroasiatic languages It is believed to have broken off very early from Proto Berber although after the Zenaga language did so 8 9 Distribution EditGeographical distribution Edit Kabyle Berber is native to Kabylia It is present in seven Algerian districts Approximately one third of Algerians are Berber speakers clustered mostly near Algiers in Kabylian and Shawi but with some communities related to Kabyle in the west Shenwa languages east and south of the country 1 The populations of Bejaia Bgayet Bouira Tubirett and Tizi Ouzou Tizi Wezzu provinces are in majority Kabyle speaking In addition Kabyle is mainly spoken in the provinces of Boumerdes and as well as in Bordj Bou Arreridj Jijel and in Algiers where it coexists with Algerian Arabic citation needed Kabyle Berber is also spoken as a native language among the Algerian Kabyle descended diaspora in European and North American cities mainly France It is estimated that half of Kabyles live outside the Kabylian region citation needed Number of speakers Edit French ethnologist Camille Lacoste Dujardin fr estimates four million Kabyle speakers in 2001 in Algeria 10 According to the International Encyclopedia of Linguistics there were 2 5 million speakers in Kabylia in 2003 out of 3 1 million worldwide 11 In 2004 Canadian linguist Jacques Leclerc linguist fr estimated that there were 3 1 million Kabyle speakers in Algeria 9 4 of the total Algerian population 1 and 500 000 in France 12 Salem Chaker estimated there were 5 5 million speakers in 2004 including 3 to 3 5 in Kabylia 13 The Encyclopaedia Universalis gives 7 million Kabyle speakers 14 15 The French Ministry of Culture estimated there were one million Kabyle speakers in France in 2013 16 Linguist Matthias Brenzinger estimates the number of Kabyle speakers in Algeria at between 2 5 to 3 million in 2015 17 Bruce Maddy Weitzman s 2018 estimate is more than 5 million Kabyle speakers in Kabylie 18 19 Linguist Asya Pereltsvaig gives 5 6 million Kabyle speakers worldwide in 2020 mostly in Algeria 20 In 2021 Amina Mettouchi professor of Berber linguistics estimated the number of speakers at five million worldwide and more than three million in Algeria 21 In 2022 according to Ethnologue there were 7 5 million speakers worldwide including 6 4 million in Algeria 2 Dialects Edit nbsp Geographic distribution of Kabyle dialects 22 Many who identify two dialects Greater Kabylie west and Lesser Kabylie east but the reality is more complex than that Kabyle dialects constitute a dialect continuum that can be divided into four main dialects from west to east Far western villages such as Tizi Ghennif Boghni and Draa el Mizan Western villages such as At Menguellat At Yiraten At Aissi At Yanni Eastern Eastern West villages such as At Mlikeche Eastern center At Aidel At Khiar Eastern East villages such as At Sliman Far eastern villages such as Aokas Melbou At Smail Also known as Tasaḥlit and considered as a separate language by some according to Ethnologue 23 Mutual intelligibility with Far western is difficult to absent Phonological differences Far western Western Eastern Far easternWest EastGemination of w geminated bʷ geminated bʷ geminated gʷ geminated b preservedAssimilation of n w geminated bʷ geminated bʷ geminated gʷ preservedLabialization Assimilation of n y geminated g geminated g geminated g geminated y y affricates ts and dz ḍ ḍ ḍ ḍ ṭ ṭGrammatical differences Far western Western Eastern Far easternWest East AokasVerb framing with n Possessive pronouns ex 3rd m nnes is ines is ines isAorist preverb ad ad ad ad ad diLexical differences Edit At the exception of the far eastern dialect much of the vocabulary of Kabyle is common among its dialects though some lexical differences exist e g the word dream in English from west to east bargu argu argu bureg Status and usage EditMain article Standard Algerian Berber nbsp Entrance arch in Taourga with welcome sign Ansuf yiswen in Kabyle Multilingualism and language shift Edit Almost all Berber speakers are multilingual in Arabic and often also in French 24 Kabyle is still strong in villages but Kabyles are increasingly shifting to Arabic in cities A 2013 study found that half of Kabyles in Oran spoke Arabic to their siblings 25 Official status Edit After the 2001 02 widespread Kabyle protests known as the Black Spring the Berber Amazigh language with all its Algerian dialects and varieties was recognized as a national language in the 2002 Algerian Constitution but not as an official language until 2016 after a long campaign by activists 26 The Arabic language is still the only de jure official language of Algeria French is not recognized in any legal document of Algeria but enjoys a de facto position of an official language as it is used in every Algerian official administration or institution at all levels of the government sometimes much more than Arabic The Berber Amazigh language faces an unfavourable environment despite a public radio Channel II which dates back to the Algerian War as well as a public TV channel Channel IV or Tamazight TV Since private ownership of TV channels is illegal in Algeria Kabyles have launched a private Kabyle speaking TV channel called Berbere Television that broadcasts from France 27 There is no Kabyle newspaper Some Algerian newspapers such as La Depeche de Kabylie fr offer a small Kabyle section 27 28 In 1994 Kabyle pupils and students boycotted Algerian schools for a year demanding the officialization of Berber leading to the symbolic creation of the Haut commissariat a l amazighite HCA in 1995 Berber was subsequently taught as a non compulsory language in Berber speaking areas The course being optional few people attend 27 President Bouteflika has frequently stated that Amazigh the Berber language will never be an official language and if it has to be a national language it must be submitted to a referendum 29 In 2005 President Bouteflika stated that there is no country in the world with two official languages and this will never be the case of Algeria 30 Nevertheless after four decades of pacific struggle riots strikes and social mobilization including the Berber spring 1980 riots and strikes in the Kabylie region of Tizi Ouzou Bouira and Bejaia as well as Algiers and the Black Spring in 2001 President Bouteflika and his government stepped back and submitted to the Kabylie pressure by recognising Amazigh Berber as a national language without a referendum In February 2016 the Algerian constitution passed a resolution that made Berber an official language alongside Arabic 31 Phonology EditThis article contains phonetic transcriptions in the International Phonetic Alphabet IPA For an introductory guide on IPA symbols see Help IPA For the distinction between and see IPA Brackets and transcription delimiters The phonemes below reflect the pronunciation of Kabyle Vowels Edit Kabyle has three phonemic vowels Tamazight vowel phonemes 32 Front Central BackClose i uOpen a e is used to write the epenthetic schwa vowel e which occurs frequently in Kabyle Historically it is thought to be the result of a pan Berber reduction or merger of three other vowels The phonetic realization of the vowels especially a is influenced by the character of the surrounding consonants emphatic consonants invite a more open realization of the vowel e g aẓru azˤru stone vs amud aemud seed Often a i u are realized as ae ɪ ʊ Consonants Edit Kabyle consonant phonemes Labial Dental Alveolar Post alveolar Palatal Velar Uvular Pharyn geal Glottalplain lab plain emph plain emph plain emph plain lab plain lab plain lab Plosive Affricate voiceless t t ṭ tˤ tt ts c tʃ k k k kʷ q q q qʷ voiced b b b bʷ d d zz dz ǧ dʒ g ɡ g ɡʷ q ɢ Fricative voiceless f f t 8 s s ṣ sˤ c ʃ c ʃˤ k c k cᶣ x x x xʷ ḥ ħ h h voiced b b d d ḍ dˤ z z ẓ zˤ j ʒ j ʒˤ g ʝ g ʝᶣ ɣ ʁ ɣ ʁʷ ɛ ʕ Nasal m m n n Trill r r ṛ rˤ Approximant l l l lˤ y j w w Assimilation Edit In the Kabyle language there are various accents which are the result of assimilations these accents are generally divided into western and eastern Kabyle Some of these assimilations are present among all Kabyle dialects and some not These assimilations are not noted in writing such as Axxam n wergaz the house of the man is pronounced either axxam n wergaz axxam bb wergaz or axxam pp wergaz N W BB D taqcict it s a girl is pronounced tsaqcict D T TS Here is a list of some of these assimilations D T T TS N W BB PP I Y IG Gemination affects the quality of certain consonants turning semivowels and fricatives into stops in particular geminated ɣ becomes qq geminated y becomes gg and geminated w becomes bb Fricatives vs stops Edit Kabyle is mostly composed of fricatives phonemes which are originally stops in other Berber languages but in writing there is no difference between fricatives and stops Below is a list of fricatives vs stops and when they are pronounced note that gemination turns fricatives into stops Consonant B b D d G ʝ K c T 8 Fricative b d ʝ c 8 Stop b d ɡ k t Is a stop after m l n b j r z ɛ f b s l r n ḥ c ɛ l nIs a stop in the words and their derivatives ngeb ngeḥ ngeẓwer angaẓ ngedwi nages ngedwalWriting system EditMain article Berber Latin alphabet nbsp A trilingual sign in Algeria written in Arabic Kabyle using Tifinagh and French nbsp Kabyle language edition of Wikipedia The most ancient Berber writings were written in the Libyco Berber script mostly from Numidian and Roman times This script was an abjad and is not yet completely deciphered today 33 Deciphered scripts are mostly funerary following a simple formula of X son of Y X u Y which is still used to this day in the Kabyle language 33 Such writings have been found in Kabylie also known as Kabylia and continue to be discovered by archeologists The Tifinagh script of the Tuaregs was a direct continuation of this earlier script The Libyco Berber alphabet disappeared in the region of Kabylia by the sixth century when Latin became the official and administrative language in North Africa as in rest of the former Roman empire Kabyle became a mostly spoken language after the Arabic conquest of North Africa and while many examples of the Kabyle language written in a form of Berber Arabic script survive the number of Kabyle texts was relatively much smaller than those written in other Berber languages such as Shilha Mozabite and Nafusi The first French Kabyle dictionary was compiled by a French ethnologist in the 18th century It was written in Latin script with an orthography based on that of French However the Kabyle language really became a written language again in the beginning of the 19th century Under French influence Kabyle intellectuals began to use the Latin script Tamacahutt n wuccen by Brahim Zellal was one of the first Kabyle books written using this alphabet After the independence of Algeria some Kabyle activists tried to revive the Libyco Berber script which is still in use by the Tuareg Attempts were made to modernize the writing system by modifying the shape of the letters and by adding vowels This new version of Tifinagh has been called Neo Tifinagh and has been adopted as the official script for Berber languages in Morocco However a majority of Berber activists both in Morocco and Algeria prefer the Latin script and see the Tifinagh as a hindrance to literacy in Berber Kabyle literature continues to be written in Latin script The use of Tifinagh is limited to logos Mouloud Mammeri codified a new orthography for the Kabyle language which avoided using French orthography His script has been adopted by all Berber linguists citation needed the INALCO citation needed and the Algerian HCA citation needed It uses diacritics and two letters from the extended Latin alphabet Cc Ḍḍ Ɛɛ Ǧǧ Ɣɣ Ḥḥ Ṣṣ Ṭṭ Ẓẓ Grammar EditMain article Kabyle grammar Nouns Edit Kabyle has two genders masculine and feminine As in most Berber languages masculine nouns and adjectives generally start with a vowel a i u while feminine nouns generally start with t and end with a t e g aqcic boy vs taqcict girl Plurals generally are formed by replacing initial a with i and either suffixing en regular external plurals changing vowels within the word broken internal plurals or both Examples argaz irgazen men adrar idurar mountains afus ifassen hands dd As in all Berber languages Kabyle has two types of states or cases of the noun free state and construct state or annexed state The free state is morphologically unmarked The construct state is derived either by changing initial a to u loss of initial vowel in some feminine nouns addition of a semi vowel word initially or in some cases no change occurs at all adrar wedrar mountain tamdint temdint town tamurt tmurt country asif wasif river iles yiles tongue taddart taddart village dd As in Central Morocco Tamazight construct state is used for subjects placed after their verbs after prepositions in noun complement constructions and after certain numerals Kabyle also places nouns in construct state when they head a noun phrase containing a co referential bound pronoun earlier in the utterance 34 Examples Free Yewwet aqcic He has beaten a boy Verb object Annexed Yewwet weqcic The boy has beaten Verb subject After a preposition with the exception of ar and s all nouns take their annexed state Free state Aman water Kas n waman a glass of water Verbs Edit Verbs are conjugated for three tenses the preterite past intensive aorist present perfect present continuous past continuous and the future ad aorist Unlike other Berber languages the aorist alone is rarely used in Kabyle in the other languages it is used to express the present Weak verbs have a preterite form that is the same as their aorist Examples of weak verbs that follow are conjugated at the first person of the singular Verb Preterite Ad aorist Intensive aoristIf to outdo ifeɣ ad ifeɣ ttifeɣMuqel to observe muqleɣ ad muqleɣ ttmuquleɣKrez to plough kerzeɣ ad kerzeɣ kerrzeɣ Strong verbs or irregular verbs Verb Preterite Ad aorist Intensive aoristAru to write uriɣ ad aruɣ ttaruɣKabyle subject affixes Person sg pl 1 ɣ n 2 m t ḍ t mf t mt3 m i y nf t nt Verbs are conjugated for person by adding affixes These suffixes are static and identical for all tenses only the theme changes The epenthetic vowel e may be inserted between the affix and the verb Verbs are always marked for subject and may also inflect for person of direct and indirect object Examples Yuɣ it He bought it He bought it Yenna yas He said to him He said to him Yefka yas t He gave it to him He gave to him it Kabyle is a satellite framed based language Kabyle verbs use two particles to show the path of motion d orients toward the speaker and could be translated as here n orients toward the interlocutor or toward a certain place and could be translated as there Examples iruḥ d he came iruḥ n he went awi d aman bring the water awi n aman carry away the water Kabyle usually expresses negation in two parts with the particle ur attached to the verb and one or more negative words that modify the verb or one of its arguments For example simple verbal negation is expressed by ur before the verb and the particle ara after the verb Urareɣ I played Ur urareɣ ara I did not play Other negative words acemma etc are used in combination with ur to express more complex types of negation This system developed via Jespersen s cycle Verb derivation is performed by adding affixes There are three types of derivation forms causative reflexive and passive Causative obtained by prefixing the verb with s sse ssu ffeɣ to go out ssuffeɣ to make to go out kcem to enter ssekcem to make to enter to introduce irid to be washed ssired to wash dd Reflexive obtained by prefixing the verb with m my e myu ẓer to see mẓer to see each other ṭṭef to hold myuṭṭaf to hold each other dd Passive is obtained by prefixing the verb with ttu ttwa tt mm e n nn krez to plough ttwakrez to be ploughed ecc to eat mmecc to be eaten dd Complex forms obtained by combining two or more of the previous prefixes enɣ to kill mmenɣ to kill each other smenɣ to make to kill each other dd Two prefixes can cancel each other enz to be sold zzenz to sell ttuzenz to be sold ttuzenz enz dd Every verb has a corresponding agent noun In English it could be translated into verb er It is obtained by prefixing the verb with am or with an if the first letter is b f m w there are exceptions however Examples ṭṭef to hold anaṭṭaf holder inig to travel iminig traveller eks to graze ameksa shepherd dd Verbal nouns are derived differently from different classes of verbal stems including quality verbs Often a or t u is prefixed ffer to hide tuffra hiding stem VI Tuffra n tidett ur telhi Hiding the truth is bad ɣeẓẓ to bite aɣẓaẓ zdi to be united azday ini to say timenna dd Pronouns Edit Pronouns may either occur as standalone words or bound to nouns or verbs Person Singular Plural1st m nekk nekkini nekni1st f nekk nekkini nekkenti2nd m kecc kecci keccini kunwi kenwi2nd f kemm kemmi kemmini kunnemti kennemti3rd m netta nettan nettani nutni nitni3rd f nettat nutenti nitentiExample Ula d nekk Me too Possessive pronouns are bound to the modified noun Person Singular Plural1st m i w inu nneɣ1st f i w inu nnteɣ2nd m i k inek nwen2nd f i m inem nkent3rd m i s ines nsen3rd f i s ines nsentExample Axxam nneɣ Our house House our There are three demonstratives near deictic this these far deictic that those and absence They may either be suffixed to nouns or appear in isolation Examples Axxam a Axxam agi This house House this Wagi yelha This is nice This is nice Prepositions Edit Prepositions precede their objects i medden to the people si taddart from the village All words preceded by a preposition except s and ar towards until take the annexed state Some prepositions have two forms one is used with pronominal suffixes and the other form is used in all other contexts e g ger between gar Some prepositions have a corresponding relative pronoun or interrogative for example i for to iwumi to whom Tefka aksum i wemcic she gave meat to the cat Amcic iwumi tefka aksum The cat to whom she gave meat dd Syntax Edit NegationPredicative particle d The predicative particle d is an indispensable tool in speaking Kabyle or any other Amazigh language d is equivalent to both it is adjective and to be adjective but cannot be replaced by the verb ili to be It is always followed by a noun in free state Examples D taqcict it s a girl D nekk it s me Nekk d argaz I m a man Idir d anelmad Idir is a student Idir yella d anelmad Idir was a student The predicative particle d should not be confused with the particle of coordination d indeed the latter is followed by a noun at its annexed state while the first is always followed by a noun at its free state Vocabulary EditKabyle has absorbed Arabic French Latin Greek and Punic vocabulary 35 Arabic loanwords representing 22 7 to 46 36 of the total Kabyle vocabulary with many estimates putting it at about 35 37 The number of French loanwords has not been studied yet These loanwords are sometimes Berberized and sometimes kept in their original form The Berberized words follow the regular grammar of Kabyle free and annexed state Examples of Berberized Arabic or French words kitab Ar gt taktabt book machine Fr gt tamacint machine Many loanwords from Arabic have often a different meaning in Kabyle al mal property Ar gt lmal domestic animals cf the etymologies of English cattle and fee All verbs of Arabic origin follow a Berber conjugation and verbal derivation fahim Ar gt fhem to understand gt ssefhem to explain There are yiwen f yiwet one sin f snat two The noun being counted follows it in the genitive sin n yirgazen two men 38 Sample text EditIn Moulieras Auguste Les fourberies de Si Djeh a YiwenOnewass day ǦeḥḥaJehhayefka yashe gave to himbaba sfather hisfrank cent akkenso thatadhe buysd yaɣ aqerruy n tixsi head of ewe Yuɣ it id He bought it here yeccahe ateakkallaksum is meat its Yeqqim dStayed hereuceqlalcarcassdit isilem empty yewwi yas t idhe brought to him it hereitobaba s father his Ihi Then miwhent iwalait he sawyenna yas he said to him acu t what itwa that yenna yas he said to him d aqerruy n tixsi head of ewe Yiwen wass Ǧeḥḥa yefka yas baba s frank akken ad d yaɣ aqerruy n tixsi Yuɣ it id yecca akk aksum is Yeqqim d uceqlal d ilem yewwi yas t id i baba s Ihi mi t iwala yenna yas acu t wa yenna yas d aqerruy n tixsi One day Jehha he gave to him father his cent so that he buys head of ewe He bought it here he ate all meat its Stayed here carcass it is empty he brought to him it here to father his Then when it he saw he said to him what it that he said to him head of ewe One day Jehha s father gave him one cent to buy a ewe head He bought it and ate it all till only an empty carcass was left and brought it to his father When his father saw that he said what is that Jehha said a ewe head A Ohccmata vile anidawherellanareimeẓẓuɣen is ears its A ccmata anida llan imeẓẓuɣen is Oh vile where are ears its You vile boy where are its ears the ewe Tella She wasdit istaɛeẓẓugt deaf Tella d taɛeẓẓugt She was it is deaf It was deaf Anida Wherellantarewallen is eyes its Anida llant wallen is Where are eyes its Where are its eyes Tella She wasdit istaderɣalt blind Tella d taderɣalt She was it is blind It was blind Anida Whereyellaisyiles is tongue its Anida yella yiles is Where is tongue its Where is its tongue Tella She wasdit istagugamt dumb Tella d tagugamt She was it is dumb It was dumb I Andweglimskinnofuqerruy is head its anidawhereyella it is I weglim n uqerruy is anida yella And skin of head its where it is And the skin of its head where is it Tella She wasdit istaferḍast bald Tella d taferḍast She was it is bald It was bald Note the predicative particle d was translated as it is the particle of direction d was translated as here Notes Edit a b If that percentage held in 2022 the number of Kabyle speakers in Algeria would be 4 3 million 7 References Edit a b c d Leclerc Jacques Jean Lionel 2022 04 22 Algerie Situation geographique et demolinguistique in French Universite Laval Retrieved 2023 02 26 a b c Kabyle language at Ethnologue 26th ed 2023 nbsp Nouria Benghabrit l enseignement de Tamazight sera elargi a 10 autres wilayas et beneficiera de 300 nouveaux postes budgetaires Rafio Algerienne la graphie Tifinagh pour le Targui Latine pour la Kabylie et Arabe pour le M Zab et les Aures Kabyle in Arabic Script A History without Standardisation Chaker 1983 p 7 Campbell George L 2013 Compendium of the World s Languages Gareth King 3 ed Abingdon Oxon Routledge p 223 ISBN 978 0 203 10653 2 OCLC 854759616 World Population Dashboard Algeria United Nations Population Fund Retrieved 2023 02 26 The Saharan Berber diaspora and the southern frontiers of Vandal and Byzantine North Africa J Conant and S Stevens eds North Africa under Byzantium and Early Islam ca 500 ca 800 Dumbarton Oaks Byzantine Symposia and Colloquia Washington D C Elizabeth Fentress Andrew Wilson 2016 The Saharan Berber Diaspora and the Southern Frontiers of Byzantine North Africa In Stevens Susan Conant Jonathan eds North Africa under Byzantium and Early Islam Dumbarton Oaks p 52 ISBN 978 0 88402 408 8 Lacoste Dujardin Camille 2001 Geographie culturelle et geopolitique en Kabylie La revolte de la jeunesse kabyle pour une Algerie democratique Herodote in French 103 4 61 doi 10 3917 her 103 0057 ISSN 0338 487X Frawley William May 2003 International Encyclopedia of Linguistics 4 Volume Set Oxford University Press USA ISBN 978 0 19 513977 8 France 1 generalites www axl cefan ulaval ca Retrieved 2023 02 22 Chaker S 2004 05 01 Kabylie La langue Encyclopedie berbere in French 26 4055 4066 doi 10 4000 encyclopedieberbere 1431 ISSN 1015 7344 Definition de kabyle Encyclopaedia Universalis Encyclopaedia Universalis Retrieved 2022 12 23 Redjala M Barek Semmoud Bouziane Kabyle In Quinsat Gilles ed Encyclopaedia Universalis in French Retrieved 2023 02 23 Rapport du Comite consultatif pour la promotion des langues regionales et de la pluralite linguistique interne 2013 www culture gouv fr in French Retrieved 2022 12 25 Brenzinger Matthias 2015 Brenzinger Matthias ed Language Diversity Endangered Berlin De Gruyter p 133 doi 10 1515 9783110905694 ISBN 978 3 11 090569 4 OCLC 979749010 Maddy Weitzman Bruce 2018 09 20 Rowe Paul S ed The Berbers Amazigh Routledge Handbook of Minorities in the Middle East 314 doi 10 4324 9781315626031 23 ISBN 9781315626031 S2CID 187966078 Maddy Weitzman Bruce 2015 12 30 Berbers Amazigh In Smith Anthony D Hou Xiaoshuo Stone John Dennis Rutledge eds The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Race Ethnicity and Nationalism Oxford UK Wiley p 1 doi 10 1002 9781118663202 wberen411 ISBN 978 1 118 66320 2 Retrieved 2022 12 23 Pereltsvaig Asya 2020 09 03 6 3 Berber languages Languages of the World An Introduction Cambridge University Press p 203 doi 10 1017 9781108783071 ISBN 978 1 108 78307 1 Mettouchi Amina 2021 Negation in Kabyle Berber Journal of African Languages and Literatures doi 10 6092 JALALIT V2I2 8059 Retrieved 22 Feb 2023 a href Template Cite journal html title Template Cite journal cite journal a Cite journal requires journal help Nait Zerrad K 2004 05 01 Kabylie Dialectologie Encyclopedie berbere in French 26 4067 4070 doi 10 4000 encyclopedieberbere 1433 ISSN 1015 7344 Amazigh Souag Lameen 2020 05 20 Berber Language Science Press p 406 ISBN 978 3 96110 251 8 Souag Lameen 2020 05 20 Berber Language Science Press p 404 ISBN 978 3 96110 251 8 Algeria reinstates term limit and recognises Berber language BBC News 7 February 2016 Retrieved 11 December 2017 a b c Leclerc Jacques Jean Lionel 2021 07 27 Algerie Les droits linguistiques des berberophones Universite Laval Tamazight La Depeche de Kabylie in French Retrieved 2023 02 26 Boutefliqa et l amazighophobie in French Amazigh World n d Retrieved 2010 03 19 Benchabane 2005 Constitution of Algeria Abdel Massih 1971b 11 a b Libyco Berber mnamon sns it Retrieved 2022 10 13 Creissels 2006 3 4 Baldauf Richard B Kaplan Robert B 2007 01 01 Language Planning and Policy in Africa Multilingual Matters ISBN 978 1 84769 011 1 Kossmann Maarten 2013 07 18 The Arabic Influence on Northern Berber BRILL p 98 ISBN 978 90 04 25309 4 Baldauf Richard B Kaplan Robert B 2007 01 01 Language Planning and Policy in Africa Multilingual Matters ISBN 978 1 84769 011 1 Tessa July 30 2015 Blog Les chiffres berberes Blog Retrieved 2021 01 18 Bibliography EditAbdel Massih Ernest T 1971b A Reference Grammar of Tamazight Ann Arbor University of Michigan ISBN 0 932098 05 3 Achab R 1996 La neologie lexicale berbere 1945 1995 Paris Louvain Editions Peeters 1996 Achab R 1998 Langue berbere Introduction a la notation usuelle en caracteres latins Paris Editions Hoggar F Amazit Hamidchi amp M Lounaci Kabyle de poche Assimil France ISBN 2 7005 0324 4 Benchabane A 2005 Bouteflika ebranle la Kabylie in French Algeria Watch Retrieved 2010 03 19 Creissels Denis 2006 The construct form of nouns in African languages a typological approach PDF 36th Colloquium on African Languages and Linguistics Archived from the original PDF on 2011 07 28 Retrieved 2010 03 21 Dallet Jean Marie 1982 Dictionnaire kabyle francais parler des At Mangellet Algerie Etudes etholinguistiques Maghreb Sahara 1 ser eds Salem Chaker and Marceau Gast Paris Societe d etudes linguistiques et anthropologiques de France Hamid Hamouma n d Manuel de grammaire berbere kabyle Paris Edition Association de Culture Berbere Kamal Nait Zerrad Grammaire moderne du kabyle tajerrumt tatrart n teqbaylit Editions KARTHALA 2001 ISBN 978 2 84586 172 5 Lucas Christopher 2007b Jespersen s Cycle in Arabic and Berber PDF Transactions of the Philological Society 105 3 398 431 doi 10 1111 j 1467 968X 2007 00189 x retrieved 2010 03 22 permanent dead link Mammeri M 1976 Tajerrumt n tmaziɣt tantala taqbaylit Maspero Paris Nait Zerrad K 1994 Manuel de conjugaison kabyle le verbe en berbere L Harmattan Paris Nait Zerrad K 1995 Grammaire du berbere contemporain I Morphologie ENAG Alger Chaker Salem 1983 Un parler berbere d Algerie Kabylie syntaxe in French Aix en Provence Publications Universite de Provence ISBN 2 85399 075 3 OCLC 11317509 Tizi Wwuccen Methode audio visuelle de langue berbere kabyle Aix en Provence Edisud 1986 External links Edit nbsp Languages portal nbsp Kabyle edition of Wikipedia the free encyclopedia INALCO report on Kabyle Negative Preterite The negative preterite in Kabyle Berber Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Kabyle language amp oldid 1174976981, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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