Proto-Circassian language

Proto-Circassian (or Proto-Adyghe–Kabardian) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Adyghean and Kabardian languages.

Note on Orthography: This article employs Cyrillic characters alongside IPA to assist readers familiar with the Circassian alphabet. However, standard Adyghe orthography contains inconsistencies; notably, the digraph кӏ represents the sound [t͡ʃʼ] despite visually suggesting a velar ejective [kʼ]. To ensure phonetic precision, this article utilizes the following distinctions: чӏ for [t͡ʃʼ], чӏъ for [ʈʂʼ], and кӏь for [kʲʼ].

The consonant system is reconstructed with a four-way phonation contrast in stops and affricates, and a two-way contrast in fricatives.

In Proto-Circassian there was a series of aspirated consonants that survived in the Shapsug and Bzhedug dialects, while they became plain consonants in the other dialects (Abzakh, Chemguy, Kabardian).

• pʰ ⟨пʰ⟩ → p ⟨п⟩
• tʰ ⟨тʰ⟩ → t ⟨т⟩
• kʲʰ ⟨кʰь⟩ → t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩
• kʷʰ ⟨кʰу⟩ → kʷ ⟨ку⟩
• qʰ ⟨кʰъ⟩ → q ⟨къ⟩
• qʷʰ ⟨кʰъу⟩ → qʷ ⟨къу⟩
• t͡sʰ ⟨цʰ⟩ → t͡s ⟨ц⟩
• t͡ɕʷʰ ⟨чʰу⟩ → t͡ɕʷ ⟨чу⟩
• ʃʰ ⟨шʰ⟩ → ʃ ⟨ш⟩
• ʂʰ ⟨шʰъ⟩ → ʂ ⟨шъ⟩

The following table demonstrates the shift from Proto-Circassian (preserved in Shapsug/Bzhedug) to the plain consonants in other dialects.

In Proto-Circassian, there was a clear distinction between aspirated and tense variants of voiceless consonants. The tense variants survived in western dialects like Shapsug, Hatuqay, and Bzhedug. In linguistics literature, these tense consonants are often represented with a colon (e.g., tː) to denote gemination/tenseness, and in some Cyrillic orthographies, they are represented with double letters (e.g., пп, тт, цц) or with a colon (e.g., п:, т:, ц:).

In Chemguy (Temirgoy), these tense consonants merged into plain voiceless consonants. In the eastern dialects (Besleney and Kabardian), the tense variants shifted and became voiced.

• pː ⟨п: / пп⟩ → b ⟨б⟩
• tː ⟨т: / тт⟩ → d ⟨д⟩
• t͡sː ⟨ц: / цц⟩ → d͡z ⟨дз⟩
• t͡ɕːʷ ⟨цу: / цуцу⟩ → v ⟨в⟩
• kːʲ ⟨кь: / кькь⟩ → ɡʲ ⟨гь⟩ / d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩
• kːʷ ⟨ку: / куку⟩ → ɡʷ ⟨гу⟩
• t͡ʃː ⟨ч: / чч⟩ → d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩ / ʒ ⟨ж⟩
• t͡ʂː ⟨чъ: / чъчъ⟩ → d͡ʐ ⟨джъ⟩ / ʒ ⟨ж⟩

Historically, Proto-Circassian possessed a distinct series of stops and affricates. This inventory included palatalized velars and a contrast between retroflex and postalveolar affricates:

Postalveolar affricates:

• d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩
• t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩
• t͡ʃʼ ⟨чӏ⟩

Retroflex affricates:

• t͡ʂ ⟨чъ⟩
• t͡ʂʼ ⟨чӏъ⟩

Palatalized velars:

• ɡʲ ⟨гь⟩
• kʲ ⟨кь⟩
• kʲʼ ⟨кӏь⟩

The evolution of these consonants into modern dialects occurred in two major phases: Spirantization (Phase 1) and Velar Palatalization (Phase 2).

In Phase 1, the original Proto-Circassian affricate postalveolar consonants and retroflex consonants underwent spirantization, becoming fricatives.

• Affected Dialects: Abzakh, Modern Standard Kabardian, and archaic Kabardian dialects.
• Unaffected Dialects: Shapsug, Bzhedug, Chemguy, and Besleney.

The shifts were:

• d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩ → ʒ ⟨ж⟩
• t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩ → ʃ ⟨ш⟩ / ʒ ⟨ж⟩
• t͡ʃʼ ⟨чӏ⟩ → ɕʼ ⟨щӏ⟩
• t͡ʂ ⟨чъ⟩ → ʂ ⟨шъ⟩ / ʒ ⟨ж⟩
• t͡ʂʼ ⟨чӏъ⟩ → ɕʼ ⟨щӏ⟩

In Abzakh, a specific variation occurred where t͡ʃʼ ⟨чӏ⟩ often became a glottal stop ʔʲ ⟨ӏь⟩.

Examples of Phase 1 shifts:

• The Proto-Circassian word чӏэкӏьын "to come out from under" became щӏэкӏьын in Proto-Kabardian and ӏекӏьын in Proto-Abzakh.
• The Proto-Circassian word чӏэгъуэжьын "to regret" became щӏэгъуэжын in Kabardian & ӏегъуэжьын Abzakh.
• The Proto-Circassian word пачӏэ "mustache" became пащӏэ in both Kabardian & Abzakh.
• The Proto-Circassian word чӏалэ "boy; young man" became щӏалэ in Kabardian and ӏелэ in Abzakh.
• The Proto-Circassian word чӏымахуэ "winter" became щӏымахуэ in Kabardian and щӏымафэ in Abzakh.
• The Proto-Circassian word чӏэ "new" became щӏэ in both Kabardian & Abzakh.

However, in dialects affected only by Phase 1 (like some archaic Kabardian dialects) or both phases (Standard Kabardian/Abzakh), words containing the original palatalized velars were initially unaffected. Words like кӏьапсэ "rope", кӏьэрахъуэ "gun" & кӏьэ "tail" were still pronounced with kʲʼ.

The following table demonstrates the Phase 1 shift (Affricate → Fricative), showing how Abzakh and Standard Kabardian innovated while Bzhedug, Chemguy, and Besleney remained conservative regarding these specific consonants.

Later on, Phase 2 occurred. In this phase, the palatalized velar consonants гь [ɡʲ], кь [kʲ] and кӏь [kʲʼ] became palato-alveolar consonants дж [d͡ʒ], ч [t͡ʃ] and чӏ [t͡ʃʼ] respectively.

• Affected Dialects: Abzakh, Bzhedug, Chemguy, and Modern Standard Kabardian.
• Unaffected Dialects: Shapsug, Besleney, and archaic Kabardian dialects.

The shifts were:

• ɡʲ ⟨гь⟩ → d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩
• kʲ ⟨кь⟩ → t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩
• kʲʼ ⟨кӏь⟩ → t͡ʃʼ ⟨чӏ⟩

In dialects affected by Phase 2, words like чӏапсэ "rope", чӏэрахъуэ "gun" & чӏэ "tail" are now pronounced with t͡ʃʼ.

The dialects can be categorized by which phases they underwent:

• Shapsug & Besleney: Not affected by Phase 1 or Phase 2. They retain the most archaic features, keeping distinct palatalized velars and affricates.
• Bzhedug & Chemguy: Not affected by Phase 1, but affected by Phase 2. They retain the original affricates but shifted the velars, resulting in a merger.
• Some Kabardian dialects (e.g. Uzunyayla): Affected by Phase 1 but not Phase 2. They spirantized the affricates but kept the palatalized velars.
• Abzakh & Modern Standard Kabardian: Affected by both Phase 1 and Phase 2. They spirantized the original affricates (Phase 1) and then shifted the velars to become the new affricates (Phase 2).

The following table illustrates the distinction between the original postalveolar affricate (affected by Phase 1) and the original palatalized velar (affected by Phase 2) across the dialects.

Proto-Circassian lacked the labiodental fricatives: the voiceless labiodental fricative [f] and the voiced labiodental fricative [v]. These sounds developed independently in the Western (Adyghe) and Eastern (Kabardian) dialects from completely different phonological sources.

In summary:

• Western Dialects derived [f] from the velar [xʷ].
• Eastern Dialects derived [f] and [v] from labialized sibilants (t͡ɕʷ, ɕʷ, ʑʷ).

In Western Circassian dialects (such as Abzakh, Bzhedug, Chemguy, and Shapsug), the Proto-Circassian labialized voiceless velar fricative [xʷ] ⟨ху⟩ shifted to the voiceless labiodental fricative [f] ⟨ф⟩.

In Eastern dialects (Kabardian and Besleney), this consonant remained a velar [xʷ].

• xʷ ⟨ху⟩ → f ⟨ф⟩

In Eastern Circassian dialects, a series of Proto-Circassian labialized postalveolar consonants (t͡ɕʷ, ʑʷ, ɕʷ, ɕʷʼ) shifted to become labiodental consonants.

In Western dialects, these consonants retained their original sibilant nature (pronounced as t͡ɕʷ, ʑʷ, ɕʷ, ɕʷʼ).

The specific shifts in Eastern dialects were:

• t͡ɕʷʰ ⟨цу⟩ → f ⟨ф⟩
• t͡ɕʷ ⟨цу⟩ → v ⟨в⟩
• ʑʷ ⟨жъу⟩ → v ⟨в⟩
• ɕʷ ⟨шъу⟩ → f ⟨ф⟩
• ɕʷʼ ⟨шӏу⟩ → fʼ ⟨фӏ⟩

An interesting consequence of these opposing phonological shifts is the divergence of the words for "light" and "blind".

Proto-Circassian possessed two distinct words:

• Light: naxʷ ⟨нэху⟩ (containing the velar xʷ)
• Blind: naɕʷ ⟨нэшъу⟩ (containing the sibilant ɕʷ)

Due to the different sources of the labiodental [f] in the dialects, these words shifted in opposite directions:

• In Western (Adyghe): The velar xʷ became f. Therefore, "light" became ⟨нэф⟩. The sibilant ɕʷ was retained, so "blind" remained ⟨нэшъу⟩.
• In Eastern (Kabardian): The sibilant ɕʷ became f. Therefore, "blind" became ⟨нэф⟩. The velar xʷ was retained, so "light" remained ⟨нэху⟩.

As a result, the word ⟨нэф⟩ is a "false friend" between the dialects: it means light in Adyghe, but blind in Kabardian.

The phonological shifts also affected grammatical prefixes, creating distinct forms for the Benefactive and Malefactive prefixes in the modern dialects.

In Proto-Circassian, these prefixes were distinct:

• Benefactive ("for"): xʷa ⟨хуэ⟩ — containing the velar xʷ.
• Malefactive ("to the detriment of"): ɕʷʼa ⟨шӏуэ⟩ — containing the ejective sibilant ɕʷʼ.

Due to the shifts:

• In Western (Adyghe): The Benefactive xʷa became fa ⟨фэ⟩, while the Malefactive ɕʷʼa was retained as ⟨шӏуэ⟩.
• In Eastern (Kabardian): The Benefactive xʷa was retained as ⟨хуэ⟩, while the Malefactive ɕʷʼa shifted to fʼa ⟨фӏэ⟩.

Examples of verbs utilizing these prefixes:

Schleicher's fable in Proto-Circassian:

χʷǝ č́ʷara-gjǝ

χʷǝ ja laśʷam mә q́ˤ:an

č́ʷara pǝʎ́an;

mǝ χwanǝta k:ʷǝm q:irǝ,

mǝ čʷǝχʷa čʷam,

mǝ ć̣ǝm pasa mǝš́ʷrǝ.

χʷǝ č́ʷara q̇́ˤan:

"źǝʁʷǝ sā ǵʷǝ,

q:ać̣am ć̣arǝ č́ʷara ḳ́ʷarǝ."

č́ʷara q̇́ˤan: "q:́ˤʷa χʷǝ!

źǝʁʷǝ š́a ǵʷǝ ć̣arǝ,

q:ać̣a, ł́a, č́ʷara laśʷam

ʎ́ʷa ḳ́ač̣ʷǝm čǝ-wǝ,

χʷiara-gjǝ laśʷam mә q́ˤ:a."

nǝ q:́aˤʷasa χʷǝ rǝq:ʷada q:ˤʷan.

Wiktionary has a list of reconstructed forms at Appendix:Proto-Northwest Caucasian reconstructions

• Proto-Abazgi language
• Proto-Northwest Caucasian language

• Урыс Хь. Ш. (2000). Адыгэбзэм и тхыдэ: ІыхьитIу зэхэлъу. Налшык: Эльбрус. ISBN 5-7680-1439-X
• Nikolayev, Sergei L.; Starostin, Sergei A. (1994). A North Caucasian Etymological Dictionary (Edited by S. A. Starostin). Moscow: Asterisk Publishers. Preface.
• Chirikba, Viacheslav A. (1996). Common West Caucasian: The Reconstruction of its Phonological System and Parts of its Lexicon and Morphology. Leiden, The Netherlands: Research School CNWS, School of Asian, African, and Amerindian Studies (CNWS Publications, Vol. 48). ISBN 90-73782-73-2.
• Kuipers, Aert Hendrik (1975). A Dictionary of Proto-Circassian Roots (PdR Press Publications on North Caucasian Languages 1). Lisse, Netherlands: The Peter de Ridder Press. PDF.