Chazhdurm

Chazhdurm is a Southeastern Chagic language of the Serrenic language family. Spoken by about 16 million people, mostly by native Chazhdurms in Upper and Lower Chazderma in eastern and souther Eussis, it is the most spoken Chagic and Serrenic language. It is also spoken by a sizeable population in Treima.

Chazhdurm

Osģa Čazdǫrma

Pronunciation:

[ʔɔzˈɣa ʨaʒˈdʒərma]

Ethnicity: Chazhdurms
Language Family:
Serrenic

• Chagic
• Southern Chagic
• Southeastern Chagic
• Chazhdurm

Phonology

Consonants

Vowels

Like the other Southeastern Chagic languages, Chazhdurm has a series of plain (or hard) sounds, and a series of soft sounds. The soft sounds are triggered by the soft vowels: ą, ę, i, and ǫ, or ž, žs, and č, which are inherently soft. The letters r, l, and ‘ do not have soft equivalents, and are always plain.

All sounds with voiced/voiceless pairs match voicing in clusters according to voicing of final sound, but only if the final sound exists in a pair: e.g. the ⟨p⟩ pźet = [bʒet] and ⟨ź⟩ Ęnźcǫt = [ˈjeɲɕcət], but not the ⟨r⟩ in arźst = [ʔɑrʃt].
Sounds assimilate in clusters based on the articulation position of the final sound: e.g. the ⟨n⟩ and ⟨ź⟩ in Ęnźcǫt = [ˈjeɲɕcət] and ⟨n⟩ in fencažs = [ˈfeŋkaɕ].
⟨nV⟩ at the beginning of a word will collapse to a syllabic nasal consonant if the vowel in the following syllable matches it in front/back quality: e.g. Naŗserun = [n̩ʃeˈrun] and nofor = [ɱ̩ˈfɔr]. This sound can liaise into the end of a previous word if it would create an allowable cluster: e.g. ber Naŗseruni = [ber‿nʃeˈruni], or it can uncollapse if the previous word ends in a matching nasal sound: e.g. heģģam nofor = [ˈhexam‿oˈfɔr], but heģģam nadąl = [ˈhexam n̩ˈdʒal].
⟨qV₁’V₂⟩ will collapse into [qʔV₂~q’V₂] if V₁ and V₂ match in front/back quality: e.g. Bžeqa’et = [bʑeˈqʔet]~[bʑeˈq’et].
/a/ will sympathetically become /ɑ/ if it comes after /ɑ/ or /ɔ/ followed by a uvular sound: e.g. the ⟨ę⟩ in agqę = [ˈʔɑχɑ] and the ⟨a⟩ in Qoģģaŗt = [ˈɢɔχɑð].
⟨rV⟩ in an unstressed syllable will collapse to a syllabic consonant if the vowel in the following syllable matches it in front/back quality: e.g. ćodręzan [tʃodr̩ˈzan] but not taźsrehanuq = [taʃreˈhɑnuq]. This process is considered allophonic of /rV/ rather than a merger with the existing phonemic /r̩/, which originated along a similar process in the Southeastern Chagic languages in words like brźsmaźic < *brāšhamšiḵ, c.f. Erghuz ܒܪܐܣܡܫܝܟ brāsemšīḵ.
final devoiced consonants will liaise into a following word that begins with /h/: e.g. the common phrase arźst heģģam nadąl = [ʔɑrʃ‿tˈexam n̩ˈdʒal].

Orthography

Chazhdurm is written in the Vallaran alphabet, with several additional diacritics and digraphs. The Chazhdurm alphabet consists of 29 letters: Aa Ąą Bb Cc Ćć Čč Dd Ee Ęę Ff Gg Ģģ Hh Ii Ll Mm Nn Oo Ǫǫ Pp Qq Rr Ŗŗ Ss Tt Uu Zz Źź Žž. The letter ŗ is only used in the digraphs ŗs and ŗt, which cannot begin words; as such, the capital form is never used.
Vowels

Vowels

• a

• /ɑ/ after glottal (/ʔ/, /h/) and liquid sounds (/r/, /l/)
• /a/ elsewhere

• ą

• /ɑ/ after glottal (/ʔ/, /h/) and liquid sounds (/r/, /l/)
• /ja/ word initially
• /a/ elsewhere

• e

• /e/

• ę

• /a/ word finally and before ⟨ŗt⟩, ⟨ŗs⟩ except if also after uvular (/ɢ/, /q/, /ʁ/, /χ/) or liquid sounds (/r/, /l/)
• /je/ word initially
• /e/ elsewhere

• i

• /i/

• o

• /ɔ/ after after labial (/m/, /b/, /p/, /f/), uvular (/ɢ/, /q/, /ʁ/, /χ/), and glottal sounds (/ʔ/, /h/)
• /o/ elsewhere

• ǫ

• /o/ after labial sounds (/m/, /b/, /p/, /f/)
• /ɔ/ after uvular (/ɢ/, /q/, /ʁ/, /χ/) and glottal sounds (/ʔ/, /h/)
• /jə/ word initially
• /ə/ elswhere

• u

• /u/

Consonants

Consonants

• b

• /b/

• c

• /c/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /k/ elsewhere

• ć

• /tɕ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /tʃ/ elsewhere

• č

• /tɕ/

• d

• /dʒ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /d/ elsewhere

• f

• /f/

• g

• /Ɉ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /ɣ/ before voiced fricative except /ʑ/ and /ʁ/ (/ð/, /z/, /ʒ/, /ɣ/)
• /∅/ before /ʁ/, /χ/
• /g/ elsewhere

• gu

• /g/ in loanwords

• ģ

• /j/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩, /ʑ/, /ɕ/, /ʒ/, /ʃ/
• /g/ before /dʒ/
• /ɕ/ before /tɕ/
• /∅/ before /ð/
• /x/ when ⟨ģģ⟩ except ⟨ģģV̨⟩, ⟨ģģi⟩
• /ç/ when ⟨ģģV̨⟩, ⟨ģģi⟩
• /ɣ/ elsewhere

• h

• /ç/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /h/ elsewhere

• l

• /l/

• m

• /m/

• n

• /ɲ/ before ⟨V̨⟩, /n/ elsewhere

• p

• /p/

• q

• /ɢ/ word initially and word medially if following a vowel sound
• /q/ word finally and word medially if following a consonant sound, or when ⟨qq⟩
• /ʁ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /χ/ when ⟨qq⟩ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩

• qu

• /k/ in loanwords

• r

• /r/

• ŗs

• /ɕ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /ʃ/ elsewhere

• ŗt

• /ð/

• s

• /ɕ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /ʃ/ before /tʃ/, /dʒ/
• /s/ elsewhere

• t

• /tʃ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /t/ elsewhere

• z

• /ʑ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /ʒ/ before /dʒ/
• /z/ elsewhere

• ź

• /ʑ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /ʒ/ elsewhere

• ž

• /ʑ/

• źs

• /ɕ/ before ⟨i⟩, ⟨V̨⟩
• /ʃ/ elsewhere

• žs

• /ɕ/

• ‘

• /ʔ/

Grammar

Chazhdurm is a fusional language. Like other Chagic languages, Chazhdurm has a marked nominative alignment, and declines for three cases: nominative (-a), accusative (-∅), and genitive (-i). Plurals are marked with the addition of -(V)n. As with other Serrenic languages, enclitic pronouns are common, and are declined for person, number, and case (accusative and genitive). Enclitic pronouns are increasingly common, with independent pronoun forms being perceived as stressing the role of the pronoun in the sentence. Word order has traditionally been VSO, but increasingly speakers are using SVO word order, especially in urban areas with more Varaso influence. Like other Serrenic languages, Chazhdurm does not possess grammatical gender. Verbs are marked for two tenses (past and non-past), three moods (indicative, subjunctive, and imperative), two voices (active and passive), two numbers (singular and plural), and three persons (first, second, and third). Aspects and other tenses and moods (such as future tense and conditional mood) are created with auxiliary words. As verbs are marked for person and number, Chazhdurm is very heavily pro-drop, with insertion of a subject pronoun often reserved for clarity or connotatively stressing the subject.

Common Words and Phrases

hen [hen]: yes
ba [ba]: no
Sa bodą źsaruq [sa ˈbodʒa ˈʃaruq]: thank you | shortened: Sa bodąźs [sa ˈbodʒaʃ]
Arźst heģģam nadąl [ʔɑrʃ‿tˈexam n̩ˈdʒal]: no big deal/no problem | shortened: heģģam nadąl [ˈhexam n̩ˈdʒal]