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Concept
Georgian dialects
Summary
Georgian (ქართული kartuli) is a Kartvelian language spoken by about 4 million people, primarily in Georgia but also by indigenous communities in northern Turkey and Azerbaijan, and the diaspora, such as in Russia, Turkey, Iran, Europe, and North America. It is a highly standardized language, with established literary and linguistic norms dating back to the 5th century.
There are at least 18 dialects of the language. Standard Georgian is largely based on the prestige Kartlian dialect. It has over centuries wiped out significant regional linguistic differences within Georgia, particularly through the centralized educational system and the mass media. Dialects still retain their unique features in terms of phonology, morphology, syntax, and vocabulary, but they are virtually entirely intelligible with each other. The three other Kartvelian languages—Mingrelian, Svan and Laz—are sisters to Georgian, but are unintelligible to speakers of Standard Georgian or other Georgian dialects.
Some of the basic variations among the Georgian dialects include:
The presence of glides [j] (ჲ) and [w] (ჳ) before certain vowels;
The presence of qh (ჴ) and q (ყ) sounds;
Distinction between long and short vowels;
Extra vowel sounds not found in Standard Georgian;
The usage of n (ნ) plural form;
Plural adjectival forms;
Non-standard verb forms;
Archaisms and borrowings from neighboring languages not found in Standard Georgian.
Different stress patterns;
The Georgian dialects are classified according to their geographic distribution, reflecting a traditional ethnographic subdivision of the Georgian people. Beyond the Western and Eastern categories, some scholars have also suggested a Southern group. These can be further subdivided into five main dialect groups as proposed by Gigineishvili, Topuria, and K'avtaradze (1961):
Imeretian (Imeruli, იმერული) in Imereti
Lechkhumian (Lečkhumuri, ლეჩხუმური) in Lechkhumi
Rachan (Račuli, რაჭული) in Racha
Gurian (Guruli, გურული) in Guria
Adjarian (Ačaruli, აჭარული) in Adjara
Imerkhevian (Imerkheuli, იმერხეული) in Imerkhevi (Turkey)
The Central dialects, sometimes considered part of the Eastern group, are spoken in central and southern Georgia, and provide the basis for Standard Georgian language.
Official source
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