Zenati languages

Kossmann (2013) According to Kossmann (2013: 21–24), Zenati is a rather arbitrary grouping, in which he includes the following varieties: • Riffian (Riffian Berber, or Rif-Berber, local name: Tmaziɣt, north of Morocco); Includes Arzew dialect, in Arzew in western Algeria • Eastern Morocco Zenati (north east of Morocco) • Iznasen • Eastern Middle Atlas: Ait Seghrouchen and a group of dialects including Ait Warain (Ayt Warayn) (north-central Morocco) • Western Algerian, west of Algiers (a diffuse group): • Beni Snous (Tlemcen) dialect, in western Algeria near the border • Jebel Bissa (intelligible with Shenwa) • Shenwa (Chenoua), between Tipasa and Ténès in north-central Algeria west of Algiers • Beni Messaoud (Shenwa?) • Beni Menacer • Metmata (of Algeria; distinct from Matmata Berber of Tunisia) • etc. (see article) • Shawiya (Chaouia), around Batna and Khenchela, south of Constantine in northeastern Algeria • Mzab–Wargla (Northern Saharan oases): • South Oran and Figuig, in the ksours along the Algerian–Moroccan border and in Figuig in southeastern Morocco • Gourara Berber (Taznatit) (Gourara, southwestern Algeria, around Timimoun) • Tidikelt and Tuat (Touat, Algeria) • Mozabite aka Mzab, Tumzabt (northern Algerian Sahara, near Ghardaia) • Wargla (Ouargli aka Tagergrent, Teggargarent), northern Algerian Sahara, near Ouargla • Oued Righ Berber (incl. Touggourt; Ethnologue name "Temacine Tamazight") in Oued Righ, around Touggourt and Temacine, Algeria • Southeastern Tunisian–Libyan: Djerbi (island of Djerba), Douiret (Douiret in southern Tunisia), Matmata Berber (Matmata), Sened and Zuwara Berber (Zuwara in northwestern Libya) ==Features==

According to Kossmann (1999:31-32, 86, 172), common innovations defining the Zenati languages include: • The vowel a- in nominal prefixes is dropped in a number of words when it precedes CV, where C is a single consonant and V is a full (non-schwa) vowel. For example, afus "hand" is replaced with fus. (A similar development is found in some Eastern Berber languages, but not Nafusi.) • Verbs whose original aorist forms end in -u while their perfect forms end in -a end up with -a in the aorist as well, leaving the aorist / perfect distinction unmarked for these verbs. For example, *ktu "forget", Siwi ttu, becomes Ouargli tta. (This also affects Nafusi.) • Verbs consisting (in the aorist) of two consonants with no vowel other than schwa fall into two classes elsewhere in Berber: one where a variable final vowel appears in the perfect form, and one which continues to lack a final vowel in the perfect. In Zenati, the latter class has been entirely merged into the former in the perfect, with the single exception of the negative perfect of *əɣ s "want". For example, Kabyle (non-Zenati) gər "throw", pf. -gər (int. -ggar), corresponds to Ouargli (Zenati) gər, pf. -gru. (This change also affects Nafusi; Basset (1929:9) gives examples where it appears not to occur in Chenoua.) • Proto-Berber *-əβ has become -i in Zenati. For example, *arəβ "write" becomes ari. (This change also occurs in varieties including the Central Atlas Tamazight dialect of the Izayan, Nafusi, and Siwi.) • Proto-Berber palatalised k´ and g´, corresponding to k and g in non-Zenati varieties, become š and ž in Zenati (although a fair number of irregular correspondences for this are found.) For example, k´ăm "you (f. sg.)" becomes šəm. (This change also occurs in Nafusi and Siwi.) In addition to the correspondence of k and g to š and ž, Chaker (1972), while expressing uncertainty about the linguistic coherence of Zenati, notes as shared Zenati traits: • A proximal demonstrative suffix "this" -u, rather than -a • A final -u in the perfect of two-consonant verbs, rather than -a (e.g. yə-nsu "he slept" rather than yə-nsa elsewhere) These characteristics identify a more restricted subset of Berber than those previously mentioned, mainly northern Saharan varieties; they exclude, for example, Chaoui and all but the easternmost Rif dialects. ==References==