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Albanian (gjuha shqipe IPA /ˈɟuˌha ˈʃciˌpɛ/) is a language spoken by 8 million people, primarily in Albania and Serbia (province of Kosovo-Metohija), but also in other parts of the Balkans with an Albanian population (parts of the Republic of Macedonia, and some parts in Montenegro and Serbia), along the eastern coast of Italy and in Sicily, as well as by a significant diaspora in Greece, Scandinavia, Germany, the United Kingdom, Egypt, Australia, Turkey, and the United States. The language forms its own distinct branch of the Indo-European language family. A language family is a group of languages related by descent from a common proto-language. ... For other uses, see Indo-European. ... Writing systems of the world today. ... The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most widely used alphabetic writing system in the world today. ... This article is about the alphabet of the Albanian language. ... For an explanation of terms related to Macedonia, see Macedonia (terminology). ... ISO 639-1 is the first part of the ISO 639 international-standard language-code family. ... ISO 639-2 is the second part of the ISO 639 standard, which lists codes for the representation of the names of languages. ... ISO 639-3 is an international standard for language codes. ... Geg (or Gheg) is a northern Albanian dialect. ... Arbëresh (or Arbërishte or Arbërisht) is the dialect of the Albanian language spoken by the Arbëreshë and Arvanites the Albanian-speaking minorities in Italy and Greece. ... Arvanitic or Arvanitika (Greek: Αρβανίτικα; native name: Arbëríshte; spelled in the Greek-based Arvanitic alphabet) is the variety of Albanian traditionally spoken by the Arvanites, a population group in Greece. ... Tosk is the southern dialect of Albanian language, spoken by about 3 million people. ... Articles with similar titles include the NATO phonetic alphabet, which has also informally been called the “International Phonetic Alphabet”. For information on how to read IPA transcriptions of English words, see IPA chart for English. ... The Unicode Standard, Version 5. ... Articles with similar titles include the NATO phonetic alphabet, which has also informally been called the “International Phonetic Alphabet”. For information on how to read IPA transcriptions of English words, see IPA chart for English. ... Not to be confused with Republika Srpska. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... For an explanation of terms related to Macedonia, see Macedonia (terminology). ... Anthem Oj, svijetla majska zoro Oh, Bright Dawn of May Montenegro() on the European continent()  —  [] Capital (and largest city) Podgorica Official languages Serbian (Ijekavian dialect)1 Demonym Montenegrin Government Republic  -  President Filip Vujanović  -  Prime Minister Željko Å turanović Independence due to the dissolution of Serbia and Montenegro   -  Declared June 3, 2006... Not to be confused with Republika Srpska. ... Sicily ( in Italian and Sicilian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,708 km² (9,926 sq. ... For other uses, see Scandinavia (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Indo-European. ... A language family is a group of languages related by descent from a common proto-language. ...

Classification

Albanian was proven to be an Indo-European language in 1854 by the German philologist Franz Bopp. The Albanian language comprises its own independent branch of the Indo-European language family with no living close relatives (even though there are many dialects of Albanian, distant and remote). Some scholars believe that Albanian derives from the Illyrian language^{[dubious – discuss]} while some claim that it derives from Daco-Thracian (Illyrian and Daco-Thracian, however, might have been closely related languages; see Thraco-Illyrian). Franz Bopp (September 14, 1791 - October 23, 1867) was a German linguist known for extensive comparative work on Indo-European languages. ... The Illyrian languages are a group of Indo-European languages that were spoken in the western part of the Balkans in pre-Roman times. ... The Dacian language was an Indo-European language spoken by the ancient people of Dacia. ... The Thracian language was the Indo-European language spoken in ancient times by the Thracians in South-Eastern Europe. ... Thraco-Illyrian is a hypothesis that the Thraco-Dacian and Illyrian languages comprise a distinct branch of Indo-European. ...

Establishing longer relations, Albanian is often compared to Balto-Slavic on the one hand and Germanic on the other, both of which share a number of isoglosses with Albanian. Moreover, Albanian has undergone a vowel shift in which stressed, long o has fallen to a, much like in the former and opposite the latter. Likewise, Albanian has taken the old relative jos and innovatively used it exclusively to qualify adjectives, much in the way Balto-Slavic has used this word to provide the definite ending of adjectives. Isoglosses on the Faroe Islands An isogloss is the geographical boundary of a certain linguistic feature, e. ...

Comparison with other languages

Part of a series of articles on Albanians For other uses, see Indo-European. ... Sanskrit ( , for short ) is a classical language of India, a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Latin was the language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ... Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... Note: This article contains special characters. ... Albanian culture Literature · Modern art Music · Sport · Cuisine Image File history File links Flag_of_Albania. ... // The oldest known document in Albanian is from November 8, 1462, a formula of baptism (Albanian: Formula e Pagëzimit) by the bishop of Durrës, Pal Engjëlli. ... Frontispiece of Historia de vita et gestis Scanderbegi, Epirotarum principis by Marin Barleti Albania, part of the ancient Illyrian territories, a cross-road of civilizations and geopolitical interests during the barbaric onslaughts and later on a province of the Eastern and Western Empires, Rome and Byzantium, after, over centuries, having... // A Brief History Albania, a country of southeastern Europe, has a unique culture from that of other European countries. ... Albanian drummers playing in the street of Prizren, Kosovo Albania is a Southeast European nation that was ruled by Enver Hoxhas communist government for much of the later part of the 20th century, it is now a democratic country. ... Albanian cuisine consists of local dishes from around the country of Albania. ... By region or country Albania · Republic of Macedonia · Montenegro Serbia (Kosovo • Preševo • Belgrade) Romania · United States Çamëria · Greece · Italy Bulgaria Albanians in the Republic of Macedonia, according to the 1981 census. ... Ethnic map of Montenegro according to the 2003 census An Albanian minority living in Montenegro constitutes 5. ... Albanians in Kosovo in 1991. ... There is an Albanian minority living in the PreÅ¡evo Valley. ... Belgrade, Serbia, has a small Albanian community. ... Cham Albanians (In Albanian: Çamë, in Greek: Τσάμηδες Tsámidhes) are a group of ethnic Albanians originally residing close to the river Thyamis (Θύαμις in Greek, Çam in Albanian). ... Varieties of Albanian Albanian · Gheg · Tosk Arvanitika · Arbëresh (Italy) Geg is a northern Albanian dialect. ... Tosk is the southern dialect of the Albanian language. ... Arvanitika or Arvanitic (native name: arbërisht, Greek: αρβανίτικα arvanitika) is the variety of Albanian traditionally spoken by the Arvanites, a population group in Greece. ... Arbëresh (or Arbërishte or Arbërisht) is the dialect of the Albanian language spoken by the Arbëreshë and Arvanites the Albanian-speaking minorities in Italy and Greece. ... History of Albanians Origins · History · Illyrians The origin of Albanians has been for some time a matter of dispute among historians. ... This article briefly outlines each period in the history of Albania; details are presented in separate articles (see the links in the box and below). ... Illyria (disambiguation) Illyrians has come to refer to a broad, ill-defined Indo-European[1] group of peoples who inhabited the western Balkans (Illyria, roughly from northern Epirus to southern Pannonia) and even perhaps parts of Southern Italy in classical times into the Common era, and spoke Illyrian languages. ... Persecution of Albanians Exodus Albanian exodus is term used to refer to the deportation or mass migration of Albanians from their homes. ... v • d • e

Geographic distribution

Albanian distribution and dialects.

Albanian is spoken by about 8.17 million people mainly in Albania, Kosovo, Italy, Macedonia, Montenegro, Greece, Turkey, and by immigrant communities in many countries such as Belgium, Egypt, Germany, Greece, Italy, Sweden, Turkey (Europe), Russia, Ukraine, UK, U.S., Switzerland, Australia. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1104x803, 237 KB) Summary Made by Bogdan GiuÅŸcă using XaraX, terrain taken from World Wind (PD), data from CIA maps (PD). ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1104x803, 237 KB) Summary Made by Bogdan GiuÅŸcă using XaraX, terrain taken from World Wind (PD), data from CIA maps (PD). ... For other uses, see Kosovo (disambiguation). ... Anthem Oj, svijetla majska zoro Oh, Bright Dawn of May Montenegro() on the European continent()  —  [] Capital (and largest city) Podgorica Official languages Serbian (Ijekavian dialect)1 Demonym Montenegrin Government Republic  -  President Filip Vujanović  -  Prime Minister Željko Å turanović Independence due to the dissolution of Serbia and Montenegro   -  Declared June 3, 2006... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from...

Official status

Albanian in a revised form of the Tosk dialect is the official language of the Republic of Albania. Albanian is also one of the official languages of Kosovo and in the municipalities where there are more than 20% ethnic Albanian inhabitants in Macedonia. Tosk is the southern dialect of the Albanian language. ... An official language is a language that is given a unique legal status in the countries, states, and other territories. ... For other uses, see Kosovo (disambiguation). ...

Dialects

Albanian can be divided into two main dialects, Gheg and Tosk. The Shkumbin river is roughly the dividing line, with Gheg spoken north of the Shkumbin and Tosk south of it. The Geg literary language has been documented since 1462. Until the communists took power in Albania, the standard was based on Gheg. Although the literary versions of Tosk and Gheg are mutually intelligible, many of the regional dialects are not. Geg is a northern Albanian dialect. ... Tosk is the southern dialect of the Albanian language. ... The Shkumbin (Albanian indefinite form, the definite form is Shkumbini) is a river in central Albania, flowing into the Adriatic Sea. ...

Tosk is divided into many sub-dialects. The main groups are Northern Tosk (Berat, Pojan, Vlorë) and Labërisht Labëria. In Greece, the Çam and the Arvanites speak different Tosk sub-dialects. The sub-dialect of the Arvanites is only partially intelligible with other Tosk sub-dialects, such that it can be regarded as a separate language, Arvanitika. A distinct Tosk sub-dialect has been preserved in the Albanian-founded village of Mandritsa in southern Bulgaria. Tosk sub-dialects related to Arvanitika and called Arbërisht are spoken by the Arbëreshë, descendants of 15th and 16th century immigrants in southeastern Italy, in small communities in the regions of Sicily, Calabria, Basilicata, Campania, Molise, Abruzzi, and Puglia. Tosk sub-dialects are spoken by most members of the large Albanian immigrant communities of Ukraine, Turkey, Egypt, and the United States. Tosk may refer to several things: Tosk, a dialect of Albanian. ... Labëria is a region in southwestern Albania roughly reaching from Vlorë south to the Greek border near Sarandë, incorporating Gjirokastra and extending east to the city of Tepelenë. It is a region where original pre-Ottoman culture, customs and language are well preserved. ... The name Epirus may refer to: Geographical Epirus (region) - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans Political Epirus (periphery) - one of the ten peripheries (administrative divisions) of Greece Historical Despotate of Epirus - one of the successor states of the Byzantine Empire Epirus vetus or Epirus nova - provinces of... Arvanites (Greek: Αρβανίτες, see also below about names) are a population group in Greece who traditionally speak Arvanitika, a form of Albanian. ... Arvanitika or Arvanitic (native name: arbërisht, Greek: αρβανίτικα arvanitika) is the variety of Albanian traditionally spoken by the Arvanites, a population group in Greece. ... Location of Mandritsa in Bulgaria Mandritsa (Bulgarian: , small dairy; Albanian: ; Greek: ) is a village in southernmost Bulgaria, part of Ivaylovgrad municipality, Haskovo Province. ... Arbëresh (or Arbërishte or Arbërisht) is the dialect of the Albanian language spoken by the Arbëreshë, the Albanian-speaking minority in Italy. ... Arbëreshë are an Albanian-speaking community living in southern Italy and Sicily. ... (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ... Sicily ( in Italian and Sicilian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,708 km² (9,926 sq. ... For other uses, see Calabria (disambiguation). ... Basilicata is a region in the south of Italy, bordering on Campania to the west, Puglia (Apulia) to the east, Calabria to the south, it has one short coastline on the Tyrrhenian Sea and another of the Gulf of Taranto in the Ionian Sea to the south-east. ... For other uses, see Campania (disambiguation). ... Molise is a region of central Italy, the second smallest of the regions. ... Categories: Regions of Italy | Abruzzo ... Apulia is a region of Italy (called Puglia in Italian), bordering on Molise to the north-west, Campania to the south-west, Basilicata to the south, the Adriatic Sea to the east and the Ionian Sea to the south-east. ...

Gheg (or Geg) is spoken in Northern Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo, and in parts of Montenegro. Each area of Northern Albania has its own sub-dialect: Tirana, Durrës, Elbasan and Kavaja; Kruja and Laci; Mati, Dibra and Mirdita; Lezha, Shkodra, Kraja, Ulqinj; etc. Malësia e Madhe, Rugova, and villages scattered alongside the Adriatic Coast form the northmost sub-dialect of Albania today although, Albanian was formerly spoken in Dalmatia until recently. There are many other sub-dialects in the region of Kosovo and in parts of southern Montenegro, and in Macedonia. The sub-dialects of Malsia e Madhe and Dukagjini near Shkodra are being lost because the younger generations prefer to speak the sub-dialect of Shkodra.

Gheg and Tosk differ mainly by:

1. rhotacism - Gheg has n where Tosk has r
2. late Proto-Albanian ā + tautosyllabic nasal > Gheg low-central or low-back vowel; > Tosk mid-central, or low-front-to-central vowel
3. Proto-Albanian ō > uo > Gheg vo, Tosk va
4. infinitival use of verbal adjective preceded in Gheg by me and in Tosk by për të
5. difference in lexemes, noun plurals, suppletion of the aorist system of the verb

Subdialects may vary based on:

1. retention or loss of final schwa (-ë)
2. devoicing of final voiced segments
3. treatment of intervocalic and final nj
4. treatment of clusters of nasal + voiced stop
5. development of anaptyctic homorganic stops after nasals that follow a stressed vowel and precede unstressed -ël or -ër
6. treatment of vowel clusters ie, ye, and ua
7. treatment of stressed /e/ before a nasal

Sagittal section of nose mouth, pharynx, and larynx. ...

Notable lexicological differences between Tosk and Gheg

( ˆ ) denotes nasal vowels, which are a common feature of Gheg. A nasal vowel is a vowel that is produced with a lowering of the velum so that air escapes both through nose as well as the mouth. ...

Sounds

Albanian has 7 vowels and 29 consonants. Gheg has a set of nasal vowels which are absent in Tosk. Another peculiarity is the mid-central vowel "ë" reduced at the end of the word. The stress is fixed mainly on the penultimate syllable. Note: This page contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. ... In articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a sound in spoken language that is characterized by a closure or stricture of the vocal tract sufficient to cause audible turbulence. ... Geg is a northern Albanian dialect. ... A nasal vowel is a vowel that is produced with a lowering of the velum so that air escapes both through nose as well as the mouth. ... Tosk is the southern dialect of the Albanian language. ...

Consonants

Notes: In phonetics, a bilabial consonant is a consonant articulated with both lips. ... In phonetics, labiodentals are consonants articulated with the lower lips and the upper teeth, or viceversa. ... Interdental consonants are produced by placing the blade of the tongue against the upper incisors. ... Alveolar consonants are articulated with the tongue against or close to the superior alveolar ridge, which is called that because it contains the alveoli (the sockets) of the superior teeth. ... Postalveolar (or palato-alveolar) consonants are consonants articulated with the tip of the tongue between the alveolar ridge (the place of articulation for alveolar consonants) and the palate (the place of articulation for palatal consonants). ... Palatal consonants are consonants articulated with the body of the tongue raised against the hard palate (the middle part of the roof of the mouth). ... Velars are consonants articulated with the back part of the tongue (the dorsum) against the soft palate (the back part of the roof of the mouth, known also as the velum). ... Glottal consonants are consonants articulated with the glottis. ... A stop or plosive or occlusive is a consonant sound produced by stopping the airflow in the vocal tract. ... A nasal consonant is produced when the velum—that fleshy part of the palate near the back—is lowered, allowing air to escape freely through the nose. ... In phonetics, a trill is a consonantal sound produced by vibrations between the articulator and the place of articulation. ... In phonetics, a flap or tap is a type of consonantal sound, which is produced with a single contraction of the muscles so that one articulator (such as the tongue) is thrown against another. ... Fricatives (or spirants) are consonants produced by forcing air through a narrow channel made by placing two articulators close together. ... Affricate consonants begin as stops (most often an alveolar, such as or ) but release as a fricative (such as or or, in a couple of languages, into a fricative trill) rather than directly into the following vowel. ... Approximants are speech sounds that could be regarded as intermediate between vowels and typical consonants. ... Laterals are L-like consonants pronounced with an occlusion made somewhere along the axis of the tongue, while air from the lungs escapes at one side or both sides of the tongue. ... Articles with similar titles include the NATO phonetic alphabet, which has also informally been called the “International Phonetic Alphabet”. For information on how to read IPA transcriptions of English words, see IPA chart for English. ... The voiceless bilabial plosive is a type of consonantal sound used in many spoken languages. ... The voiced bilabial plosive is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiceless alveolar plosive is a type of consonantal sound used in many spoken languages. ... The voiced alveolar plosive is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The voiced palatal plosive is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiceless velar plosive is a type of consonantal sound used in many spoken languages. ... The voiced velar plosive is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiceless alveolar affricate is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiced alveolar affricate is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiceless palato-alveolar affricate or domed postalveolar affricate is a type of consonantal sound used in some spoken languages. ... The voiced palato-alveolar fricative or domed postalveolar affricate is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiceless dental non-sibilant fricative is a type of consonantal sound used in some spoken languages. ... The voiced dental non-sibilant fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiceless labiodental fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiced labiodental fricative is a type of consonantal sound used in some spoken languages. ... The voiceless alveolar fricatives are consonantal sounds. ... The voiced alveolar fricatives are consonantal sounds. ... The voiceless palato-alveolar fricative or domed postalveolar fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiced palato-alveolar fricative or domed postalveolar fricative is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The voiceless glottal transition, commonly called a fricative, is a type of sound used in some spoken languages which often behaves like a consonant, but sometimes behaves more like a vowel, or is indeterminate in its behavior. ... The bilabial nasal is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The alveolar nasal is a type of consonantal sound used in some spoken languages. ... The palatal nasal is a type of consonant, used in some spoken languages. ... The palatal approximant is a type of consonantal sound, used in many spoken languages. ... The alveolar lateral approximant is a type of consonantal sound used in some spoken languages. ... The velarized alveolar lateral approximant, which may actually be uvularized or pharyngealized, also known as dark l, is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The alveolar trill is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ... The alveolar tap or flap is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. ...

• The affricates are pronounced as one sound (a stop and a fricative at the same point).
• The palatal stops q and gj are completely unknown to English, so the pronunciation guide is approximate. Palatal stops can be found in other languages, for example, in Hungarian (where these sounds are spelt ty and gy respectively).
• The palatal nasal nj corresponds to the sound of the Spanish ñ or the French or Italian digraph gn (as in gnocchi). It is pronounced as one sound, not a nasal plus a glide.
• The ll sound is a velarised lateral, close to English "dark L".
• The contrast between flapped r and trilled rr is the same as in Spanish. English does not have any of the two sounds phonemically (but tt in butter is pronounced as a flap r in most American dialects).
• (1) The letter ç can be spelt ch on American English keyboards, both due to its English sound, but more importantly, due to analogy with Albanian usage of h to modify the sounds s, x and z writing those sh, xh and zh. (Usually, however, it's spelt simply c, which may cause confusion; however, meanings are usually understood).

A dark l is a common way of referring to a velarised alveolar lateral approximant. ...

Vowels

Articles with similar titles include the NATO phonetic alphabet, which has also informally been called the “International Phonetic Alphabet”. For information on how to read IPA transcriptions of English words, see IPA chart for English. ... Vowels See also: IPA, Consonants Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... Vowels See also: IPA, Consonants Near‑close Close‑mid Mid Open‑mid Near‑open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... Vowels See also: IPA, Consonants Near‑close Close‑mid Mid Open‑mid Near‑open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... The IPA symbol for the Schwa In linguistics, specifically phonetics and phonology, schwa can mean: An unstressed and toneless neutral vowel sound in any language, often but not necessarily a mid-central vowel. ... Vowels Near-close Close-mid Mid Open-mid Near-open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... Vowels See also: IPA, Consonants Near‑close Close‑mid Mid Open‑mid Near‑open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ... Vowels See also: IPA, Consonants Near‑close Close‑mid Mid Open‑mid Near‑open Open Where symbols appear in pairs, the one to the right represents a rounded vowel. ...

Grammar

Albanian nouns are inflected by gender (masculine, feminine and neuter) and number (singular and plural). There are 4 declensions with 6 cases (nominative, accusative, genitive, dative, ablative and vocative), although the vocative only occurs with a limited number of words. The cases apply to both definite and indefinite nouns and there are numerous cases of syncretism. The equivalent of a genitive is formed by using the prepositions i/e/të/së with the dative. In linguistics, a noun or noun substantive is a lexical category which is defined in terms of how its members combine with other grammatical kinds of expressions. ... Inflection of the Spanish lexeme for cat, with blue representing the masculine gender, pink representing the feminine gender, grey representing the form used for mixed-gender, and green representing the plural number. ... In linguistics, grammatical gender is a morphological category associated with the expression of gender through inflection or agreement. ... In linguistics, grammatical gender is a morphological category associated with the expression of gender through inflection or agreement. ... In linguistics, grammatical gender is a morphological category associated with the expression of gender through inflection or agreement. ... The word neuter can refer to: the property of being neither biologically male or female: being asexual the sterilization (castration, spaying, etc. ... In linguistics, grammatical number is a morphological category characterized by the expression of quantity through inflection or agreement. ... In linguistics, grammatical number is a morphological category characterized by the expression of quantity through inflection or agreement. ... Look up plural in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... In linguistics, declension is the inflection of nouns, pronouns and adjectives to indicate such features as number (typically singular vs. ... The nominative case is a grammatical case for a noun. ... The term accusative may be used in the following contexts: A form of morphosyntactic alignment, as found in nominative-accusative languages. ... The genitive case is a grammatical case that indicates a relationship, primarily one of possession, between the noun in the genitive case and another noun. ... Dative has several meanings. ... In linguistics, the ablative case is a noun case found in several languages, including Latin, Sanskrit and in the Finno_Ugric languages. ... The vocative case is the case used for a noun identifying the person being addressed, found in Latin among other languages. ... In linguistics, syncretism is the agreement in form of distinct morphological forms of a word. ... The genitive case is a grammatical case that indicates a relationship, primarily one of possession, between the noun in the genitive case and another noun. ...

The following shows the declension of the masculine noun mal (mountain):

The following table shows the declension of the feminine noun vajzë (girl) The nominative case is a grammatical case for a noun. ... The term accusative may be used in the following contexts: A form of morphosyntactic alignment, as found in nominative-accusative languages. ... The genitive case is a grammatical case that indicates a relationship, primarily one of possession, between the noun in the genitive case and another noun. ... Dative has several meanings. ... In linguistics, the ablative case is a noun case found in several languages, including Latin, Sanskrit and in the Finno_Ugric languages. ...

The definite article is posited after the noun as in many other Balkan languages, for example Romanian and Bulgarian. The nominative case is a grammatical case for a noun. ... The term accusative may be used in the following contexts: A form of morphosyntactic alignment, as found in nominative-accusative languages. ... The genitive case is a grammatical case that indicates a relationship, primarily one of possession, between the noun in the genitive case and another noun. ... Dative has several meanings. ... In linguistics, the ablative case is a noun case found in several languages, including Latin, Sanskrit and in the Finno_Ugric languages. ... This is a list of languages spoken in the Balkans. ...

• The definite article can be in the form of noun suffixes, which vary with gender and case.
  • For example in singular nominative, masculine nouns add -i, or those ending in -g/-k, take -u (to avoid palatalization):
    • mal (mountain) / mali (the mountain);
    • libër (book) / libri (the book);
    • zog (bird) / zogu (the bird).
  • Feminine nouns take the suffix -(j)a:
    • veturë (car) / vetura (the car);
    • shtëpi (house) / shtëpia (the house);
    • lule (flower) / lulja (the flower).
• Neuter nouns take -t.

Albanian has developed an analytical verbal structure in place of the earlier synthetic system, inherited from Proto-Indo-European. Its complex system of moods (6 types) and tenses (3 simple and 5 complex constructions) is distinctive among Balkan languages. There are two general types of conjugation. In Albanian the Constituent Order is Subject Verb Object and negation is expressed by the particles nuk or s' in front of the verb, for example: It has been suggested that Verbal agreement be merged into this article or section. ... Proto-Indo-European (PIE) may refer to: Proto-Indo-European language the hypothetical common ancestor of the Indo-European languages Proto-Indo-Europeans, the hypothetical speakers of the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European language Proto-Indo-European roots, A list of reconstructed Proto-Indo-European roots Categories: | ... Look up mood in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Grammatical tense is a way languages express the time at which an event described by a sentence occurs. ... This is a list of languages spoken in the Balkans. ... In linguistics, conjugation is the creation of derived forms of a verb from its principal parts by inflection (regular alteration according to rules of grammar). ... In linguistic typology, subject-verb-object (SVO) is the sequence subject verb object in neutral expressions: Sam ate oranges. ...

• Toni nuk flet anglisht "Tony doesn't speak English";
• s'e di "I don't know".

In imperative sentences, the particle mos is used:

• mos harro "do not forget!".

Vocabulary

Shared Illyrian vocabulary

See Illyrian languages The Illyrian languages are a group of Indo-European languages that were spoken in the western part of the Balkans [1] in former times by ethnic groups identified as Illyrians: Delmatae, Pannoni, Illyrioi, Autariates, Taulanti (see List of Illyrian tribes). ...

• brisa, "husk of grapes"; cf. Alb bërsi "lees, dregs; mash" (< PA *brutia)
• loúgeon, "a pool"; cf. Alb lag "to wet, soak, bathe, wash" (< PA *lauga), lëgatë "pool" (< PA *leugatâ), lakshte "dew" (< PA *laugista)
• mantía, "bramblebush"; cf. Alb (Tosk) mën "mulberry bush", (Gheg) mandë
• rhinos, "fog, mist"; cf. OAlb ren, mod. Alb re, rê "cloud"

ren -- re dard--dardhë toka--tokë las--lesh mal--mal vasa--vashë ves--vesh cuza-cucë nat--natë ara--arrë frim--frymë ra--ra caj--qaj nis-nis roj--rroj leh--lind (lehem in Geg) venedi--vendi hyll--yll bardi-bardhë fimia-fëmijë lissius-lisi bur, buris ‘man’ [Alb. burrë â€˜man’] datan (datas) ‘place, settlement’ [Alb. datë â€˜place, settlement] drenis ‘deer’ [Alb. dre, dreni ‘deer’] ermas ‘fierce, mad’ [Alb. jerm ‘furious, mad’] mezéna ‘a horseman’ [Alb. mes, mezi ‘stallion’, Roman. (substrat) mînz ‘stallion’] pupa ‘hill’ [Alb. pupë â€˜hill’] rera ‘stones, stony ground’ (from an earlier *lera) [Alb. lerë, -a ‘stones, fallen stones’] titha ‘light, radiance’ [morning drita(ë) ‘light, day’, Alb. ditë â€˜day’]

Early borrowing from Greek

Early Albanian words borrowed into Greek are mainly commodity items and trade goods, gained through direct contact with the Greeks.

• bagëm "oil for anointment" < Gk báptisma "anointment"
• bletë "bee" < Gk mélissa "honey-bee"^[1]
• brukë "tamarisk" < Gk mourikē
• drapër "sickle" < Gk (NW) drápanon
• kopsht "garden" < Gk (NW) kāpos
• kumbull "plum" < Gk kokkumēlon
• lakër "cabbage, greens" < Gk lákhanon "greens"
• lëpjetë "orach, dock" < Gk lápathon
• lyej "to smear, oil" < Proto-Albanian *elaiwanja, derived from *elaiwā < Gk elai(w)on "oil"
• mokër "millstone" < Gk (NW) mākhaná "device, instrument"
• mollë "apple tree" < Gk (NW) mālon "apple"
• pjepër "melon" < Gk pépon "melon"
• presh "leek" < Gk práson
• shpellë "cave" < Gk spēlaion "cave"
• trumzë "thyme" < Gk thýmbra, thrýmbē

Gothic borrowing

Fat in Albanian means Luck

• fat "groom, husband" < Goth brūþfaþs "bridegroom"
• magar "donkey, ass" < *margë < Goth *marh "horse"
• petk "herder's coat; clothing" < Goth paida; cf. OHG pfeit, OE pād
• shkulkë "branch indicating a pasture is off limits" < Goth skulka "guardian"
• tirq "trousers" < Late Latin tubrucus < Goth *þiobroc "knee-britches"; cf. OHG dioh-bruoh

The earliest accepted documentation in the Albanian language is from the 15th century AD, even though recently claims have been made for documents dating late 12th to have been found in the Vatican Library. Church documents in Latin have passages mentioning "Lingua Albanesca" in the 12th century as well. This is a time when Albanian Principalities start to be mentioned and expand inside and outside the Byzantine Empire. It is assumed that Greek and Balkan Latin (which was the ancestor of Romanian and other Balkan Romance languages), would exert a great influence on Albanian. Examples of words borrowed from Latin: qytet < civitas (city), qiell < caelum (sky), mik < amicus (friend). Common Romanian (also known as Proto-Romanian) is a hypothetical language considered to have been spoken by the Romanians after the breakdown of the Roman Empire and before it was broken into modern Balkan Romance languages and dialects: Romanian Aromanian Megleno-Romanian Istro-Romanian The place where this language was...

After the Slavs arrived in the Balkans, another source of Albanian vocabulary were the Slavic languages, especially Bulgarian. The rise of the Ottoman Empire meant an influx of Turkish words; this also entailed the borrowing of Persian and Arabic words through Turkish. Surprisingly the Persian words seem to be absorbed the most. Some loanwords from Modern Greek also exist especially in the south of Albania. A lot of the loaned words have been resubstituted from Albanian rooted words or modern Latinized (international) words. The Slavic peoples are the most numerous ethnic and linguistic body of peoples in Europe. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...  Countries where a West Slavic language is the national language  Countries where an East Slavic language is the national language  Countries where a South Slavic language is the national language The Slavic languages (also called Slavonic languages), a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup... “Ottoman” redirects here. ...

Writing system

Full article: Albanian alphabet

Albanian has been written using many different alphabets since the 15th century. The earliest written Albanian records come from the Gheg area in makeshift spellings based on Italian or Greek and sometimes in Turko-Arabic characters. Originally, the Tosk dialect was written in the Greek alphabet and the Gheg dialect was written in the Latin alphabet. They have both also been written in the Ottoman Turkish version of the Arabic alphabet, the Cyrillic alphabet, and some local alphabets. This article is about the alphabet of the Albanian language. ... The Greek alphabet (Greek: ) is an alphabet consisting of 24 letters that has been used to write the Greek language since the late 8th or early 9th century BC. It was the first alphabet in the narrow sense, that is, a writing system using a separate symbol for each vowel... The Latin alphabet, also called the Roman alphabet, is the most widely used alphabetic writing system in the world today. ... Ottoman Turkish (Turkish: or , Ottoman Turkish: ‎ ) was the variant of the Turkish language that was used as the administrative and literary language of the Ottoman Empire. ... The Arabic alphabet is the script used for writing languages such as Arabic, Persian, Urdu, and others. ... The Cyrillic alphabet (pronounced also called azbuka, from the old name of the first two letters) is actually a family of alphabets, subsets of which are used by certain Slavic languages — Belarusian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Russian, Rusyn, Serbian, and Ukrainian—as well as many other languages of the former Soviet Union...

In 1908 an official, standardized Albanian spelling was developed, based on a Gheg dialect and using the Latin alphabet with the addition of the letters ë, ç, and nine digraphs. After World War II the official language changed in that it adopted the Tosk dialect as its model. Note: This page or section contains IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. ...

History

Linguistic affinities

The Albanian language has been variously attached to Illyrian and Messapian, both of which were related ^[2]. Only the latter, to a small extent, has left any evidence that may in any way liken it to Albanian. Compare: This article is about an ancient civilization in southeastern Europe; see also Illyria (software), Illyria (character in the TV series Angel). ... Messapian (also known as Messapic) is an extinct Indo-European language of South-Eastern Italy, in the regions of Apulia and Calabria. ...

Messapian settlements are known to have existed along the Adriatic in both Italy and Illyria, especially around Durrës and in Apulia. Archaeology has shown that the Messapians employed cultural items, especially ceramics, reminiscent of earlier Glasinac types and that continued to be linked to the Devollian line in southern Albania. Furthermore, the extremely close parallels between Messapian and Illyrian names are unmistakable. Finally, Messapian has left several words in Italian dialects, including zabaglione "frothy dessert" (cf. Illyrian sabaium "beer"), manzo "ox" (cf. Alb mëz, mâz "pony"), northern bagola, bagula (cf. Alb bajgë "dung"), southern musso "ass" (cf. Alb mushk "mule"); though the last three may be pure borrowings from an earlier form of Albanian ^[3].

Even the name Albanian is of some dispute. Appearing in the 9th c. in Greek as the Arvanoi, and thereafter under similar names, including obsolete Albanian arbër or arbën, it stems directly from Vulgar Latin Albanus, from the southern Illyrian tribal name Albanoí; the adjective too, arbëresh/arbënesh, derived from Latin arbanensis. This same name appears in Slavic and was used to name the town of Labëri "Laberia", from South Slavic labanĭja, from olbanĭja.

Historical presence and location

While it is considered established that the Albanians originated in the Balkans, the exact location from which they spred out is hard to pinpoint. Despite varied claims, the Albanians almost certainly came from slightly farther north (Kosovo) and inland (Northwest Macedonia) than would suggest the present borders of Albania, with a homeland concentrated in the mountains. The purely linguistic reasons are listed below.

• First, Albanian has few early Greek borrowings, most of which are from the Northwest dialect, probably via the islands off the coast of Albania, e.g. WGk (Doric) mākhaná gave Alb mokër "mill" and WGk drápanon gave Alb drapër "sickle".
• Similarly, the Illyrian coast is not a likely source since Albanian has no inherited nautical or indigenous sea-faring terminology, and has instead supplemented this absence with subsequent borrowing from Latin or Greek or recent metaphorical lexical creations.
• Third, toponyms along the coast, in contrast with native penultimate accent (ex: mbësë "niece" < PA nepō'tia), often show substratal antepenultimate accent (ex: Durrës < Dúrrhachium; Pojanë < Apóllonia), though there are some exceptions (Vlorë < Aulónā vs. Greek Aúlon).
• Also, some consider Albanian to be the source for a small number of grammatical and lexical similarities shared by otherwise dissimilar languages including Romanian, Bulgarian, Serbo-Croatian, and to some extent Greek. Based on their extent of grammaticalization, these include: the postposition of articles, the presence of schwa, and the loss of infinitives.
• Finally, few if any Proto-Albanian place names exist in what was the former Roman province of Illyria.

Instead, given the overwhelming amount of shepherding and mountaineering vocabulary as well as the extensive influence of Latin, it is more likely the Albanians come from north of the Jireček line, on the Latin-speaking side, perhaps in part from the late Roman province of Dardania from the western Balkans. However, archaeology has more convincingly pointed to the early Byzantine province of Praevitana (modern northern Albania) which shows an area where a primarily shepherding, transhumance population of Illyrians retained their culture. This area was based in the Mat district and the region of high mountains in Northern Albania, as well as in Dukagjin, Mirditë, and the mountains of Drin, from where the population would descend in the summer to the lowlands of western Albania, the Black Drin (Drin i zi) river valley, and into parts of Old Serbia. Indeed, the region's complete lack of Latin place names seems to imply little latinization of any kind and a more likely spot for the early medieval heart of Albanian territory, following the collapse of the Illyrian province. The Balkan sprachbund or linguistic area is the ensemble of areal features—similarity in grammar, syntax, vocabulary and phonology—among languages of the Balkans, which belong to various branches of Indo-European, such as Albanian, Greek, Romance and Slavic. ...

Linguistic influences

The period in which Proto-Albanian and Latin interacted was protracted and drawn out over six centuries, 1st c. AD to 6th or 7th c. AD. This is born out into roughly three layers of borrowings, the largest number belonging to the second layer. The first, with the fewest borrowings, was a time of less important interaction. The final period, probably preceding the Slavic or Germanic invasions, also has a notably smaller amount of borrowings. Each layer is characterized by a different treatment of most vowels, the first layer having several that follow the evolution of Early Proto-Albanian into Albanian; later layers reflect vowel changes endemic to Late Latin and presumably Proto-Romance. Other formative changes include the syncretism of several noun case endings, especially in the plural, as well as a large scale palatalization.

A brief period followed, between 7th c. AD and 9th c. AD, that was marked by heavy borrowings from Southern Slavic, some of which predate the "o-a" shift common to the modern forms of this language group. Starting in the latter 9th c. AD, a period followed of protracted contact with the Proto-Romanians, or Vlachs, though lexical borrowing seems to have been mostly one sided - from Albanian into Romanian. Such a borrowing indicates that the Romanians migrated from an area where the majority was Slavic (i.e. Middle Bulgarian) to an area with a majority of Albanian speakers, i.e. Dardania, where Vlachs are recorded in the 10th c. AD. Their movement is probably related to the expansion of the Bulgarian empire into Albania around that time. This fact places the Albanians at a rather early date in the Western or Central Balkans.

Historical considerations

Indeed, the center of the Albanians remained the river Mat, and in 1079 AD they are recorded in the territory between Ohrid and Thessalonika as well as in Epirus.

Furthermore, the major Tosk-Gheg dialect division is based on the course of the Shkumbin River, a seasonal stream that lay near the old Via Egnatia. Since rhotacism postdates the dialect division, it is reasonable that the major dialect division occurred after the christianization of the Roman Empire (4th c. AD) and before the eclipse of the East-West land-based trade route by Venetian seapower (10th c. AD).

References to the existence of Albanian as a distinct language survive from the 1300s, but without recording any specific words. The oldest surviving documents written in Albanian are the "Formula e Pagëzimit" (Baptismal formula), "Un'te paghesont' pr'emenit t'Atit e t'Birit e t'Spirit Senit." (I baptize thee in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit) recorded by Pal Engjelli, Bishop of Durres in 1462 in the Gheg dialect, and some New Testament verses from that period. This article is about the Christian scriptures. ...

The oldest known Albanian printed book, Meshari [1] or missal, was written by Gjon Buzuku, a Roman Catholic cleric, in 1555. The first Albanian school is believed to have been opened by Franciscans in 1638 in Pdhanë. In 1635, Frang Bardhi wrote the first Latin-Albanian dictionary. Meshari (Albanian for The Prayer Book) is the first book written in Albanian language. ... This is a page from Meshari. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Events Russia breaks 60 year old truce with Sweden by attacking Finland February 2 - Diet of Augsburg begins February 4 - John Rogers becomes first Protestant martyr in England February 9 - Bishop of Gloucester John Hooper is burned at the stake May 23 - Paul IV becomes Pope. ... The Order of Friars Minor and other Franciscan movements are disciples of Saint Francis of Assisi. ... Events February 10 - The Académie française in Paris is expanded to become a national academy for the artistic elite. ... It has been proposed below that Frang Bardhi be renamed and moved to Transwiki. ...

See also

• Albanian Wikipedia
• Arvanitika

Albanian Wikipedia is a Albanian language edition of Wikipedia. ... Arvanitika or Arvanitic (native name: arbërisht, Greek: αρβανίτικα arvanitika) is the variety of Albanian traditionally spoken by the Arvanites, a population group in Greece. ...

References

1. ^ Vladimir Orel (2000) links the word to an unattested Vulgar Latin *melettum (cf. L mellarium "bee farm"), which is unconvincing. J.P. Mallory and D.Q. Adams (1997) have the word as a native development, from *melítiā, a form also considered to underly Greek mélissa. In any case, a direct borrowing from Greek is unlikely.
2. ^ Sergent, Bernard. Les Indo-Européens : histoire, langues, mythes. Paris: Payot, 1995, p. 102-4.
3. ^ The Albanians migrated in the 14th century to Venise, in the 15th century to Ancona and Recanati (Marche), and to Sicily and all across the South.

Bibliography

• Encyclopædia Britannica, edition 15 (1985). Article: Albanian language
• Huld, Martin E. Basic Albanian Etymologies. Columbus, OH: Slavica Publishers, 1984.
• Mallory, J.P. and D.Q. Adams, Encyclopedia of Indo-European Culture. London: Fitzroy Dearborn, 1997.
• Martin Camaj, Albanian Grammar, Otto Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden
• Orel, Vladimir. A Concise Historical Grammar of the Albanian Language: Reconstruction of Proto-Albanian. Leiden: Brill, 2000.

The Encyclopædia Britannica is a general English-language encyclopaedia published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. ... This article is about the year. ...

External links

Albanian language edition of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Albanian language edition of Wiktionary, the free dictionary/thesaurus

• Illyrian Albanian connection
• Learn Albanian Language-Online classes with LIVE Albanian Teachers
• An overview of the Albanian language and culture
• Albanian phrase guide
• Ethnologue report on Albanian
• List of free online resources for learners
• Radio in Albanian
• FunkyAlbanian.com Free resources to learn Albanian
• Albanian World Learn Albanian here
• Modern Greek and Albanian with Japanese translation
• The Albanian language - overview

Samples of various Albanian dialects: Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1058x1058, 477 KB) aa Wikipedia logo, version 1058px square, no text Wikipedia logo by Nohat (concept by Paullusmagnus); compare Wikipedia File links The following pages link to this file: Arabic language Talk:Anarcho-capitalism Talk:Algorithm Talk:Anno Domini Talk:The... Wikipedia (IPA: , or ( ) is a multilingual, web-based, free content encyclopedia project, operated by the Wikimedia Foundation, a non-profit organization. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wiktionary (a portmanteau of wiki and dictionary) is a multilingual, Web-based project to create a free content dictionary, available in over 150 languages. ...

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