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The Ghadamès language
The Ghadamès language, also known as Ghadamsi or Ghadamsian, is a Berber language spoken primarily in the oasis town of Ghadames, located in the Nalut District of western Libya. It is a part of the Afro-Asiatic language family and belongs to the Berber branch, specifically the Eastern Berber group. While it shares some commonalities with other Berber languages, Ghadamès preserves unique phonological and morphological features that distinguish it from other languages in the Berber family. The Ghadamès language is spoken by an estimated 17,000 people, though this number is uncertain, and the language faces endangerment due to a steady decline in native speakers. The language has been the subject of…
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Awjila
Awjila, also known by several alternative names like Aujila, Augila, Aoudjila, Awgila, and Awdjila, is a critically endangered Berber language spoken in the Awjila oasis region of Cyrenaica, Libya. Its native name is Jlan n Awilen, and it is part of the Eastern Berber branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family. Awjila shares a close relationship with the now-extinct Sokna language, also spoken in Libya, and is considered part of the Eastern Berber subgroup. The language has suffered a significant decline over the years, with estimates suggesting only about 2,000 to 3,000 native speakers remain, mostly within older age groups. This decline is attributed to both the political and social context…
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The Jerba Berber language
The Jerba Berber language, also known as Tamazight of Djerba, Shilha of Djerba, or Djerbi, is a variety of the Berber language spoken primarily on Djerba Island in Tunisia. This language belongs to the Zenati group of Berber languages, specifically the eastern branch, and it is a significant part of the region’s cultural heritage. Historically, the language was widely spoken throughout the island, with particular concentrations in localities such as El May, Cedriane, Mahboubine, Sedouikech, Ajim, and Guellala. The origins of the language can be traced back to the early Berber populations that inhabited the Maghreb region, and it shares many similarities with other Berber dialects found across Tunisia and…
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Matmata Berber
Matmata Berber is a dialect of the Zenati branch of the Berber language family, spoken primarily around the town of Matmâta and surrounding villages, including Taoujjout, Tamezret, and Zrawa, in southern Tunisia. This dialect is an integral part of Tunisia’s Berber-speaking population, which historically resided in the region. The speakers of Matmata Berber refer to their language as “Tmaziɣṯ” or “Eddwi nna,” meaning “our speech,” reflecting a strong sense of cultural identity. In Tunisian Arabic, the dialect is known as “Shelha” or “Jbali” Matmata Berber is a language with limited documentation. The most well-known record of this dialect is a collection of fairy tales published by the linguist Stumme in…
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The Khoisan languages
The Khoisan languages are a group of African languages primarily spoken in southern and eastern Africa. They are known for their distinctive use of click consonants, a feature that sets them apart from other language families. The term “Khoisan” was originally used to group these languages together, but modern linguistics now recognizes that they belong to at least three separate language families, and some languages are isolates with no known relatives. These families are the Khoe, Kxʼa, and Tuu, while the Sandawe and Hadza languages of East Africa were once included but are now considered distinct from the Khoisan group. Khoisan languages are mostly spoken by the Khoikhoi and San…
