No edit summary |
No edit summary |
||
Line 23: | Line 23: | ||
'''Levantine Arabic''' (Arabic: '''شامي''' (Shami) and sometimes called '''Eastern Arabic''') is a group of [[Arabic language|Arabic]] [[Varieties of Arabic|varieties]] spoken in the 100 km-wide eastern-Mediterranean coastal strip known as the [[Levant]], i.e. in [[Syria]], [[Israel]], [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]], western [[Jordan]] and [[Lebanon]]. This corresponds to the western wing of the [[Fertile Crescent]], which clearly appears green on satellite photos. |
'''Levantine Arabic''' (Arabic: '''شامي''' (Shami) and sometimes called '''Eastern Arabic''') is a group of [[Arabic language|Arabic]] [[Varieties of Arabic|varieties]] spoken in the 100 km-wide eastern-Mediterranean coastal strip known as the [[Levant]], i.e. in [[Syria]], [[Israel]], [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]], western [[Jordan]] and [[Lebanon]]. This corresponds to the western wing of the [[Fertile Crescent]], which clearly appears green on satellite photos. |
||
To the East, in the Desert, the North Arabian Beduinic dialects are found. There is no transition to [[Egyptian Arabic|Egyptian dialects]] in the South due to the Sinai desert. In the North, between Aleppo and Euphrates valley, there may be a transition zone towards North Mesopotamian ''qeltu'' dialects (to be confirmed, since the Raqqah dialect in the Syrian Euphrates valley still seems to be quite close to South Iraqi and Beduinic dialects.) |
To the East, in the Desert, the North Arabian Beduinic dialects are found. There is no transition to [[Egyptian Arabic|Egyptian dialects]] in the South due to the Sinai desert.{{fact}} In the North, between Aleppo and Euphrates valley, there may be a transition zone towards North Mesopotamian ''qeltu'' dialects (to be confirmed, since the Raqqah dialect in the Syrian Euphrates valley still seems to be quite close to South Iraqi and Beduinic dialects.) |
||
It can be divided into six "mutually intelligible" sub-dialects |
It can be divided into six "mutually intelligible" sub-dialects{{fact}} |
||
* [[Lebanese Arabic|Lebanese dialects]] ([[Lebanon]], Nusairieh Mountains in [[Syria]]) |
* [[Lebanese Arabic|Lebanese dialects]] ([[Lebanon]], Nusairieh Mountains in [[Syria]]){{fact}} |
||
* Central [[Syrian Arabic|Syrian]] ([[Damascus]] to [[Hama]]) |
* Central [[Syrian Arabic|Syrian]] ([[Damascus]] to [[Hama]]) |
||
* [[North Syrian Arabic]] ([[Aleppo]]) |
* [[North Syrian Arabic]] ([[Aleppo]]) |
||
Line 43: | Line 43: | ||
* The form of the plural independent pronouns, hum and hunna (<i>they m./f.</i>) |
* The form of the plural independent pronouns, hum and hunna (<i>they m./f.</i>) |
||
{{Citations missing|date=December 2010|section}} |
|||
The table below shows how the variants are distributed. |
The table below shows how the variants are distributed. |
||
Revision as of 23:18, 24 December 2010
Levantine Arabic | |
---|---|
لهجات شامية | |
Native to | Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, Jordan |
Native speakers | 35,000,000 |
Arabic alphabet | |
Official status | |
Official language in | none |
Regulated by | none |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | apc – inclusive codeIndividual codes: apc – North Levantine Arabicajp – South Levantine Arabic |
Levantine Arabic (Arabic: شامي (Shami) and sometimes called Eastern Arabic) is a group of Arabic varieties spoken in the 100 km-wide eastern-Mediterranean coastal strip known as the Levant, i.e. in Syria, Israel, Palestine, western Jordan and Lebanon. This corresponds to the western wing of the Fertile Crescent, which clearly appears green on satellite photos.
To the East, in the Desert, the North Arabian Beduinic dialects are found. There is no transition to Egyptian dialects in the South due to the Sinai desert.[citation needed] In the North, between Aleppo and Euphrates valley, there may be a transition zone towards North Mesopotamian qeltu dialects (to be confirmed, since the Raqqah dialect in the Syrian Euphrates valley still seems to be quite close to South Iraqi and Beduinic dialects.)
It can be divided into six "mutually intelligible" sub-dialects[citation needed]
- Lebanese dialects (Lebanon, Nusairieh Mountains in Syria)[citation needed]
- Central Syrian (Damascus to Hama)
- North Syrian Arabic (Aleppo)
- Rural Palestinian (Palestine down to Bethlehem), west Jordan.
- Urban Palestinian (Hebron, Jerusalem, Haifa, Nablus, Jaffa, Nazareth, ...)
- Bedouin Palestinian dialects in the southern Margins (Palestine, Jordan)
Sub dialects can be distinguished by the following features:
- Product of /aː/
- Products of diphthongs /aj/ and /aw/
- Realizations of feminine ending -ah
- Realizations of ﻙ /k/, ﻕ /q/, and ﺝ /ʤ/.
- Conservation of interdentals ﺙ /θ/, ﺫ /ð/, and ﻅ /ðˁ/;
- Vocalism and consonnatism of the plural suffix pronouns, -kum and -kunna (your m./f.)
- The form of the plural independent pronouns, hum and hunna (they m./f.)
The table below shows how the variants are distributed.
Dialect | /aː/ | /aj/ | /aw/ | /k/ | /q/ | /ʤ/ | /θ/ | /ð/ | /ðˁ/ | -ah | -kum | -kunna | hum | hunna |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lebanese | /eː/, /oː/ in Tripoli | /ej/,/e:/ | /aw/,/o:/ | /k/ | /q/, /ʔ/ | /ʒ/, | /t/ | /d/ | /dˁ/ | -e | -kon | -kon | henne | henne |
Central Syrian | /aː/, /eː/ word-terminally | /eː/ | /oː/ | /k/ | /ʔ/ | /ʒ/ | /t/ | /d/ | /dˁ/ | -e | -kon | -kon | henne | henne |
North Syrian | /eː/ | /eː/ | /oː/ | /k/ | /ʔ/ | /ʤ/ | /t/ | /d/ | /dˁ/ | -e | -kon | -kon | henne | henne |
Rural Palestinian | /aː/ | /eː/ | /oː/ | /ʧ/ | /k/ | /ʤ/ | /θ/ | /ð/ | /ðˁ/ | -e, -a | -kem | -ken | hemme | henne |
Urban Palestinian | /aː/ | /eː/ | /oː/ | /k/ | /ʔ/ | /ʒ/ | /t/ | /d/ | /dˁ/ | -e | -kom | -kom | homme | homme |
Bedouin Palestinian | /aː/ | /eː/ | /oː/ | /ʧ/ | /ɡ/ | /ʤ/ | /θ/ | /ð/ | /ðˁ/ | -a | -kom | -ken | homme | henne |
See more
For more information, see