# Aghul language

Aghul is a Lezgic language spoken by the Aghuls in southern Dagestan, Russia and in Azerbaijan. It is spoken by about 33,200 people (2020 census).

## Classification

Aghul belongs to the Eastern Samur group of the Lezgic branch of the Northeast Caucasian language family.

## Geographic distribution

In 2002, Aghul was spoken by 28,300 people in Russia, mainly in Southern Dagestan, as well as 32 people in Azerbaijan.

### Related languages

There are nine languages in the Lezgian language family, namely: Aghul, Tabasaran, Rutul, Lezgian, Tsakhur, Budukh, Kryts, Udi and Archi.

## Phonology

Aghul has contrastive epiglottal consonants. Aghul makes, like many Northeast Caucasian languages, a distinction between tense consonants with concomitant length and weak consonants. The tense consonants are characterized by the intensiveness (tension) of articulation, which naturally leads to a lengthening of the consonant, so they are traditionally transcribed with the length diacritic. The gemination of the consonant itself does not create its tension, but morphologically tense consonants often derive from adjoining two single weak consonants. Some Aghul dialects have a large number of permitted initial tense consonants.

### Vowels

Vowels of Aghul :
| | Front | Central | Back | Back |
| Close | i | | ɯ | u |
| Mid | e | | | |
| Open | | a | | |

### Consonants

Consonant phonemes of Aghul :
| | | | Labial | Dental | Dental | Alveolar | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Pharyn- geal | Glottal |
| | | | Labial | plain | sib. | plain | lab. | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Pharyn- geal | Glottal |
| Nasal | Nasal | Nasal | m | n | n | | | | | | | |
| Plosive/ Affricate | voiced | voiced | b | d | d | d͡ʒ | d͡ʒʷ | | ɡ | | | ʔ |
| Plosive/ Affricate | voiceless | fortis | pː | tː | t͡sː | t͡ʃː | t͡ʃʷː | | kː | qː | | ʔ |
| Plosive/ Affricate | voiceless | lenis | p | t | t͡s | t͡ʃ | t͡ʃʷ | | k | q | | ʔ |
| Plosive/ Affricate | ejective | ejective | pʼ | tʼ | t͡sʼ | t͡ʃʼ | t͡ʃʷʼ | | kʼ | qʼ | | ʔ |
| Fricative | voiceless | fortis | fː | sː | sː | ʃː | ʃʷː | | xː | χː | | |
| Fricative | voiceless | lenis | f | s | s | ʃ | ʃʷ | | x | χ | | |
| Fricative | voiced | voiced | v | z | z | ʒ | ʒʷ | | | ʁ | ʢ | ɦ |
| Trill | Trill | Trill | | | | r | | | | | ʜ | |
| Approximant | Approximant | Approximant | | l | l | | | j | | | | |
* The glottal stop transcribed here is named rather ambiguously a "glottalic laryngeal" by the source.

## Alphabet

The Aghul alphabet was devised in the 1990s. Ever since then, it has been used as a language of education, with primers, textbooks, and dictionaries published.
| А а | Б б | В в | Г г | Гъ гъ | Гь гь | Гӏ гӏ | Д д |
| Дж дж | Е е | Ё ё | Ж ж | З з | И и | Й й | К к |
| Кк кк | Къ къ | Кь кь | Кӏ кӏ | Л л | М м | Н н | О о |
| П п | Пп пп | Пӏ пӏ | Р р | С с | Т т | Тт тт | Тӏ тӏ |
| У у | Уь уь | Ф ф | Х х | Хъ хъ | Хь хь | Хӏ хӏ | Ц ц |
| Цӏ цӏ | Ч ч | Чч чч | Чӏ чӏ | Ш ш | Щ щ | ъ | ӏ |
| ы | ь | Э э | Ю ю | Я я | | | |

## Grammar
### Case

There are four core cases: absolutive, ergative, genitive, and dative, as well as a large series of location cases. All cases other than the absolutive (which is unmarked) and ergative take the ergative suffix before their own suffix.

### Adjectives

Independent and predicative adjectives take number marker and class marker; also, case if used as nominal. As attribute they are invariable. Thus idžed "good", ergative, idžedi, etc. -n, -s; pl. idžedar; but Idže insandi hhuč qini "The good man killed the wolf" (subject in ergative case).

### Pronouns
#### Personal pronouns

| | Aghul | Aghul | Tokip | Tokip |
| | Singular | Plural | Singular | Plural |
| 1 | zun | čin (ex), xin (in) | či (ex), xi (in) | či, xi |
| 2 | wun | čun | čun | ču |

## Examples

Іисайи
ˡisaji
пуная
punaja
гебурис:
geburis:
ДуьгІе
Du’gˡe
акье
ak’e
миштти:
mištti:
«Дад,
"Dad,
Ве
Ve
ттур
ttur
гирами
girami
хьурай;
x’uraj;
Ве
Ve
Паччагьвел
Paččag’vel
адирай.
adiraj.
ТІалаб
Tˡalab
аркьая
ark’aja
чин
čin
Вакес
Vakes
гьер
g’er
ягьас
jag’as
гуни.
guni.
Гъил
G″il
гьушен
g’ušen
че
če
гунагьарилас,
gunag’arilas,
чинна
činna
гьил
g’il
гьуршанду
g’uršandu
кІилди
kˡildi
час
čas
Іайвелар
ˡajvelar
аркьаттарилас.
ark’attarilas.
ХІа
Xˡa
темехІера
temexˡera
хьас
x’as
амарта
amarta
час».
čas."
Іисайи пуная гебурис: – ДуьгІе акье миштти: «Дад, Ве ттур гирами хьурай; Ве Паччагьвел адирай. ТІалаб аркьая чин Вакес гьер ягьас гуни. Гъил гьушен че гунагьарилас, чинна гьил гьуршанду кІилди час Іайвелар аркьаттарилас. ХІа темехІера хьас амарта час».
ˡisaji punaja geburis: – Du’gˡe ak’e mištti: "Dad, Ve ttur girami x’uraj; Ve Paččag’vel adiraj. Tˡalab ark’aja čin Vakes g’er jag’as guni. G″il g’ušen če gunag’arilas, činna g’il g’uršandu kˡildi čas ˡajvelar ark’attarilas. Xˡa temexˡera x’as amarta čas."
And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.