Botlikh language

Botlikh (also spelled Botlix) is an Andic language of the Northeast Caucasian language family spoken by the Botlikhs in the villages of Botlikh (Buikhe), Miarso and Ashino, as well as in Chontaul, Ankho and in Template:Ill, in southwestern Dagestan, Russia by approximately 5,000 people, according to the 2020 census.

Dialects

Botlikh has two dialects, being Botlikh proper and Miarso. Differences in phonology and morphology are small, and the two are mutually intelligible.

Phonology

Vowels

Botlikh has five basic vowels. Vowels can also be long or nasalized.

Botlikh vowels

	Front	Back
Close	Template:IPAlink	Template:IPAlink
Mid	Template:IPAlink	Template:IPAlink
Open		Template:IPAlink

Consonants

Botlikh consonants

		Labial	Dental		Alveolar				Palatal		Velar		Uvular		Pharyngeal	Glottal
					central		lateral
			lenis	fortis	lenis	fortis	lenis	fortis	lenis	fortis	lenis	fortis	lenis	fortis
Plosive	voiced	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket								Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket
	voiceless	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket								Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket
	ejective		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket								Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket			Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket
Affricate	voiceless		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket				Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket
	ejective		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket				Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket
	voiced				Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket
Fricative	voiceless	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket
	voiced		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket				Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket
Approximant		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket	Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket		Template:IPAlink Template:Angle bracket

Orthography

Botlikh is unwritten, and Botlikhs have mostly used Avar as their medium of written communication. When Botlikhs need to write their language, they use the Avar alphabet. The following orthography is used in a Botlikh-Russian dictionary.

А а

Аᴴ аᴴ

Б б

В в

Г г

Гъ гъ

Гь гь

ГӀ гӀ

Д д

Дж дж

(Е е)

Ж ж

З з

И и

Иᴴ иᴴ

Й й

К к

Кк кк

Къ къ

Кь кь

КӀ кӀ

КӀкӀ кӀкӀ

Л л

Лъ лъ

Лълъ лълъ

ЛӀ лӀ

М м

Н н

О о

П п

ПӀ пӀ

Р р

С с

Сс сс

Т т

ТӀ тӀ

У у

Уᴴ уᴴ

Х х

Хх хх

Хъ хъ

Хь хь

ХӀ хӀ

Ц ц

Цц цц

ЦӀ цӀ

ЦӀцӀ цӀцӀ

Ч ч

Чч чч

ЧӀ чӀ

ЧӀчӀ чӀчӀ

Ш ш

Щ щ

Ъ ъ

Э э

Эᴴ эᴴ

External links

• The peoples of the Red Book: Botlikhs

Template:NEC-lang-stub