Abkhaz language facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Abkhaz Language |
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| Abkhazian Аҧсуа бызшәа; аҧсшәа Apsua byzshwa; apsshwa |
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| Native to | Abkhazia and Abkhaz diaspora |
| Ethnicity | Abkhazians |
| Native speakers | 190,110 (2014-2015) |
| Language family |
Northwest Caucasian
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| Dialects |
Abzhywan
Bzyb
Sadz
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| Writing system | Cyrillic (Abkhaz alphabet) Historically: Latin, Georgian |
| Official status | |
| Official language in | Republic of Abkhazia; Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia, Georgia |
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Abkhaz is a language spoken by the Abkhazians people. It belongs to the Northwest Caucasian language family. Most people who speak Abkhaz live in a region called Abkhazia. This area is part of Georgia. You can also find Abkhaz speakers in Turkey and other places around the world.
Abkhaz is the official language of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia. This means it's used for government, schools, and daily life there. Around 100,000 people speak Abkhaz in this region.
Contents
The Abkhaz Language
The Abkhaz language is quite unique. It has many different sounds, especially consonants. It's part of a group of languages known as Northwest Caucasian languages. These languages are spoken in the Caucasus region, which is a mountain area between Europe and Asia.
Where Abkhaz is Spoken
Abkhaz is mainly spoken in Abkhazia. This is a region on the Black Sea coast. It's a beautiful area with mountains and beaches. Many Abkhaz people also live in Turkey. Their ancestors moved there a long time ago. You can also find smaller groups of Abkhaz speakers in other countries.
How Abkhaz Words Are Built
Abkhaz is an agglutinative language. This means words are often formed by adding many small parts (like prefixes and suffixes) to a base word. Each part adds a specific meaning. It's like building with LEGO bricks! This can make words very long.
Writing System
Today, Abkhaz is mostly written using the Cyrillic alphabet. This is the same alphabet used for Russian. However, in the past, Abkhaz was also written using the Latin alphabet and even Georgian scripts. The Abkhaz alphabet has special letters to show all its unique sounds.
Different Ways of Speaking
Just like English has different accents and dialects, Abkhaz also has its own. The two main dialects are:
- Abzhywan: This is the most common dialect. It's spoken in the central part of Abkhazia.
- Bzyb: This dialect is spoken in the northwestern part of Abkhazia. It has some different sounds and words compared to Abzhywan.
There was also a dialect called Sadz, but it is no longer widely spoken.
Images for kids
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Distribution of Abkhaz in the Caucasus.
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Pronominal prefixes in Abkhaz
See also
In Spanish: Idioma abjasio para niños
