Kholosi language
| Kholosi | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Hormozgan Province, Iran |
Native speakers | c. 1800 (2014)[1] |
Indo-European
| |
| Perso-Arabic | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | None (mis) |
| Glottolog | khol1241 |
 |
Wiktionary has a category on Kholosi language |
Kholosi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in two villages in southern Iran that was first described in 2008.[2] At its current status, the language is considered endangered. In 2008, it was only spoken in the neighboring villages of Kholus and Gotav. As it is located on the Iranian Plateau and surrounded by Iranian languages, it draws heavily from them.[2]
Classification[]
Kholosi is definitively known to be an Indo-Aryan language albeit with significant lexical borrowing from Iranian languages given its geographical location. At the lexical level, it seems to share vocabulary largely with the Sindhi languages,[2] which are the source of other Indo-Aryan migrations to the Middle East such as Luwati in Oman.
Phonology[]
While no published phonology has been found on Kholosi, the following phonology has been constructed from examples provided in the sources below.[2][3][1]
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | i | u | |
| Mid | eː | oː | |
| Low | ɑ ɑː |
Kholosi also contains the diphthongs /ɑi, ɑw, ow/ and possibly others.
| Labial | Alveolar | Postalveolar | Retroflex | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasals | m | n | ɳ | ŋ* | |||
| Stops | p b | t d | t͡ʃ d͡ʒ | ʃ | k g | ||
| Fricatives | f v | s z | x | h | |||
| Approximants | l | ɽ | j | ||||
| Trills | r |
Note*: The phonemes marked with an asterisk are assumed based on the structure of the attested phonemes.
Grammar[]
Anonby and Bahmani (2013)[2] made some brief notes on Kholosi grammar, but so far no grammatical sketch nor a full grammar of the language has been documented.
Morphology[]
Nouns and noun phrases[]
Nouns have inherent grammatical gender, and adjectives agree in gender with the head noun. Attributive adjectives follow the head noun, unlike other Indo-Aryan languages. Numerals precede the head noun.[3]
Verbs and verb phrases[]
Kholosi uses several light verbs to form noun-verb compounds. This is a common feature of Indo-Iranian languages.
The adverb precedes the verb it modifies.[3]
Case and adpositions[]
Kholosi has noun-suffixed postpositions (e.g. the genitive marker -jo which agrees with the gender of the possessor) as characteristic of Indo-Aryan languages.
Syntax[]
Kholosi is a language with SOV word order.[3]
Vocabulary[]
Kholosi has roughly twice the number of Indo-Aryan terms in its basic lexicon than Iranian borrowings. The primary source of Iranian borrowings is Persian, but Larestani and Bandari (in the same geographical area) also appear to have contributed vocabulary.[2]
A high degree of similarity with Indo-Aryan languages
Indo-Aryan vocabulary in Kholosi
| English | Persian | Kholosi | Sindhi | Kutchi | Domari | Romani |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ear | guš | kān | kanu | kan | kān | kān |
| stomach | šekam | pēt | pēʈ | pēʈ | pētˤ | per |
| throat | galu | nāɽi | naɽī | nəɽī | qandī | — |
| neck | gardan | gēči | ɠičī, ɠātō | kand | gər(ək) | — |
| blood | xun | rāt | ratu | rat | rat | — |
| urine | edrār, šāš | meter | muʈru | mutar | mutur | miter |
| maternal uncle | dāi | momo | māmo | māmā | mām | — |
| dog | sag | kotoro | kutō | kottrō | snōta | jukle |
| tail | dom | pēč | pučʰu | pučʰ(ɽi) | panč(ək) | kuyruka |
| snake | mār | sap | nā̃gu | sap | sap | — |
| meat | gušt | māz | gūšt | gōs | māsī | mās |
| egg | toxme morġ | āɳo | bēdō | īnō | āna | vānvro |
| dirt | xāk | māti | miʈī | maʈī | dūl | — |
| water | āb | puni | pāɳī | pāɳī | pānī | pāni |
| rain | bārān | meh | mīh̃ã | βarsād | wārsīnda | beršundo |
| old (thing) | kohne | peroɳo | purāɳō, pōɽʰō | junō, purānō | pnāra | pʰuro |
| heavy | sangin | gāwro | ɠarō | bʰāɽi | grāna | — |
| dry | xošk | sako | sukal | sukō, sukelō | — | sukʰo |
| black | syāh | kāro | kārō | kārō | qāla | kālo, qālo |
Kholosi Indo-Iranian vocabulary aligned with Indo-Aryan sound changes
| English | Persian | Kholosi | Sindhi | Kutchi | Domari | Romani |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| hand | dast | hāt | hatʰu | hatʰ | xašt | vāst |
| tooth | dandān | dānd | ᶑãdu | dəndʰ | dānd | dānd |
| fish | māhi | māči | mačʰī | məčʰī | mačča | maččʰo |
| star | setāre | taro | tārō | tārō | yēldəz | — |
| three | seh | tereda | ʈī | trē | trən | terin |
| round | gerd | golāndo | gōl | gōl | čōrm- | — |
| say | goftan | vetai | čaβaɳ | čōnũ | ft- | pʰen- |
| this | in | he | hī | hī | hā | ā- |
A significant proportion of structures shared with neighbouring Iranian languages
Iranian vocabulary in Kholosi
| English | Persian | Kholosi | Sindhi | Kutchi | Domari | Romani |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| head | sar, kalle | kallo | matʰō | matʰō | sər | šoru |
| nose | bini, damāġ | domāġ | panu | pan | nāk | nāk |
| bone | ostoxān | assaxān | haɖō | həɖ | xar(ək) | qoqālā |
| leaf | barg | barg | panu | pan | kāġatˤ | yārpaki |
| root | riše | rišo | pāɽa | mūɽ | — | — |
| dust | gard | gard | dʰuɽ | rajj, dʰuɽ | ġabare | — |
| cloud | abr | awr | jʰuɽ, kakar | βəɖar | ġēm | boluti |
| summer | tābestān | tābesān | hāɽu | ūnārō | awasār | — |
| winter | zemestān | zemesān | siāro | siyārō | slāla | — |
| iron | āhan | āhan | lohu | lō | ḥadīd | — |
| think | fekr kard | feker kai | sōčaɳ | sōčiɳũ | fikr kar- | — |
Words illustrating the local character of Iranian vocabulary in Kholosi
| English | Persian | Kholosi | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| scorpion | aġrab | akrab | cf. Lārestani (Evaz), Keshmi akrab |
| cloud | abr | awr | cf. Bushehri, Keshmi, S. Luri awr |
| sand | šen, māse | lamer | cf. Lārestani (Lār) lamr |
| chicken | morġ | čūki | cf. Lārestani (Lār) čikala |
| whistling | sut | fitak, sūt | cf. Bandari (Bushehr) fike, Keshmi fištak |
Lack of contrastive aspiration on stops in Kholosi
| English | Persian | Kholosi | Sindhi | Kutchi | Domari | Romani |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| tall | boland | taɽgo | ɖrigho | lamō, dʰərgō | dərga, drōnga | — |
| skin | pust | xāl | kʰala, čamɽī | čam, čamɽi | qal | — |
| cold | sard | tāzo | tʰādʰō | tʰādʰō | sīlda | tatto, tatʰo |
| weave | bāft | sībai | uɳaɳu | sibʰīnũ | sīw- | kʰuv- |
| hand | dast | hāt | hatʰu | hatʰ | xašt | vāst |
| tail | dom | pēč | pučʰu | pučʰ, pučʰ | ɽipanč(ək) | kuyruka |
| fish | māhi | māči | mačʰī | məčʰī | mačča | maččʰo |
A full fricative series in Kholosi
| English | Persian | Kholosi | Sindhi | Kutchi | Domari | Romani |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| all | hame | sāf | sabʰai | marē, mərē | sa | hāmi, sir |
| grass | alaf(/giyāh) | xāz | gāhu | gā | gās | kʰās |
| ant | murče | moxoro | makoɽo | mākuɽō | mōrī, mˤōri | kʰiri, giri |
| big | bozorg | vazzo | βaᶑō | βaᶑō | drōnga | tʰevro |
| near | nazdik | vāzo | βējʰō | bājūme | čanč- | bāšu |
Lack of an implosive series in Kholosi
| English | Persian | Kholosi | Sindhi | Kutchi | Domari | Romani |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| heavy | sangin | gāwro | ɠarō | bʰāɽi | grāna | — |
| neck | gardan | gēči | ɠičī, ɠātō | kand | gər(ək) | — |
| two | do | bāro | ɓa | bə | dī, dədī | duy |
| buy | xarid | genai | ɠinhaɳu | ɠəɳnũ | pār- | l- |
| swell | motavarrem šod | sojo | suʄaɳ | soʄnũ | — | — |
Complex predicates in Kholosi
| English | Persian | Kholosi | Sindhi | Kutchi | Domari | Romani |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| walk | ġadam zad | vāt viyo | halaɳ | halnũ | raw- | — |
| stand up | boland šod | bolan to | bīhaɳ | uʈʰinũ, ubʰotʰīnũ | št- | — |
| lie down | derāz kešid | sɑ̄ to | halaɳ | halnũ | — | — |
| fly | parvāz kard | pall kerɑmai | uᶑraɳ, ūᶑaɳ | uɖnũ | fər- | — |
| swim | šenā kard | šenow kai | taraɳ | βenjinũ, tar karīnũ | — | nan- |
Distinctive structures in Kholosi
Distinctive Kholosi vocabulary
| English | Persian | Kholosi | Sindhi | Kutchi | Domari | Romani |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| hair | mu | lō | βāra | βāɽ | wāl | — |
| mouth | dahān, dahan | vāt | muhũ | mō | məh | muy |
| knee | zānu | āɽak | gōᶑō | gū̃nʈʰō | lūlək | døbiki |
| man | mard | kozoro | maɳʰū̃ | bʰāi māɽū, marad | mnəs | murš |
| child | bače | viyow | ɓāru | bačō | qər, putr | tinčʰā, čʰā |
| stone | sang | rōxo | paʈʰar | paʈʰar, paʈʈʰar | wāʈ | bār |
| fire | āteš | mangal | bāhi | ʈānɖʰō | āg | yag |
| small | kuček | nōko | nanɖʰō | nənɖʰo | qətˤka | čʰā |
| full | por | dang | bʰaryal | bʰarelō, pūrō, saʄō | bardˤa | — |
| one | yek | poko | hik | akro | yēka, yōka | yekʰ, yek |
| tie | bastan | pālai | ɓadʰaɳ | bandʰinũ | — | — |
References[]
- ^ a b Anonby, Erik; Bahmani, Hassan Mohebbi (2013). "Shipwrecked and Landlocked: A Description of Kholosi, an Indo-Aryan language of Southwest Iran" (PDF). Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Iranian Linguistics. Further Topics in Iranian Linguistics.
- ^ a b c d e f "Shipwrecked and landlocked : Discovery of an Indo-Aryan language in southwest Iran" (PDF). Bamling-research.de. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 August 2016. Retrieved 2016-05-20.
- ^ a b c d Tahereh Rezaei. "First notes on the syntax of Kholosi as a heritage language in the south of Iran" (PDF).
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