Sāmapriyavasuḣ
@avzaagzonunaada.bsky.social
Interested in descriptive, historical & contact linguistics.
I like Caucasian and Indo-Iranic languages, and dabble (in decreasing order of oftenity) in the languages of the Pacific Northwest, the Himalayas and along the Nile. rẓ́w fan.
I like Caucasian and Indo-Iranic languages, and dabble (in decreasing order of oftenity) in the languages of the Pacific Northwest, the Himalayas and along the Nile. rẓ́w fan.
Writing that paper on Yidgha and properly calling an important areal contrast in the subcontinent “lamino-coronal” v. “apico-coronal” instead of “dental” v. “retroflex”, which is what it truly is.
November 21, 2025 at 9:09 PM
Writing that paper on Yidgha and properly calling an important areal contrast in the subcontinent “lamino-coronal” v. “apico-coronal” instead of “dental” v. “retroflex”, which is what it truly is.
Hardcore understanding of ethnicity.
«не ’мбарыс иронау, уӕд дӕ ирон нӕ дӕ»
NEG=understand-2SG Ossetic-EQU, then 2SG Ossetian NEG=COP.2SG
“(if you) don’t understand Ossetic, then you are not an Ossete”
«не ’мбарыс иронау, уӕд дӕ ирон нӕ дӕ»
NEG=understand-2SG Ossetic-EQU, then 2SG Ossetian NEG=COP.2SG
“(if you) don’t understand Ossetic, then you are not an Ossete”
November 20, 2025 at 7:04 AM
Hardcore understanding of ethnicity.
«не ’мбарыс иронау, уӕд дӕ ирон нӕ дӕ»
NEG=understand-2SG Ossetic-EQU, then 2SG Ossetian NEG=COP.2SG
“(if you) don’t understand Ossetic, then you are not an Ossete”
«не ’мбарыс иронау, уӕд дӕ ирон нӕ дӕ»
NEG=understand-2SG Ossetic-EQU, then 2SG Ossetian NEG=COP.2SG
“(if you) don’t understand Ossetic, then you are not an Ossete”
Cute pair of examples from Abdzakh Circassian (works in Temirgoy too) in Konuk (2023) of how ‘my son has fallen ill’ and ‘my pig has fallen ill’ are only distinguished by the possessive prefix, /qʷʰɜ/ ‘pig’ requiring the alienability prefix that /qʷʰɜ/ ‘son’ doesn’t.
In Kabardian, the possessive ..
In Kabardian, the possessive ..
November 15, 2025 at 11:04 PM
Cute pair of examples from Abdzakh Circassian (works in Temirgoy too) in Konuk (2023) of how ‘my son has fallen ill’ and ‘my pig has fallen ill’ are only distinguished by the possessive prefix, /qʷʰɜ/ ‘pig’ requiring the alienability prefix that /qʷʰɜ/ ‘son’ doesn’t.
In Kabardian, the possessive ..
In Kabardian, the possessive ..
Very cool stuff. I didn’t know click-loss has a consistent pattern attested. (From van der Vlugt & Gunnink (2024).)
November 4, 2025 at 2:40 AM
Very cool stuff. I didn’t know click-loss has a consistent pattern attested. (From van der Vlugt & Gunnink (2024).)
Cutthroat world. A man can’t even vacation in peace collecting Pali and Avestan manuscripts these days without his glory being usurped.
October 26, 2025 at 11:28 PM
Cutthroat world. A man can’t even vacation in peace collecting Pali and Avestan manuscripts these days without his glory being usurped.
Noooo! Lässt du das nicht zu!
uni-salzburg.elsevierpure.com/en/activitie...
uni-salzburg.elsevierpure.com/en/activitie...
October 19, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Noooo! Lässt du das nicht zu!
uni-salzburg.elsevierpure.com/en/activitie...
uni-salzburg.elsevierpure.com/en/activitie...
The plot thickens.
This screenshot is from 40 years before (published 1888). Here it says the reflex of *þ (in anlaut) was in Weesdring an interdental plosive, not quite still a fricative. I.e., at that stage Weesdring was Dinka-like, contrasting /t̪̻ʰ/ < *þ and /t̺ʰ/ < *t.
(I’m assuming aspiration.)
This screenshot is from 40 years before (published 1888). Here it says the reflex of *þ (in anlaut) was in Weesdring an interdental plosive, not quite still a fricative. I.e., at that stage Weesdring was Dinka-like, contrasting /t̪̻ʰ/ < *þ and /t̺ʰ/ < *t.
(I’m assuming aspiration.)
October 19, 2025 at 2:14 AM
The plot thickens.
This screenshot is from 40 years before (published 1888). Here it says the reflex of *þ (in anlaut) was in Weesdring an interdental plosive, not quite still a fricative. I.e., at that stage Weesdring was Dinka-like, contrasting /t̪̻ʰ/ < *þ and /t̺ʰ/ < *t.
(I’m assuming aspiration.)
This screenshot is from 40 years before (published 1888). Here it says the reflex of *þ (in anlaut) was in Weesdring an interdental plosive, not quite still a fricative. I.e., at that stage Weesdring was Dinka-like, contrasting /t̪̻ʰ/ < *þ and /t̺ʰ/ < *t.
(I’m assuming aspiration.)
See? Now they say det/at wüf for ‘the woman’ (‘the wife’ etymologically speaking).
October 18, 2025 at 6:28 PM
See? Now they say det/at wüf for ‘the woman’ (‘the wife’ etymologically speaking).
The merger of the feminine into the neuter (unlike masculine & feminine merging keeping neuter distinct as in West Frisian & Söl'ring) also must have happened after the ’20s & ’30s. Here, we still see the 3-gender system.
October 18, 2025 at 6:26 PM
The merger of the feminine into the neuter (unlike masculine & feminine merging keeping neuter distinct as in West Frisian & Söl'ring) also must have happened after the ’20s & ’30s. Here, we still see the 3-gender system.
Even till the 1920s & ’30s, Weesdring kept etymological /θ/ where in Aasdring it had merged with /tʰ/ & in Öömrang with /s/. The words here are (mod. Fering & Ööm.):
F | Ö | E
taarep | saarep | thorp
tau | sau | OE þƿe͞an ‘wash’
tacht | sacht | *thight ‘tight’
tiarem | siarem | tharm ‘intestine’
F | Ö | E
taarep | saarep | thorp
tau | sau | OE þƿe͞an ‘wash’
tacht | sacht | *thight ‘tight’
tiarem | siarem | tharm ‘intestine’
October 18, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Even till the 1920s & ’30s, Weesdring kept etymological /θ/ where in Aasdring it had merged with /tʰ/ & in Öömrang with /s/. The words here are (mod. Fering & Ööm.):
F | Ö | E
taarep | saarep | thorp
tau | sau | OE þƿe͞an ‘wash’
tacht | sacht | *thight ‘tight’
tiarem | siarem | tharm ‘intestine’
F | Ö | E
taarep | saarep | thorp
tau | sau | OE þƿe͞an ‘wash’
tacht | sacht | *thight ‘tight’
tiarem | siarem | tharm ‘intestine’
Fair enough, can’t argue with that. We can indeed call the kat “puss”.
October 15, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Fair enough, can’t argue with that. We can indeed call the kat “puss”.
Karen Ebert, who I always knew for her work on Chamling (and other Kiranti languages of the central Himalayas) is a native-speaker of Fering (close sister of Öömrang) North Frisian!!
I accidentally found this out today on a flight because some Frisian stuff I was reading referenced some work in ...
I accidentally found this out today on a flight because some Frisian stuff I was reading referenced some work in ...
October 11, 2025 at 10:37 PM
Karen Ebert, who I always knew for her work on Chamling (and other Kiranti languages of the central Himalayas) is a native-speaker of Fering (close sister of Öömrang) North Frisian!!
I accidentally found this out today on a flight because some Frisian stuff I was reading referenced some work in ...
I accidentally found this out today on a flight because some Frisian stuff I was reading referenced some work in ...
Hansel & Gretel in Öömrang
October 7, 2025 at 10:46 AM
Hansel & Gretel in Öömrang
The Grimm tales in Öömrang & Fering Insular North Frisian.
October 7, 2025 at 10:41 AM
The Grimm tales in Öömrang & Fering Insular North Frisian.
BlueSky, we got gray sky in North Frisia. Here’s the island church of Oomram — „sark“ if you will — under it.
October 5, 2025 at 7:25 AM
BlueSky, we got gray sky in North Frisia. Here’s the island church of Oomram — „sark“ if you will — under it.
Anglo-Frisian gin
October 4, 2025 at 8:45 AM
Anglo-Frisian gin
Stay in Poznań over. Glad to meet several amazing colleagues (including Ronalld Kim & Henrik Liljegren!!) and hearing about lots of interesting research being done.
(Pic by Sakura Ishikawa of the title of my talk on Shina(ic) & Gawri historical accentology.)
(Pic by Sakura Ishikawa of the title of my talk on Shina(ic) & Gawri historical accentology.)
October 2, 2025 at 4:21 AM
Stay in Poznań over. Glad to meet several amazing colleagues (including Ronalld Kim & Henrik Liljegren!!) and hearing about lots of interesting research being done.
(Pic by Sakura Ishikawa of the title of my talk on Shina(ic) & Gawri historical accentology.)
(Pic by Sakura Ishikawa of the title of my talk on Shina(ic) & Gawri historical accentology.)
The Narts immigrated from the Caucasus to Poland. Their lair.
September 28, 2025 at 7:38 PM
The Narts immigrated from the Caucasus to Poland. Their lair.
Here’s where we stand for now:
September 7, 2025 at 4:36 PM
Here’s where we stand for now:
Related Turkic loan in Ossetic as arğonaq ‘Caucasian shepherd dog’.
September 5, 2025 at 5:30 PM
Related Turkic loan in Ossetic as arğonaq ‘Caucasian shepherd dog’.
One possible loan from Burushaski to Shina with metathesis is Bur. hurt ‘👇’ ~ Shina huc̣ < *hutr. I can’t think of any Indo-Aryan etymology for this one, so, probably not native to Shina.
September 1, 2025 at 4:16 AM
One possible loan from Burushaski to Shina with metathesis is Bur. hurt ‘👇’ ~ Shina huc̣ < *hutr. I can’t think of any Indo-Aryan etymology for this one, so, probably not native to Shina.
Pronouns in the (mainland) Indian subcontinental isolates.
August 17, 2025 at 8:48 PM
Pronouns in the (mainland) Indian subcontinental isolates.
Caldas Vierra’s assumptions for Bohairic pronunciation is wild!! No way is that correct!
August 15, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Caldas Vierra’s assumptions for Bohairic pronunciation is wild!! No way is that correct!
Ah, Cushitic — the most normal of Afroäsiatic languages.
(screenshot from Souag (2023) in Almansa-Villatoro & Štubňová-Nigrelli (eds.))
Also, this chapter is convincing me of Afroäsiatic. I didn’t want to admit before amongst real experts who believe that I was kinda iffy about AA without ...
(screenshot from Souag (2023) in Almansa-Villatoro & Štubňová-Nigrelli (eds.))
Also, this chapter is convincing me of Afroäsiatic. I didn’t want to admit before amongst real experts who believe that I was kinda iffy about AA without ...
August 14, 2025 at 3:30 AM
Ah, Cushitic — the most normal of Afroäsiatic languages.
(screenshot from Souag (2023) in Almansa-Villatoro & Štubňová-Nigrelli (eds.))
Also, this chapter is convincing me of Afroäsiatic. I didn’t want to admit before amongst real experts who believe that I was kinda iffy about AA without ...
(screenshot from Souag (2023) in Almansa-Villatoro & Štubňová-Nigrelli (eds.))
Also, this chapter is convincing me of Afroäsiatic. I didn’t want to admit before amongst real experts who believe that I was kinda iffy about AA without ...