Zenati languages

The Zenati languages are a branch of the

According to Kossmann (2013: 21–24),^[3] Zenati is a rather arbitrary grouping, in which he includes the following varieties:

• Arzew dialect, in Arzew
  in western Algeria
• Eastern Morocco Zenati (north east of Morocco)
• Iznasen
• Ait Warain (Ayt Warayn)
  (north-central Morocco)
• Western Algerian, west of Algiers (a diffuse group):
  • Beni Snous (Tlemcen) dialect, in western Algeria near the border
  • Jebel Bissa (intelligible with Shenwa)
  • Shenwa (Chenoua), between Tipasa and Ténès in north-central Algeria west of Algiers
  • Beni Messaoud (Shenwa?)
  • Beni Menacer
  • Metmata (of Algeria; distinct from Matmata Berber of Tunisia)
  • etc. (see article)
• Batna and Khenchela, south of Constantine
  in northeastern Algeria
• Mzab–Wargla (Northern Saharan oases):
  • South Oran and Figuig, in the ksours along the Algerian–Moroccan border and in Figuig
    in southeastern Morocco
  • Gourara, southwestern Algeria, around Timimoun
    )
  • Touat
    , Algeria)
  • Ghardaia
    )
  • Wargla (Ouargli aka Tagergrent, Teggargarent), northern Algerian Sahara, near Ouargla
  • Temacine
    , Algeria
• Southeastern Tunisian–Libyan:
  Zuwara in northwestern Libya
  )

According to Kossmann (1999:31-32, 86, 172),[4] common innovations defining the Zenati languages include:

• The vowel a- in nominal prefixes is dropped in a number of words when it precedes CV, where C is a single consonant and V is a full (non-schwa) vowel. For example, afus "hand" is replaced with fus. (A similar development is found in some Eastern Berber languages, but not Nafusi.)
• Verbs whose original aorist forms end in -u while their perfect forms end in -a end up with -a in the aorist as well, leaving the aorist / perfect distinction unmarked for these verbs. For example, *ktu "forget", Siwi ttu, becomes Ouargli tta. (This also affects Nafusi.)
• Verbs consisting (in the aorist) of two consonants with no vowel other than schwa fall into two classes elsewhere in Berber:^[5][6] one where a variable final vowel appears in the perfect form, and one which continues to lack a final vowel in the perfect. In Zenati, the latter class has been entirely merged into the former in the perfect, with the single exception of the negative perfect of *əɣ s "want". For example, Kabyle (non-Zenati) gər "throw", pf. -gər (int. -ggar), corresponds to Ouargli (Zenati) gər, pf. -gru. (This change too also affects Nafusi; Basset (1929:9) gives examples where it appears not to occur in Chenoua.)
• Proto-Berber *-əβ has become -i in Zenati.^[7] For example, *arəβ "write" becomes ari. (This change also occurs in varieties including the Central Atlas Tamazight dialect of the Izayan, Nafusi, and Siwi
  .)
• Proto-Berber palatalised k´ and g´, corresponding to k and g in non-Zenati varieties, become š and ž in Zenati (although a fair number of irregular correspondences for this are found.) For example, k´ăm "you (f. sg.)" becomes šəm. (This change also occurs in Nafusi and Siwi.)

In addition to the correspondence of k and g to š and ž, Chaker (1972),[8] while expressing uncertainty about the linguistic coherence of Zenati, notes as shared Zenati traits:

• A proximal demonstrative suffix "this" -u, rather than -a
• A final -u in the perfect of two-consonant verbs, rather than -a (e.g. yə-nsu "he slept" rather than yə-nsa elsewhere)

These characteristics identify a more restricted subset of Berber than those previously mentioned, mainly northern Saharan varieties; they exclude, for example, Chaoui