Shenwa language
| Shenwa | |
|---|---|
| Chenoua | |
| Haqbaylit̠ | |
 |
|
| Native to | Algeria |
| Region | Mount Chenoua, Tipasa and Chlef districts |
|
Native speakers
|
76,000 (2007) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | chen1266 |
Shenwa, also spelled Chenoua (autonym Haqbaylit̠ [clarification needed]), is a Berber language spoken in Jebel Chenoua in Algeria just west of Algiers, and in the provinces of Tipaza (including Cherchell) and Chlef. The speech of Jebel Chenoua proper is mutually comprehensible with that of the nearby Beni Menacer and Beni Haoua, and the two are thus treated as a single language. There are some 76,000 speakers.
Shenwa is one of the Zenati languages.
Judging by Laoust (whose work on the language predates systematic phonology), Shenwa has the following sounds, which are given below in the International Phonetic Alphabet along with differing representations in the Algerian standard Latin orthography for Berber languages in angle brackets ⟨ ⟩:
Comparison with other Berber languages suggests that Laoust's transcription may have failed to distinguish certain sounds, notably pharyngealized /zˤ/.
/a/, /i/, /u/, /ə/ ⟨e⟩. Laoust's ⟨o⟩ appears to variously indicate labialization (/ʷ/) or an allophone of /u/.
Masculine nouns start with a-, i-, u- (in the singular) – like all Berber languages – or more rarely with a consonant (often corresponding to a- in other languages.) Examples: ayḏi "dog"; fus "hand"; iri "neck"; urṯu "garden". Their plural is usually in i-...-en (e.g. ameţin "death" → imeţinen), but a variety of other plural forms (e.g. i-...-an, i-...-wen, i-...awen, i-...-en, i-...-a-), sometimes accompanied by internal ablaut, are also found: e.g. ijiḏer "eagle" → ijuḏar, iṯri "star" → iṯran, afer "wing" → ifrawen, icer "fingernail" → icaren.
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