Qgam Dzwo
| Qgam Dzwo | |
|---|---|
| Qgam Dzwo | |
| Pronunciation | [(ə)ʔgʌm d͡zwɔə] |
| Ethnicity | Qgam |
| Native speakers | 5,201,000 (2017) |
| Language family |
|
| Dialects | Northern Qgam, Eastern Qgam, Southern Qgam |
| Writing system | Qonklese logograms, Qgam script |
| Official status | |
| Official language in | Qgam |
| CWS code | QGA |
Qgam Dzwo (鄭語 [(ə)ʔgʌm d͡zwɔə]) is a Darkinic language spoken primarily in the Democratic Republic of Qgam, where it is recognized as the only official language.
Background
As a Darkinic language, Qgam is most closely related to the Hux Kham language. They began to diverge somewhere around 100 BCE, though frequent contact between Qgam and Hux Kham people during this period led to a great amount of loaning. At the onset of the common era, contact between the two peoples decreased, and Qgam began to diverge further. During this time as the Kingdom of Qgam conquered various Nuar settlements, a considerable number of Nuar loanwords began to enter Qgam, and even some grammatical patterns began to shift. Notably, a definite article developed, as well as some aspectual prefixes on verbs, a feature not present in any other Darkinic language.
During the second millennium CE, a large influx of Qonklese loanwords began to alter the Qgam lexicon. It is estimated that approximately 20% of the Qgam lexicon is of Qonklese origin.
Phonology
The following inventory outlines the pronunciation of Standard Qgam, which is that spoken in Hwam Deaĝ Ruom.
Consonants
| Bilabial | Labio-dental | Dental | Alveolar | Post-alveolar | Retroflex | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Pharyngeal | Epiglottal | Glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ŋ | |||||||||
| Plosive | p b | t d | k g | ʔ | ||||||||
| Fricative | s | ɕ | ç | x | ||||||||
| Affricate | d͡z | t͡ɕ d͡ʑ | k͡x | |||||||||
| Approximant | w | ɻ | j | |||||||||
| Trill | ||||||||||||
| Flap or tap | ||||||||||||
| Lateral fric. | ||||||||||||
| Lateral app. | l | ʎ | ||||||||||
| Lateral flap |
Vowels
| Front | Near-front | Central | Near-back | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i (iː) | (ɨː) (ɨə̯) (ɨə̯j) (ɨːə̯) |
(uː) (uːə̯) | ||
| Near-close | (ʊə̯) (ʊə̯j) | ||||
| Close-mid | (eː) (eːj) eə̯ eə̯w |
(oː) | |||
| Mid | (ə) (əː) (əj) (əw) |
||||
| Open-mid | ɛ | (ɜ) (ɜj) |
ʌ ɔ ʌj ʌw ɔj wɔə̯ wɔə̯j | ||
| Near-open | (æː) (æːj) (æːw) |
||||
| Open | ɑː ɑːj ɑːw |