Victor A. Friedman (vfriedm@midway .uchicago.

edu)

Structure of Albanian

Albanian Grammar
Victor A. Friedman A version of this grammar was published in

Studies on Albanian and Other Balkan Language by Victor A. Friedman Peja: Dukagjini. 2004.
alfabet-i shqiptim the alphabet pronunciation A a as in mama I i B b as in boy J j C c as in heartsick K k as in cheap L l D d as in dog Ll ll Dh dh as in this Mm E e as in pet N n E as in sofa Nj nj F f as in fall O o G g as in go P p Gj gj as in figure Q q H h as in hat R r shnime notes, observations 1) Gj/Q

as in police as in yard as in skull as in belief as in pull as in marry as in notice as in canyon as in more as in spot as in cute single flap (city)

Rr rr S s Sh sh T t Th th U u V v X x Xh xh Y y Z z Zh zh

trill as in same as in short as in stop as in think as in fool as in voice as in adze as in job like in future, une (Fr.) as in zinc as in vision

dorso-palatal stops, much as in Macedonian in the south, Serbian in the north. In Many Geg dialects, Gj+Xh=Xh and Q+= (this is the basis of an anecdote involving A. Kostallari). Minimal pairs: ko 'feed!', kjo 'this, nom. fem. sg.', qo 'wake up!', o 'put' gol 'goal [soccer]', gjol 'lake, mire', xhol 'head of club' more palatal than French L, less so than Serbian Lj djali 'the boy' less velarized than Russian hard L (dh also velarized) djalli 'the devil' are unaspirated. are alveolar NOT dental! (except in some Geg) re 'cloud', rre 'roundworm'

2) 3)

L Ll

P,T,K T,D,C,X,Ll,N,R,Rr Y ^ H

4) 5) 6)

less rounded than in French, higher than in Turkish. ti 'you/nom.' ty 'you/acc.' tu 'your/m.pl.' denotes nazalization denotes length is pronounced with greater friction and is never elided intervocalically or finally in Turkish loans (hajvan, sahat, allah vs. thuhet, shoh) in Geg, h becomes f at the end of a word or before a consonant, e.g. shof, ftoft (shoh, ftoht) shows considerable variation in pronunciation from very low (almost [] in Kor) to very high (e.g. in Turkish loanwords). Final unstressed is dropped in Geg (with compensatory lengthening of the preceding vowel oban/oban) and is only pronounced distinctly in southern Tosk. Elsewhere like the French e-muet.

7)

theksim-i the accent, stress Stress is unpredictable & distinctive (pra'before'/par'money'; bla'hoes'/bel'trouble'; xhakon'seminary studies'/xhakni 'the seminarian') BUT generally on the last syllable of the stem. In Geg, a nasal or long vowel will be stressed. Bevington's Rule: V -> [+stress] / _ (V) Co <{e, a, o, (C), -ull, -as, -ur, -azi, -thi, -e}>]stem ) BUT rruf 'lightning' (< e ); dhe 'female kid' VS edh 'and' dle 'ewe' (< e afrna 'vicinity' BUT bab 'dad' (allatrka BUT allaxh 'shiny silk-cotton cloth') pllto 'overcoat' BUT byr 'office, bureau' t 'father' BUT at 'that'; dk 'desire'/dik 'someone (acc.)' lkr 'cabbage' nrr 'greater titmouse' BUT hatr 'feelings', akrr 'cross-eyed' shmbull 'example' BUT fodll 'vain' (< Turkish) hpur 'open' BUT abazhr 'lamp shade' (flmur & flamr 'flag') Turkish -llk, pl. llqe, -sz, pl. sze (budallallk, sojsz), kll 'sword', kllf 'scabbard' mjtas 'leftward', pshtazi 'from under', fshhurazi 'stealthily', prpthi 'backwards', elbasnas, elbasne 'Elabsanian' (n., adv.); filxhnash=filxhnthi 'shell game'
<-Verb>

Victor A. Friedman (vfriedm@midway .uchicago.edu)

EMRI: GJINI, NUMR, SHQUARSI the noun: gender, number, definite/indefinite Forming the Definite Njjsi e shquar the definite singular: In general, masc = C + i, fem = V + a, "neut" (= fem) = + t

Structure of Albanian 2

ending -k,-g,-h -, , ye>e nasal vowel (incl. all -u)

definite article -u -ri

bab-baba 'dad', hoxh-hoxha 'teacher, daj-daja (also dai-daiu) 'maternal uncle', bac-baca'older brother', kumbar/kumtar-ra 'godfather', kallf 'apprentice', pap 'pope', tosk-toska 'Tosk man', Kol-Kola 'Nick', elsewhere: -i kungull-i 'squash, gourd', djall-i 'devil' -(C) (>) djal-djali 'boy' (burr 'man', kal 'horse', gjum 'sleep', lum 'river', lm 'threshing yard', [uj 'water', djath 'cheese', ball 'forehead', brum 'dough'] lbr-bri 'book', hatr-i 'feelings', kll/klli, 'pebble'ngjll-i 'angel', komunizm -zmi, ardhs-i 'newcomer' -ua>o, ftua-ftoi 'quince', krua-kroi 'fountain', thua-thoi 'fingernail', etc. a few poly in -a vlla-i 'brother', baba-i 'dad', xhaxha-i 'paternal uncle', pasha-i 'general (Tk)', qehaja-i 'town crier', aga-i 'feudal lord', mulla mullah, budalla fool, usta master, kara black horse , qerrata scoundrel Femror ending definite article examples -, -, -ull, -l -a fush-fusha 'field', shtpi-a 'house', vetull-a 'eyebrow', vegl-vegla 'tool' , -ie -ur, -r[r], -je flutur-a 'butterfly', motr-motra "sister', inrr-inrra 'greater titmouse', cucllcuclla'nipple',endz-a'cobweb,blossom (e & > ) nyje-nyja 'knot', ngrnie-ngrnia 'eating' (dhnie, qenie, thnie),mmie-mmia 'mummy', kapaklle-kapaklla 'lidded rifle' other vowels -ja raja-ja 'non-Muslim Ottoman subject',rruf-ja 'lightning',gj-ja 'thing', pallto-ja 'overcoat', kinostdio-ja, pardesy-ja 'light overcoat', grua-ja 'woman', hua-ja 'loan', dua Muslim prayer [=only 3 F in -ua] >) (-e dle-delja 'ewe', BUT karrge-karrigia 'chair' okane-okania 'cowbell, knocker' (avoid gj, nj) Asnjans (Ambigjen) neuter (verb=sg, def art. = pl, NA ata 'this' GD this=masc, nyja =masc or fem, adj = Msg, Fpl) for example: Same rules as for indefinite plural t folur, t folurit 'speaking' verbal nouns (> fem e) (q.v.) t kuq, t kuqt 'red dye' nominalized adjectives uj, ujt 'water' substances (all shifting to masc., e.g. uji, ujra) krye, kryet 'head' head of body , beginning, source vs kreu (krr) 'head' of cattle, organization, chapter (formerly also ball 'forehead, front') ujt e ftoht or uji i ftoht; mbi kryet e mi, n krye t vet/krert e Ballit Kombtar nj e qeshur e gjat vs me ata t qeshurit e tij i ri, e re, t/e rinj/reja, t ri (= rini) (u lidha t rit e mi me kt djal) e keqja = t keqt SHUMSI I SHQUAR the definite plural: indef pl: add: examples: V(C) -t shtpit, rrufet, grat, miqt, desht 'sheep', bijt 'sons', djemt 'boys', qent 'dogs', gjaprinjt -t -t lott 'tears' nett 'nights' VCC, VC, (= -s,-z, -r) -it peshqit, bujqit 'farmers', prndrit, njerzit, nxnsit, msuesit, other -t delet, dyert 'doors', muajt 'months', qept 'onions', qepat 'beaks', rkzat 'casket'

BUT - -o (propers & expressives) - (< - in Turkisms)

-ni -ja -a

Mashkullor examples shok-u 'comrade', zog-u 'bird', bari-u 'shepherd' ka-u 'ox', dra-u dregs, mi-u 'mouse', njeri-u 'person', dhe-u 'earth' plqyer-plqeri 'thumb', krye-kreu 'head [fig.]' (neuter kryet [lit.]) bli 'linden' (bli-ni'sturgeon'),bri 'horn', dre 'deer', dru 'tree', fre 'rein', flori 'gold', gdhe 'gnarl', gji 'bosom', gju 'knee', hu 'stake', kalli 'ear of grain', krci 'shin', kufi 'border', kushri 'cousin', mulli 'mill', pe 'thread', mlle swelling sy 'eye', tra 'beam' [kryetra-ri BUT arkitra-u lintel'], turi 'face', ulli 'olive', z 'voice', kalama young child, vulla garden bed, rogja river branch in delta Maqo-ja 'Tom', leshko-ja 'fool'

Victor A. Friedman (vfriedm@midway .uchicago.edu)

Structure of Albanian 3

Lakim-i Declension
ACC. = NOM except M & F def. sg: DEFINITE ACCUSATIVE Masculine def. nom. = V + i Otherwise Feminine indef. nom. = V indef. nom. = -C Otherwise Neuter acc. = nom. GENITIVE-DATIVE Masculine indef. gen.-dat. = def. nom. def. gen-dat = add -t to indef. gen.-dat. BUT masc nouns with nom. def. in -[j]a take endings of fem decl. Feminine indef gen-dat. = indef nom. + -e def. gen.-dat. = def. acc. but n > s indef. nom. = V indef. nom. = -C Otherwise - , -[]C> , -C V [not i] + je elsewhere -e -s -s -s

indef Nom + -n def Nom + -n -n -n -n

vllan, baban lisin, mikun, dheun,ftoin, zrin, plqerin,Maqon rrufen, shtpin, pardesyn fluturn, motrn lulen, ann

vllai, lisi, miku vllait, lisit, mikut babe, Maqoje & babs, Maqos ane, motre, endze 'cobweb, blossom' deleje, rrufeje, tetoje, pardesyje fluture, shtpie rrufes, shtpis fluturs, motrs; also babs lules, ans, tetos; also laros

Neuter indef nom.-acc. + i uji, t foluri Add -t to the indefinite genitive-dative. ujit, t folurit NOTE: This means the indef gen-dat. neut looks exactly like the gen-dat. masc., whence the tendency to assimilate.

INDEFINITE & DEFINITE GENITIVE-DATIVE PLURAL Add -ve to the indef. nom.-acc. pl. (-t > -t-) lisave(t), nxnsve(t), miqve(t), peshqve(t) , lotve(t) def. can add -t to -ve, but this is facultative INDEFINITE ABLATIVE PLURAL (rare, facultative (-ve can be used instead), but still a 4th case) def. NA pl. -t > sh; -# > -; -tsh, -shsh > -tsh, -shsh -t, -sh -sh lotsh 'tears' netsh'nights' , deshsh (vje/e = adj. of pers'l age: djal/vajz pes vje/e VCC, VC, (= -s,-z, -r) -ish peshqish, bujqish 'farmers', prndrish, njerzish, nxnsish, msuesish, other -sh delesh, dyersh 'doors', muajsh'months', qepsh 'onions', qepash 'beaks', rkzash 'casket', shtpish, rrufesh, grash, miqsh, , bijsh 'sons', djemsh 'boys', qensh 'dogs', gjaprinjsh Notes 1. The nominative functions as the vocative (thirrore). (Also lex'l items, e.g. biro!) Usually indef: O Idriz!, but fem in - = def. O Drita!, possessed = def. O shpirti im!, titles = def. O shok! but O shoku Rexhep! (Particle O = normal but omissible). 2. The locative (vendore), which was in -t added to the indef. nom. sg. ( jett, pyllt, fikt, malt) but > (misrit, letrt), also astit, shelgut,'willow' is now considered dialectal (between rivers Mat & Vjos = Central Albania & north Toskri) and obsolete. Only occurs after a preps. (mbi, me, m, n, nn, npr, pr, prmbi). Lit. lg. uses prep. + acc. or plain abl.

Victor A. Friedman (vfriedm@midway .uchicago.edu)

Structure of Albanian 4

Shumsi i Emrave Femror - Trajta e Pashkuar The Plural of Feminine Nouns - The Indefinite Form
Prapashtes Suffix
-a

Rreth Environment
consonant or (>) esp. -r, -l, -z -ull, -ur

Shenime dhe Shembuj Notes and Examples

vajz- vajza 'girl', motr - motra 'sister',endz-endza 'cobweb,blossom' petull - petulla 'fritter', gogl - gogla 'acorn' mollz-a 'cheekbone', gjepur 'pretext' - gjepura 'nonsense' ALSO: pll-plla 'milk-cow/goat/sheep' dele sheep,ewe, rrufe 'lightning', kala 'fortress', shtpi 'house', hua 'loan'

vowel (stressed a, e, i, o, and unstressed e) also many monosyllabic roots in -

an 'side', dit 'day', en 'utensils, goj 'month', gjurm 'trace', kmb 'foot,leg', kng 'song', jet 'life', lug 'spoon, moll 'apple', plag 'wound', rrnj' root', rrug 'street', shkall 'step'udh 'way' kafsh 'animal, lop'cow, shtaz 'beast' dhjet kok dhen 'ten head of cattle' kokat e qepve 'the heads of onions' brinj'ribs'/brinja'side' ver -ra 'wines' (vs. vera 'summers'), gj -ra 'things' grua - gra 'woman', der -dyer 'door', dor - duar 'hand', nat - net 'night'

sometimes -a ~ - for lexical differentiation -ra irregular for collectives

Asnjans neuter (all inanimate, pl. = F)

-ra (= collectives, tend to be epicene) djath 'cheese' def. sg. djatht or djathi or djatha (e.g. in Kor, but not in gjuha letrare) indef. pl. djathra

Shumsi i Emrave Mashkullor - Trajta e Pashquar The Plural of Masculine Nouns - The Indefinite Form
Masculine plurals have 4 primary endings: , -, -e, -a Note, some masculine plurals have more than one acceptable ending (orap -, -e) others now have a prescribed ending different from that in the reference grammars and bilingual dictionaries (element > elemente)

Prapashtes suffix
-V[-round]+s, -r , also

Shnime dhe Shembuj notes and examples

nxns 'pupil', maqedonas, msues, prkthyes, arbr, ball 'forehead', duk 'duke' qen 'dog', thi 'hog', sy 'eye', muaj 'month', lot 'tear', kumtr/kumbar 'godfather', maharaxha, muze 'museum', laro 'cur, piebald dog', va 'ford', rrush 'grape', mulla

In general, - is for animates, -e for abstract inanimates, and -a for concrete inanimates, but exceptions abound. The following final syllables represent derivational affixes that generally take - for some or all plurals. Those marked *are supposed to use - consistently. Those marked are suposed to show the animate - / inanimate -e contrast. first element a e i o u final element c* * f* k c * k* d k k c (f) k* [n]t [n]t *[s]t [n]t*

l l l l l

m m ll m

n n* n* n n

p*

r r r r

sh* sh* sh sh

z z z

The table which follows illustrates plurals according to suffix or final syllable. Items marked * are unusual in their class. Items marked are specified as not occuring. Items left blank are not specified. Order is reverse by suffix BUT items showing only - are placed first and items showing other consistencies (-/-e; -e only) are placed last

Victor A. Friedman (vfriedm@midway .uchicago.edu)

animate in - tullac 'baldy' binjak 'twin', romak,baxhanak mesap 'Mesappian' hutaq 'absent-minded person' gunga'hunchback',kova'bl acksmith' general dibran inanimate in - arcaf, paragraf, fotograf kupac 'wooden lunchbox' kapak'lid',dajak'stick',oxhak' hearth',zambak'lily' dollap 'cupboard' cylaq 'pizzle' gjemba 'thistle' *kuintal '100 kg' *aeroplan,tigan'skillet',karva n,jargavan'lilac',koan'cob[c orn]heart[cabbage]' *kalendar,hambar 'granary',rezevuar dhmbec 'loom reed' plural in -e

Structure of Albanian 5
plural in -a or other gja/k-qe'feuds'=shkak'cause ',cak'marker',lak-leqe'snare'

barbar, shqiptar dollibash 'tamada' memec 'mute',dordolec 'scarecrow'

*ba 'herdsman', ila 'medicine', kula/e 'bun' central, festival, ideal, kristal,mal 'mountain' dyqan 'shop', han 'inn', oqean, organ, plan, stan 'summer hut', vullkan pazar, zar, seminar, honorar mishmash *kotec 'coop,crib'

*kec 'kid', guralec'pebble',karkalec'gra sshopper',kastravec 'cucumber',spec'pepper' e/k-qe'check'

kryene'stubborn' lejlek 'stork', mjek 'dr.',ek'Czech' rekordmen, kapiten postier,berber arbresh,kalesh atlet,lanet'devil' mekanik,kreshnik latin,pinguin ilir gjirokastrit,komit,parazit artist shok'friend',streptokok,ma ok'tomcat'; also -log gogol'bogey',kaqol'walnut,bl ockhead' faqoll'animal with head dif color fr body' kampion, gjiton

gjyve 'stew' byrek, dyshek, lek,fishek hosten 'spur' fener'lantern',karakter,trans portier kablesh'pulp,cone' planet ibrik kofin'basket' peshqir,zinxhir'chain' *satelit flok'hair',palok'dried fig string'; dia-log kaamol'small/immature corncob' liqen 'lake' minder'couch',kuartier rrebesh'cloudburst,calamity' det,fakultet,qytet,marifet,sh tet

beden'fringe'

flakaresh 'slap'

mik/q'friend',armik'enemy',fi k'fig',rrezi/k-qe'danger manastir,panair,hir'will,sake' boksit,grafit,deficit

*shirit'tape' bllok/blloqe

gjol 'lake,mire' gjoll'patch of sown ground',voll'whim',kontroll ballkon, ciklon, elektron,fron'stool,throne',h ormon,sallon, -ion auditor,korridor,kor

sokol'goshawk',stol'stool',go l'goal'

kamion,timon'steering wheel',vagon lakror 'pie',fjalor kablosh'tuft'

person,kupon,napolon'napol eond'or', -fon

puntor 'worker' barkosh'potbelly' patriot,suljot,idiot marangoz'cabinet maker',tifoz'[sport]fan',bajlo z'ambassador,sea monster' poetuc'doggerel writer',gjeluc'cockerel' matuf'dotard' kopuk'tramp' somnambul majmun,spiun

lloz'bar,bolt'

kosh'basket',djalosh/djelmo sha lot- mitraloz,rrogoz'rush mat',kavanoz'jar' ngrehaluc 'braggart'majuc 'point,tip'

bishtuk oil lamp' bastun,sapun,pirunfork kanun,un'fishing boat' un'boy'

Victor A. Friedman (vfriedm@midway .uchicago.edu)

animate in - argat 'day-worker' elefant xhambaz'horsedealer' dembel 'lazybones' inanimate in - plural in -e kat 'storey', kombinat restaurant kafaz 'cage' hotel, tunel,akuarel,bel 'waist' ,zabel'grove',

Structure of Albanian 6
plural in -a or other shtr/at'bed',kun/at'bro-inlaw'-etr

bel'hoe',gjel'rooster',harabel' sparrow',engel'hook',tegel' hem',tel'wire' *brez'sash,generation'

student,docent borgjez heraklid,invalid civil,katil,kopil kont,rinoqeront jetim'orphan',thatim'skinniyb ones' mustako

*kilo/centi-gram, *auto/trolejbus

aksident,argument,element qymez'coop',trapez'trapezoi d' hibrid idil front,horizont botim,vendim,krkim

bilbil,automobil,cupil'joist',ka ndil,karafil'carnation' qilim,trim'hero'

prbo'hearthstone' diagram, telegram papirus,pus'well', virus alliazh'alloy',ambalazh kortezh elozh'elegy' stadium,kostum,album,simp ozium,kacarrum'corncob' ansamb/l-ble, cik/l-kle animate beings (polysyllabic, oxytonic) & some inan's by analogy mostly suffixed. SEE TABLE a few final nasals add -r: bl 'linden',br 'horn', dr 'deer', dr 'tree',fr 'bridle/rein', tr 'beam', ALSO krye-krer, other dhmb 'tooth', am, sllav, ALSO plqyer-plqer 'thumb'

e inanimates and abstracts -im, -ion, -um, -us, -Ct, -d, -azh,-ezh,-ozh, many polysyllabics in -l, -n, -r, (>F if inanimate) vend 'place', insekt, kopsht'garden', raft'shelf', fakt, konvikt, katund others include (all > F) mal 'mountain', fis 'tribe', komb 'nation', lloj 'type', qejf 'fun', kamp, mikrob, virus, motiv, tank, triumf a nouns in -r libr - libra litr, metr, pjepr 'canteloupe', also burr - burra polysyllabics in -fon, -oz, -il, -ec telefon, mitraloz 'machine gun', fitil, kastravec, fatos'hero' many mono & some disyllabics (mostly in -p,-b,-m,-n,-l,-r, a few in -s,-z,-c) [hap 'step', kolektive > F) cep corner, ap'step, pace; hunting-dog', grep'hook', agrep'scorpion', qep'beak', plep'poplar', xhep'pocket', nip'nephew, grandson', rrip'slope', tip'type', top'canonball', trup'body', qyp'jug', gjemb'thorn', rremb'stream', krimb'worm', plumb'bullet', pllumb'pigeon', dem'bull', trim'hero', gjym'pitcher', man'mulberry', un'lad', bel'troubles', tel'wire', gjel'rooster', engel'hook', bilbil'&whistle', fitil'wick', kandil'candle', stol'stool', brryl'elbow', derr'pig', brez'belt', plis'clod', fatos'hero', kec 'kid', spec'pepper', ndalc 'cock,hammer', vi 'calf', gjysh'grandpa', rresht 'row', grshet 'braid', qengj 'lamb', vidh 'English elm', z-zra 'voice' (zota'gods/zotrinj 'gentlemen') prind 'parent', nip-a, 'nephew/grandson', gjysh-a 'grandfather, at 'father', kunat 'brotherin-law', mbret (&regj) 'king', princ 'prince', rob 'captive', skllav 'slave', lab, shenjt'saint', frat'monk', dreq'devil', lugat'vampire, kec-a, mzat'baby bull (1-3 yrs)',shtrat 'bed' etr,kunetr, skllevr, lebr, fretr, lugetr, mzetr, shtretr aga, at 'horse', baba, pasha (also ag, bab, pash), hoxh (>a), subash 'bailiff', usta 'master craftsman', xhaxha, dai(-u)-dajllar 'maternal uncle' bej, dervish, efendi, haxhi, kadi, sheh dash - desh 'ram' cjap-cjep 'he-goat' kula-kule 'bun' vllah-vlleh krap-krep'carp' djal - djem 'boy' gardh - gjerdhe 'enclosure' rreth - rrath 'circle' njri - njerz 'person' thes - thas 'bag' vlla - vllezr 'brother' gthep-gthap 'tine, hook' dhndr - dhndr 'groom,son/bro-in-law' kal - kuaj 'horse' vit - vjet (&vite) year ka - qe 'ox'

r (mbretn->mbret-n) (root a > e) llar ler Umlaut, etc.

new

-o

teatr/teatro (said to be spreading)

Victor A. Friedman (vfriedm@midway .uchicago.edu)

shumsi me <j> plurals with <j>
k,g > q,gj + (30=k, 10=g) (moslty anim.) k,g > q,gj + e (100=k, 45=g) (mostly inan.)

Structure of Albanian 7

plak/pleq'old man', armik'enemy',mik'friend', fik'fig', ujk'wolf, bujk'farmer', ndalk 'shieldfish', turk,larushk'wild grape', krushk'in-law', peshk'fish', vjeshk'sapling' zog'bird'[=only-og exc. -log, -gog], shtrig'miser', jevg'Gypsy', murg'monk', drang'kitten,cub', frng'frenchman; [NB ballkano/dia-log = -log; demagog-, demiurg] lak/leqe'snare,loop', cak'marker',shkak'cause', gjak'blood', , rrezik'danger', dushk'oak,holly,leaves used for fodder',sfurk'scorpion', budalla-llk, muslluk(~)'cock,hammer' prag'threshhold', palavig''small log',lug'valley', drang'iron bar',shtrg 'stork', burg'prison',lng'liquid',miting, shelg'willow'; bejleg 'dual', breg/brigje 'shore', shteg/shtigje 'path ; [NB -ek, -k, -yk, -ok, non-mono in -ak, -ik [except rrezik] = -] bir - bij 'son', (BUT hir-e'sake'), lepur - lepuj 'rabbit', portokall-portokaj'orange., delldej'vein',diell-diej 'sun', krmill-krmij'snail', fyell-fyej 'flute', tingull - tinguj 'sound' flmu/r-j vs flamr- BUT grbyell-grbej'felly,wheel rim', & gavyell'hipbone', kaprcyell'stile', rrshyell'sleepwort' bakall-bakej'grocer', hamall'porter', akall'jackal', mashkull/meshkuj'male' BUT: hall - halle 'trouble' huall - hoje 'honeycomb' shall - shalle 'scarf' truall - troje 'plot of land' kavall - kavalle 'flute' shuall - shoje 'sole[foot,shoe]' BUT: mall - mallra 'property, goods' pyll - pyje 'woods', zall - zaje 'alluvium', fill 'thread' hell 'spit', yll 'star' bari - barinj 'shepherd', ftua - ftonj 'quince', gajdexhinj , zanatinj bli-nj 'sturgeon', hu'stake', flori'gold', gdhe'knurl', gji 'bosom', (but gjiret e detit), kalli'ear of grain/corn', krci'shin', etc. [all those not mentioned elsewhere]; gju'knee'-gjunj; drur ~ drunj~dru (dru-ri/druja] M = 'tree, wood, lumber' F = firewood, shillelagh' kalama-j young child, vulla-[n]j garden bed, rogja -[n]jriver branch in delta but krua - kroje 'spring, stream' budallenj, qerratenj, also, lum - lumenj 'river', & dhaskl-dhasknj, prrua-prrenj 'rivulet,creek', shpargr-shprgnj 'swaddling clothes' drap(r) 'sickle', gjarp(r) 'snake', shkmb 'rock' , thelb(b>p) 'kernel' , shkop 'stick', prift'priest', gisht-a'finger', zot 'master, mister' (zota 'gods') mall 'property, goods', bulmet 'dairy product', mut 'shit', bar() 'herb, grass', pleh 'manure'/plehra 'garbage' also fshat 'village', shi 'rain' and gjak: gjakra 'types of blood', gjaqe 'blood feuds'

-ir/-ur, -ll > -ij/-uj, j

+ a > e, ua > o

many monosyllabics = -je either -je or -j Vowels + -nj

a>e -inj --rinj -ra (> F) collectives

Nyja e Prparme
particles of concord

6. premri lidhor "i cili" 1. Mbiemrat dhe emrat e nyjshm, p.sh. i mir, i ri, e re, t 7. Emrat e ditve t javs (e hn) re, t folurit (Emrat prejpjesore) 8. Disa emra q tregojn lidhe gjaku 2. disa premra pronor (t mi[a], t tu[a]) ose familiare: Zemra e s'ms 3. premri dftor "i till" 4. Emrat e rass gjinore 5. Numrort themelor dhe premrat e pacaktuar gjith tr kur tregojn nj sasi shterues (t dy) 1-4: particle determined by head preposed 1-3 + 5, 6: Number/Gender by head, case by function 7,8 (& some nom'l 1): gender fixed, number/case by function T/e: e is used if 1-4 immediately follow & form a constitutent with a definite noun, otherwise (indefinite noun, preposed, in a series, non-constituent relation, 5-8) t is used. T/s: Same rule as for t/e, but substantivized and preposed adjectives take s if definite: e s ardhmes BUT i nj t ardhmeje t afrt

Structure of Albanian 8
Shembuj:
djal i mir e i dukur; djalin e mir e t dukur; i miri djal; t mirin djal; i t mirit djal; libri i djalit t dukur; libri i vajzs s bukur e t mir; vajza e mir; e mira vajz; libri i s mirs vajz; vajzn e mir e t bukur, libri i [s/t] mirs dhe s bukururs vajz, librin e t dukurit [dhe t mirit] djal; nj libr t s bukurs vajz [kall.]; dele e djemve t dukur (em.nj.); dele t djemve (Pashq.F.Kall.;Sh.Em./Kall.), delja/delet e djemve, prve nyjs s prparme, e cila e dallon formalisht nga premri pyetes...; jets s qytetit e t fshatit; t dy 'both', t tet 'the 8 of them' (or 8th); t gjith 'everybody/thing'; t tr 'the whole [thing]', e ka antn e bukur=antn e bukur e ka= =e ka t bukurn ant=t bukurn ant e ka she has the nice purse, e ka antn t bukur=e ka t bukur antn=t bukur e ka antn=antn e ka t bukur her purse is nice=she has the purse that is nice, E pash vajzn, e cila sht e mir dhe e cila banon n Prishtin 'I saw the girl who is good and who lives in Prishtina', Gjuha sht pasqyra m e qart e nj kombi dhe e kulturs s tij 'Language is the clearest mirror of a people and of its culture' Mbiemri adjectives (F = default gender) Prapashtesa Tip suffix type Ms=Mp except as noted below : procl. (-)fundit & panonprocl. -V or Verb Cpd adj w/ F subst as 2nd element Fp -a procliticized -, -l, -r, -t (-V(j)) nonprocl. compounds in these Fs,p -e other procliticized (mostly -m, -q) nonprocl. in -s, -sh, - Mp - (& Fs,p -e) (-a/k,r,n(t);-ez;-i/k,v,t; -o/r,sh) Shembuj examples fundit, parafundit, pafund,pagjum,paatdhe alaturka, gri,blu, bezh, bruto, fringo'brand-new',foleqesh syshqiponj 'eagle-eyed' mir, mbl, mbyllur,dobt,huaj,ve'widow/er' fatbardh 'lucky',mendjemdhenj 'arrogant' (m.pl.) afrm, sotshm, kuq, pashoq tiranas, dykatsh, pyets, krijues,geg karakteristik (subst=karateristik/a) horizontal, (subst=horizontale) socialist,sojnik,sojsz, qesharak'humorous' puntor,kinez,solemn

Adjectives formed from substantives (nouns) are generally nonprocl. and inflect like the substantive (cf. -/e-e above): plak-pleq:plak - plaka, budalla-budallenj: budallaqe, qejfli-nj 'fun-loving', inati-nj 'spiteful', def. inatiu (F s,p inatie, qejflie OR inatesh/a,qejflesh/a) trim/a-trime OR trimresh/a

There are five 'irregular' procliticized adjectives + 2 more that are procliticized and inflect like substantives + 1 mixed: Ms Mp Fs Fp zi zez OR zinj zez zeza 'black' ri rinj re reja 'young, new' madh mdhenj mdhe mdha 'big, great' keq kqij kqe kqija 'bad' vogl vegjl vogl vogla 'small, little' lig ligj lig liga 'thin, bad' zoti zott zonja zonjat) 'able,master' Jam i zoti ta bj, Ai sht i zoti i shtpis tjetr tjetr t tjer t tjera 'other' Postposed adjectives do not decline. Libri i djalit t mir/djemve[t] t mir Preposed adjectives do, but then the substantive doesn't. Libri i t mirit djal/ mirve djem, Librat t nj t riut/ca t rinjve; i veu, e veja Shkallt e Mbiemrit (gradation of adjectives) Shkalla pohore: Aliu sht i madh (Krahasore: m i madh) Shkalla krahasore e sipris relative: Aliu sht m i madh se Murati. Aliu sht m i madh se (sa) i mir. Shkalla krahasore e ultsis: Aliu sht m pak i madh se Murati/se (sa) i mir. Shkalla krahasore e barazis: Aliu sht aq i madh sa Murati/sa i mir. Shkalla krahasore e sipris absolute: Buzuku sht m i vjetri i shkrimtarve t letrsis shqipe. Buzuku sht m i vjetri shkrimtar i letrsis shqipe. Buzuku sht shkrimtari m i vjetr i letrsis shqipe. Shkalla siprore: Aliu sht i menur. shum/fort 'very',jashtzakonisht 'extraordinarily/extremely',mjaft 'rather',fare 'quite',tepr 'too', bukur shum pretty much

Structure of Albanian 9
Vetor Pers'l

Premri The Pronoun Trajta t Shkurta

Trajta t Shkurta t Bashkuara

Dftor demonstrative
1. For the proximate demonstrative, a> kbut Ns=ky & kjo 2. a > when following a preposition, but not in the nom 3. ai alternates with ay. 4. 'such a' i till, atill, ktill ; inflected like mir. Vetvetor reflexive vete - vetja, veten, vetes, also vetvetja, etc. vete = reflexive e.g. e mban veten 'he controls himself' (BUT mblodhi veten) vet = emphatic e.g. klthiti vet vojvoda 'the chief himself hollered'. Gala ia ktheu duart vetvetes (F pl = veta)

Pronor Possessive

prej tim bir, pr tt bir, nga gjoksi i tyt ati 5) when substantivized, like definite substantives

his/her/their = i tij/i saj/i tyre inflect svoj = i vet (Fp e veta) Mp, Fp of My&Yours take particle of concord (t mi, t t) Ms Fs of Yours when preposed to kinship terms: Pyets interrogative cili 'which', i sati 'what number': I sati doli Sokoli? Nom. kush, Acc. k, Gen./Dat. kujt 'who' Nom/Acc. sa, Gen./Dat. save 'how, so, as many' ' , far , se , ka 'what' i/e sejt 'from what (made of)' Pr se e do? Nga se sht i smure? 'sht kjo? ka? far njeriu sht? E sejt sht kjo? Lidhor relative: caktuar /definite: q, i cili pacaktuar/indefinite: kush 'who-, cili 'which-, ' 'what-, sa 'how many- -ever': Hajde me k / cilin t duash.

1) 2) 3) 4)

e.g. ky sht imi - yni - juaji kjo sht imja - jotja - jona kta jan t mit - tuajt - t sajat nj dijetar yni

Structure of Albanian

10

Ndajfolja Adverbs
Nga, ku, kah (vend)
ktu(1)-aty(2)-atje(3) kndej/andej djthtas/mjtas drejt/shtrembt (do)kudo=tekdo 'every' kurr -kund -kah,askund 'no' diku, ak(se)ku, ndokund 'some' kund 'any' diku=gjkndi 'somewhere' asgjkndi 'nowhere' tjetrkund = gjtk = gjetu Kund nuk e gjete? 'Didn't you find it anywhere?' Kund nuk e gjeta.=I didn't find it anywhere E ke par kund? 'Have you seen it anywhere?' sipr, lart/posht afr, pran/larg brenda/jasht prpra/prpa

Kur (koh)

Sa (sasi)

tan,tash[t]/ather shume/pak hrt/von mjaft/tepr shpejt/m von kaq/aq rrall/dndur, shpesh[her] -her 'time' tashm/akma=nde=dhe(BvsR) -fish 'fold' gjithnj,kurd[hr]/ kurr Si (mnyre) dikur/do her kshtu/ashtu ditn/natn mir/keq sonte/mbrm shpejt/[dal]ngadal, avash[-]avash (n) mngjes/mbrmje-(mbrma) Pse (shkak,sebep,arsye) pranver/vjesht prse vers/dimrit (behar=pranver) far (silsi) (+ gen.) sivjet 'this'/vjet 'last' tjetrpardje - pardje - dje - sot - nesr - pasnesr - tjetrpasnesr derivational affixes: -()sht, -as/-azi, -thi, -e, procl. i >

Parafjala Prepositions
Nom. nga (G: kah), te(k)/_(V) Acc. me/pa, mbi/nn, ndr'among', pr 'for', npr 'thru', m 'in,on,by,at,with' n 'in,on,of' (unmodified takes indefinite) Abl. larg'far', afr'near', pran'next to', mes/ndrmjet'among', midis'between', pra'before', pas'after', sipas'according to', prej'from,of', drejt'toward', karsh/kundr'opposite', krhas'alongside', rreth'around', brnda'inside', prve'aside', gjat'during', jasht'outside'

Lidhza Conjunctions
and,also: but: or: than,for: either-or: neither-nor: therefore: then: whereas: since/because: so that: while: until: except: although: however: insofar as: unless: [as] if: nonethless: e,dhe,edh,si edh por, am, po ap, se, a se ose . . . ose . . . as . . . as . . . prandj,kshtu,ashtu,pra mandej,ather,pastaj kurse pas,seps pr t + verb ndrs deris,gjers,pas ves sad/sid q, dhe pse sidoqft,mirpo me qen se ve n mos (+opt'v) po [t],n(qoft)se,[sikr] megjithat, sadoms

Muajt e Vjetit Months of the Year

Janri Shkurti Marsi Prilli Maji Qershori Korriku Gushti Shtatori Tetori [Shmitr] Nndori [Shmhill] Dhjetori [Shnndre]

Ditt e Javs Days of the Week

e Diel e Hn e Mart e Merkur e Enjte e Premte e Shtun

Drejtime directions
veri 'north' jug 'south' lindje 'east' perndim 'west'

Koht e Ngrnies Mealtimes

mngjes mesdit paradite(/) paradreke(/) dark sill drek (rucek) pasdite (adv) pasdrek/-e pasdark/-e

Numror Numbers
Themelor nj ) dy (f. dy tre (f. tri) katr pes gjasht shtat tet nnt dhjet (zero) -mbdhjet(m) -dhjet(f) but njzet,dyzet -qind(m) (-ra) +mij (f )(pl. -a/-ra) +milion(m.pl. -/a) +miliard(m.pl. -/a) (num.=-; disa=-[r]a) insert e between each word dyzet e dy Rendor (i,e,t) 1st=par 3rd=tret 4th=katrt elsewhere, add -t -,-t > insert e & write as one word dyzetedyt i njjt'same' Thyesa fem. card'l + fem. ord'l nj e katrta nj e dyta/dy t tretat tri t katrta tri t tetat gjysm 'one half' eyrek 'one fourth' qindare 'one hundredth Aritmetik + dhe/plus - pa [heq nga] x her ndar pr = bjn/mbeten

Pjesza particles
a = interrogative po, sigurisht s', mos, nuk, jo mbase, ndofta, ndoshta vall = [acaba] bash = pikrisht = mu ja = voil substantivized bil 'even' 4-> = f (katra) sidoms 'especially' (po)thuajse,gti 'almost' X-sh = 'the number X' dy/dyja dot, fre 'at all' njsh 'unity',tresh'trinity tre/tria emphatic: dhe,sa,q,vetm q njsi'unit' njse 'anyway. . .'

pa (-less, un-) masc. dim. njerith 'uvula', qiellz 'palate', babush, vllako, bire fem. dim. kmbz 'trigger', , rrugic 'alley', upk, derik 'back door [kapicik]', qepushk 'seedling onion'

Structure of Albanian
Folja the verb PRES STEM e tashme present indicative (V) [C] j jm im n ni ni n jn in e pakryera lidhore imperfect subjunctive (V)/[C] <M> =dftore ja nim esha eshim (V)[C] je nit eshe eshit 2s = []sh (n)te nin ej/esh eshin 3s = (j) Urdhrore Imperative

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<M> em emi esh eni et en

{j} ([]) <u> / <u([ni])> {} = diphth-impv / mono-aor, pt habitorja (H) pres admirative impf kam kemi ksha ke keni kshe ka kan ksh/kej

AORIST STEM <U-> e kryera e thjesht aorist (v)a []m{} (v)e []t{} ([i/u])<> []n{} Foljet Ndihmse the auxiliary verbs have e tashme kam kemi ke keni ka kan e pakryera kisha kishim kishe kishit kishte/kish kishin lidhore kem kesh ket kemi keni ken

mnyra dshirore optative (f)sha (f)shim sh>/n_ (f)sh (f)shi nj_, sh_ (f)t (f)shin s_ (opt'l)

but s[h]>: pjesorja drsin'sweat' participle vendos'decide' [u]r{} ngjesh'knead' prish'spoil'

kshim kshit kshin

ZGJEDHIMI J O V E P R O R

be jam je sht jemi jeni jan

have e kryera pata pate pati/pat

be e thjesht patm qesh patt qe patn qe qofsha qofsh qoft

qem qet qen qofshim qofshi qofshin

isha ishim ishe ishit ishte/ish ishin jem jesh jet ji jemi jeni jen jini

dshirore paa paim pa pai past pain

(psor - vetvetor) mediopassive conjugation (impers'l, pass'v, reflx'v) 1. (V) verbs insert -h2. Aorist stem = active BUT preposed u & - in 3sg 3. Analytics substitute jam for kam N D RRIME F ONETIKE : [1] 2p pres, impf, impv, <M> [2 ] 23s pres indic'v (sbj=1s) [3] aor a. k,g,h ; a,e,i ,y +u ; other+i b. -a/sh,-e,-a (p, l,r, dh, th) [4 ] Pt - Adm, Opt a. [u] r () > b. other >

pjesorja / habitorja pasur / paska qen / qenka joveprore (ta., pakr., kr. e th.) kihet kihej u pat kihen kihshin u patn Mnyra Dshirore Optative Mood e tashme = optative e kryera = past + pt

urdhrore ki kini

Mnyra Dftore Indicative Mood Koha e tashme: present tense Koha e shkuar: past tense e pakryera: imperfect (synthetic) e kryera e thjesht: aorist e kryera: kam + pt. m se e kryera: kisha + pt. e kryera e tejshkuar (aor-2): pata + pt. e kryera e dyt: kam pas + pt. (Geg perf.) m se e kryera e dyt: kisha pas + pt. (Geg plup.) koha e ardhme: future tense e ardhmja: do t + conj. / (Geg) kam + inf. e ardhmja e prparme: do t kem + pt. Mnyra Kushtore Conditional Mood e tashme = e ardhmja e s shkuars (1) e kryera = e ardhmja e prparme e s shkuars (2) do t + impf (1) do t + plup (2) (kisha + inf) (kisha + past inf does not exist)

Mnyra Urdhrore = imperative Mnyra Lidhore = t + pres, perf(conj.), impf, plup Jussivi : le t + lidhore habitore : pres, impf(pt - stem + H); perf=paska+pt; plup=pasksh+pt Lidhore - habitore : t + habitore Pjesorja Participle paskajorja (pohore): pr t/me + pt (short pt) (supine) absolutivi: me t + pt [='upon/having'] forma e pashtjelluar mohore: pa + pt [='without/before'] prcjellorja: duke/tue + pt (also dyke, tyke, tuj, tu, ture) e kryera: particle (t) pas + pt (<M> = qen w/out u)

Structure of Albanian
I.1.A a) punoj 'work' kthej 'turn' b) rruaj 'shave' lyej 'paint,smear' I.1.B laj 'wash' fshij 'wipe' I.2.A arrij gogsij krcllij mbrrij prcllij teshtij I.2.B (pr)buj bzaj brej gjuaj huaj kruaj luaj mbaj mbroj mbuj quaj rrej rroj ruaj truaj vrrej vlej yej II.1.A hap mat vendos II.1.B ikechipII.2.A bjerr bredh djeg dredh hedh heq kredh mbjell mbledh ndell ndjek nxjerr 'arrive' 'yawn' 'gnash 'arrive,reach' 'sing' 'sneeze' 'sojourn' 'call' 'gnaw' 'hunt' 'lend' 'scratch' 'play','dance','move' 'hold' 'defend' 'knead' 'call' 'lie' 'live' 'watch over' 'dedicate' 'observe' 'be worth' 'have insomnia' 'open' 'measure' 'decide' 'go away' 'walk' 'mount' 'lose' 'run,stroll' 'burn' 'twist' 'throw' 'pull' 'dip' 'sow' 'gather' 'call,coax' 'follow' 'extract,publish' pjek rjep rrjedh shtjerr sjell tredh vjedh vjel vjell 'bake,meet' 'flay' 'leak,drip' 'unfurl' 'bring' 'castrate' 'steal' 'gather, harvest' 'vomit' b) pres 'cut' dhjes 'shit'

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NOT ngredh 'incite'(=II.1.A) II.2.B fsheh 'hide' ngjesh 'knead',apply,gird' ndez 'light,kindle' NOT (=II.1.A) ngreh 'wind',build' ndesh 'meet, encounter' II.2.C dal 'go out' njoh 'know' marr 'take' shoh 'see' rrah 'beat' II.3.A a) buas okas grgas grhas grthas mrdhas rrshqas sprkas trokas

III bie bie di dua fle ha jap l ngre nx prz pi rri shpie shtie them v vjen z

carry,bring fall know want sleep eat give leave,let lift study chase off drink sit send,take,cary pour.shoot say put come take

'echo' 'knock' 'annoy' 'snore' 'shout' 'feel cold' 'slip' 'spray' 'knock' 'shout' 'insert' 'shout' 'bang' 'explode' 'moo' 'touch' 'call' 'bleat'

NOTES ON WORD ORDER m jep = normal m jepni (pl. normal, sg. formal) jepm = informal jepmni = (pl. informal, sg. polite informal) nm/ni = impolite or familiar (mos ma jepni) Shqipria e shkret wretched Albania E shkreta Shqipri Poor Albania! Faiku sht djal i mir F. is a good boy (subject is topic [what the phrase is about]) sht djal i mir Faiku Hes a good boy, F. is (complement is topic, subject is comment) (subject is topic, new information is focus) Atje sht hoteli The hotel is over there. or Over there is the hotel (topic = location, focus = hotel) Hoteli sht atje The HOTEL is over there or it is the hotel that is over there (topic & focus = hotel) M pret gruaja My wife expects me (if no object, order = VS) Gruaja m pret My WIFE expects me (SV order = emphatic focussed subject) When object precedes verb it becomes topic E ke at Do you have it At e ke Do you really have that one At ke Is it that one that you have E njeh dyqanxhiun = same idea

b) brtas (brit) kllas (kall) klthas (klith) krcas (kris) plcas (plas) pllas (pall) prkas (prek) thrras (thirr) vrras (virr) c)

humbas (humb) 'lose' flas (fol) 'speak'

II.3.B shes 'sell' zbres 'descend' pres 'wait' II.3.C a) vras shkas ngas ngjas 'kill' 'slide' 'run' 'happen'

Structure of Albanian
I = (V) I.1.A (diphthong) Pt=-r, Aor=-m a) o > ua and e > ye in [3] pl., [4] & 3sg Aor <M> but not optv. impv. = (add -j- w/ V clitic) b) ua > o/u and ye > e/y in [3]sg &opt/ <M> not 3sg Aor impv. = j c) zej 'boil,' 'simmer,' 'stew' ndej 'feel, ie > i <M> ie > je in [3], & optv. I 1 B (monopthong) Pt=-r Aor=-m Impv=-j shnime i) blej 'buy' e>i [1] ii) bj 'do, make' hyj 'enter' add -r- [3]sg (but not <M> 3s aor.) impv = hyr 3s impf = hynt (cf. III.2) I.2.A&B (hybrid) A. -i + -T- [3],[4] (>[C]) B. -V + -jT- [3],[4] (>[C]) shnime i) gjej 'find' = gjet<M> = gjendii) vete 'go' = [C] in pres sg te > in rest of pres-stem: ve- mi, ni, n; sh, j vajt - [3],[4] (there is no impv, use shko-) II = [C] II.1.A (regular) shnime i) incl. dridh 'cause to shake' ii) prer 'slant, lean, turn' PT = prir B. e/je + h, sh, z > i [1] C. V > e [2] V > i [1] (except marr 'take' V > e) V > o [3] (except rrah 'beat') shnim shoh > pa - (V) [4] [3] pash, pe, pa II.3 A. (Sigmatic) a) as > it [1],[3],[4] > et [2] b)=a) OR (as > > a,i [3],[4], impv, <M>) c)=a) BUT (as > [3],[4]) B. es > it [1],[3],[4] > et [2] shnim pyes>pyet [2],[3],[4] C. a) as > it [1] > et [2] -s > = (V) -stem [3],[4] b) (j)e > it [1] -s > =V-stem [3],[4] je>e 3s aor <M>,PT(+r), adm D. vdes 'die' e > i [1] es > iq [3] s > k [4] III (V) ~ [C], etj. pres = m ni n but > / VV_ III.1 impv = pi 'drink' (elsewhere = (V))

13

III.2 V>i [1] but impv = V+r (but pl impv = 2pl) 3sg conj = V+r ie>je impv, 3s conj, 13p pres V>u [3] +r [3]sg (not 3sg <M>) V > + n [4] v 'put' z 'take' nx 'study' prz 'chase off' shpie 'send, take, carry' shnime i)shtie 'put, pour, shoot' V > i [3],4 (=stem can = (V)) ii)l 'leave, let' [3] lash iii) bie 'carry' 'bring' b > pr [3] pru/r [4] iv) bie 'fall' [3] rash, [4] rn III.3 e>i [1] impv= A. di fle ngre B. rri ha [3]-[4] dit-ur fjet-ur ngrit-ur ndenj-ur [h]ngr-n 'know' 'sleep' 'lift' 'sit' 'eat'

III.4.A vij 'come' = (V) [2] vjen impv=eja(ni) [3] erdh[4] ardh -ur III.4.B jap 'give' a > e [1],[2] [3] dhash [4] dhn III.4.C 'say' them themi thua thoni thot thon conj: 'love, like, want' dua duam do doni do duan

II.1.B 1s = -i 23s = -n II.2 (ablaut) PT = - / -l, -(r)r___ other (incl -ll) = -ur rr > r [3] incls. compounds, e.g. prA. e/je + l(l), r(r), k,g,q, dh > i [1] > o [3] k g > q gj [1],[3]; rr > r [3]

thuash thot duash doj impf = thosh-, do<M> = --u-impv = --uaj [3] = thash [4] =thn- desh-- (3sg can = ) dash-ur (opt'v daa)

Victor A. Friedman 14 1 4 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN GEG AND TOSK Victor A,. Friedman The two major dialect groups of Albanian are Geg (north) and Tosk (south). A significant bundle of isoglosses dividing the two dialect regions runs through the area south of the course of the river Shkumb in central Albania and then along the the river Drin through the middle of Struga in the Republic of Macedonia. The overwhelming majority of Albanian speakers in former Yugoslavia speak one or another of the varieties of Geg, the only exception being the Tosk speakers of the Ohrid-Prespa region in southwestern Macedonia.1 1. Phonology 1.1 Stress The stress patterns of Albanian dialects do not show significant variation (Gjinari 1970: 26). In general, Albanian stresses the final syllable of the stem, although there also exist certain classes of exceptions (see Newmark, Hubbard and Prifti 1982:15-18). One major difference between Tosk and Geg stress is in the treatment of Turkish loans in original final stressed -a or -e. In Tosk, Turkish loans are treated like other Albanian words with a final stressed vowel, hence bab 'father' , babi 'the father' , teneq 'tin' , teneqja 'the tin' , like native vll 'brother' , vlli 'the brother' , rruf 'lightning' , rrufja 'the lightning' . In Geg, however, the stress is shifted back and Turkish loans are adapted to the pattern of nouns in final schwa or original short -e, hence hllv 'sweetmeat' , hllva 'the sweetmeat' , penxhre 'window' , penxhrja 'the window' , like native p 'girl' , pa 'the girl' , dle 'ewe' , dlja 'the ewe' . In the standard language, the solution has been to adapt a mixture of these. Thus both Tosk bab 'father' and Geg bb 'father' are acceptable, but Geg tenqe 'tin' and Tosk penxher 'window' and hallv 'sweetmeat' are all excluded (Kostallari 1976).2 1.2 Vowels In Albanian, stressed schwa is characteristic of Tosk (and of the standard language) as opposed to Geg, which lacks it. Also, Geg drops unstressed schwa in many positions (with compensatory lengthening of preceding vowel in some cases), a feature that is represented in Standard Geg orthography, e.g. Geg vllezr 'brothers' ~ Tosk vllezr 'brothers'; Geg pla@k. 'old woman' ~ Tosk plak. Geg dialects all have phonemic length and nasality and as a result have between 14 and 19 vocalic phonemes.3 By contrast, Tosk lacks nasality and most Tosk dialects, including those of the region of Kor that serve as the basis of the standard language, lack both length and nasality. These Tosk dialects of the Kor region have seven phonemes: /a, e, i, o, u, , /.4 It should be noted, however, that intellectuals of Kosova and Macedonia insist that phonemic length is a legitimate feature of the Kosovar variant of Standard Albanian, i.e. this is one of those features that is a subject of variation within Standard Albanian, at least for speakers living outside of Albania (cf. Zymberi 1991). As indicated above, Geg lacks stressed schwa (Albanian orthographic <>). One area of important variation in this regard is the correspondence of Geg nasal /e)/ (orthographic <>) to Tosk /e/ or //, the distribution of which is complex, with southern Tosk being most consistent in the use of // (cf. Byron 1976b:102). Pre-War Standard Tosk had //, but the post-War Standard has codified /e/, e.g. zemr 'heart' vs the dialectal variants zmr and zmr. Most of the Albanian dialects of Macedonia have fourteen vowels, viz. /a, e, i, o, u/ long, short, and nasal except nasal /o)/, which does not occur in any Albanian dialect. The // of other dialects here corresponds to /i/. The Central Geg dialects of Albania
1For the most part, the dialects of Montenegro belong to Northwestern Geg, those of Kosov@ to Northeastern Geg, and those of Macedonia to Central Geg. The dialects of Central Albania (Southern Geg and Transitional) are spoken in some villages between Debar and Struga (Gjinari 1989:53-57 ). 2 It should be noted that given the stress pattern in the Turkish source, it is Geg that uses stress shift and not Tosk, pace Pipa (1989:9). There are a few other lexical items where Tosk oxytone corresponds to Geg paroxytone, e.g. Geg vri Tosk ver 'north', etc. In such words, Southern Geg (Central Albania) patterns with Tosk. In clusters of two vowels such as /a/, /e/, /y!e/, some northern Tosk dialects shift the stress onto the second vowel and treat the sequence as a rising diphthong (see Gjinari 1975:91-95). In all these instances, Standard Albanian follows Tosk (or southern Tosk). 3 The dialects of Debar (Albanian Dibr) in Macedonia and Ulcinj (Albanian Ulqinj) in Montenegro are unique among Geg dialects in their lack of nasality. 4The Southernmost Tosk dialects of Labri in Albania and amri in Greece (Greek Epiros) have phonemic length. All Albanian dialects except those without phonemic high front rounded // (Albanian orthographic <y>) have these seven vowels as their unstressed inventory.

Albanian Grammar

15 1 5 also lack // but add to this inventory mid front rounded // and /)/ thus having the same number but not the same inventory of phonemes as Northeastern Geg including Kosova and Southern Geg including the villages between Struga and Debar (Albanian Dibr) in Macedonia, which all have // and nasal /)/ (Gjinari 1989:102-106).5 1.3 Consonants Standard Albanian has a phonemic contrast between strident palatal affricates /c#, Z#/ and mellow palatal stops /k!, g!/ (Albanian orthographic <, xh> and <q, gj>, IPA [tS, dZ, c, J]). Most dialects of Kosova (also parts of Macedonia such as Kumanovo and Debar), however, merge the two into palatal affricates (Gjinari 1989:156). In Albanian, original /n/ became /r/ in Tosk but remained in Geg, e.g. Tosk Shqipri 'Albania' ~ Geg Shqipni 'Albania'. In Standard Albanian, rhotacized forms are prescribed with a few lexical exceptions (e.g. dashnor 'lover', cf. dashuri 'love'). Final devoicing in Albanian is characteristic of Northern Tosk and transitional Southern Geg but not of the Standard. 2. Morphology 2.1 Verbs In Albanian, there is a host of variants in verbal morphology. Thus, for example, in Northern Tosk the ending of the first singular present and subjunctive in vocalic stem verbs contains /n!/, elsewhere 1 sg pres./subj. uses /j/, e.g. Northern Tosk punonj 'I work' (PRES) and (SUBJ) ~ other Tosk punoj 'I work' (PRES) and (SUBJ).6 The morphologically distinct subjunctive, which occurs only in the second and third persons singular, is lost through generalization in Kosova and Macedonia. Thus, for example, Standard Albanian (and the dialect of Kor) opposes punon 'work' (23SG PRES INDIC) to punosh 'work' (2SG PRES SUBJ) and punoj 'work' (3SG PRES SUBJ).7 In Kosova, however, the suffix -n is generalized for both persons in both moods while in some dialects of Macedonia, e.g. Debar, the form in -n is generalized for the third singular in both moods and the suffix -jsh is used for both second singulars (v. Ajeti 1978:11-17, Barsha 1989:186-190).8 The presence of /s#/ in the imperfect is characteristic of Geg (except the southeastern Geg of Albania), whereas its absence is characteristic of Tosk, e.g. Geg punojsha 'work' 1SG IMPF ~ Tosk punonja 'work' 1SG IMPF.9 The shape of the standard variant, -ja e.g. punoja 'work' 1SG IMPF -- is characteristic only of a small region just north of Southern Tosk, although the suffix /j/ followed by schwa, /e/, or occurs throughout Southern Tosk as well as in Southeastern Geg (Gjinari 1989:248). In Albanian, there is signficant variation in the formation of pluperfects and in the shape of the participle, which is essential for a variety of analytic constructions. Geg has a series of compound perfects (perfects composed of a perfect or pluperfect auxiliary plus the participle) which are used to express what I have called pre-anterior taxis (Friedman 1981), i.e. a past resultative event prior to another past resultative event, as in kam pas shkue, literally '(I) have having gone', kisha pas shkue, literally '(I) had having gone'; both are translatable as 'I had gone' but with nuances of great distance in time. The following example illustrates this concept: (1) sht e vetmja breng shqiptoi (AOR) m qart ai, pasi kishte folur (PLUP) pr nj vajz me t ciln e kishin pas fejuar (CPD PLUP) prindt qysh n fmijri 'It is the only trouble he said (AOR) more clearly, after he had spoken (PLUP) about a
5The Albanian dialects of Macedonia and adjacent Central Geg dialects of Albania also have a characteristic diphthongization of stressed /i/ and /u/ to [ai8, ei8, i8] and [au8, ou8] in many environments, e.g. in Debar [s#!ii8t] for standard shit 'sell!'-IMP, [nou8k] for standard nuk 'not' (Basha 1989:148-50). On the other hand, Geg in general tends to monophthongize original diphthongs, e.g. /ue > u@, ie > i@, ye > y@/. As mentioned above, in Tosk there is variation between treating these as diphthongs, which is characteristic of northern Tosk, or as vowel sequences, which is southern Tosk and standard. (Gjinari 1989:201). In general, Geg has /vo-/ and Tosk /va-/ from original initial *o-, e.g. votr ~ vatr 'hearth' and /ue/ where Tosk has /ua/, e.g. mue ~ mua 'me'. 6This is part of a larger phenomenon of Geg /j/ ~ Tosk /nj/ (cf. Byron 1976b:99-102). 7 Southern Tosk also has /-j/ for the third singular subjunctive but it has /c#/ for the second singular subjunctive (Gjinari 1970:64-66).

Albanian Grammar

Victor A. Friedman

8 The neutralization of the indicative/subjunctive opposition probably reflects the influence of Macedonian, which epxresses this distinctinction syntactically, i.e. only with the modal subordinator da (equivalent to Albanian t). 9 There is also considerable variation in the shape of the final syllable: /ja, je, n!a, n!e, n!am, n!~ j !, j!~j, js#na, js#a, js#e/ (Gjinari 1989:248)

Albanian Grammar Victor A. Friedman 16 1 6 girl to whom his parents had engaged him (CPD PLUP) in childhood.' (Friedman 1981:278) Tosk would simply use a pluperfect in both instances. In the participle, Geg has short and long variants as in shkue ~ shkuem 'going' while Tosk has a single, rhotacized form as in shkuar 'going'. Also, in dialects where the aorists of the auxiliary verbs 'be' and 'have' are lost, the pluperfects formed with those auxiliaries in the standard language and other dialects are replaced by the imperfect (Basha 1989). There is also variation in the expression of aspect. In Albanian, as noted above, the aorists of the verbs 'be' and 'have' are excluded from some dialects, which in turn affects the formation of pluperfects. Morpho-syntactic differences between Geg and Tosk in analytic verbal constructions include the following: Geg infinitive of the type me shkuem (= 'with' + long participle) Tosk pr t shkuar (= 'for' + subordinator + participle) 'to go',10 the Geg use of 'be' as the auxiliary of the perfect of intransitive active verbs as opposed to the Tosk generalization of 'have' for all active verbs (both dialects use 'be' for the perfect of medio-passive verbs), e.g. Geg jam shkue 'I am gone' but Tosk kam shkuar 'I have gone', the Geg future of the type kam me shkue ('have' + infinitive) 'I will go', as opposed to the Tosk type do t shkoj (particle based on 'want' + subordinator + present subjunctive verb) 'I will go', the Geg progressive of the type jam kah shkoj (present tense of 'be' + towards + present tense verb) 'I am going' as opposed to the Tosk type po shkoj (progressive marker + present indicative verb) 'I am going' or jam duke shkuar (present indicative of 'be' + 'while' + participle) 'I am going', and the formation of gerunds Geg tue shkuem 'while going' ~ Tosk duke shkuar 'while going'. The following sentence illustrates differences in future constructions and other items: (2) Nuk kam me mjt me ardh n Shqipni. Jo t tna gjylpnat ishin t lame e t pastrueme. Tosk: Nuk do t mund t vij n Shqipri. Jo t tra gjilprat ishin t lara e t pastruara. I will not be able to come to Albania. Not all the needles were washed and cleaned. (after Pipa 1989:16-18) 2.2 Nominals In Albanian the main variation is the generalization of /-i/ as the definite article for all masculine nouns in Kosova (or those in /-h/ but not in /-k,-g/ in Macedonia [normally masculines in /h,k,g/ take /-u/]) (Gjinari 1989:254-56), e.g. bilbil/bilbili 'nightingale/the nightingale' but zog/zogu 'bird/the bird', krah/krahu 'wing, side/the wing, side'; but in Kosova zogi, 'the bird', krahi ' the wing, side' and in Macedonia zogu ' the bird', krahi ' the wing, side'. Albanian also has a difference in the indefinite article (Geg nji 'one, a' Tosk nj 'one, a'), which although phonologically based, was the subject of a potential, artificial morphological distinction.11 In the expression of reflexive possession, Tosk lacks a morphologically distinct reflexive possessive pronoun, whereas Geg has i vet 'one's own' for the third person, and this form has been adopted into the standard language. The use of i vet 'one's own' in some Tosk writers for non-third persons appears to be a hypercorrection (Byron 1976b:118). 3. Variation and Standardization Although a Tosk based standard was promulgated in Albania after World War Two and adopted by the ethnic Albanians of Yugoslavia in a process that lasted from 1968-1972. The lack of standardization before the publication of the standard reference tools of the 1970s made it extremely difficult for the foreign learner to know which forms to memorize. The following four examples are illustrative: (1) Present tense of wait SG PL 1 pres presim 2 pret pritni OR prisni 3 pret presin Imperfect stem is based on second plural, therefore: prisja, prisje, etc. OR pritja. pritje, etc. (2) gjen find Four possible third person singular medio-passive aorists:
10 The Tosk type of construction also occurs in the Albanian dialects of Macedonia south of Debar. The Geg infinitive is permitted in certain expressions that have achieved wide currency, e.g. domethan 'that is to say'. 11Faik Konica proposed that Geg nji be used for feminine nouns and Tosk nj for masculine, but his proposal was not accepted (Byron 1976a).

Albanian Grammar Victor A. Friedman 17 1 7 u gjet OR u gjind OR u gjnd OR u gjend (3) rri sit Four possible participles: ndejt-ur OR ndjt-ur OR ndenj-ur OR ndnj-ur The participle is the basis for both aorist and admirative paradigm, thus leading to four different sets of paradigms. (4) ha eat Two third singular aorists and an irregular participle, any of which can form the basis of the admirative paradigm: hngri OR hangri, participle ngrn third singular present admirative: hngrka OR hangrka OR ngrnka REFERENCES Ajeti, Idriz. 1978. Vshtrim mbi prdorimin e konjukivit t gjuhs shqipe. Krkime gjuhsore by Idriz Ajeti, 11-17. Prishtina: Rilindja. Basha, Naim. 1989. E folmja e qytetit t Dibrs. Studime Gjuhsore II (Dialektologji) ed. by Shaqir Berani et al., 137-221. Prishtin: Insituti Albanologjik i Prishtins. Byron, Janet L. 1976a. "Faik Konitza dhe gjuha letrare shqipe" [Faik Konitza and the Albanian Literary Language"]. In: Edward Licho (ed.), Faik Konitza 1876-1976. New York: Vatra, pp. 49-51. Byron, Janet L. 1976b. Selection Among Alternates in Language Standardization: The Case of Albanian. The Hague: Mouton. Friedman, Victor A. 1981. The Pluperfect in Albanian and Macedonian. Folia Slavica, 4:2/3. 27382. Gjinari, Jorgji. 1970. Dialektologjia shqiptare. Prishtin: Universiteti i Prishtins. ________.. 1975. Dialektologjia shqiptare. Tiran: Universiteti i Tirans. ________. 1989. Dialektet e gjuhs shqipe. Tiran: Akademia e Shkencave e RPS t Shqipris. Newmark, Leonard, Philip Hubbard and Peter Prifti. 1982. Standard Albanian. Stanford: Stanford University. Pipa, Arshi. 1989. The Politics of Language in Socialist Albania. Boulder: East European Monographs. Zymberi, Isa. 1991. Colloquial Albanian. London: Routledge.