Kamkata-viri language

Kamkata-vari
Kati
Native to Afghanistan
Region Nuristan, Kunar
Native speakers
 154,010 (2011-2017)[1]
Dialects
Language codes
ISO 639-3 Either:
bsh – Kati
xvi – Kamviri
Glottolog kati1241[2]
Linguasphere 58-ACB-a

Kamkata-vari is the largest Nuristani language. It contains the main dialects Kata-vari, Kamviri and Mumviri. Kata-vari and Kamviri are sometimes erroneously reckoned as two separate languages, but according to linguist Richard Strand they form one language.

The Kamkata-vari language is spoken by 40,000–60,000 people, from the Kata, Kom, Mumo, Kshto and some smaller Black-Robed tribes in parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan. There are dialectal differences of the Kamkata-vari speakers of Pakistan. The most used alternative names for the language are Kati or Bashgali.

Classification

It belongs to the Indo-European language family and is in the Nuristani group of the Indo-Iranian branch.

Dialects

There are four main dialects: Eastern Kata-vari, Western Kata-vari, Kamviri and Mumviri. The last two are sometimes erroneously defined as separate languages.

Status

Literacy rates are low: below 1% for people who have it as a first language and between 15% and 25% for people who have it as a second language. The Katavari dialect can be heard on radio in Afghanistan.

References

  1. ↑ Kati at Ethnologue (19th ed., 2016)
    Kamviri at Ethnologue (19th ed., 2016)
  2. ↑ Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Kati–Kamviri". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
  • Strand, Richard F. (2010). "Nurestâni Languages". Encyclopaedia Iranica, Online Edition. Retrieved 2012-01-16.
  • Strand, Richard F. (1997). "Nuristan: Hidden Land of the Hindu-Kush". Retrieved 2012-01-16.
  • Strand, Richard F. (1997). "The kâtʹa, kʹom, mumʹo, kṣtʹo, biniʹo, ǰâmčʹo, and ǰâšʹa". Retrieved 2012-01-16.
  • Strand, Richard F. (1999). "Kâmvʹiri Lexicon". Retrieved 2012-01-16.
  • Strand, Richard F. (1997). "The Sound System of Kâmvʹiri". Retrieved 2012-01-16.
  • Strand, Richard F. (2011). "Kâtʹa-vari Lexicon". Retrieved 2012-01-16.
  • Strand, Richard F. (2011). "The Sound System of Kt'ivřâ·i vari". Retrieved 2012-01-16.
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