Semigallian language
Extinct Baltic language of Semigallia
| Semigallian | |
|---|---|
| Zemgalian | |
| Native to | Latvia and Lithuania |
| Extinct | 16th century |
Language family | Indo-European
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | xzm |
Linguist List | xzm |
| Glottolog | zemg1234 Zemgalian |
Semigallian or Zemgalian, was an East Baltic language of the Baltic language sub-family of the Indo-European languages.
History
It was spoken in the northern part of Lithuania and southern regions of Latvia in what is known as Semigallia. It is thought that it was extinct by the 16th century, with the assimilation by the Latvians.[1] Semigallian is known only from references to it in documents and texts from before the 16th century.
Phonology
Semigallian shares some phonological similarities to Curonian and, to a lesser extent, Latvian. The Common Baltic /k/, /ɡ/ consonants became /c/, /d͡z/ in their soft varieties in Semigalian. All long vowels and diphthongs at the end of the word in Common Baltic were reduced to simple short vowels in Semigallian.[2]
References
- v
- t
- e
Baltic languages
- West Galindian
- Old Prussian
- Sudovian
- Skalvian (possibly separate West Baltic)
- Curonian?
- Latvian
- Lithuanian
- Selonian
- Semigallian
- East Galindian
Italics indicate extinct languages · Languages between parentheses are varieties of the language on their left · Asterisk (*) indicates dialects occasionally classified as languages · Question mark (?) indicates disputed classification.
 | This Indo-European languages-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- v
- t
- e
