Arbëresh
Arbërisht
Pronunciation[ˌaɾbəˈɾiʃt]
Native toItaly
RegionAbruzzo, Apulia, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Molise, Sicily
EthnicityArbëreshë
Native speakers
70,000-100,000[1]
Early forms
Dialects

Palermitan Albanian

Calabrian Albanian
Latin
Language codes
ISO 639-3aae
Glottologarbe1236
ELPArbëreshë
Linguasphere55-AAA-ah

Arbëresh (gluha/gjuha/gjufa Arbëreshe; also known as Arbërisht) is the variety of Albanian spoken by the Arbëreshë people of Italy. It is derived from the Albanian Tosk spoken in Albania, in Epirus and is also spoken by the Arvanites, with endonym Arvanitika.

History

Between the 11th and 14th centuries, Albanian-speaking mercenaries from the areas of medieval Albania, Epirus and Morea now Peloponesse, were often recruited by the Franks, Aragonese, Italians and Byzantines.

The invasion of the Balkans by the Ottoman Turks in the 15th century caused large waves of emigration from the Balkans to southern Italy. In 1448, the King of Naples, Alfonso V of Aragon, asked the Albanian noble Skanderbeg to transfer to his service ethnic Albanian mercenaries. Led by Demetrio Reres and his two sons, these men and their families were settled in twelve villages in the Catanzaro area of Calabria. The following year, some of their relatives and other Albanians were settled in four villages in Sicily.[2][3] In 1459 Ferdinand I of Naples also requested assistance from Skanderbeg. After victories in two battles, a second contingent of Albanians was rewarded with land east of Taranto, in Apulia, where they founded 15 villages.[4][5] After the death of Skanderbeg (1468), resistance to the Ottomans in Albania came to an end. Subsequently, many Albanians fled to neighbouring countries and some settled in villages in Calabria.

There was a constant flow of ethnic Albanians into Italy into the 16th century, and other Albanian villages were formed on Italian soil.[6][5] The new immigrants often took up work as mercenaries with Italian armies. For instance, between 1500 and 1534, Albanians from central Greece were employed as mercenaries by Venice, to evacuate its colonies in the Peloponnese, as the Turks invaded. Afterwards these troops reinforced defences in southern Italy against the threat of Turkish invasion. They established self-contained communities, which enabled their distinct language and culture to flourish. Arbëreshë, as they became known, were often soldiers for the Kingdom of Naples and the Republic of Venice, between the 16th and 19th centuries.

Despite an Arbëreshë cultural and artistic revival in the 19th century, emigration from southern Italy significantly reduced the population. In particular, migration to the Americas between 1900 and 1940 caused the total depopulation of approximately half of the Arbëreshë villages. The speech community forms part of the highly heterogenous linguistic landscape of Italy, with 12 recognised linguistic minorities Italian state law (law 482/1999).[7] The exact Arbëresh speech population is uncertain, as the Italian national census does not collect data on minority language speakers. This is also further complicated by the Italian state's protection of the Albanian culture and population as a whole and not Arbëresh Albanian specifically. This law theoretically implements specific measures in various fields such as education, communication, radio, press and TV public service, but in the case of the Arberesh community the legal construction of the language as "Albanian" and the community as the "Albanian population" effectively homogenises the language and has not led to adequate provision for the linguistic needs of the communities.

Classification

Paleo-Balkanic

Armenian

Graeco-Albanian

Graeco-Phrygian

Illyric

Messapic

Albanian

Gheg

Tosk

Arvanitika

Arberesh

Mainland Tosk

Albanian and Messapic in the Paleo-Balkanic branch based on "The Indo-European Language Family" by Brian D. Joseph and Adam Hyllested (2022)

Arbëresh derives from a medieval variety of Tosk, which was spoken in southern Albania and from which the modern Tosk is also derived. It follows a similar evolutionary pattern to Arvanitika, a similar language spoken in Greece. Arbëresh is spoken in Southern Italy in the regions of Abruzzi, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Molise, Apulia and Sicily. The varieties of Arbëresh are closely related to each other but are not always entirely mutually intelligible.

Arbëresh retains many features of medieval Albanian from the time before the Ottoman invasion of Albania in the 15th century. It also retains some Greek elements, including vocabulary and pronunciation, most of which it shares with its relative Arvanitika. Many of the conservative features of Arbëresh were lost in mainstream Albanian Tosk. For example, it has preserved certain syllable-initial consonant clusters which have been simplified in Standard Albanian (cf. Arbëresh gluhë /ˈɡluxə/ ('language/tongue'), vs. Standard Albanian gjuhë /ˈɟuhə/). Arbëresh most resembles the dialect of Albanian spoken in the southern region of Albania, and also that of Çam Albanians.

Arbëresh was commonly called Albanese ('Albanian' in the Italian language) in Italy until the 1990s. Until the 1980s Arbëresh was mostly a spoken language, except for its written form used in the Italo-Albanian Byzantine Church, and Arbëreshë people had no practical connection with the Standard Albanian language used in Albania, as they did not use the standard Albanian form of writing.[8]

Since the 1980s, some efforts have been organized to preserve the cultural and linguistic heritage of the language.

Arbëresh has been replaced by local Romance languages and by Italian in several villages, and in others is experiencing contact-induced language shift. Many scholars have produced language learning materials for communities, including those by Giuseppe Schirò Di Maggio , Gaetano Gerbino, Matteo Mandalà, Zef Chiaramonte, Martin Hasan di Maggio.

Varieties of Albanian

Language or dialect

Arbëresh language beside medieval mainland Tosk Albanian is also descended from Arvanitika which evolved separately from other forms of Albanian since the 13th century when its first speakers emigrated to Morea from Southern Albania and Epirus.[9] A dialect is defined linguistically as closely related and, despite their differences, by mutual intelligibility. In the absence of rigorous linguistic intelligibility tests, the claim cannot be made whether one is a dialect or a separate variant of the same language group.[10][8][11][12]

Varieties

The varieties of Arbëresh largely correspond with the regions where they are spoken, while some settlements have distinctive features that result in greater or lesser degrees of mutual intelligibility.

The Siculo-Arbëresh variety is spoken exclusively in the Province of Palermo and in three villages: Piana degli Albanesi, Santa Cristina Gela and Contessa Entellina; while the varieties of Piana and Santa Cristina Gela are similar enough to be entirely mutually intelligible, the variety of Contessa Entellina is not entirely intelligible. Therefore a further dialect within Siculo-Arbëresh known as the Palermitan-Arbëresh variety can be identified,[13] as well as a Cosenza variety, a Basilicata variety, and a Campania variety represented by the speech of one single settlement of Greci. There is also a Molisan-Arbëresh and an Apulio-Arbëresh.

Within the Cosenza Calabrian varieties of Arbëresh, the dialect of Vaccarizzo Albanese is particularly distinct. Spoken in the villages of Vaccarizzo Albanese and San Giorgio Albanese in Calabria by approximately 3,000 people, Vaccarizzo Albanian has retained many archaic features of both Gheg and Tosk dialects.

Phonology

Some features of Arbëresh distinguish it considerably from standard Albanian while also maintaining features still used in other Tosk Albanian dialects. In some cases these are retentions of older pronunciations.

Vowels

Ë

The letter Ë is pronounced as either a mid central vowel [ə] or as a close back unrounded vowel [ɯ]. So the word Arbëresh is pronounced either [ɑɾbəˈɾɛʃ] or [ɑɾbɯˈɾɛʃ] depending on the dialect.

Y to I

Arbëresh lacks the close front rounded vowel [y] of Albanian, which is replaced by the close front unrounded vowel [i]. For example ty ('you') becomes ti, and hyni ('enter') becomes hini.

Consonants

GJ, Q

The letters GJ and Q are pronounced as a palatalized voiced velar plosive [ɡʲ] and a palatalized voiceless velar plosive [kʲ], rather than a voiced palatal plosive [ɟ] and a voiceless palatal plosive [c] as in standard Albanian. E.g. the word gjith ('all') is pronounced [ɡʲiθ] rather than [ɟiθ], qiell ('heaven') is pronounced [kʲiɛx] rather than [ciɛɫ], and shqip ('Albanian') is pronounced [ʃkʲɪp].

GL, KL

In some words, Arbëresh has preserved the consonant clusters /ɡl/ and /kl/. In Standard Albanian these have mostly become the palatal stops gj and q, e.g. glet not gjet ('s/he looks like ... '), klumësht not qumësht ('milk'), and klisha instead of kisha ('church').

H, HJ

The letter H is pronounced as a voiceless velar fricative [x] (a sound also found in Greek: χαρά [xaˈra], 'joy'). As such, the Albanian word ha ('eat') is pronounced [xɑ], not [hɑ]. Arbëresh additionally has the palatalized counterpart, [ç]. Therefore, the word hjedh ('throw') is pronounced [çɛθ]. The letter combination HJ is present in a few standard Albanian words (without a voiceless velar fricative), but is not treated as a separate letter of the alphabet as it is in Arbëresh.

LL, G, GH

The letters LL and G are realised as a voiced velar fricative [ɣ] (also found in Greek: γάλα [ˈɣala], 'milk'). The vast majority of these words originate in Sicilian, but the sound also occurs in words of Albanian origin. Often G when pronounced [ɣ] is replaced by GH in the Arbëresh orthography, with G in theory reserved for /g/ (although in practice it is inconsistent). This feature is very strong that it is carried over into the Italian speech of inhabitants of Piana degli Albanesi and Santa Cristina Gela in words such as grazie, frigorifero, gallera, magro, gamba etc. which are realised respectively as [ʁratsiɛ], [friɣoˈrifero], [ɣaˈlɛra], [ˈmaɣro], [ˈʁamba] etc.[14][15] In Piana degli Albanesi the tendency is to treat Italian loanwords differently from Sicilian, which results in the difference between llampjun, pronounced as [ʁampˈjun] (from lampione, 'lamp post'), and lampadhin, pronounced as [lampaˈðin] (from Italian lampadina). In the first example, the L becomes LL [ʁ] because it comes from Sicilian, whereas in the process of transference from the Italian lampadina to Arbëresh lampadhin, the l does not change but the d becomes [ð].

Words of Albanian Origin
WrittenPronouncedEnglish
gëzim[ʁzim]joy
grish[ʁriʃ]invite
llah[ɣaχ]eat until stuffed
pagëzim[paʁˈzim]baptism
Words of Sicilian Origin
WrittenPronounced
fughurë[fuɣurə]
fugatjar[fuɣatˈjar]
garazh[ɣarˈaʒ]
ghurg[ɣurɣ]
ghust[ɣust]
ghuant[ɣwant]
maghare[maɣaˈri]

Final devoicing of consonants

Arbëresh has retained an archaic system of final devoicing of consonants in contrast with Standart Albanian. The consonants that change when in final position or before another consonant are the voiced stops b, d, g, gj; the voiced affricates x, xh; and the voiced fricatives dh, ll, v, z, zh.

Original voiced b [b]d [d]g/gh [ɡ]/[ɣ]gj [ɡʲ] x [dz]xh [] dh [ð]ll [ɣ]v [v]z [z]zh [ʒ]
Devoiced p [p]t [t]k [k]q [kʲ] c [ts]ch [] th [θ]h [x]f [f]s [s]sh [ʃ]

Examples:

  • b > p: thelb ('clove') - [θɛlp]
  • d > t: Vent ('place') - [vɛnt]
  • dh > th: zgledh ('read') - [sklɛθ]
  • g > k: lig ('bad') - [lɪk]
  • gj > q: zogj ('chicks') - [zɔkʲ]
  • j > hj: vaj ('oil') - [vaç]
  • ll > h: uthull ('vinegar') - [ʊθʊχ]
  • x > c: ndanx ('near') - [ndant͡s]
  • z > s: loz ('dance') - [lɔs]
  • zh > sh: gozhda ('pin') - [ɣɔʃda]

Stress

Stress in Arbëresh is usually on the penultimate syllable, as in Italian.

Morphology

In Arbëresh the first person present indicative (e.g. "I work") is marked by the word ending in NJ, whereas in Albanian this is normally marked by J. So, 'I live' is rrónj in Arbëresh and rroj in standard Albanian. The present continuous or gerund differs from Standard Albanian; Arbëresh uses the form "jam'e bënj" instead of "po bej" (I am doing).

Non-Albanian derived elements

Vocabulary

The adoption of words of ancient Greek origin or of the Koine comes above all from their use in Byzantine religious practices, when the corresponding use in Albanian declined, the "courtly" one of the church was used. The Arberesh use ancient Greek in their liturgies. Thus synonyms are created, such as parkales or lutje for the word "prayer".

Some Arbëresh words appear to be of Koine Greek influence. Examples:

  • amáhj [aˈmaç] ('war') < μάχη [ˈmaçi] ('battle').
  • haristís [xaɾiˈstis] ('thank') < ευχαριστώ [e̞fˌxariˈsto̞] ('thank you'). Arvanitika uses fharistisem.
  • hora [xɔˈɾə] ('village') < χώρα [chóra] ('land, village')
  • parkalés [paɾkaˈlɛs] ('I plead', 'please') from παρακαλώ [paˌrakaˈlo̞] ('please').
  • hiravol (sheaf, a bundle of harvested crop), < χειρόβολο (χειρ = hand).

Some Arbëresh words appear to be of Albanian Arvanitika which has influenced the current Greek areas since the Middle Ages. Examples:

  • dhomat (bundle, pack), < Gr. δεμάτιον.
  • argomē (fallow, plowing), < όργωμα. Today surviving in the toponym Argomazit of Piana dei Albanesi.
  • kalogreshza (little woman monk), < καλόγρια = woman monk.
  • gjitonia (neighbourhood), < γειτονία.
  • dhaskal (teacher), < δάσκαλος.

On the Koine Greek elements in the Italo-Albanian dialects see T. Jochalas (1975).[16]

Archaic Latin-Sicilianisms

In the Arbëresh varieties of Sicily and Calabria there are loanwords from the Sicilian language that have crystallized into the Arberesh language matrix at some time in the past but have now mostly disappeared, or evolved in the Romance vocabulary of the local population. This also occurs in other Arberesh varieties outside of Sicily with the local Romance varieties of their communities.

Examples:

  • ghranet ('money') < Sic. granna, meaning 'grains'. It is still used in some contexts by modern Sicilian speakers, but in all situations in Arbëresh. Another Arbëresh word for 'money' is haromë, but is no longer used.
  • qaca ('square') < Sic. chiazza; used in all Arbëresh dialects as well as Sicilian. The Albanian word sheshi which means 'square' in standard Albanian means 'plateau' in Arbëresh.
  • rritrenjet ('toilets') < Norman French via Sic. retained in Arbëresh, but no longer in use in modern Sicilian.
  • rritrat ('photograph') < Sic. 'picture' (ritrattu), more common in Arbëresh than in modern Sicilian.
  • zdar (to go to the countryside) < Sic. sdari; no longer commonly used in Sicilian.
  • zgarrar (to make a mistake; to err) < Sic. sgarrari (now carries a different meaning in Sicilian).

Incorporation

Alongside the Sicilian vocabulary element in Siculo-Arbëresh, the language also includes grammatical rules for the incorporation of Sicilian-derived verbs in Arbëresh, which differs from the rules concerning Albanian lexical material.

Examples:

  • pincar ('think'), originally mendonjmbanj mend but also mëndinj; derived from the Sicilian 'pinzari'. Which conjugates in the present tense as follows:
  • U pincar = I think
  • Ti pincar = You think
  • Ai/Ajo pincar = He/She thinks
  • Na pincarjëm = We think
  • Ju pincarni = You (pl) think
  • Ata/Ato pincarjën = They think

In the past tense this conjugates as follows:

  • U pincarta = I thought
  • Ti pincarte = You thought
  • Ai/Ajo pincarti = He/She thought
  • Na pincartëm = We thought
  • Ju pincartët = You (pl.) thought
  • Ata/Ato pincartën = They thought

Contractions

M’e tha muaHe told it to me (feminine object)
Ngë m’i tha muaHe did not tell it to me (masculine object)
T’e thomI tell you it (feminine object)
T’i thomI tell you it (masculine object)

Diminutives and augmentatives

The Arbëresh diminutive and augmentative system is calqued from Sicilian and takes the form of /-ats(-ɛ)/ = Sic. -azz(u/a); for example "kalac" (cavallone/big horse), and the diminutive takes the form of /-tʃ-ɛl(-ɛ) from Sic. /-c-edd(u/a); for example "vajziçele" (raggazzina/little girl).The Arbëresh word for "swear word" is "fjalac" and comes from a fusion of the Arbëresh word of Albanian etymology: "fjalë" plus the Sicilian augmentative /-azz[a]/ minus the feminine gendered ending /-a/; this calques the Sicilian word 'palurazza' which is cognate with Italian 'parolaccia'.[15]

Comparison with other forms of Albanian

There are many instances in which Arberisht differs greatly from Standard Albanian, for instance:

ArbërishtShqip (Standard Albanian)Meaning
Falem (Falemi if more than one person)Përshëndetje / TungjatjetaHello
Mirë se na jerdhët / Mirë se viniMirë se erdhëtWelcome
MirëmenatMirëmëngjesGood morning (morning, until noon)
Vjen’ më rarë or vjen më thënëdo të thotë or do me thënëIt means
Bëjëm të shkonj (Piana degli Albanesi)më le të kalojLet me pass
Shkòmë musturënmë jep piperinPass me the pepper
Zotërote ë një "zot"?Zotëri, jeni prift?Sir, are you a priest?
E ghrish zotërisë satë për një pasjatëju ftoj për një shëtitjeI invite you for a stroll
Zglith/djovasë mirëlexo mirëRead well
qëroi isht burinë i likmoti është shumë i keqThe weather is very bad
U rri Sëndahstinëjetoj në Shën KristinëI live in Santa Cristina
Ka bëjëm të ngrënitdo ta gatuajmë ushqiminWe will prepare the food
U ka jecur njera qacësunë kam ecur tek sheshiI have walked to the square
Ghajdhuri isht ndë horë/katundgomari është në katund/fshatThe donkey is into the village
Jam e vete ngulem/flëunë do të shtrihem/fleI'm going to sleep
lip ndjesë se zgarrarta/gabova shumëmë fal se gabova shumëI'm sorry that I've made so many errors
Ajo isht jime shoqeajo është gruaja ime/Im shoqeShe is my wife
Flit t'arbrishtfol shqipSpeak Albanian
Jim shoq isht e nguletburri im/Im'shoq është duke fjeturMy husband is sleeping
Më përqen rritëratin tëndmë pëlqen fotografia joteI like our photograph
Mortatë or motrëmëmëhallë or tezëAunt
Lalë or vovixhaxha or Lalë (dialect)Uncle or Older brother
Lalbukriburri i hallësUncle uncle in law (father's sister's husband)
Vovamotra e madheOlder sister
Tatababai or at/tata (dialect)Father
Mëmënënë or mamaMother
Mëdhèedhe/endeAlso
ghuavëllabrother
NdrëngovaKuptovaI understood
SprasmjaFundend
Jot'ëm sempri të thëshjë të mos haje nga tajuri çë ngë ka' klënë pastruar!Jot'ëmë përherë/gjithmonë të thoshte të mos haje nga pjata që nuk është pastruar!Your mother always said don't eat from plates that haven't been cleaned!
Kemi besë se ai ngë i ftesbesojmë se ai nuk ka fajWe believe he is not at fault
The Lord's Prayer Arbëresh by Sicily (first row)

Compared with Standard Tosk Albanian (second row),
and Gheg Albanian (third row).

Áti jinëçë jeqiell,shejtëruar kloftembrijít.
Ati ynëqë jeqiell,u shënjtëroftëemriyt.
Ati ynëqë jeqiell,shejtnue kjoftëemniyt.
Our father who art in heavenhallowed be thy name
arthëtrregjëriajóte;u bëftëvullimijít,
arthtëmbretëriajote;u bëftëdëshirajote,
ardhtëmbretniajote;u baftëvullnesajote,
thy kingdom comethy will be done
si ndëqiell,ashtúdhé;
si nëqiell,edhembidhe.
si nëqiellashtudhe.
on earth as it is in heaven
bukëntënëtë përditshmeënanevesòt;
bukëntonëtë përditëshmejepnanevesot;
bukëntonëtë përditshmeepnanesot;
give us this day our daily bread
ndëjenadëtyrëttóna,
edhefalnafajettona,
e ndiejna ne fajet e mëkatettona,
and forgive us our trespasses
ashtù sinajandëjejëmdëtyruamëvettanë;
sikundëredheneuafalimfajtorëvettanë;
si i ndiejmë nafajtorëttanë;
as we forgive those who trespass against us
emosnalebiemngarje,lironangailigu;
edhemosnashtjerëngasje,poshpëtonangailigu;
emosnalen me rakeq,porlargonaprej gjith së keq;
and lead us not into temptationbut deliver us from evil
Ashtu kloft.
Ashtu qoft.
Amin.

Grammar comparison

There are many elements of Arberesh grammar that differ considerably from Albanian, for example:

ArbërishtShqipMeaningNotes
ka shkoshdo të kaloshYou will pass Arbërisht uses the common Balkan participle ka, whereas Shqip uses do which translates as 'want', which is also a feature of the Balkan sprachsbund
flini alluras/anangasijfolni/flisni shpejtSpeak fast (pl.)
flënifliniSleep! (pl.)
bëjëm të shkonjmë lër të kalojLet me pass Shqip uses 'allow me to pass' whereas Arbërisht uses 'we do to pass' and 'able to pass'.
vajtaVajta/shkovaI went Arbërisht conjugates from the Tosk word të vete whereas shkova means 'I passed' in Arbërisht
ke gjegjurke dëgjuarYou have heard
Zoti/prifti zën fill parkalesin/lutjenPrifti fillon lutjenThe priest starts the prayer
StisNdërtojI build
Jo, nëng/ngë e kam parëJo, nuk e kam parëNo, I haven't seen it
jam e flas, je flet, ai isht e flet, ajo isht e flet, jem'e flasjëm, jan'e flasjën, jan'e flini po flas, ti po flet, ai po flet, ajo po flet, po flasim, po flasin, po flisniI am talking, you are talking, he is talking, she is talking, we are talking, they are talking, you (pl) are talking The present continuous is marked with the structure 'I am, You are, He is, She is, We are, They are etc. Whereas Shqip uses po which literally means 'yes'
ki’ të zgjoneshjëmduhet të ishim zgjuarWe should have got up
Ku ë/isht/osht Mëria?Ku është Maria?Where is Maria? The locative marker te which literally means 'to' is added before ku 'where'. (A similar phenomena occurs in Welsh English and West Country English i.e. 'Where to you going?' or 'Where's he to?')
Mërìa rri alartëMaria jeton lartëMaria lives upstairs
Si ë Zotërote?Si jeni ju, Zotëri?How are you sir? The polite or formal is marked by use of Zotërote with ju being reserved for the plural only

Name

The name Arbërishte is derived from the ethnonym "Albanoi", which in turn comes from the toponym "Arbëria" (Greek: Άρβανα), which in the Middle Ages referred to a region in what is today Albania (Babiniotis 1998). Its native equivalents (Arbërorë, Arbëreshë and others) used to be the self-designation of Albanians in general. Both "Arbëria" and "Albania/Albanian" go further back to name forms attested since antiquity.

Within the Arbëresh community the language is often referred to as "Tarbrisht" or "Gjegje." The origin of the term "gjegje" is uncertain, however this does mean "listen" in Arbërisht. Gheg is also the name of one of the two major dialects of Albanian as spoken in the Balkans. According to the writer Arshi Pipa, the term Gegë was initially used for confessional denotation, being used in pre-Ottoman Albania by its Orthodox population when referring to their Catholic neighbors.

[17]

Arbëresh names

Every Italo-Albanian person is given a legal Italian name and also a name in Albanian Arbërisht. Quite often the Arbëresh name is merely a translation of the Italian name. Arbëresh surnames are also used amongst villagers but do not carry any legal weight; the Arbëresh surname is called an "ofiqe" in Arbërisht. Some Arbëresh 'ofiqe' are 'Butijuni', 'Pafundi', 'Skarpari' (shoemaker from Italian word 'scarpa').

Examples of Italian names and their Arbëresh equivalents:

Italian Arbëresh
GiuseppeZef, Josif
MarcoMarku
LucaLekë, Lekini/u
FrancescoFrangjishk, Nxhiku, Çiku
NicolaKola, Koll, Nikoll
AngelicaËngjëlliqe
GabrieleGavril, Bjelli
AlessandroLishëndër-i
Elena, ElenucciaLena, Lenuca
GiacomoMinu, Minikeli, Jakini
Mario, MariuccioMarjani, Marjucë
Emanuele, ManueleManuel-i
MariaMëria
MartinoMartini, Tinuçë
GaetanoTani
EleuterioLëfteri
AntonioNdon, Nton, Gjon
GaspareGhaspani
DomenicaMima
LorenzoLloreu
GiovanniJani, Xhuan, Vanù
DemetrioDhimitër-i
SpiridioneSpiridhon, Dhoni, Spiro
Rosalia, RosarioSallja, Saridu
Tommaso, TommasinoMasinë
CosimoGësmëni
SaverioShaverë
AndreaNdrica

Writing system

The language is not usually written outside of the church and a few highly educated families, but officials are now using the standard Albanian alphabet, which is used on street signs in villages as well as being taught in schools.

Language samples

Pronouns

 Personal pronounsPossessive pronouns
1Sg.uIjimmine
2Sg.tiyoujytëyours
3Sg.m.ajihei/e tíjhis
3Sg.f.ajoshei/e sajhers
1Pl.nawejynëours
2Pl.juyoujuajyours
3Pl.m.atathey (m.)atyretheirs (m.)
3Pl.f.atothey (f.)atyretheirs (f.)

Verbs

Personal moods
MoodTenseNumber and personEnglish
equivalent
(only sg. 1st)
SingularPlural
1st2nd3rd1st2nd3rd
Indicative Pluperfect kisha burëkishe burëkishë burëkishëm burëkishni burëkishin burëI had done
Imperfect ish'e buja (she buja)ish'e buje (she buje)ish'e bun (she bun)ishm'e bujëmishn'e buniishn'e bujënI was doing
Perfect burabureburëburëmburënburënI did
Present perfect ka burëka burëka burëka burëka burëka burëI have done
Present bunjbunbunbujëmbunibujënI do, I am doing
Future ka bunjka bushka bujeka bujëmka bunika bujënI will do
Imperative Presentbuje!buni!do! (2nd person only)
Verbals
TypeFormEnglish
Infinitive të bunjto do
Gerund jam e bunjdoing
 The verb HAVEThe verb BE
 Pres.Imperf.Subj.Impf.Subj.Perf.Pres.Imperf.Subj.Impf.Subj.Perf.
1Sg.kamkeshëtë kemtë keshëjamjeshëtë jemtë jeshë
2Sg.kekeshetë keshtë keshejejeshetë jeshtë jëshe
3Sg.kakishtë kettë kishishtë, ështëishtë jettë ish
1Pl.kemikeshëmtë kemite keshëmjemijeshëmtë jeshëmtë jeshëm
2Pl.kinikeshëtëtë kinite keshëtëjinijeshëtëtë jeshëtëtë jeshëtë
3Pl.kanëkishnëtë kenëtë kishnëjanëishnëtë jenëtë ishnë

Some common phrases

Arberesh English
FalemHello.
Çë bun? Si rri?What are you doing? How are you?
Jam shum mirëI am very well
Të haristis, je mirë?Thank you, and are you well?
O, jam edhe u mirë.Yes, I'm fine too.
Flet arbreshin?Do you speak Arbërisht?
Ka vjen?Where are you from?
Jam arbëreshI'm Italo-Albanian
Mëma isht ka SrigariMy mother is from San Cosmo Albanese
Ju parkalesPlease
Gëzonem të të njohPleased to meet you
MirëditaGood morning
ShihemiSee you soon
Gjegjemi njizeWe'll speak soon
Si të thon?What's your name?
Mua më thonë MariejaMy name is Maria
Ëj/òYes (Piana degli Albanesi)
Arà/ëjYes (Santa Cristina Gela)
Ora/ëjYes (Contessa Entellina)
JoNo

Prepositions

Arbëresh English
te to
nga/ka from
prapa behind
te ana e beside, next to
mbatanë on the other side
kundër against
me with
'e (f), i (m), të (n & pl) of
brënda within, inside
jashtë outside
sipër on, above
njera until
për for
nën under
mjes/midis/ndër between, among

Demonstrative pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns replace nouns once they are able to be understood from their context.

Arbëresh English
ai/ajo that (m/f)
ata/ato those (m/f)
ki/kjo this (m/f)
rta/rto these
mosgjë/farëgjë none

Sample text

Shërbesa e Kurorës - The Arbëresh Marriage Ceremony

Zoti : Gjergji, do ti të marsh për gruja Linën çë ë ke këtú te ana, si urdhuron Klisha Shejte, e të qëndrosh lidhur me atë në të mirën si edhé në të ligën gjithë ditët e gjellës tënde?

Priest: Do you George want to take as your wife Lina who is present here according to the instructions of the Holy Church and to be faithful through the good and the bad all of your life?

Dhëndërri: O, e dua!

Groom: Yes, I want!

Zoti: Bekuar kloft Perëndia jínë nga herë, naní e për gjithëmonë e për jetë të jetëvet.

Priest: blessed be our God for all time, now and always in the centuries of centuries.

Populli: Amín.

People: Amen.

Zoti: Në paqe parkalesjëm t'ën Zonë.

Priest: In peace we pray to the Lord.

Populli: Lipisí, o i Madh'yn'Zot.

People: Our Great God, we beseech you.

Bekimi të unazavet

Zoti: Me këtë unazë shërbëtori i Perëndis, Gjergji, lidhet me shërbëtorën e Perëndis, Lina, në embër të Atit, të Birit e të Shpirtit Shejt.

Priest: The servant of God, George, is tied to the servant of God, Lina, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Zoti jep krinjët e këndon Msalmin 127: Të limë atá çë i trëmben t'ynë Zoti e çë jecjën te udhët e Tij.

the priest delivers the candles and intones Psalm 127 Make happy those who fear the Lord and may they walk in His ways.

Lëvdi tij, o i madh'yn'Zot, lëvdi tij. Dhóksa si, o Theós imón, dhóksa si Glory to you, our God, glory to you.

Se ti ka hashë bukën e shërbëtyrës s'duarvet tote. Lumë ti e fatbardhë ka jeshë. Jotë shoqe ka jet si dhri me pemë te muret e shpis tënde. Bijët tatë si degë ullinjësh rrethë triesës tënde. Shi kështú ka jet bekuar njeriu çë ka trëmbësirën e Perëndisë.

That you will eat the bread of the work of your hands. You will be happy and enjoy all that is good. See your wife as a fertile vine in the intimacy of your home. That your daughters will be like olive branches around your table. That those who fear the Lord will be blessed.

Swadesh list (comparative list)

No. English Arbërisht
(Albanian of Italy)
1 I u
2 you (singular) ty
3 he ai, ajo
4 we na, ne
5 you (plural) ju
6 they ata, ato
7 this ky, kjo
8 that ai, ajo
9 here këtu
10 there atì, atje
11 who kush
12 what çë
13 where ku
14 when kur
15 how si
16 not nëng/ngë
17 all gjithë
18 many shumë, burinë
19 some ca
20 few disa
21 other jetrë
22 one një
23 two di
24 three tri, tre
25 four katër
26 five pesë
27 big i math, e madhe
28 long i, e glat
29 wide i, e trash
30 thick i, e trash
31 heavy i rëndë, e rëndë
32 small i, e vogël
33 short i, e shkurtur
34 narrow i, e hollë
35 thin i, e hollë
36 woman grua
37 man (adult male) burrë
38 man (human being) njeri
39 child fëmijë
40 wife shoqja
41 husband shoqi
42 mother mëma
43 father tata
44 animal animall/kafsh
45 fish pishk
46 bird zog
47 dog qen
48 louse
49 snake
50 worm Gjalpër
51 tree lis
52 forest voshku/pyll
53 stick
54 fruit
55 seed
56 leaf
57 root
58 bark (of a tree)
59 flower lule
60 grass
61 rope
62 skin likur
63 meat mish
64 blood gjak
65 bone asht
66 fat (noun)
67 egg ves
68 horn
69 tail
70 feather
71 hair krip
72 head krie
73 ear vesh
74 eye si
75 nose hun
76 mouth
77 tooth
78 tongue (organ) gluhë
79 fingernail
80 foot këmb
81 leg këmb
82 knee gluri
83 hand dorë
84 wing krah
85 belly bark
86 guts
87 neck
88 back kurrdhux
89 breast
90 heart zëmbrë
91 liver
92 to drink pi
93 to eat ha
94 to bite
95 to suck
96 to spit
97 to vomit
98 to blow
99 to breathe marr frim
100 to laugh qesh
101 to see shoh
102 to hear gjegjëm
103 to know di
104 to think pincar/mëndonj
105 to smell
106 to fear
107 to sleep flë
108 to live rronj
109 to die vdes
110 to kill vras
111 to fight
112 to hunt
113 to hit
114 to cut
115 to split
116 to stab
117 to scratch
118 to dig
119 to swim
120 to fly
121 to walk jec
122 to come vinj
123 to lie (as in a bed) ngulëm
124 to sit t'ujëm
125 to stand
126 to turn (intransitive)
127 to fall bie
128 to give jap
129 to hold
130 to squeeze
131 to rub
132 to wash lah
133 to wipe
134 to pull
135 to push
136 to throw
137 to tie
138 to sew
139 to count
140 to say them
141 to sing këndonj
142 to play loz
143 to float
144 to flow
145 to freeze
146 to swell dhëmbronj
147 sun diell
148 moon hënxë
149 star illzë
150 water ujë
151 rain shi
152 river lum
153 lake ghaghu, liqen
154 sea dejt
155 salt krip
156 stone gur
157 sand
158 dust
159 earth dhe
160 cloud
161 fog
162 sky qiell
163 wind erë
164 snow zborë
165 ice akull
166 smoke
167 fire zjarr
168 ash
169 to burn djeg
170 road dhromë/udhë
171 mountain mal
172 red kuq
173 green i gjelbër
174 yellow
175 white i bardh, e bardhe
176 black i zi, e zezë
177 night natë
178 day ditë
179 year vit
180 warm vap
181 cold tëtim
182 full plot
183 new i ri, e re
184 old i, e vjetrë
185 good i,e mirë
186 bad i, e lig
187 rotten
188 dirty
189 straight dreqtë
190 round
191 sharp (as a knife)
192 dull (as a knife)
193 smooth
194 wet lagët
195 dry
196 correct dreqtë, gjushtu
197 near ndanxë
198 far llarghu
199 right drejtë
200 left shtrëmbra
201 at te
202 in
203 with me
204 and e
205 if
206 because përçë
207 name embër

Footnotes

  1. Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Refworld | World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples - Italy : Albanians". Refworld. Retrieved 2023-11-05.
  2. The Italo-Albanian villages of southern Italy Issue 25 of Foreign field research program, report, National Research Council (U.S.) Division of Earth Sciences Volume 1149 of Publication (National Research Council (U.S.)) Foreign field research program, sponsored by Office of Naval research, report ; no.25 Issue 25 of Report, National Research Council (U.S.). Division of Earth Sciences Volume 1149 of (National Academy of Sciences. National Research Council. Publication) Author George Nicholas Nasse Publisher National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council, 1964 page 24-25 link
  3. Nasse, George Nicholas (1964). The Italo-Albanian Villages of Southern Italy. National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council. ISBN 9780598204004.
  4. The Italo-Albanian villages of southern Italy Issue 25 of Foreign field research program, report, National Research Council (U.S.). Division of Earth Sciences Volume 1149 of Publication (National Research Council (U.S.))) Foreign field research program, sponsored by Office of Naval research, report ; no.25 Issue 25 of Report, National Research Council (U.S.). Division of Earth Sciences Volume 1149 of (National Academy of Sciences. National Research Council. Publication) Author George Nicholas Nasse Publisher National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council, 1964 page 25 link
  5. 1 2 Nasse, George Nicholas (1964). The Italo-Albanian Villages of Southern Italy. National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council. ISBN 978-0-598-20400-4.
  6. The Italo-Albanian villages of southern Italy Issue 25 of Foreign field research program, report, National Research Council (U.S.). Division of Earth Sciences Volume 1149 of Publication (National Research Council (U.S.))) Foreign field research program, sponsored by Office of Naval research, report ; no.25 Issue 25 of Report, National Research Council (U.S.). Division of Earth Sciences Volume 1149 of (National Academy of Sciences. National Research Council. Publication) Author George Nicholas Nasse Publisher National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council, 1964 page 26 link
  7. "Legge 482". Camera.it. Archived from the original on 12 May 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  8. 1 2 New Albanian Immigrants in the Old Albanian Diaspora: Piana Degli Albanesi. Eda Derhemi
  9. Liakopoulos 2022, p. 307:The Albanians, also known as Arvanites in the Greek lands, were first mentioned in the Peloponnese in the second half of the fourteenth century. By 1391 there had been an influx of Albanians that could be hired as mercenaries. The Venetians were in need of colonists and soldiers in their depopulated areas and hence offered plots of arable land, pastures and tax exemptions to the wandering Albanians in southern Greece (Thiriet 1959: 366; Chrysostomides 1995: 206, 291, 337, 339; Topping 1980: 261–71; Ducellier 1968: 47–64). A well-attested-to, more populous Albanian settlement took place during the rule of Theodore I Palaeologus (1384–1407), when ten thousand Albanians appeared before the Isthmus and asked Theodore for permission to settle in the Peloponnese (1394-95). A second wave of immigrants from southern Albania and western mainland Greece descended on the Peloponnese, perhaps in 1417-17. Their establishment was significant for the invigoration of the Albanian demographiy in the peninsula that led to the Albanian rebellion in 1453
  10. Derhemi, Eda. "The role of grassroots' media and community leaders for the small endangered languages: The case of Arbëresh of Piana degli Albanesi".
  11. Derhemi, Eda. Language endangerment and maintenance in the Arbresh of Piana degli Albanesi. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2003.
  12. Di Maggio, Martin Hasan. "Arbëresh: language mixing, translanguaging and possible solutions to maintenance problems."
  13. Mandala', M., & Mandala' M (2005). Siculo-arbëresh e siciliano a contatto: alcune verifiche. In Der Einfluss des Italienischen auf die Grammatik der Minderheitensprachen. Morphologische und syntaktische Probleme (pagg. 13-21)
  14. A. Guzzetta, La Parlata di Piana degli Albanesi, Parte I - Fonologia, Palermo 1978
  15. 1 2 Vito Matranga (January 1995). Ipotesi per il rilevamento dei dati variazionali nei punti albanofoni dell'Atlante linguistico della Sicilia (Report).
  16. Jochalas Titos, "Sulla problematica dei prestiti Bizantini e Neo-Greci nei dialetti Italo-Albanesi", Balkan Studies 16, 1, 1975, p. 49.
  17. Arshi Pipa (1989). The Politics of Language in Socialist Albania. East European Monographs. p. 190. ISBN 978-0-88033-168-5. Retrieved 15 July 2013. ...was a confessional name in pre-Ottoman Albania.

References

  • Babiniotis, Georgios (1985): Συνοπτική Ιστορία της ελληνικής γλώσσας με εισαγωγή στην ιστορικοσυγκριτική γλωσσολογία. ["A concise history of the Greek language, with an introduction to historical-comparative linguistics] Athens: Ellinika Grammata.
  • Babiniotis, Georgios (1998), Λεξικό της Νέας Ελληνικής Γλώσσας ["Dictionary of Modern Greek"]. Athens: Kentro Lexikologias.
  • Breu, Walter (1990): "Sprachliche Minderheiten in Italien und Griechenland." ["Linguistic minorities in Italy and Greece"]. In: B. Spillner (ed.), Interkulturelle Kommunikation. Frankfurt: Lang. 169-170.
  • GHM (=Greek Helsinki Monitor) (1995): "Report: The Arvanites". Online report
  • Hammarström, Harald (2005): Review of Ethnologue: Languages of the World, 15th Edition. LINGUIST List 16.2637 (5 Sept 2005). Online article Archived 2008-05-16 at the Wayback Machine Vol. II. Livadia: Exandas, 1999 PDF.
  • Η Καινή Διαθήκη στα Αρβανίτικα: Διάτα ε Ρε ['The New Testament in Arvanitika']. Athens: Ekdoseis Gerou. No date.
  • Kloss, Heinz (1967): "Abstand-languages and Ausbau-languages". Anthropological linguistics 9.
  • Liakopoulos, Georgios (2022). Izdebski, Adam; Haldon, John; Filipkowski, Piotr (eds.). Perspectives on Public Policy in Societal-Environmental Crises: What the Future Needs from History. Springer. ISBN 978-3030941376.
  • Salminen, Tapani (1993–1999): Unesco Red Book on Endangered Languages: Europe. .
  • Strauss, Dietrich (1978): "Scots is not alone: Further comparative considerations". Actes du 2e Colloque de langue et de littérature écossaises Strasbourg 1978. 80-97.
  • Thomason, Sarah G. (2001): Language contact: An introduction. Washington: Georgetown University Press. Online chapter
  • Trudgill, Peter (2004): "Glocalisation [sic] and the Ausbau sociolinguistics of modern Europe". In: A. Duszak, U. Okulska (eds.), Speaking from the margin: Global English from a European perspective. Frankfurt: Peter Lang. Online article
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