Zemiaki language

{{Short description|Nuristani language of Kunar, Afghanistan}}

{{Infobox language

|name= Zemiaki

|nativename = {{lang|nli|J̌amlām-am bašā}}

|states= Afghanistan

|region= Nuristan Province

|speakers= 500

|date=1999

|ref=

|familycolor= Indo-European

|fam2=Indo-Iranian

|fam3=Nuristani

| ancestor = Proto-Indo-European

| ancestor2 = Proto-Indo-Iranian

| ancestor3 = Proto-Nuristani

|iso3= none

|iso3comment=(included in [nli])

|glotto=zemi1238

|glottorefname= Zemiaki

|notice=Indic

}}

Zemiaki is a Nuristani language spoken by some 400–500 people in the Kunar Province of Afghanistan.{{sfn|Grünberg|1999|p=123}}

It is named after the settlement in which it is spoken, from the Pashto {{lang|ps-Latn|Zemyaki žə́ba}} "language of Zemyaki", the native equivalent being J̌amlām-am bašā. It is closely related to Nuristani Kalasha, and ancestors of the Zemyakis were, according to local tradition, Kalasha people who migrated into the area several centuries ago.{{sfn|Grünberg|1999|p=123}} The language spoken in the surrounding areas is Pashto, and it has been a source of a large number of lexical borrowings, including several common conjunctions.{{sfn|Grünberg|1999|pp=123, 125}}

There is no grammatical gender, but number and person are marked on the verb,{{sfn|Grünberg|1999|pp=124}} following a split-ergative pattern of agreement.{{sfn|Grünberg|1999|pp=125}}

It was thought that Zemiaki is a dialect of Grangali, an Indo-Aryan language. However, its pronouns are characteristically Nuristani, with a close relationship to Nuristani Kalasha, which is confirmed by local tradition.