Groups of Azerbaijan`s Dialect: Lezgi
1. Introduction
Lezgi is one of the Northeastern Caucasian languages spoken by the Lezgins in southern Dagestan (Russia) and northern Azerbaijan. In Azerbaijan, Lezgi is regarded as a minority language while in Dagestan it has a status as a state language along with Russian and the other languages spoken in the republic. According to Gerber, in Dagestan, tv channels, radio, books and magazines are also available in the Lezgi language. However, even if Lezgis make up the second-largest group after the ethnic Azeris, there are no a lot of media available in Lezgi in the Republic of Azerbaijan.
During the Soviet period, Lezgi people living in Dagestan studied Lezgi in schools, while Lezgis living in Azerbaijan did not study Lezgi at school. Therefore, Lezgis living in Dagestan are reported to use Lezgi for written purposes, while Lezgis in Azerbijan usually write in Azerbaijani or Russian. As reported by Gerber, 40 percent of all Lezgis in Azerbaijan live in the Qusar district. They also compactly live in several villages in Quba and Khachmaz, and in Gabala and Sheki in the centre-north of Azerbaijan. Furthermore, 15 percent of Lezgis live in the capital Baku.
Lezgi has three main dialect groups: two (Kjurinski and Samurski) of them are spoken in Dagestan, while the third dialect (Quba dialect group) is found in the northeastern districts (Qusar, Quba, Khachmaz) of Azerbaijan. According to Clifton et al., more Lezgis live in Qusar than in Quba, but the third dialect is named for the town of Quba. The standard Quba dialect group consists of a large variety of internal sub-dialects.
The reason for the emergence of sub-dialects of the standard Quba dialect can be related to the spread of Lezgis in various parts of Azerbaijan, and being affected by the other languages spoken in those areas.
Several studies investigating the Lezgi language have been primarily carried out on its grammar. Only a little research has been done on the use of Lezgi and its dialects in different regions. Previous studies that had been carried out on the dialects of Lezgi mainly focused on some villages of Ismayilli, Qusar, Quba and Khachmaz. However, there are still quite a number of villages in these regions which are still under the research. Therefore, the goals of this study are to explore the use of Lezgi in media (newspapers, tv, radio) and the distinctive features of dialects used in Baku, Qusar, and in two villages of Khachmaz.
The main focus of this study is to investigate the sociolinguistic situation of Lezgi in Azerbaijan. The fundamental goals of this research are: to identify the current use of Lezgi in media (newspapers, tv, radio); to explore the distinctive features of the Lezgi dialect in the capital city Baku, in the district Qusar, and in two villages (Ukur-oba, Yalama) of Khachmaz; and to determine the drawbacks of Lezgi in terms of its use in Azerbaijan. In addition, Qusar and Khachmaz are most Lezgi-populated areas in Azerbaijan. I intend to attain the objectives of this study through the in-depth interviews. In-depth interviews will be conducted with 40 individuals who are native Lezgi speakers living in those domains.
This study attempts to contribute to the research that has been previously conducted on the use of Lezgi. By using in-depth interviews, this study will explore the current state of Lezgi in media (newspaper, tv channels, radio) and distinctive features of the dialect of Lezgi used in different regions of Azerbaijan.
This research proposal consists of an introduction, literature review, methodology, and conclusion. After the introduction, a review of the literature is provided. Following the literature review, the methodology that will be used in order to conduct the research is explained. At the end of the research proposal, a conclusion and limitations of this study are presented. In the Appendix, the consent form that will be presented or sent to the participants via email is described.
2. Literature review
As reported by Gerber, Lezgis are one of the main ethnic minority groups in Azerbaijan. Gerber also noted that in Lezgi-populated areas, all Lezgis are able to understand and speak Lezgi very well. According to Clifton et al., in the Lezgi communities of the district Khachmaz, Qusar and capital city Baku, Lezgi is mainly used at home. In Qusar, Lezgi children do not know any language apart from Lezgi before going to school. Also, in the town Khudat in Khachmaz, and in Quba Lezgi is regularly spoken in the home.
Bossong et al. mentioned about three main dialects of Lezgi: the Küre dialect group, the Axceh dialect group, and the Quba dialect group. The Quba dialect is mainly used in several northern districts of Azerbaijan, while the other two are spoken in Dagestan. Moreover, the Quba standard dialect group has its variations that occur in the west of the district centre, but these variations are really minor.
Lezgis living in Azerbaijan often complain about the negligence of the country towards Lezgi in education and media. According to Smith, Lezgi was not as a significant tool as Azerbaijani and Russian for the news. However, there is still a multilingual Lezgi newspaper ‘Samur’, published in three languages: Azeri, Russian, and Lezgi. Also, there are tv broadcasts and local radio in Lezgi in the Khachmaz and Qusar districts.
Bossong et al. noted that, Lezgis living in Azerbaijan can be disadvantaged as they have assimilated to Azerbaijanis and have been identified as Azeris. Lezgis assimilated into not only the cultural but also the political life of Azerbaijan. Due to long-lasting language contact, Lezgi has also been influenced by the Azerbaijani language. Lezgi was influenced by not only Azeri but also Russians. This is one of the reasons why many loanwords are used in Lezgi's conversation.
Clifton et al. indicated some factors that would decrease the use of Lezgi among new generations in urban areas. The main aspects that Clifton et al. had touched upon were Lezgi’s not being provided in the education system and the high use of another language (mainly Russian) in communication. However, in the study, he also noted other factors that would keep Lezgi vital in urban domains such as Baku, Qusar, and Khachmaz. Those factors that would maintain the language important include a large number of Lezgis in these areas and the contact between them.
This Literature review presented research on the use of Lezgi and its dialects, specifically where the Lezgi language is mostly used and what types of dialects it has. Next, information about the significance of Lezgi in media was given. This literature review has also highlighted some factors that would decrease the use of Lezgi in urban areas. The present literature shows that there is a need for additional research to investigate the current use of Lezgi in media and in different regions of Azerbaijan. Clearly, it can be said that conducting in-depth interviews would be beneficial to explore more about the use of Lezgi in Azerbaijan.
3. Methodology
3.1 Introduction
The review of the literature demonstrates the need for additional research to investigate the use of Lezgi in media and other domains and the characteristic features of its dialects in different regions. In order to identify the state of Lezgi in current media in Azerbaijan, three (newspapers, tv channels, radio) main media platforms will be taken into account. Thus this study will not touch upon the role of Lezgi in social media platforms.
This study aims to explore the distinctive features of the dialects of Lezgi used in the following locations: Khachmaz (Ukur-oba, Yalama), Qusar (district centre) and Baku as the participants from these locations know Lezgi from birth and can feel the differences spontaneously. Moreover, in order to identify the current state of Lezgi in media, these above-mentioned domains will be helpful as well.
This research aims to explore the answers to the three fundamental research questions addressed in this study:
- RQ1. What is the current use of Lezgi in media (newspapers, tv channels, radio) in Azerbaijan?
- RQ2. What are the distinctive features of the Lezgi dialect used in the capital city (Baku) and in the regions (Qusar, Khachmaz) of Azerbaijan?
- RQ3. As a minority language how Lezgi is disadvantaged in terms of its usage in Azerbaijan?
However, the answers to the first and second research questions will be a guide to the third research question, but this question still requires a lot of data in order to be answered.
3.2 Research design
In order to conduct the research, I intend to employ a qualitative research method. This method will be used in order to obtain specific data from the participants. For this study, in-depth interviews will be implemented. The selection of participants for this research will be based on a snowball sampling technique. I will be contacting my Lezgi friends for the interviews. Then they will be keeping in touch with their acquaintances to know whether they would like to voluntarily participate in the interviews for this research.
The data will be collected by carrying out in-depth interviews in one district centre (Qusar), in two villages of Khachmaz (Ukur-oba, Yalama) and the capital city (Baku) of Azerbaijan. The interviews will be taken by visiting these places. Three days of travel will be allocated to the interviews. First, two villages in Khachmaz will be visited. They are not too far from each other, that is to say, one day for both villages will be enough. On the second day, the Qusar district will be visited. On the third day, the plan will be to travel to the capital city Baku. Specific times and locations for the interviews will be arranged beforehand.
For this study, I consider taking the interviews from the executive people as well. One executive person in Baku and in Qusar, but two executive people in Khachmaz, and twelve residents of each region will be interviewed. The purpose of interviewing executive people is closely related to their being in charge of preserving the language in those domains and being able to provide wide information about the status of Lezgi in their locations. Although young Lezgis are more unlikely to be informed (due to the influence of Russian and Azeri) than the elderly about what is happening to Lezgi within the country, it will still be useful to elicit some information regarding the use of Lezgi in media (newspapers, tv channels, radio), and it's being treated as a disadvantageous language in Azerbaijan.
3.3 Participants
The sample for this study will be native Lezgi speakers living in Qusar, Baku and in two villages of Khachmaz (Ukur-oba, Yalama). Khachmaz and Qusar are the districts located in the northern part of Azerbaijan where the majority of people are Lezgis, whereas Baku is the capital city located on the shore of the Caspian Sea where some Lezgis live in as well. The sample is heterogeneous in that all participants differ in age and geographical location. Most of the participants will belong to the same sex (male). Gender issues for this study are not considered to be important.
In order to conduct this research, forty people are going to be interviewed in person in general. Twelve residents of each region will be interviewed. In addition to that, one executive person in Baku, two executive people in Khachmaz (Ukur-oba, Yalama), and one executive person in Qusar will be interviewed as well. Participants’ ages range from 21 to 35 and from 44 to 60. Participants possess different levels of education: high school education and university education.
The executive people chosen for this study are the editor-in-chief of the Lezgi newspaper Samur in Baku, the editor-in-chief of the Lezgi journal Alam, the principal of school number 1 in Khachmaz, and the mayor of the Qusar district. These people also will be contacted via email in order to explain the purpose of the study. They will also be provided with the consent forms for their voluntary participation in the interview.
3.4 Interview procedure
Prior to conducting the interviews, the participants will be contacted and informed about the purpose of the study via phone or e-mail. Interviewees will be presented with consent forms and asked to sign for their voluntary participation in the interviews, for audio-recording, and for guaranteeing their confidentiality. It will also be explained to the participants how the data will be utilized so that to protect their privacy. All the interviews will be taken in one language (Lezgi). Specific times and locations for the interviews will be based on the participants’ preferences so that the interviewees feel convenient.
While conducting the interviews the focus will primarily be on open-ended questions in order to elicit detailed information from the interviewees. The interviews will be commenced by employing some background questions such as what an interviewee knows about the Lezgi language in general, and which dialects of Lezgi they are familiar with. These fundamental questions will provide the interviewees with the opportunity to develop their thoughts. Then, the interviewee will progress the questions about the current use of Lezgi in media, and how Lezgi is disadvantaged as a minority language. The interviews are expected to last from 10 minutes to 20 minutes.
3.5 Data analysis
All the interviews will be audio recorded with the participants’ permission. The interviews will be transcribed for analysis. Then, the transcriptions will be read for an overview. Moreover, brief notes taken during the interview process will be read as well. As the amount of the data is going to be large, there will be the need to re-read the transcriptions again. While re-reading the transcriptions, some common themes will be marked and significant sections will be highlighted. While analyzing the data, specific examples and frequent themes will be collected together.
As mentioned before, due to the big amount of data, the transcriptions of the interviews will be read multiple times. After analyzing carefully, collected examples and themes will be sub-grouped in order to answer the research questions throughout the study.
4. Conclusion
The results of this research can be helpful to identify the current state of Lezgi in Azerbaijan. As stated before, there is little research regarding the use of Lezgi. This study will be useful to investigate the use of Lezgi in different domains of Azerbaijan and to explore the distinctive features of the Lezgi dialect in these regions. Because the standard Lezgi dialect has different accents in different regions.
This study may also be useful for the individuals who are interested in the current status of Lezgi in media in Azerbaijan. Among the participants for this study are the editors-in-chief of the main Lezgi newspaper and journal in Azerbaijan.
Certain limitations for this study need to be acknowledged. The first limitation of this study might be the small number of participants. The sample size is 40 people in general and 13 people will be interviewed in each region (only in Khachmaz 14 people). Despite the fact that this sample size is appropriate for the present study, it is feasible that some of the interviewees can reject giving the interviews in the last minute. That will restrict the amount of data needed to analyze the general situation of Lezgi. Another limitation of this study can be related to the participants’ knowledge of Lezgi. Even if the interviewees chosen for this study are all native Lezgi speakers, they might not know about the dialect spoken in their area. They might also be unaware of the current state of Lezgi in media in Azerbaijan. These factors can possibly influence the interview results.
References
- Bossong, Georg; Chafe, Wallace, ed. (1993) “A Grammar of Lezgian”
- Mouton de Gruyter. Berlin, New York.
- Clifton, John, M.; Lucht, Laura; Deckinga, Gabriela; Mak, Janfer and Tiessen, Calvin (2005) “The Sociolinguistic Situation of the Lezgi in Azerbaijan”. SIL International.
- “Ethnic Minorities in Azerbaijan” (2012). Human Rights Without Frontiers Int’l.
- Gerber, Lea (2007) “Minorities in Azerbaijan: The Sociolinguistic Situation of Lezgis, Udis, Georgians (Ingiloys) and Talyshs in Azerbaijan -with a Particular Focus on Education”.
- Greed, Teija (2017) “Evidential coding in Lezgi”. Languages of the Caucasus. University of Helsinki and SIL International.
- Smith, Jessica (2010) Placing Ismayilli Lezgi among the Lezgi Dialects. Master thesis, University of North Dakota.
