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Zemiaki (Zamyaki) is a Nuristani language spoken by some 400–500 people in the Kunar Province of Afghanistan.

It is named after the settlement in which it is spoken, from the Pashto Zemyaki žə́ba "language of Zemyaki", the native equivalent being J̌amlām-am bašā. It is closely related to Waigali, and ancestors of the Zemyakis were, according to local tradition, Waigalis who migrated into the area several centuries ago. 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.

There is no grammatical gender, but number and person are marked on the verb, following a split-ergative pattern of agreement.

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 Waigali, which is confirmed by local tradition.

Vocabulary

Pronouns

Numbers

1. yok
2. du
3. tre
4. -
5. -
6. -
7. -
8. -
9. -
10. doš

References

1. ^ Grünberg 1999, p. 123.
2. Grünberg 1999, pp. 123, 125.
3. Grünberg 1999, pp. 124.
4. Grünberg 1999, pp. 125.

Bibliography

• Grünberg, A.L. (1999). "Zemiaki jazyk/dialekt". In Edelman, D.I. (ed.). Jazyki mira: Dardskie i nuristanskie jazyki (in Russian). Moscow: Indrik. pp. 123–125. ISBN 585759085X.

• Nuristani languages
• Languages of Afghanistan