Proto-Circassian language

Proto-Circassian (or Proto-Adyghe–Kabardian) is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Adyghean and Kabardian languages.

Phonology

Vocalism and accent

In bisyllabic roots, two possible places of accent are reconstructed, with the following development of structures in descendant languages:

PAK	Adyghe		Kabardian	Examples
	Standard	Shapsug		Meaning	Standard Adyghe	Shapsug	Kabardian
*CáCa	CaːC	CaːCa	CaːCa
*CáCǝ	CaC	CaC	CaC
*Cǝ́Ca	CǝC	-	CǝCa
*Cǝ́Cǝ	CǝC	CǝC	CǝC
*CaCá	CaːCa	CaːCa	CaːCa	shirt beard grape	джанэ [d͡ʒaːna] жакӏэ [ʒaːt͡ʃʼa] санэ [saːna]	гьанэ [gʲaːna] жакӏьэ [ʒaːkʲʼa] санэ [saːna]	джанэ [d͡ʒaːna] жьакӏэ [ʑaːt͡ʃʼa] санэ [saːna]
*CaCǝ́	CaCǝ	CaC	CaC	night snow chicken	чэщы [t͡ʃaɕə] осы [wasə] чэты [t͡ʃatə]	чэщ [t͡ʃaɕ] ос [was] кьэт [kʲat]	жэщ [ʒaɕ] уэс [was] джэд [d͡ʒad]
*CǝCá	CǝCa	CǝCa	CǝCa	gold house cold	дышъэ [dəʂa] унэ [wəna] чъыӏэ [t͡ʂəʔa]	дышъэ [dəʂa] унэ [wəna] чьыӏэ [t͡ɕəʔa]	дыщэ [dəɕa] унэ [wəna] щӏыӏэ [ɕʼəʔa]
*CəCǝ́	CǝCǝ	CǝC	CǝC	grass disease	уцы [wət͡sə] узы [wəzə]	уц [wət͡s] уз [wəz]	удз [wəd͡z] уз [wəz]

In other words, Adyghe retains the distinction between *a and *ǝ in the 2nd syllable, if it was originally stressed; the 2nd syllable vowel is dropped in originally unstressed syllables. Kabardian retains the distinction uniformly, by dropping *ǝ but not *a. Both groups retain the quality distinction in the first syllable, and additionally display a long vowel in roots of the original shape *CaCa (regardless of stress).

Consonants

The consonant system is reconstructed with a four-way phonation contrast in stops and affricates, and a two-way contrast in fricatives.

Proto		Cyrillic	Adyghe				Kabardian
			Kuban river			Black Sea coast
			Bzhedug	Temirgoy	Abzakh	Shapsug	Standard	Besleney
Aspirated consonants	*pʰ	пʰ	pʰ ⟨пʰ⟩	p ⟨п⟩		pʰ ⟨пʰ⟩	p ⟨п⟩
	*tʰ	тʰ	tʰ ⟨тʰ⟩	t ⟨т⟩		tʰ ⟨тʰ⟩	t ⟨т⟩
	*t͡sʰ	цʰ	t͡sʰ ⟨цʰ⟩	t͡s ⟨ц⟩		t͡sʰ ⟨цʰ⟩	t͡s ⟨ц⟩
	*t͡sʰʷ	цʰу	t͡ɕʰʷ ⟨чъʰу⟩	t͡sʷ ⟨цу⟩	t͡ɕʷ ⟨чъу⟩	t͡ɕʰʷ ⟨чъʰу⟩	f ⟨f⟩
	*t͡ɕʰ	чьʰ	t͡ʂʰ ⟨чъʰ⟩	t͡ʂ ⟨чъ⟩	ʃ ⟨ш⟩	t͡ʃʰ ⟨чʰ⟩	ɕʼ ⟨щӏ⟩
	*t͡ʃʰ	чʰ	ʃʰ ⟨шʰ⟩	ʃ ⟨ш⟩		ʃʰ ⟨шʰ⟩	ʃ ⟨ш⟩	t͡ɕ ⟨чь⟩
	*t͡ʂʰ	чъʰ	ʂʰ ⟨шъʰ⟩	ʂ ⟨шъ⟩		ʂʰ ⟨шъʰ⟩	ʃ ⟨ш⟩
	*ʃʰ	шʰ	ʃʰ ⟨шʰ⟩	ɕ ⟨щ⟩		ʃʰ ⟨шʰ⟩	ʃ ⟨ш⟩
	*ʂʰ	шъʰ	ʂʰ ⟨шъʰ⟩	ʂ ⟨шъ⟩		ʂʰ ⟨шъʰ⟩	ɕ ⟨щ⟩
	*kʰʲ	кьʰ	t͡ʃʰ ⟨чʰ⟩	t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩		kʰʲ ⟨кʰь⟩	t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩	kʲ ⟨кь⟩
	*kʰʷ	кʰу	kʰʷ ⟨кʰу⟩	kʷ ⟨ку⟩		kʰʷ ⟨кʰу⟩	kʷ ⟨ку⟩
	*qʰ	къʰ	qʰ ⟨къʰ⟩	q ⟨къ⟩		qʰ ⟨кʰъ⟩ or χ ⟨хъ⟩	q͡χ ⟨кхъ⟩
	*qʰʷ	къʰу	qʰʷ ⟨къʰу⟩	qʷ ⟨къу⟩		qʰʷ ⟨къʰу⟩ or χʷ ⟨хъу⟩	q͡χʷ ⟨кхъу⟩
Geminate stops and affricates	*p	п	p ⟨п⟩				b ⟨б⟩
	*t	т	t ⟨т⟩				d ⟨д⟩
	*t͡s	ц	t͡s ⟨ц⟩				d͡z ⟨дз⟩
	*t͡sʷ	цу	t͡ɕʷ ⟨чъу⟩	t͡sʷ ⟨цу⟩	t͡ɕʷ ⟨чъу⟩		v ⟨в⟩
	*t͡ɕ	чь	t͡ʂ ⟨чъ⟩		ʃ ⟨ш⟩	t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩	ʒ ⟨ж⟩
	*t͡ʃ	ч	t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩		ɕ ⟨щ⟩	t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩	ʒ ⟨ж⟩
	*t͡ʂ	чъ	t͡ʂ ⟨чъ⟩		ʃ ⟨ш⟩	t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩	ʒ ⟨ж⟩	d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩
	*kʲ	кь	t͡ʃ ⟨ч⟩			kʲ ⟨кь⟩	d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩	ɡʲ ⟨гь⟩
	*kʷ	ку	kʷ ⟨ку⟩				ɡʷ ⟨гу⟩
	*q	къ	q ⟨къ⟩
	*qʷ	къу	qʷ ⟨къу⟩
	*ʔ	ӏ	ʔ ⟨ӏ⟩
	*ʔʷ	ӏу	ʔʷ ⟨ӏу⟩
Geminate voiced stops and affricates	*b	б	b ⟨б⟩
	*d	д	d ⟨д⟩
	*d͡z	дз	d͡z ⟨дз⟩
	*d͡zʷ	дзу	ʑʷ ⟨жъу⟩	d͡zʷ ⟨дзу⟩	ʑʷ ⟨жъу⟩		v ⟨в⟩
	*d͡ʑ	джь	d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩				ʑ ⟨жь⟩
	*d͡ʒ	дж	d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩		ʒ ⟨ж⟩	d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩	ʒ ⟨ж⟩
	*d͡ɮ	дл	ɣ ⟨г⟩				ʒ ⟨ж⟩
	*ɡʲ	гь	d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩			ɡʲ ⟨гь⟩	d͡ʒ ⟨дж⟩	ɡʲ ⟨гь⟩
	*ɡʷ	гу	ɡʷ ⟨гу⟩
Ejective stops and affricates	*pʼ	пӏ	pʼ ⟨пӏ⟩
	*pʷʼ	пӏу	pʷʼ ⟨пӏу⟩		pʼ ⟨пӏ⟩
	*tʼ	тӏ	tʼ ⟨тӏ⟩
	*tʷʼ	тӏу	tʷʼ ⟨тӏу⟩				tʼ ⟨тӏ⟩
	*t͡sʼ	цӏ	t͡sʼ ⟨цӏ⟩			t͡sʼ ⟨цӏ⟩ and sʼ ⟨сӏ⟩	t͡sʼ ⟨цӏ⟩
	*t͡sʷʼ or sʷʼ	цӏу or сӏу	ɕʷʼ ⟨шӏу⟩				fʼ ⟨фӏ⟩
	*t͡ɕʼ	чӏь	ʃʼ ⟨шӏ⟩				ɕʼ ⟨щӏ⟩
	*t͡ʃʼ	кӏ	t͡ʃʼ ⟨кӏ⟩		ʔʲ ⟨ӏь⟩ and ɕʼ ⟨щӏ⟩	t͡ʃʼ ⟨кӏ⟩	ɕʼ ⟨щӏ⟩	t͡ʃʼ ⟨кӏ⟩
	*t͡ʂʼ	чӏ	t͡ʂʼ ⟨чӏ⟩		ʔʲ ⟨ӏь⟩ and ɕʼ ⟨щӏ⟩	t͡ʃʼ ⟨кӏ⟩	ɕʼ ⟨щӏ⟩
	*t͡ɬʼ	тлӏ	ɬʼ ⟨лӏ⟩					t͡ɬʼ ⟨тлӏ⟩
	*kʲʼ	кӏь	t͡ʃʼ ⟨кӏ⟩			kʲʼ ⟨кӏь⟩	t͡ʃʼ ⟨кӏ⟩	kʲʼ ⟨кӏь⟩
	*kʷʼ	кӏу	kʷʼ ⟨кӏу⟩
Voiceless fricatives	*s	с	s ⟨с⟩
	*sʷ	су	ɕʷ ⟨шъу⟩				f ⟨ф⟩
	*ɕ	щ	ɕ ⟨щ⟩
	*ʃ	ш	ʃ ⟨ш⟩				ɕ ⟨щ⟩
	*ʂ	шъ	ʂ ⟨шъ⟩				ɕ ⟨щ⟩
	*ɬ	лъ	ɬ ⟨лъ⟩
	*x	х	x ⟨х⟩
	*xʷ	ху	f ⟨ф⟩				xʷ ⟨ху⟩
	*χ	хъ	χ ⟨хъ⟩
	*χʷ	хъу	χʷ ⟨хъу⟩
	*χʲ	хъь	ħ ⟨хь⟩				χ ⟨хъ⟩	ħ ⟨хь⟩
	*ħ	хь	ħ ⟨хь⟩
Voiced fricatives	*z	з	z ⟨з⟩
	*zʷ	зу	ʑʷ ⟨жъу⟩				v ⟨в⟩
	*ʑ	жь	ʑ ⟨жь⟩
	*ʒ	ж	ʒ ⟨ж⟩				ʑ ⟨жь⟩
	*ʐ	жъ	ʐ ⟨жъ⟩				ʑ ⟨жь⟩
	*ɮ	л	ɮ ⟨л⟩		l ⟨ль⟩		ɮ ⟨л⟩	l ⟨ль⟩
	*ɣ	г	ɣ ⟨г⟩
	*ɣʲ	г	ɣ ⟨г⟩				ʑ ⟨жь⟩
	*ʁ	гъ	ʁ ⟨гъ⟩
	*ʁʷ	гъу	ʁʷ ⟨гъу⟩
Resonants	*m	м	m ⟨м⟩
	*ɮ	н	n ⟨н⟩
	*r	р	r ⟨р⟩
	*j	й	j ⟨й⟩
	*w	у	w ⟨у⟩

Bilabial stops пʰ, п, б and пӏ

• Proto-Circassian aspirated пʰ [pʰ] survived in the Bzhedug dialect and in other Circassian dialects it became plain п [p].

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe						Kabardian
			Bzhedug		Temirgoy and Abzakh		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
sharp	pʰaːpt͡sʼa	пʰапцӏэ	pʰaːpʰt͡sʼa	пʰапцӏэ	paːpt͡sʼa	папцӏэ	paːpsʼa	папсӏэ	папцӏэ	paːpt͡sʼa
arrogant	pʰaːɣa	пʰагэ	pʰaːɣa	пʰагэ	paːɣa	пагэ	paːɣa	пагэ	paːɣa	пагэ
nose	pʰa	пʰэ	pʰa	пʰэ	pa	пэ	pa	пэ	pa	пэ

• Proto-Circassian plain voiceless bilabial stop п [p] become voiced б [b] in the Kabardian dialect.

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy and Bzhedug		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
glass	ʔaːpkʲ	апкь	ʔaːpt͡ʃ	апч	ʔaːpkʲ	апкь	абдж	ʔaːbd͡ʒ
today	nəjapa	ныепэ	najpa	непэ	napa	нэпэ	nawba	нобэ
thorn	paːna	панэ	paːna	панэ	?	?	baːna	банэ
hard	pəta	пытэ	pəta	пытэ	pəta	пытэ	bəda	быдэ
goat	pt͡ʃan	пчэн	pt͡ʃanə	пчэны	pt͡ʃan	пчэн	bʒan	бжэн
enemy	pəj	пый	pəj	пый	pəj	пый	bəj	бий
to count	pt͡ʂən	пчъын	pt͡ʂən	пчъын	pt͡ɕən	пчьын	bʒən	бжын

Alveolar stops тʰ, т, д and тӏ

• Proto-Circassian aspirated тʰ [tʰ] survived in the Bzhedug dialect and Shapsug, while in other Circassian dialects it became plain т [t].

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Bzhedug and Shapsug		Temirgoy, Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
respect	pχaːtʰa	пхъатʰэ	pχaːtʰa	пхъатʰэ	pχaːta	пхъатэ	-	-
to disband	tʼatʰan	тӏэтʰэн	tʼatʰan	тӏэтʰэн	tʼatan	тӏэтэн	tʼatan	тӏэтэн
to give	jatʰən	етʰын	jatʰən	етʰын	jatən	етын	jatən	етын
to take	ʃtʰan	штʰэн	ʃtʰan	штʰэн	ʃtan	штэн	ɕtan	щтэн
on	tʰajt	тʰет	tʰajt	тʰет	tajt	тет	tajt	тет
smooth	t͡sʼaːsʷtʰa	цӏасутʰэ	t͡sʼaːʃʷtʰa	цӏашъутʰэ	t͡sʼaːʃʷta	цӏашъутэ	t͡sʼaːfta	цӏафтэ
to afraid	ɕtʰan	щтʰэн	ɕtʰan	щтʰэн	ɕtan	щтэн	ɕtan	щтэн
pillow	ʂħaːntʰa	шъхьантʰэ	ʂħaːntʰa	шъхьантʰэ	ʂħaːnta	шъхьантэ	ɕħaːta	щхьатэ

• Proto-Circassian plain voiceless alveolar stop т [t] become voiced д [d] in the Kabardian dialect.

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy, Abzakh and Bzhedug		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
we	ta	тэ	ta	тэ	ta	тэ	da	дэ
shoulder	taːma	тамэ	taːma	тамэ	taːma	тамэ	daːma	дамэ
sun	təʁa	тыгъэ	təʁa	тыгъэ	təʁa	тыгъэ	dəʁa	дыгъэ
Kabardian	qabartaːj	къэбэртай	qabartaːj	къэбэртай	qabartaːj	къэбэртай	qabardej	къэбэрдей
leader	tʰħamaːta	тʰхьэматэ	tħamaːta	тхьэматэ	tħamaːta	тхьэматэ	tħamaːda	тхьэмадэ
garden	xaːta	хатэ	xaːta	хатэ	xaːta	хатэ	xaːda	хадэ
rooster, cock	ataːqa	атакъэ	ataːqa	атакъэ	атакъэ	ataːqa	adaːqa	адакъэ
duck	pʰsəkʲat	псыкьэт	psət͡ʃat	псычэт	psəkʲat	псыкьэт	psəd͡ʒad	псыджэд
silver	təʑən	тыжьын	təʑənə	тыжьыны	təʑən	тыжьын	dəʑən	дыжьын
yesterday	təʁʷaːsa	тыгъуасэ	təʁʷaːsa	тыгъуасэ	təʁʷaːsa	тыгъуасэ	dəʁʷaːsa	дыгъуасэ
wolf	təʁʷəʐ	тыгъужъ	təʁʷəʐ	тыгъужъ	təʁʷəʐ	тыгъужъ	dəʁʷəʑ	дыгъужъ
chicken	kʲat	кьэт	t͡ʃat	чэт	kʲat	кьэт	d͡ʒad	джэд
cat	kʲatəw	кьэтыу	t͡ʃatəw	чэтыу	kʲatəw	кьэтыу	d͡ʒadəw	джэдыу
hard	pəta	пытэ	pəta	пытэ	pəta	пытэ	bəda	быдэ

Alveolar affricates цʰ, ц, дз and цӏ

• Proto-Circassian aspirated цʰ [t͡sʰ] survived in the Bzhedug dialect and in other Circassian dialects it became plain ц [t͡s].

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Bzhedug		Temirgoy, Abzakh and Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
wool	t͡sʰə	цʰы	t͡sʰə	цʰы	t͡sə	цы	t͡sə	цы
eyelash	nabzət͡sʰ	нэбзыцʰ	nabzət͡sʰ	нэбзыцʰ	nabzət͡s	нэбзыц	-	-

• Proto-Circassian plain voiceless alveolar affricate ц [t͡s] become voiced дз [d͡z] in the Kabardian dialect.

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe		Kabardian
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
tooth	t͡sa	цэ	t͡sa	цэ	d͡za	дзэ
mouse	t͡səʁʷa	цыгъо	t͡səʁʷa	цыгъо	d͡zəʁʷa	дзыгъуэ
fish	pt͡saʐəja	пцэжъые	pt͡saʐəja	пцэжъые	bd͡zaʑəj	бдзэжьей
grass	wət͡sə	уцы	wət͡sə	уцы	wəd͡zə	удзы
green	wət͡səsʷa	уцысуэ	wət͡səɕʷa	уцышъо	wəd͡zəfa	удзыфэ

Alveolo-palatal affricates чьʰ, чь and чӏь

• Proto-Circassian aspirated voiceless alveolo-palatal affricate ч [t͡ɕʰ] become plain чъ [t͡ʂ] in Temirgoy and aspirated чъʰ [t͡ʂʰ] in Bzhedug dialect, ш [ʃ] in the Abzakh dialect and щӏ [ɕʼ] in the Kabardian dialect.^[1]

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe								Kabardian
			Bzhedug		Temirgoy		Abzakh		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
cold	t͡ɕʰəʔa	чьʰыӏэ	t͡ʂʰəʔa	чъʰыӏэ	t͡ʂəʔa	чъыӏэ	ʃəʔa	шыӏэ	t͡ʃəʔa	чыӏэ	ɕʼəʔa	щӏыӏэ

Proto-Circassian plain voiceless alveolo-palatal affricate чь [t͡ɕ] also become чъ [t͡ʂ] in the Temirgoy and Bzhedug dialect, ш [ʃ] in the Abzakh dialect but ж [ʒ] in the Kabardian dialect.^[2]

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe								Kabardian
			Bzhedug		Temirgoy		Abzakh		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
to run	t͡ɕan	чьэн	t͡ʂan	чъэн	t͡ʂan	чъэн	ʃan	шэн	t͡ʃan	чэн	ʒan	жэн

Palato-alveolar affricates чʰ, ч, дж and кӏ

• Proto-Circassian aspirated чʰ [t͡ʃʰ] become ш [ʃ] in most Adyghe and Kabardian dialects but become aspirated шʰ [ʃʰ] in Bzhedug and чь [t͡ɕ] in Baslaney.

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian		Baslaney
			Bzhedug		Temirgoy, Abzakh and Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
horse brother	t͡ʃʰə	чʰы	ʃʰə	шʰы	ʃə	шы	ʃə	шы	t͡ɕə	чьы
wedding	nəsaːt͡ʃʰa	нысачʰэ	nəsaːʃʰa	нысашʰэ	nəsaːʃa	нысашэ	nəsaːʃa	нысашэ	nəsaːt͡ɕa	нысачьэ
sister	t͡ʃʰəpχʷ	чʰыпхъу	ʃʰəpχʷ	шʰыпхъу	ʃəpχʷ	шыпхъу	ʃəpχʷ	шыпхъу	t͡ɕəpχʷ	чьыпхъу
sand	pt͡ʃʰaːχʷa	пчʰахъо	pʃʰaːχʷa	пшʰахъо	pʃaːχʷa	пшахъо	pʃaːχʷa	пшахъуэ

• Proto-Circassian voiceless palato-alveolar affricate ч [t͡ʃ] become щ [ɕ] in the Abzakh dialect and ж [ʒ] in the Kabardian dialect.^[3]

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy, Shapsug and Bzhedug		Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
cow	t͡ʃam	чэм	t͡ʃamə	чэмы	ɕam	щэм	ʒam	жэм
spear	pt͡ʃə	пчы	pt͡ʃə	пчы	pɕə	пщы	bʒə	бжы
goat	pt͡ʃan	пчэн	pt͡ʃanə	пчэны	pɕanə	пщэны	bʒan	бжэн
village	t͡ʃəɮa	чылэ	t͡ʃəɮa	чылэ	ɕəla	щылэ	ʒəɮa	жылэ
night	t͡ʃaɕ	чэщ	t͡ʃaɕ	чэщ	ɕaɕə	щэщы	ʒaɕ	жэщ

• Proto-Circassian дж [d͡ʒ] survived in the Adyghe diaelcts, but became ж [ʒ] in the Kabardian dialect. The дж [d͡ʒ] in Kabardian derives from Proto-Circassian plain кь [kʲ] and гь [ɡʲ].

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe		Kabardian
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
fox	baːd͡ʒa	баджэ	baːd͡ʒa	баджэ	baːʒa	бажэ
arch, bridge	ɬaməd͡ʒ	лъэмыдж	ɬaməd͡ʒ	лъэмыдж	ɬaməʒ	лъэмыж
flour	ħad͡ʒəʁa	хьэджыгъэ	ħaːd͡ʒəʁa	хьаджыгъэ	ħaʒəʁa	хьэжыгъэ
knee	ɬaɡʷaːnd͡ʒa	лъэгуанджэ	ɬaɡʷaːnd͡ʒa	лъэгуанджэ	ɬaɡʷaːnʒa	лъэгуанжэ
village	qʷaːd͡ʒa	къуаджэ	qʷaːd͡ʒa	къуаджэ	qʷaːʒa	къуажэ

• Proto-Circassian palato-alveolar ejective affricate кӏ [tʃʼ] become a palatalized glottal stop ӏь [ʔʲ] or an alveolo-palatal ejective fricative щӏ [ɕʼ] in the Abzakh dialect and an alveolo-palatal ejective fricative щӏ [ɕʼ] in the Kabardain dialect.^[4]

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy, Shapsug, Bzhedug and Baslaney		Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
young man, boy	t͡ʃʼaːɮa	кӏалэ	t͡ʃʼaːɮa	кӏалэ	ʔʲaːla	ӏьалэ	ɕʼaːɮa	щӏалэ
guest	ħaːt͡ʃʼa	хьакӏэ	ħaːt͡ʃʼa	хьакӏэ	ħaːʔʲa	хьаӏьэ	ħaːɕʼa	хьащӏэ
few	maːt͡ʃʼa	макӏэ	maːt͡ʃʼa	макӏэ	maːʔʲa	маӏьэ	maːɕʼa	мащӏэ
to regret	t͡ʃʼaʁʷaʑən	кӏэгъожьын	t͡ʃʼaʁʷaʑən	кӏэгъожьын	ʔʲaʁʷaʑən	ӏьэгъожьын	ɕʼaʁʷaʒən	щӏэгъуэжын
to ask	t͡ʃʼawpt͡ʃʼan	кӏэупчӏэн	t͡ʃʼawpt͡ʃʼan	кӏэупчӏэн	ʔʲawpɕʼan	ӏьэупщӏэн	ɕʼawpt͡ʃʼan	щӏэупкӏэн
fast	psənt͡ʃʼa	псынкӏэ	psənt͡ʃʼa	псынкӏэ	psənɕʼa	псынщӏэ	psənɕʼa	псынщӏэ
to fast	nat͡ʃʼən	нэкӏын	nat͡ʃʼən	нэкӏын	naʔʲən	нэӏьын	naɕʼən	нэщӏын
new	t͡ʃʼa	кӏэ	t͡ʃʼa	кӏэ	ɕʼa	щӏэ	ɕʼa	щӏэ

Retroflex affricates чъʰ, чъ, джъ and чӏ

• Proto-Circassian plain voiceless retroflex affricate чъ [ʈ͡ʂ] become ч [t͡ʃ] in Shapsug, ш [ʃ] in Abzakh, ж [ʒ] in the Kabardian and дж [d͡ʒ] in the Baslaney dialect.

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe						Kabardian		Baslaney
			Bzhedug and Temirgoy		Shapsug		Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
tree	ʈ͡ʂəɣə	чъыгы	ʈ͡ʂəɣə	чыгы	t͡ʃəɣ	чыг	ʃəɣ	шыг	ʒəɣ	жыг	d͡ʒəɣ	джьыг
to sleep	ʈ͡ʂəjan	чъыен	ʈ͡ʂəjan	чъыен	t͡ʃəjan	чыен	ʃəjan	шыен	ʒəjan	жыен	d͡ʒəjan	джыен
to run	ʈ͡ʂan	чъэн	ʈ͡ʂan	чъэн	t͡ʃan	чэн	ʃan	шэн	ʒan	жэн	d͡ʒan	джэн
door	pʈ͡ʂa	пчъэ	pʈ͡ʂa	пчъэ	pt͡ʃa	пчэ	pʃa	пшэ	pʒa	пжэ	pd͡ʒa	пджэ
number	pʈ͡ʂaːʁa	пчъагъэ	pʈ͡ʂaːʁa	пчъагъэ	pt͡ʃaːʁa	пчагъэ	pʃaːʁa	пшагъэ	pʒaːʁa	пжагъэ	pd͡ʒaːʁa	пджагъэ
goat	aːʈ͡ʂa	ачъэ	aːʈ͡ʂa	ачъэ	aːt͡ʃa	ачэ	aːʃa	ашэ	aːʒa	ажэ	aːd͡ʒa	аджэ
to run down	jaʈ͡ʂaxən	ечъэхын	jaʈ͡ʂaxən	ечъэхын	jat͡ʃaxən	ечэхын	jaʃaxən	ешэхын	jaʒaxən	ежэхын	jad͡ʒaxən	еджэхын

• Proto-Circassian джъ [ɖʐ] became дж [d͡ʒ] in Adyghe and жь [ʑ] in Kabardian.

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe		Kabardian
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
friend	nəbd͡ʐaʁʷ	ныбджъэгъу	nəbd͡ʒaʁʷ	ныбджэгъу	nəbʑaʁʷ	ныбжьэгъу

• Proto-Circassian retroflex ejective affricate чӏ [ʈ͡ʂʼ] become a palatalized glottal stop ӏь [ʔʲ] or an alveolo-palatal ejective fricative щӏ [ɕʼ] in the Abzakh dialect, a palato-alveolar ejective affricate кӏ [t͡ʃʼ] in Shapsug and alveolo-palatal ejective fricative щӏ [ɕʼ] in the Kabardain dialect.^[5]

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe						Kabardian
			Temirgoy and Bzhedug		Shapsug		Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
stands under	ʈ͡ʂʼat	чӏэт	ʈ͡ʂʼat	чӏэт	t͡ʃʼat	кӏэт	ʔʲat	ӏьэт	ɕʼat	щӏэт
sits under	ʈ͡ʂʼas	чӏэс	ʈ͡ʂʼas	чӏэс	t͡ʃʼas	кӏэс	ʔʲas	ӏьэс	ɕʼas	щӏэс
lies under	ʈ͡ʂʼaɬ	чӏэлъ	ʈ͡ʂʼaɬ	чӏэлъ	t͡ʃʼaɬ	кӏэлъ	ʔʲaɬ	ӏьэлъ	ɕʼaɬ	щӏэлъ
question	wəpʈ͡ʂʼa	упчӏэ	wəpʈ͡ʂʼa	упчӏэ	wəpt͡ʃʼa	упкӏэ	wəpɕʼa	упщӏэ	wəpt͡ʃʼa	упщӏэ
to ask	t͡ʃʼawpʈ͡ʂʼan	кӏэупчӏэн	t͡ʃʼawpʈ͡ʂʼan	кӏэупкӏэн	t͡ʃʼawpt͡ʃʼan	кӏэупчӏэн	ʔʲawpɕʼan	ӏьэупщӏэн	ɕʼawpt͡ʃʼan	щӏэупкӏэн
earth	ʈ͡ʂʼəɡʷ	чӏыгу	ʈ͡ʂʼəɡʷ	чӏыгу	t͡ʃʼəɡʷ	кӏыгу	t͡ʃʼəɡʷ	щӏыгу	ɕʼəɡʷ	щӏыгу
place	ʈ͡ʂʼəpʼa	чӏыпӏэ	ʈ͡ʂʼəpʼa	чӏыпӏэ	t͡ʃʼəpʼa	кӏыпӏэ	ɕʼəpʼa	щӏыпӏэ	ɕʼəpʼa	щӏыпӏэ
debt	ʈ͡ʂʼəxwa	чӏыхуэ	ʈ͡ʂʼəfa	чӏыфэ	t͡ʃʼəfa	кӏыфэ	ɕʼəfa	щӏыфэ	ɕʼəxʷa	щӏыхуэ
iron	ʁʷəʈ͡ʂʼə	гъучӏы	ʁʷəʈ͡ʂʼə	гъучӏы	ʁʷət͡ʃʼə	гъукӏы	ʁʷəɕʼə	гъущӏы	ʁʷəɕʼə	гъущӏы

Palato-alveolar stops кьʰ, кь, гь and кӏь

In the Proto-Circassian language there exist a palatalized voiced velar stop [ɡʲ] ⟨гь⟩, a palatalized aspirated voiceless velar stop [kʰʲ], a palatalized voiceless velar stop [kʲ] ⟨кь⟩ and a palatalized velar ejective [kʲʼ] ⟨кӏь⟩. The consonants гь [ɡʲ], кь [kʲ] and кӏь [kʲʼ] survive in the Shapsug dialect (e.g. Kfar Kama dialect), in the Besleney dialect and in the Uzunyayla dialect.^[6] In other Circassian dialects they were merged with the palato-alveolar consonants дж [d͡ʒ], ч [t͡ʃ] and кӏ [t͡ʃʼ] respectively.^[7][8][9] Proto-Circassain unaspirated кь [kʲ] become гь [ɡʲ] in Besleney dialect and Uzunyayla dialect and it become дж [d͡ʒ] in the other Kabardian dialects (кь [kʲ] → гь [ɡʲ] → дж [d͡ʒ]).

• Proto-Circassian aspirated кьʰ [kʰʲ] became aspirated чʰ [t͡ʃʰ] in Bzhedug, plain кь [kʲ] in Shapsug and in other dialects plain ч [t͡ʃ] :

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe						Kabardian
			Bzhedug		Temirgoy and Abzakh		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
spleen	kʰʲa	кьʰэ	t͡ʃʰa	чʰэ	t͡ʃa	чэ	kʲa	кьэ	t͡ʃa	чэ
brushwood twig	kʰʲə	кьʰы	t͡ʃʰə	чʰы	t͡ʃə	чы	kʲə	кьы	t͡ʃə	чы
to cough	pskʰʲan	пскьʰэн	pst͡ʃʰan	псчʰэн	pst͡ʃan	псчэн	pskʲan	пскьэн	pst͡ʃan	псчэн

• Proto-Circassian кь [kʲ] survived in Shapsug. In other Adyghe dialects it became ч [t͡ʃ] and in Kabardian it became дж [d͡ʒ] :

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy and Abzakh		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
chicken	kʲatə	кьэты	t͡ʃatə	чэты	kʲat	кьэт	d͡ʒad	джэд
cat	kʲatəw	кьэтыу	t͡ʃatəw	чэтыу	kʲatəw	кьэтыу	d͡ʒadəw	джэдыу
glass	ʔaːpkʲ	апкь	ʔaːpt͡ʃ	апч	ʔaːpkʲ	апкь	ʔaːbd͡ʒ	абдж
to spin	ʁakʲarazən	гъэкьэрэзын	ʁat͡ʃarazən	гъэчэрэзын	ʁakʲarazən	гъэкьэрэзын	ʁad͡ʒarazən	гъэджэрэзын
cheerful	kʲaxʷə	кьэху	чэфы	t͡ʃafə	кьэфы	kʲafə	d͡ʒaxʷə	джэху

• Proto-Circassian кӏь [kʲʼ] survived in Shapsug. In other Circassian dialects it became кӏ [t͡ʃʼ] :

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy and Abzakh		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
egg	kʲʼankʲʼa	кӏьэнкӏьэ	t͡ʃʼant͡ʃʼa	кӏэнкӏэ	kʲʼaːkʲʼa	кӏьакӏьэ	t͡ʃʼant͡ʃʼa	кӏэнкӏэ
gun	kʲʼaraːχʷa	кӏьэрахъо	t͡ʃʼaraːχʷa	кӏэрахъо	kʲʼaraːχʷa	кӏьэрахъо	t͡ʃʼaraːχʷa	кӏэрахъуэ
long	kʲʼəħa	кӏьыхьэ	t͡ʃʼəħa	кӏыхьэ	kʲʼaħə	кӏьэхьы	t͡ʃʼəħ	кӏыхь
short	kʲʼat͡ʃʼə	кӏьэкӏы	t͡ʃʼat͡ʃʼə	кӏэкӏы	t͡ʃʼat͡ʃʼə	кӏьэкӏы	t͡ʃʼaɕʼ	кӏэщӏ
to kill	wkʲʼən	укӏьын	wt͡ʃʼən	укӏын	wkʲʼən	укӏьын	wt͡ʃʼən	укӏын
rope	kʲʼaːpsa	кӏьапсэ	t͡ʃʼaːpsa	кӏапсэ	kʲʼaːpsa	кӏьапсэ	t͡ʃʼaːpsa	кӏапсэ
key	ʔʷənkʲʼəbza	ӏункӏьыбзэ	ʔʷənt͡ʃʼəbza	ӏункӏыбзэ	ʔʷəkʲʼəbza	ӏукӏьыбзэ	ʔʷənt͡ʃʼəbza	ӏункӏыбзэ
tail	kʲʼa	кӏьэ	t͡ʃʼa	кӏэ	kʲʼa	кӏьэ	t͡ʃʼa	кӏэ
beard	ʒaːkʲʼa	жакӏьэ	ʒaːt͡ʃʼa	жакӏэ	ʒaːkʲʼa	жакӏьэ	ʑaːt͡ʃʼa	жьакӏэ
Temirgoy	kʲʼaməɡʷəja	кӏьэмыгуе	t͡ʃʼaməɡʷəja	кӏэмыгуе	kʲʼaməɡʷəja	кӏьэмыгуе	t͡ʃʼaməɡʷəja	кӏэмыгуе

• Proto-Circassian гь [ɡʲ] survived in Shapsug. In other Circassian dialects it became дж [d͡ʒ] :

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy and Abzakh		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
dress/shirt	ɡʲaːna	гьанэ	d͡ʒaːna	джанэ	ɡʲaːna	гьанэ	d͡ʒaːna	джанэ
to study to read to call	jaɡʲan	егьэн	jad͡ʒan	еджэн	jaɡʲan	егьэн	jad͡ʒan	еджэн
infidel	ɡʲaːwər	гьаур	d͡ʒaːwər	джаур	ɡʲaːwər	гьаур	d͡ʒaːwər	джаур
to play	ɡʲagʷən	гьэгун	d͡ʒagʷən	джэгун	ɡʲagʷən	гьэгун	d͡ʒagʷən	джэгун
game	ɡʲagʷ	гьэгу	d͡ʒagʷ	джэгу	ɡʲagʷ	гьэгу	d͡ʒagʷ	джэгу
toy	ɡʲaɡʷaːɬa	гьэгуалъэ	d͡ʒagʷaːɬa	джэгуалъэ	ɡʲagʷaːɬa	гьэгуалъэ	d͡ʒagʷaːɬa	джэгуалъэ
bitter	dəɡʲə	дыгьы	dəd͡ʒə	дыджы	dəɡʲə	дыгьы	dəd͡ʒ	дыдж
pants	ʁʷanʃaɡʲ	гъоншэгь	ʁʷant͡ʃad͡ʒ	гъончэдж	ʁʷaʃaɡʲ	гъошэгь	ʁʷanʃad͡ʒ	гъоншэдж
evil	bzaːɡʲa	бзагьэ	bzaːd͡ʒa	бзаджэ	bzaːɡʲa	бзагьэ	bzaːd͡ʒa	бзаджэ
spider	baɡʲə	бэгьы	bad͡ʒə	бэджы	baːɡʲa	багьэ	bad͡ʒ	бэдж
that's it	ɡʲaːrə	гьары	d͡ʒaːrə	джары	ɡʲaːrə	гьары	d͡ʒaːrə	джары

Palato-alveolar fricative шʰ, ш, ж and шӏ

• Proto-Circassian aspirated шʰ [ʃʰ] survived in the Bzhedug dialect. In other Adyghe dialects it became plain щ [ɕ] while in Kabardian it became plain ш [ʃ].

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Bzhedug and Shapsug		Temirgoy, Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
milk	ʃʰa	шʰэ	ʃʰa	шʰэ	ɕa	щэ	ʃa	шэ
lame	ɬaːʃʰa	лъашʰэ	ɬaːʃʰa	лъашʰэ	ɬaːɕa	лъащэ	ɬaːʃa	лъашэ
salt	ʃʰəʁʷ	шʰыгъу	ʃʰəʁʷ	шʰыгъу	ɕəʁʷ	щыгъу	ʃəʁʷ	шыгъу
cloud	pʃʰa	пшʰэ	pʃʰa	пшʰэ	pɕa	пщэ	pʃa	пшэ
pus	ʃʰənə	шʰыны	ʃʰənə	шʰыны	-	-	ʃən	шын
accordion	pʃʰəna	пшʰынэ	pʃʰəna	пшʰынэ	pɕəna	пщынэ	pʃəna	пшынэ
fat	pʃʰarə	пшʰэры	pʃʰarə	пшʰэры	pɕarə	пщынэ	pʃar	пшэр
wax	ʃʰaxʷə	шʰэху	ʃʰafə	шʰэфы	-	-	ʃaxʷə	шэху

Labialized palato-alveolar цу, су, зу and сӏу

The Proto-Circassian language did not had labiodental consonants (ф [f] and в [v]). There existed a series of labialized alveolar sibilant affricates and fricatives: *[tsʷ] ⟨цу⟩, *[sʷʼ] ⟨сӏу⟩, *[sʷ] ⟨су⟩, *[zʷ] ⟨зу⟩. In Adyghe Temirgoy dialect they became *[tsʷ] ⟨цу⟩, *[ʃʼʷ] ⟨шӏу⟩, *[ʃʷ] ⟨шъу⟩, *[ʒʷ] ⟨жъу⟩. In Shapsug, Bzhedug and Abzakh dialects of Adyghe they become labiopalatalized *[tɕʷ] ⟨чъу⟩, *[ʃʼʷ] ⟨шӏу⟩, *[ʃʷ] ⟨шъу⟩, *[ʒʷ] ⟨жъу⟩, and in Kabardian they become labiodental consonants *[v] ⟨в⟩, *[fʼ] ⟨фӏ⟩, *[f] ⟨ф⟩, *[v] ⟨в⟩.

• Proto-Circassian aspirated цʰу [t͡sʰʷ] became чъʰу [t͡ɕʰʷ] in Bzhedug, цу [t͡sʷ] in Temirgoy, чъу [t͡ɕʷ] in Shapsug and Abzakh and ф [f] in Kabardian.

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe						Kabardian
			Bzhedug		Temirgoy		Abzakh and Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
jungle/bushy area	t͡sʰʷənə	цʰуны	t͡ɕʰʷənə	чъʰуны	t͡sʷənə	цуны	t͡ɕʷənə	чъуны	fən	фын

• Proto-Circassian су [sʷ] became шъу [ʃʷ] in the Adyghe dialects and ф [f] in the Kabardian dialects :

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe		Kabardian
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
skin color you (plural)	sʷa	суэ	ɕʷa	шъо	fa	фэ
honey	sʷaw	суэу	ɕʷaw	шъоу	faw	фо
wife	sʷəz	суз	ɕʷəz	шъуз	fəz	фыз
green	wət͡səsʷa	уцысуэ	wət͡səɕʷa	уцышъо	wəd͡zəfa	удзыфэ

• Proto-Circassian зу [zʷ] became жъу [ʒʷ] in the Adyghe dialects and в [v] in the Kabardian dialects :

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe		Kabardian
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
to boil, to plow	zʷan	зуэн	ʒʷan	жъон	van	вэн
stone, rock	məzʷa	мызуэ	məʑʷa	мыжъо	məva	мывэ
star	zʷaːʁʷa	зуагъо	ʑʷaːʁʷa	жъуагъо	vaːʁʷa	вагъуэ
narrow	zazʷə	зэзу	zaʑʷə	зэжъу	zavə	зэвы
wide	ʔʷəzʷə	ӏузу	ʔʷəʑʷə	ӏужъу	ʔʷəvə	ӏувы

• Proto-Circassian сӏу [sʷʼ] or цӏу [t͡sʷʼ] became шӏу [ʃʷʼ] in the Adyghe dialects and фӏ [fʼ] in the Kabardian dialects :

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy and Abzakh		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
well	sʷʼə	сӏу	ɕʷʼə	шӏу	ɕʷʼə	шӏу	fʼə	фӏы
black	sʷʼət͡sʼa	сӏуцӏэ	ɕʷʼət͡sʼa	шӏуцӏэ	ɕʷʼət͡sʼa	шӏусӏэ	ɕʷʼəsʼa	фӏыцӏэ
fire	maːsʷʼa	масӏуэ	maːɕʷʼa	машӏо	maːɕʷʼa	машӏо	maːfʼa	мафӏэ
dirty	sʷʼajə	сӏуэи	ɕʷʼajə	шӏои	ɕʷʼajə	шӏои	fʼej	фӏей

• Proto-Circassian цу [t͡sʷ] survived in Temirgoy. In most Adyghe dialects (e.g. Abzakh, Shapsug and Bzhedug) it became чъу [t͡ɕʷ] and in the Kabardian dialects it became в [v] :

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy		Shapsug, Bzhedug and Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
shoes	t͡sʷaːqa	цуакъэ	t͡sʷaːqa	цуакъэ	t͡ɕʷaːqa	чъуакъэ	vaːqa	вакъэ
ox	t͡sʷə	цу	t͡sʷə	цу	t͡ɕʷə	чъу	və	вы
ploughshare	t͡sʷaːbza	цуабзэ	t͡sʷaːbza	цуабзэ	t͡ɕʷaːbza	чъуабзэ	vaːbd͡za	вабзэ
raven	t͡sʷəndə	цунды	t͡sʷəndə	цунды	?	?	vənd	вынд

Labiodental [f] ⟨ф⟩ is found also in Adyghe, but there it derives from the Proto-Circassian labialized voiceless velar fricative [xʷ] ⟨ху⟩, which survived in the East Circassian dialects (e.g. Kabardian and Besleney).

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Temirgoy and Abzakh		Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
day	maːxʷa	махуэ	maːfa	мафэ	maːfa	мафэ	maːxʷa	махуэ
white	xʷəʑə	хужьы	fəʑə	фыжьы	fəʑə	фыжьы	xʷəʑə	хужьы
person	t͡sʼəxʷə	цӏыху	t͡sʼəfə	цӏыфы	t͡sʼəfə	цӏыфы	t͡sʼəxʷ	цӏыху
hot	xʷaːba	хуабэ	faːba	фабэ	faːba	фабэ	xʷaːba	хуабэ
corn	nartəxʷ	нартыху	nartəf	нартыф	natəf	натыф	nartəxʷ	нартыху
like	xʷad	хуэд	fad	фэд	fad	фэд	xʷad	хуэд
to want	xʷajan	хуэен	fajan	фэен	fajan	фэен	xʷajan	?
garlic	bʑənəxʷ	бжьыныху	bʑənəf	бжьыныф	bʑənəf	бжьыныф	bʑənəxʷ	бжьыныху
man	χʷəɬxʷəʁa	хъулъхугъэ	χʷəɬfəʁa	хъулъфыгъэ	qʷəlfəʁa	къулфыгъэ	χʷəɬxʷəʁa	хъулъхугъэ
woman	bzəɬxʷəʁa	бзылъхугъэ	bzəɬfəʁa	бзылъфыгъэ	bzəlfəʁa	бзылфыгъэ	bzəɬxʷəʁa	бзылъхугъэ
tin	t͡saxʷ	цэху	t͡saf	цэф	t͡saf	цэф	d͡zːaxʷ	дзэху
light	naxʷə(n)	нэху(н)	nafən	нэфын	nafna	нэфнэ	naxʷ	нэху
straight man	zaːxʷa	захуэ	zaːfa	зафэ	zaːfa	зафэ	zaːxʷa	захуэ

Labialized velar fricatives кʰу, ку, гу and кӏу

• Proto-Circassian aspirated кʰу [kʰʷ] survived in Bzhedug and in other Circassian dialects it became plain ку [kʷ].

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe				Kabardian
			Bzhedug		Temirgoy, Abzakh and Shapsug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
middle	kʰʷə	кʰу	kʰʷə	кʰу	kʷə	ку	kʷə	ку
thigh	kʰʷa	кʰо	kʰʷa	кʰо	kʷa	ко	kʷa	куэ

• Proto-Circassian plain ку [kʷ] became voiced гу [ɡʷ] in the Kabardian dialects :

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe		Shapsug		Kabardian
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
twig	?	?	kʷaːma	куамэ	?	?	ɡʷaːna	гуанэ
group	kʷarta	кортэ	kʷart	корт	?	?	ɡʷarta	гуэрт
pitchfork	kʷaːχʷa	куахъо	kʷaːχʷa	куахъо	kʷaːχʷa	куахъо	ɡʷarta	гуахъуэ
wheat	kʷat͡s	коц	kʷat͡sə	коцы	kʷat͡s	коц	ɡʷad͡z	гуэдз
short	kʲʼaːkʷa	кӏьако	t͡ʃʼaːkʷa	кӏако	kʲʼaːkʷa	кӏьако	t͡ʃʼaːɡʷa	кӏагуэ

Other noticeable changes

Uvular affricates

The consonant aspirated voiceless uvular stop [qʰ] ⟨къʰ⟩ and its labialized counterpart [qʰʷ] ⟨къʰу⟩ survived in Bzhedug. In the Temirgoy dialect they become къ [q] and къу [qʷ] while in some Shapsug dialects they become хъ [χ] and хъу [χʷ]. In Kabardian they became affricate voiceless uvular affricate [q͡χ] ⟨кхъ⟩ and labialized voiceless uvular affricate [q͡χʷ] ⟨кхъу⟩.

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe						Kabardian
			Temirgoy		Kfar Kama		Bzhedug
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
son	qʷa	къо	qʷa	къо	qʷa	къо	qʷa	къо	qʷa	къуэ
man	χʷəɬxʷəʁa	хъулъхугъэ	χʷəɬfəʁa	хъулъфыгъэ	qʷəlfəʁa	къулфыгъэ	χʷəɬfəʁa	хъулъфыгъэ	χʷəɬxʷəʁa	хъулъхугъэ
grave	qʰa	къʰэ	qa	къэ	χa	хъэ	qʰa	къʰэ	q͡χa	кхъэ
male	χʷə	хъу	χʷə	хъу	χʷə	хъу	χʷə	хъу	χʷə	хъу
pig	qʰʷa	къʰо	qʷa	къо	χʷa	хъо	qʰʷa	къʰо	q͡χʷa	кхъуэ
cheese	?	?	q͡ʷaːja	къуае	χʷaːja	хъуае	?	?	q͡χʷej	кхъуей
voice/sound	?	?	maːqa	макъэ	maːχa	махъэ	?	?	maːq	макъ
ship	?	?	qʷəħa	къухьэ	qʷaħ	къохь	?	?	q͡χʷaħ	кхъухь
ant	?	?	qaːmzaɡʷ	къамзэгу	χaːnzaɡʷ	хъанзэгу	?	?	χʷəmpʼat͡sʼad͡ʒ	хъумпӏэцӏэдж
peer	?	?	qʷəʐə	къужъы	qʷəʐə	къужъы	?	?	q͡χʷəʑə	кхъужьы

Lateral affricates

In the Proto-Circassian there existed an alveolar lateral ejective affricate *[t͡ɬʼ]. This consonant survived in the Besleney dialect of Kabardian . In most Circassian dialects it become an alveolar lateral ejective fricative [ɬʼ].^[10]

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe						Kabardian		Besleney
			Temirgoy		Shapsug		Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
four	pt͡ɬʼə	птлӏы	pɬʼə	плӏы	pɬʼə	плӏы	pɬʼə	плӏы	pɬʼə	плӏы	pt͡ɬʼə	птлӏы
to die	mat͡ɬʼan	мэтлӏэн	maɬʼan	мэлӏэн	maɬʼan	мэлӏэн	maɬʼan	мэлӏэн	maɬʼan	мэлӏэн	mat͡ɬʼan	мэтлӏэн
man/husband	t͡ɬʼə	тлӏы	ɬʼə	лӏы	ɬʼə	лӏы	ɬʼə	лӏы	ɬʼə	лӏы	t͡ɬʼə	тлӏы

There also existed voiced alveolar lateral affricate *[d͡ɮ] that become [ɣ] in Adyghe and [ʒ] in Kabardian and a palatalized voiced velar fricative *[ɣʲ] that become [ɣ] in Adyghe and [ʑ] in Kabardian.

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe						Kabardian
			Temirgoy		Shapsug		Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
rip	t͡saːd͡ɮa	цадлэ	t͡saːɣa	цагэ	t͡saːɣa	цагэ	t͡saːɣa	цагэ	d͡zaːʒa	дзажэ
to wash, to launder	ɣʲət͡ʃʼan	гыкӏэн	ɣət͡ʃʼan	гыкӏэн	ɣət͡ʃʼan	гыкӏэн	ɣət͡ʃʼan	гыкӏэн	ʑəɕʼan	жьыщӏэн

Glottal stops

The consonants glottal stop [ʔ] and labialized glottal stop [ʔʷ] in Proto-Circassian may have come from uvular ejective [qʼ] and labialized uvular ejective [qʷʼ]. In the Hakuchi dialect it is pronounced as [qʼ] and [qʷʼ].^[11]

Word	Proto-Circassian		Ubykh	Adyghe		Kabardian
	IPA	Cyrillic		IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
two	tʼqʷʼə ~ tʔʷə	тӏыкъӏу	tʼqʷʼa	tʷʼə	тӏу	tʼəw	тӏу
to say	qʼan ~ ʔʷan	къӏуэн	qʼan	ʔʷan	ӏон	ʔʷan	ӏуэн
hand	ʔa ~ qʼa	къӏэ	?	ʔa	ӏэ	ʔa	ӏэ
table	ʔaːna ~ qʼaːna	къӏанэ	?	ʔaːna	ӏанэ	ʔaːna	ӏанэ
hat	paːqʷʼa ~ paːʔʷa	пакъӏуэ	?	paːʔʷa	паӏо	?	?

Palatalized velar fricative

• Proto-Circassian palatalized voiceless uvular fricative хъь [χʲ] become хь [ħ] in most Adyghe dialects and in some Kabardian dialects it became to хъ [χ].

Word	Proto-Circassian		Adyghe		Kabardian
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
more	naχʲ	нэхъь	naːħ	нахь	naχ	нэхъ
older brother	ʃənaχʲəʐ	шынэхъьыжъ	ʃənaħəʐ	шынахьыжъ	ʃənaχəʑ	шынэхъыжь
younger brother	ʃənaχʲət͡ʃʼ	шынэхъьыкӏ	ʃənaħət͡ʃ	шынахьыкӏ	ʃənaχəɕʼ	шынэхъыщӏ

Grammar

Numbers

English	Proto-Circassian		Ubykh		Adyghe				Kabardian		Baslaney
					Temirgoy and Bzhedug		Shapsug and Abzakh
	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic	IPA	Cyrillic
One	zə	зы	za	зэ	zə	зы	zə	зы	zə	зы	zə	зы
Two	tʷʼə	тӏу	tʼqʷʼa	ткъӏуа	tʷʼə	тӏу	tʷʼə	тӏу	tʼəw	тӏу	?	тӏу
Three	ɕə	щы	ʂa	шъа	ɕə	щы	ɕə	щы	ɕə	щы	ɕə	щы
Four	pt͡ɬʼə	птлӏы	pʼɬʼə	плӏы	pɬʼə	плӏы	pɬʼə	плӏы	pɬʼə	плӏы	pt͡ɬʼə	птлӏы
Five	txʷə	тху	ɕxə	щхы	tfə	тфы	tfə	тфы	txʷə	тху	txʷə	тху
Six	xə	хы	fə	фы	xə	хы	xə	хы	xə	хы	xə	хы
Seven	bɮə	блы	blə	бльы	bɮə	блы	blə	бльы	bɮə	блы	blə	бльы
Eight	jə	и	ʁʷa	гъуа	jə	и	jə	и	jə	и	jə	и
Nine	bʁʷə	бгъу	bʁʲə	бгъьу	bʁʷə	бгъу	bʁʷə	бгъу	bʁʷə	бгъу	bʁʷə	бгъу
Ten	pʃʼə	пшӏы	ʑʷə	жъуы	pʃʼə	пшӏы	pʃʼə	пшӏы	pɕʼə	пщӏы	pʃʼə	пшӏы

See also

• Proto Abkhaz-Abaza
• Proto-Northwest Caucasian language

References

• STAROSTIN, Sergei A.; NIKOLAYEV, Sergei L. (1994). A North Caucasian Etymological Dictionary: Preface.