高加索诸语言(Caucasian languages)

通行於高加索地区的一组当地语言，不属於世界上任何一个大语系。约有近九百万人操此语言，可分为下列三组︰南高加索语族（卡特维尔语族〔Kartvelian〕）、西北高加索语族（阿布哈兹－阿迪格语族〔Abkhazo-Adyghian〕）和东北高加索语族（或称纳霍－达吉斯坦语族〔Nakho-Dagestanian〕）。卡特维尔（南高加索）语族，约有四百五十多万人操此语言。阿布哈兹－阿迪格（或西北高加索）语族包括阿布哈兹语，以及合称切尔克斯语的一连串方言。纳霍－达吉斯坦（或东北高加索）语族包括纳霍语支和达吉斯坦语支。纳霍语支包括车臣语、印古什语，通行於车臣、印古什境内，约有一百多万人操这种语言。达吉斯坦语支又可再分为二十五～三十种语言，主要通行於亚塞拜然北部和达吉斯坦共和国境内，人数约有一百七十万。达吉斯坦语还包括阿瓦尔、拉克、莱兹吉等几个数十万人讲的语言，其他的只有少数农村通用。虽然高加索诸语言之间的歧异性很大，但是大部分具有共同的庞大子音系统，以及在动词指示格和语法方面倾向动者格的形式。除了乔治亚语外，这些高加索语借用西里尔字母来书写。车臣人则想引进拉丁字母来书写。

English version：

Caucasian languages

Group of languages spoken in the Caucasus region that are not members of any language families spoken elsewhere in the world. Caucasian languages, spoken by perhaps close to 9 million people, are divided into three subgroups: the South Caucasian, or Kartvelian family; the Northwest Caucasian, or Abkhaz-Adyghe languages; and the Northeast Caucasian, or Nakh-Dagestanian languages. Kartvelian, with over 4.5 million speakers, comprises four relatively closely related languages, including Georgian. Northwest Caucasian languages include Abkhaz and a chain of dialects called collectively Circassian. The Northeast Caucasian languages are further divided into two groups, Nakh and Daghestanian. The Nakh languages include Chechen and Ingush, spoken by over a million people mainly in Chechnya and Ingushetia. Daghestanian is an extraordinarily diversified group of 25-30 languages spoken by some 1.7 million people mainly in northern Azerbaijan and the Republic of Dagestan. Several Daghestanian languages, including Avar, Lak, Dargva, and Lezgi, number their speakers in the hundreds of thousands; others are spoken in only a few villages. In spite of their great diversity, most Caucasian languages have in common large consonant inventories and a tendency toward ergativity in case marking, verb indexing, or syntax. Those Caucasian languages with standard written forms employ the Cyrillic alphabet, with the prominent exception of Georgian. An effort is being made to introduce the Latin alphabet for Chechen in Chechnya.