Aztamartshi

*** UNDER CONSTRUCTION***

Introduction
Aztamartshi (Ʒ̆aḥbah Aztaμartʒ̆i / שָחבָה אזתָמָרתשע) is a language spoken on the island of Aztamart, situated in the Arabian Sea off of the coast of Oman. It is the only surviving member of its language family besides the Xulaxani language, and is also spoken in small yet prominent enclaves in Saudi Arabia as well as parts of Yemen and Oman to a lesser extent. Aztamartshi has used a variety of writing systems over the years, however on the mainland of Aztamart, the Aztamartshi Alphabet is used, a system created in the year 500 with the newly-claimed union of Aztamartshi tribes, no less by the co-founder of Aztamart as a nation, Enver Avraha.

The number of speakers alive today is widely unknown, yet the estimate from censuses among other works is around 5.5 million.

History
As its writing systems have changed throughout the years, the language has changed with them, morphing along the years.

Pre-Union Aztamart (1000 BC-500 AD)
Many years before Enver and Tsadi Avraha united the island of Aztamart, there were a great wealth of languages contained within its regions and specific to them, all being very closely related to each other through both lexical and grammatical similarities, most likely descending from a Proto-Aztamartic language. Not much is truly known of this chapter of both Aztamartshi linguistic history as well as Aztamartshi history in general, due to the nomadic and conquering tendencies of the early Aztamartshi tribes, leaving a great plethora of this ancient evidence destroyed from the constant fighting and territorial skirmishes.

Ancient Union Era Aztamart (500 AD - 1025 AD)
When the siblings Enver and Tsadi Avraha managed to unite the tribes of Aztamart through astonishingly peaceful means under Christianity, they had to focus on both keeping Aztamart afloat as a legitimate nation as well as maintaining the then fragile peace formed between the peoples of Aztamart. Through this, they had to unite the languages of Aztamart as well, originally using the dialect of the Qaz' region at the center of the island as the official language to be used, however they had incorporated many elements of the languages that surround Qaz' Aztamartshi, and eventually made this into what is now known as Old Aztamartshi.

Unlike the aforementioned Proto-Aztamartic language, Old Aztamartshi is very well preserved, and lives on as a liturgical language for Aztamartshi Christians as well as through the ancient literary history left behind from scribes long ago, the first being a translation of the book of Matthew. Old Aztamartshi is extinct in normal use however, and only truly survives in historical and religious applications and settings, with the highest concentration of Old Aztamartshi works and literature is stored within El-Imazakh Province at its capital.During the tail end of this era, Aztamartshi would also migrate across the Arabian Sea and onto the Arabian Peninsula, through both defensive skirmishes led against the Umayyad Caliphate, and eventually the Aztamartshi Golden Age saw cities being built there, with the sole one still standing being New Gaverekh.

Gaverekhshi Language (Extinct)
With the foundation of New Gaverekh and the great number of Aztamartshi moving to Southern Arabia, the citizens of the city began to be exposed to the northern Arabic dialects, and eventually began using their abjad in place of the Elomakhshi script. Not much is known of this forgotten language either, and the last speaker died of old age in the year 1932, in New Gaverekh.

Aztamartshi Golden Age (1025 AD - 1334 AD)
While Old Aztamartshi was still quite spoken in many areas as a form of formal speech, a more casual, common dialect began to form among the Aztamartshi people. This would form a type of Middle Aztamartshi, more akin to the modern dialect spoken today with plenty of lexical and phonological attributes being shared with the old dialect. Literature for both was plentiful during this time, as the language began to evolve with the rapidly growing culture of the island nation, and by the end of this era, the two languages became one in the form of what is now known as Modern Aztamartshi.

Ghashan Era / Ҵroџ Ƨaʒ̆aџʒ̆i (1334 AD - 1536 AD)
After the intense culture growth of the Golden Age, a period of stable order commenced that many proclaimed to be the start of Modern Aztamart's identity. Through this, the Judeo-Aztamartic script was also introduced, created by a monk in New Gaverekh, that was originally used to write Old Aztamartshi in newly written works, but quickly caught on in Aztamartshi cities all over Southern Arabia. Golden Age stories and fables were rewritten, and the Modern Aztamartshi language which is spoken today is born.

Ottoman Turkish Occupation / Ҵroџ Ɬeμaʒ̆aҵμahqi, Age of Decline (1536 AD - 1846 AD)
After conquering a great portion of Southern Arabia (all of Yemen in-universe), the old Kingdom of Aztamart was next to be targeted by the Ottoman Empire, and they commenced a great invasion of the Aztamartshi mainland, causing the old kingdom to surrender and be destroyed in the year 1536, now becoming a Turkish vassal state and potentially proper Ottoman land. The Aztamartshi, however, were discontent with this, and led a small-scale evolution, yet ultimately failed, leading to Aztamart becoming occupied by the Turks for over 300 years. During this time, the Ottomans managed to abscond and even erase many pieces of Aztamartshi culture as well as exterminate almost 75% of the Aztamartshi population. Many aspects of the Ottoman Turkish language were forced into Aztamartshi, however due to the Alaʒ̆tıџ Requtiuџ İaџaպo (Culture Salvation Act) in 1950, many of them were removed, and the Aztamartshi language has recovered from the scars of the Ottoman occupation.

The Aztamartshi Revolutionary War began in 1840, led by Khami Tsivora / Ҵaμi Ꚇibora, and over six years liberated Aztamart from its bondage.

First New Republic (1846 AD - 1975 AD)
Now with Khami as the matriarch of Aztamart, a mad race to recover what was left of Aztamartshi culture that was left had begun, and the Aztamartshi language was no exception to this, a new front in the war to restore it's forgotten aspects. During the aforementioned Age of Decline and before the Alaʒ̆tıџ Requtiuџ İaџaպo, most of Old Aztamartshi as well as some facets of pre-Ottoman Modern Aztamartshi were greatly reduced in known content, making Aztamartshi as a whole an Endangered language under (DE) Definitely Endangered status in 1932 after the last Gaverekhshi speaker passed away and Mainland Aztamartshi speakers began dwindling.

However, around 1950, many parts of Aztamartshi culture previously hidden by the Ottomans were rediscovered, and the Culture Salvation Act was the order to restore what was remaining, to relative success.

Quasi-Socialist/Soviet Era (1975 AD - 2000 AD)
With the years following the salvation of Aztamart's culture and language, as well as after working with the Soviets in World War II, a formidable group of Aztamartshi began to take the island's politics by storm. El-Rezaḥlaџ Aḥμiџaʒ̆ıtqi Ʒ̆eμɥ Aztaμart, or The People's League of Aztamart was an Soviet-backed Aztamartshi political party that, during the 1971 election of who would become the country's Arqɥamö, or head of state won against the rivalling parties. Massive changes were made unto Aztamart, and the First New Republic as the island's inhabitants knew it was gone. Aztamart began resembling most socialist states at the time with Soviet elements, however one of the most noticeable changes were the new reforms of the Aztamartshi language, coming in the form of the Latinized Script.

Aztamartshi Latinized Script / Lat̆iџʒ̆i Qotiba
Instated in 1981, the Aztamartshi Latinized Script was created as an alternative to the now commonly used Elomakhshi Script, in tandem with the standardization of the language.

Melakhi Crisis (1999 AD - 2000 AD) / Second New Republic (2000 AD -)
After almost 30 years of suffering under Socialist rule, the slow and fruitless rise of Socialism in Aztamart was put to an end with a year-long conflict known as the Melakhi Crisis. During Socialist rule, most Old Aztamartshi texts and artifacts were locked away in the Grand Library of Mtshevani Province, a place that has existed ever since the Ancient Union Era, and has kept a great amount of religious and cultural as well as linguistic treasures within it, guarded by a pious and diligent order of monks. When Socialism rose to power in the island nation, most of all of the texts were locked there as well as the ones not from the Library, and the monks guarding it were imprisoned secretly. Through this, rebellious sentiments began to arise within Aztamart's cities, most prominently Melakhi, Aztamart's travel hub, and in November of 1990, fighting and riots broke out in the city that spread to the capital of Elomakh, and civil war was threatened should the current leader stay in power.

They ended up succeeding, and Aztamart was revoked from Socialism on January 1st, 2000. To the Aztamartshi of Melakhi, it is El-Uhaҵɥ El-İleф Ꚇџuahμahqi, or The Battle of the Changing Millenium.

Today, the Aztamartshi language is something celebrated among many things, with a festival even dedicated to Modern Aztamartshi's creation.

Phonology
"The history of Aztamart as previously portrayed, has surely left it's mark in defining and shaping Aztamartshi as a language, and these are its properties."

Senakhi Vokhilizqi, The Aztamartshi Language: Of Sands of Time, 1961

Vowels
Aztamartshi has 7 vowels shown in writing.

The language has also been attested to have the glottal stop /ʔ/ through the letter ɥ.

Consonants
Aztamartshi also has around 20 consonants excluding the pharyngealized T̆t̆ (tˤ).