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Nouns & noun classes

Nouns & noun classes

Version: 1.0
Last Updated: May 26, 2026

This section is part of our living public grammar of Avar and is regularly updated to reflect the latest linguistic research, database enhancements, and morphological analyses.

Avar nouns constitute the lexical and syntactic core of the nominal system. The language is characterized by an intricate division of nouns into distinct grammatical classes (genders) in the singular, which determines agreement on dependent parts of speech, and a highly complex declension system that operates on a strict "Two Stems" principle.

The Four Grammatical Classes

Avar divides all singular nouns into three primary grammatical classes based on gender, rational animacy, and object classification. The plural category collapses these three genders into a single, unified plural class. Class is not marked directly on the nouns themselves; instead, it is manifested through syntactic agreement on dependent adjectives, verbs, demonstratives, and pronouns.

1. Class I (Masculine Human)

This class encompasses all rational male persons, male names, and ethnonyms. It is characterized by the singular agreement marker -в [w].

  • вас [was] — vas (son.I) "son / boy"
  • лъикӀав эмен [ɬiˈkʼaw eˈmen] — ɬikʼa-w e.men (good-I father.I) "good father"
2. Class II (Feminine Human)

This class comprises all rational female persons, female names, and female ethnonyms. It is characterized by the singular agreement marker -й [j].

  • яс [jas] — jas (daughter.II) "daughter / girl"
  • лъикӀай эбел [ɬiˈkʼaj eˈbel] — ɬikʼa-y e.bel (good-II mother.II) "good mother"
3. Class III (Neuter / Objects & Animals)

This class acts as the general/neuter category. It covers all inanimate objects, animals, insects, plants, abstract concepts, collective nouns, and infant humans. It is characterized by the singular agreement marker -б [b].

  • чу [t͡ʃu] — t͡ʃu (horse.III) "horse"
  • лъикӀаб чу [打iˈkʼab t͡ʃu] — ɬikʼa-b t͡ʃu (good-III horse.III) "good horse"
  • лъимер [ɬiˈmer] — ɬimer (child.III) "child" (grammatically neuter in singular)
4. Plural Class

In the plural, the class distinctions of the singular are neutralized. Instead, all plural nouns govern a single plural agreement category characterized by two suffixes depending on the part of speech:

  • -л [l]: Attached to adjectives, pronouns, demonstratives, and some nominal forms.

  • -р [r]: Prefixed or infixed to verb stems.

  • лъикӀал ясал [ɬiˈkʼal jaˈsal] — ɬikʼa-l jas-a-l (good-PL girl-PL) "good girls"

  • ясал рачӀана [jaˈsal raˈt͡ʃʼa.na] — jas-a-l r-a-t͡ʃʼa-na (girl-PL PL-come-AOR) "the girls came"

Class Agreement

Since nouns do not carry overt morphological class suffixes, grammatical agreement is expressed on dependent elements. When a noun acts as the subject of an intransitive verb or the direct object of a transitive verb (the absolutive argument), it triggers class agreement on surrounding words:

  • вас вачӀана [was waˈt͡ʃʼa.na] — vas w-a-t͡ʃʼa-na (boy.I I-come-AOR) "the boy came"
  • яс йачӀана [jas jaˈt͡ʃʼa.na] — jas j-a-t͡ʃʼa-na (girl.II II-come-AOR) "the girl came"
  • чу бачӀана [t͡ʃu baˈt͡ʃʼa.na] — t͡ʃu b-a-t͡ʃʼa-na (horse.III III-come-AOR) "the horse came"
  • чуял рачӀана [t͡ʃuˈjal raˈt͡ʃʼa.na] — t͡ʃu-ya-l r-a-t͡ʃʼa-na (horse-PL PL-come-AOR) "the horses came"
Contextual (Dual-Gender) Nouns

Avar possesses a significant set of human nouns whose grammatical class is not inherently fixed. These are contextual (dual-gender) nouns, referring to occupations, social relations, or personal characteristics.

  • Native examples: устар [usˈtar] "master / craftsperson", гьудул [huˈdul] "friend", цӀалдохъан [t͡sʼalˈdo.χan] "pupil / student".
  • Russian loanwords: врач [wrat͡ʃ] "doctor", депутат [di.puˈtat] "deputy", председатель [prit.siˈda.til] "chairperson".

When referring to a male person, these nouns govern Class I agreement and inflect under Declension I (masculine, taking Ergative -с). When referring to a female person, they govern Class II agreement and inflect under Declension II (feminine, taking Ergative -л). In speech, this shift is dynamic and immediate:

  • устар вачӀана [usˈtar waˈt͡ʃʼa.na] — ustar w-a-t͡ʃʼa-na (master.I I-come-AOR) "the master [male] came"
  • устар йачӀана [usˈtar jaˈt͡ʃʼa.na] — ustar j-a-t͡ʃʼa-na (master.II II-come-AOR) "the mistress [female] came"
  • устарас [usˈta.ras] — ustar-a-s (master-OBL-ERG.I) "the master (ergative)"
  • устарал [usˈta.ral] — ustar-a-l (master-OBL-ERG.II) "the mistress (ergative)"
The "Two Stems" Principle & Oblique Stem Patterns

The fundamental rule of Avar noun declension is that relational cases (Ergative, Genitive, Dative) and all twenty local spatial cases are never added directly to the direct Nominative stem. Instead, they are stacked onto a modified Oblique Stem.

The transition from the Nominative stem to the Oblique stem involves a series of highly systematic sound changes. These changes are classified into seven morphological oblique stem types:

Type 1: Unchanged Stem

The nominative stem remains structurally identical in the oblique. Suffixes are attached directly.

  • хӀе [ħe] "wax" → Oblique: хӀе- → хӀеца [ħeˈt͡sa] — ħe-t͡sa (wax-ERG) "wax (ergative)"
  • бо [bo] "army" → Oblique: бо- → боца [boˈt͡sa] — bo-t͡sa (army-ERG) "army (ergative)"
Type 2: Vowel Insertion

An epenthetic vowel (-а-, -у-, -о-, or -и-) is inserted at the end of the nominative stem to form the oblique base.

  • кан [kan] "splinter" → Oblique: кана- → канаца [kaˈna.t͡sa] — kan-a-t͡sa (splinter-OBL-ERG) "splinter (ergative)"
  • нах [nax] "butter / oil" → Oblique: наху- → нахуца [naˈχu.t͡sa] — nax-u-t͡sa (oil-OBL-ERG) "butter (ergative)"
  • оц [ot͡s] "bull" → Oblique: оцо- → оцоца [oˈt͡so.t͡sa] — ot͡c-o-t͡sa (bull-OBL-ERG) "bull (ergative)"
  • АхӀмад [ahˈmad] "Akhmad" → Oblique: АхӀмади- → АхӀмадица [ahˈma.di.t͡sa] — ahmad-i-t͡sa (Akhmad-OBL-ERG) "Akhmad (ergative)"
Type 3: Disyllabic Ending Shifts

In disyllabic and polysyllabic nouns, final vowels shift to -и- or -у- in the oblique.

  • гулла [gulˈla] "bullet" → Oblique: гулли- → гуллица [gulˈli.t͡sa] — gull-i-t͡sa (bullet-OBL-ERG) "bullet (ergative)"
  • рагӀи [raˈʕi] "word" → Oblique: рагӀу- → рагӀуца [raˈʕu.t͡sa] — raʕ-u-t͡sa (word-OBL-ERG) "word (ergative)"
Type 4: Vowel Reduction & Consonant Alternation

The second vowel of a disyllabic stem is deleted (syncope), often accompanied by sonorant consonant shifts (м ↔ н) to resolve the resulting consonant cluster.

  • гамачӀ [gaˈmat͡ʃʼ] "stone" → Oblique: ганчӀи- (vowel syncope of the second а, consonant shift м → н) → ганчӀица [ganˈt͡ʃʼi.t͡sa] — gant͡ʃʼ-i-t͡sa (stone-OBL-ERG) "stone (ergative)"
  • чаран [t͡ʃaˈran] "steel" → Oblique: чарми- (vowel syncope, consonant shift н → м) → чармица [t͡charˈmi.t͡sa] — t͡ʃarm-i-t͡sa (steel-OBL-ERG) "steel (ergative)"
Type 5: Vowel Assimilation & Ablaut

The root vowel undergoes qualitative vocalic changes (ablaut or vowel harmony) to align with the thematic oblique suffix.

  • цер [t͡ser] "fox" → Oblique: цара- (root vowel shift е → а) → цараца [t͡saˈra.t͡sa] — t͡sar-a-t͡sa (fox-OBL-ERG) "fox (ergative)"
  • бече [beˈt͡ʃe] "calf" → Oblique: бачи- (е → а and final е → и) → бачица [baˈt͡ʃi.t͡sa] — bat͡ʃ-i-t͡sa (calf-OBL-ERG) "calf (ergative)"
Type 6: Suffixation with -да-

The oblique stem is formed by adding the thematic suffix -да-.

  • гӀака [ʕaˈka] "cow" → Oblique: гӀакда- → гӀакдаца [ʕakˈda.t͡sa] — ʕak-da-t͡sa (cow-OBL-ERG) "cow (ergative)"
  • росу [roˈsu] "village" → Oblique: росда- → росдаца [rosˈda.t͡sa] — ros-da-t͡sa (village-OBL-ERG) "village (ergative)"
Type 7: Special / Irregular Suffixes

The oblique stem is formed via rare or unpredictable suffix markers (such as -за-, -зу-, -ро-, -лу-, -ву-).

  • нух [nux] "road" → Oblique: нухлу- → нухлуца [nuxˈlu.t͡sa] — nux-lu-t͡sa (road-OBL-ERG) "road (ergative)"
  • моцӀ [mot͡sӀ] "month / moon" → Oblique: моцӀро- → моцӀроца [mot͡sӀˈro.t͡sa] — mot͡sӀ-ro-t͡sa (month-OBL-ERG) "month (ergative)"
Noun Declension Classes

Avar nouns are grouped into three major declension types based on the suffix of the singular Ergative case:

Declension I (Masculine, Suffix -с / -ас)

This class is restricted to Class I (masculine human) nouns. It includes common masculine words, male proper names ending in -в, Russian masculine loanwords, and male ethnonyms.

  • вас (son) → васас (ERG)
  • Халидов → Халидовас (ERG)
  • гуржияв (Georgian man) → гуржияс (ERG)

Linguistic Exception: The core kinship terms эмен (father), дада (papa), and даци (uncle) do not decline under Declension I; they belong to Declension III.

Declension II (Feminine & Neuter, Suffix -лъ / -алъ)

This class includes Class II (feminine human) nouns, borrowed Class III neuter nouns, and native Class III nouns ending in vowels.

  • яс (girl) → ясалъ (ERG)
  • стол (table) → столалъ (ERG)
  • нодо (forehead) → нодоялъ (ERG)
  • Баку → Бакуялъ (ERG)

Linguistic Exception: The feminine kinship terms лъади (wife), кӀодо (grandmother), and баба (mama) belong to Declension III.

Declension III (Oblique Roots, Suffix -ца)

This class comprises all nouns that take the Ergative marker -ца. It includes vowel-final proper names, consonant-final proper names, immutable Class III nouns, native words with extensive oblique stem alterations, and irregular kinship terms.

  • Муса → Мусаца (ERG)
  • АхӀмад → АхӀмадица (ERG)
  • ци (bear) → цица (ERG)
  • цер (fox) → цараца (ERG)
  • эмен (father) → инсуца (ERG)
Comparative Singular Paradigms (Grammatical Cases)
Case Dec. I: вас "son" Dec. II: яс "girl" Dec. II: стол "table" Dec. III: ци "bear" Dec. III: эмен "father"
NOM вас яс стол ци эмен
ERG васас ясалъ столалъ цица инсуца
GEN васасул ясалъул столалъул цидул инсул
DAT васасе ясалъе столалъе цидуе инсуе
Plural Declension Types

Regardless of their singular declension, plural nouns decline according to three types based on the oblique plural stem:

Plural Type 1 (-л Deletion)

For plural forms ending in -ул, -дул, -зал, -ал, -ял. The final -л is dropped, replaced by -з in the ergative.

  • васал (sons) → васаз (ERG) → васазул (GEN) → васазе (DAT)
Plural Type 2 (Vowel Replacement -и → -а/-у)

For plural forms ending in -и, -заби, -би, -ни. The final -и changes to -а or -у before adding -з.

  • устарзаби (masters) → устарзабаз (ERG) → устарзабазул (GEN) → устарзабазе (DAT)
  • гӀухьби (shepherds) → гӀухьбуз (ERG) → гӀухьбузул (GEN) → гӀухьбузе (DAT)
Plural Type 3 (Special Plural Suffixes)

A highly irregular class where oblique plural stems take special inserts (-ба-, -за-, -дери-).

  • рукъзал (houses) → рукъзабаз (ERG) → рукъзабазул (GEN)
  • лагъзал (slaves) → лагъзадерица (ERG) → лагъзадерил (GEN)
Plural Formation

Avar plural formation is morphologically irregular and highly complex, combining diverse suffixes with phonological processes such as syncope, ablaut, stress shifts, and consonant adjustments.

1. Productive Plural Suffixes
  • -заби: Productive for Class I/II human nouns ending in a consonant.
    • гьудул (friend) → гьудулзаби (friends)
    • устар (master) → устарзаби (masters)
  • -зал: Productive for monosyllabic stems, forming the plural without root alterations.
    • нугӀ (witness) → нугӀзал (witnesses)
    • рукъ (house) → рукъзал (houses)
  • -би / -аби: The most frequent suffix for Class III inanimate objects, vowel-final stems, and abstract nouns ending in -лъи.
    • маргьа (tale) → маргьаби (tales)
    • бергьенлъи (victory) → бергьенлъаби (victories)
  • -ал: Productive for body parts, kinship terms, monosyllabic words, and Russian consonant-final loanwords.
    • бер (eye) → берал (eyes)
    • квер (hand) → кверал (hands)
    • спутник → спутникал (satellites)
  • -ул / -дул: Used for consonant-final stems, triggering root vowel changes (е/и/а → у). Voiced stem endings take -дул, while voiceless take -ул.
    • гӀин (ear) → гӀундул (ears)
    • цер (fox) → цурдул (foxes)
    • мегӀер (mountain) → мугӀрул (mountains)
  • -ял: Used for monosyllabic vowel-final stems, attaching without root alterations.
    • кьо (bridge) → кьоял (bridges)
    • чу (horse) → чуял (horses)
  • -и: Restructured bird and young animal terms.
    • хӀинчӀ (bird) → хӀанчӀи (birds)
  • -ни: Extremely rare, fossilized marker.
    • цӀцӀе (goat) → цӀцӀани (goats)
2. Suffix Deletion & Alternation Rules
  • Dropping Suffix -чи: Nouns ending in the agentive suffix -чи typically drop it before the plural suffix is attached.
    • бахӀарчи (hero) → бахӀарзал (heroes)
    • гӀалимчи (scholar) → гӀалимзаби (scholars)
  • Compound Component чи → чагӀи: If чи functions as a compound root meaning "person", it shifts to чагӀи (people).
    • колхозчи (collective farmer) → колхозчагӀи (collective farmers)
  • Suffix -хъан → -хъаби: Nouns in -хъан drop the final -н before taking -аби.
    • хӀалтӀухъан (worker) → хӀалтӀухъаби (workers)
    • цӀалдохъан (student) → цӀалдохъаби (students)
3. Nationality & Village Resident Forms

While regular ethnonyms cleanly replace their singular class marker (-в/-й) with the plural marker -л (гӀурусав "Russian man" → гӀурусал "Russians"), resident names of Avar villages feature highly irregular and suppletive plural forms:

Village Class I (Singular Male) Plural (Residents) Morphological Change
КъахӀиб къахӀисев къехӀ Extreme suppletion & ablaut
БакьайчӀи бакьайчӀисев бекьечӀ Suppletion
ЦӀатӀанихъ цӀатӀанихъев цӀетӀен Suppletion & truncation
Балахьуни балахьунисев белехь Suppletion
ГьаракӀуни гьаракӀунисев гьерекӀ Suppletion
СалтӀа салтӀасев сулул Suppletion
ЦӀада цӀадасев цӀигьул Suppletion
4. Phonological Stem Changes in Plurals

Pluralization triggers prominent phonological processes in the stem:

  • Vowel Syncope: The final vowel of the root is deleted.
    • тӀамах (leaf) → тӀанхал (leaves) [second а drops, м → н]
    • гомог (gutter) → гонгал (gutters) [second о drops, м → н]
  • Root Vowel Ablaut: Root vowels shift systematically (о → а, е → у, а → у).
    • сордо (night) → сардал (nights) [о → а]
    • мегеж (beard) → мугжул (beards) [е → у, syncope of second е]
  • Delabialization: Labialized consonant clusters revert to simple consonants, shifting the labial feature to a vowel (в → у).
    • кветӀ (lip) → кутӀби (lips) [в → у]
    • къверкъ (frog) → къуркъби (frogs) [в → у]
  • Lexicalized Stress Shift: Stress consistently shifts to the first syllable in plural forms, regardless of its singular position.
    • бетӀе́р [beˈtʼer] (head) → бу́тӀрул [ˈbutʼrul] (heads)
    • гӀере́къ [ʕeˈreq] (lump) → гӀе́рекъал [ˈʕereqal] (lumps)
5. Special Number Categories
  • Singularia Tantum (Singular-Only): Abstract nouns, natural phenomena, proper nouns, and all derived nouns ending in the abstract suffix -лъи.
    • яхӀ (conscience), иман (faith), херлъи (old age), гьудуллъи (friendship).
  • Pluralia Tantum (Plural-Only): Nouns that have no singular forms. This includes paired objects, collective categories, and certain loans.
    • цӀадираби (scales), цӀороберал (glasses / spectacles), хулжал (saddlebags), шахматал (chess).
  • Collective Singulars: Nouns that are grammatically singular but carry collective semantic meanings.
    • хъизан (family), ярагъ (weapons / armor), халкъ (people / nation).
  • Number-Neutral Nouns & Limited Plurals: Words where the singular/lemma represents a general collective entity, but a specific plural can be formed to denote a countable, limited quantity (e.g. "several items").
    • гамачӀ (stone / stones) → Limited Plural: ганчӀал (several stones)
    • рас (hair / hairs) → Limited Plural: расал (several hairs)
    • гӀеч (apple / apples) → Limited Plural: гӀечал (several apples)
  • Mass Nouns (Uncountable): Substances, materials, and liquids that bypass pluralization and require measure words.
    • рахъ (milk) → литр рахъ (a liter of milk)
    • месед (gold) → грамм месед (a gram of gold)
  • Parallel Plural Forms: Doublets where both native and loan suffixes are grammatical.
    • лага (body) → лугби / лугбал (bodies)
    • доктор (doctor) → докторзаби / докторал (doctors)
Syntactic Behavior of Nouns

While Avar nouns decline richly for case, their syntactic role in word combinations depends on specific rules regarding attributive modification and class agreement logic.

1. Unagreed Attributes (The Genitive Syntactic Function)

Avar strictly distinguishes between agreed modifiers (adjectives, participles) and unagreed attributes. Nouns modifying other nouns act as unagreed attributes and must be placed in the Genitive case. These unagreed attributes strictly precede the head noun and do not alter their form based on the class or case of the head. They express several semantic relations:

  • Possession: васасул чу (boy-GEN horse) "the boy's horse"
  • Material: меседил зурма (gold-GEN zurna) "golden zurna"
  • Part-Whole: гъотӀол гӀаркьел (tree-GEN branch) "tree branch"

[!NOTE] Even if the head noun declines, the unagreed Genitive attribute remains frozen: васасул чоца "by the boy's horse (Ergative)".

2. Syntactic Agreement Logic (Constructio ad sensum)

When a noun functions as the absolutive argument, it dictates the class agreement of the verb. However, Avar exhibits constructio ad sensum (agreement according to sense rather than strict morphology) with certain noun classes:

  • Quantified Subjects: Nouns modified by numerals often remain in the singular form, but the verb can optionally take plural agreement.
    • щуго вас вачӀана (five boy.SG I-came) "five boys came (Singular Agreement)"
    • щуго вас рачӀана (five boy.SG PL-came) "five boys came (Plural Agreement)"
  • Collective Nouns: Nouns that are morphologically singular but semantically collective (халкъ "people") often trigger plural agreement on the verb:
    • халкъ разилъана (people.SG PL-rejoiced) "the people rejoiced"
Russian Loanword Morphology Rules

Russian loanwords, particularly those borrowed after 1938, follow a highly systematized subset of Avar morphology that explicitly blocks native phonological processes:

1. Oblique Stem Formation (Unchanged Stem)

Russian loanwords never undergo native vowel rotation, syncope, or ablaut. The oblique stem is always structurally identical to the nominative stem.

  • трактор "tractor" → oblique трактор- (never **трактар-*)
  • банк "bank" → oblique банк-
2. Declension Class Assignment
  • Class I (Male Persons): Decline strictly under Declension I (-ас). доктор → Ergative: докторас.
  • Class III (Inanimate Objects): Crucially, borrowed objects decline under Declension II (-алъ), bypassing the native Class III (-ца + epenthesis) pattern entirely.
    • трактор → Ergative: тракторалъ (never *тракторуца).
    • минут → Ergative: минуталъ.
3. Orthographic Dropping Rules

Russian letters with no phonetic weight or conflicting orthographic rules are dropped prior to suffixation:

  • The Soft Sign (ь): Always dropped before Avar suffixes.
    • мораль → Ergative: моралалъ (not *моральалъ).
    • словарь → Ergative: словаралъ.
  • Final -е (from -ие endings): The ending reduces to -и before suffixation.
    • знание → Ergative: знаниялъ, Plural: знаниял.
4. Plural Assignment
  • Consonant-final loans default to -ал (трактор → тракторал).
  • Vowel-final loans default to -би (поэма → поэмаби).
  • Professions default to -заби (учитель → учительзаби).
  • Abstract concepts ending in -ие, -ство, -ация, -изм are strictly singular-only.