General History

Armenian is one of the oldest languages spoken today and one of the oldest Indo-European languages. Sanskrit and a few others are older. Because of the age and continuous use of the language, it has gone through many different iterations. Some things that have changed are the sounds, the spelling, and how vital the language was. Armenian evolved from many different languages. Starting with Indo-European, then evolving into Old Armenian, then Middle Armenian, and lastly reaching Modern Armenian. Modern Armenian has separated into two dialects: Western and Eastern Armenian. This means that Armenian is related to many languages like Greek, German, English, and Latin which includes all of Latin’s subsidies.   

Currently, Armenian is the official language of Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabakh, a contested region that is part of Azerbaijan. However, Armenian is also recognized as a minority language in other countries including Cyprus, Ukraine, Iran, and Iraq. The language is also spoken by the diaspora in other countries including the United States. Armenian has great historical importance. The first Christian state was Armenia. Jerusalem is split into quarters with one quarter that is Jewish, one that is Muslim, one that is Christian, and one that is Armenian Christian. There are three major eras of the Armenian language. The first is Old Armenian. This language is called Grabar. This is also when Mesrop Mashtots created the Armenian alphabet by using the order of the Greek alphabet and the script aesthetic of Armenia’s surrounding languages. Second, is Middle Armenian, the most important change that occurred during this era was the addition of the letter “օ”.  Lastly, Modern Armenian, which is spoken today. Modern Armenian has two major dialects, Western and Eastern Armenian. Most of the vocabulary is the same between these two dialects, however, pronunciation changes quite a bit. For example, in Eastern Armenian “բ” makes the “b” sound while in Western Armenian it makes the “p” sound. Eastern Armenian is spoken in Armenia, Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabakh, Georgia, and Iran. Western Armenian is spoken in all other countries by the Armenian diaspora.      

The Phonology (Sounds) of Armenian

Terms

Eastern Armenian has 30 consonant sounds, 26 of which are shared with English. Every sound has three criteria: voiceless or voiced, placement, and manner. Voiceless refers to when one makes a sound without the use of the vocal cords. For example, “s,” as in snake. Voiced refers to when one makes a sound with the use of the vocal cords. For example, “z,” as in zoo. Placement is where in the mouth and throat the sound is being made. This can range from the lips to the larynx. In Armenian, there are seven placements. Finally, manner is how a sound is made. For example, the sound /p/ is called a voiceless bilabial plosive. In layman’s terms, it is a sound made without vocal cords, using only the lips, and a burst of air. Armenian also has an added level of complexity, the language differentiates between aspirated and unaspirated consonants. An aspirated consonant is when one adds extra air into the sound. English has both aspirated and unaspirated consonants as well. An example of an aspirated consonant is the “t” in “top,” this “t” would be written /th/. An example of an unaspirated consonant would be the “t” in “stop,” this “t” is written as /t/.  One can check to see if it is aspirated or not by holding a piece of paper or their hand up to their mouth and pronouncing the word. If one feels a lot of air then it is aspirated.   

Plosives

Plosives are sounds made when one stops airflow and then releases it in a burst of air. In Armenian, there are nine plosives. First are the aspirated and unaspirated voiceless and voiced bilabial plosives /p/, /ph/, and /b/ which are just like they look. /p/ as in spark or պապիկ (papik), /ph/ as in pack or փոքր (p’ok’r), and /b/ as in aback or բարի (bari). Next are the aspirated and unaspirated voiceless and voiced alveolar plosives /t/, /th/, and /d/ which again sound just like they look. /t/ as in hot or տուն (tun), /th/ as in tin or եթե (yet’e), and /d/ as in dash or դեմք (demk’). Lastly, there are the aspirated and unaspirated voiceless and voiced velar plosives /k/, /kh/, and /g/ which sound how they look. /k/ as in ski or մեկ (mek), /kh/ as in kiss or քաղաք (k’aghak’), and /g/ as in good or գանձ (gandz).

Fricatives

Fricatives are defined by closing the mouth to the point where only a small airstream can be pushed out, creating friction and therefore a sound. The first two sounds are the voiceless and voiced labiodental fricatives /f/ and /v/. These are pronounced just like in English. /f/ can be seen in the words fill or ֆուտբոլ (futbol), and /v/ can be seen in words like vote or վեց (vets’). The next sounds are the voiceless and voiced alveolar fricatives /s/ and /z/. /s/ can be seen in words like sit or սար (sar), and /z/ can be heard in zoo or զարդ (zard). Then, are the voiceless and voiced postalveolar fricatives /ʃ/ and /ʒ/. These both make the English “sh” sound. For example, /ʃ/ as in sheep or շուն (shun) and /ʒ/ as in vision or ժամ (zham). Lastly, is the voiceless glottal fricative /h/. /h/ can be seen in words like hot or հայերեն (hīeren). 

Affricates 

The next sounds are affricates, meaning one must make a plosive sound immediately followed by a fricative. Armenian has six affricates. The first three are the aspirated and unaspirated voiceless and voiced alveolar affricates /ts/, /tsh/ , and /dz/. Respectively they are a combination of /t/, /s/, /th/, /d/, and /z/. /ts/ can be seen in words like pits or մեծ (mets), /tsh/ can be found in words like tsunami (if you pronounced the ts) or ցանց (ts’ants’), and /dz/ as in day (in some English accents) or ձուկ (dzuk). The next trio is the aspirated and unaspirated voiceless and voiced postalveolar affricate /tʃ/, /tʃʰ/, and /dʒ/. /tʃ/ makes the “ch” and /dʒ/ makes “j” sound. /tʃ/ as in beach or ճնճղուկ (chnchghuk), /tʃʰ/ chat or ինչու (inch’u), and /dz/ as jeans or ջուր (jur).      

Nasals

Next are the nasal sounds, which are defined as air stream passing through the nose in order to make the sound. The nasal sounds are the voiced bilabial nasal sound /m/ and the voiced alveolar nasal sound /n/. Both sound like how they look in English. /m/ can be seen in words like him or մայր (mīr). /n/ can be found in words like nice or մենք (menk’). 

Approximants 

The next group is the approximants. This is more of a catch-all term for anything that does not nicely fit into the other categories. The only two sounds are the voiced alveolar approximant /l/ and the voiced palatal approximant /j/. /l/ is in words like let or լուսին (lusin). /j/ makes the English “y” sound rather than the “j” which is represented by /dʒ/. This can be seen in words like you or յուղ (yugh). 

Armenian Sounds

There are four last sounds that do not exist in English and could be hard for English speakers to pronounce. The first are the voiceless and voiced velar fricative /x/ and /ɣ/. /x/ is the sound of the French “r” in très, the German word dach, the European Spanish word ojo, and the Armenian word խաղ (khagh). /ɣ/ is the sound of the European Portuguese “g” in agora, the Irish word dhorn, the European Spanish word amigo, and the Armenian word ղեկ (ghek). The next sound is the voiced alveolar tap /ɾ/. This sounds like the “r” in the Spanish word caro, the Irish word fear, the Portuguese word prato, and the Armenian word րոպե (rope). Lastly is the voiced alveolar trill. This is just the tap sound but repeated at least two times. It sounds like the Spanish “r” in the word perro, the Portuguese word rato, the German word schmarrn, and the Armenian word ռումբ (rrumb).   

Interactive Pulmonic Consonant IPA Chart

Vowels 

Vowels are a bit complicated in Armenian. The language works on a six vowel system using a, e, i, o, u, and ə. All of which are in English. The first sound is the open-back unrounded vowel /α/. It sounds like the English “o” in hot or հաց (hats’). The next sound is the open-mid front unrounded vowel /ε/. It is found in words like bed and էջ (ej). Then there is the close front unrounded vowel /i/. It sounds like the English “e” in free or օդի (odi). Furthermore, there is the open-mid back rounded vowel /ɔ/. This makes the English “ough” sound like in thought or հողմ (hoghm). Then, the close back rounded vowel /u/. This makes the English “oo” sound like in boot or դուռ (durr). Lastly, is the mid central vowel /ə/. This is also commonly known as the schwa sound. It makes the “uh” sound like in but or որը (vorə) 

Interactive Vowel IPA Chart

The Orthography (Writing) of Armenian

Alphabet – Այբուբեն

Armenian, just like English, is written from left to right. The Armenian script consists of 40 letters. You may be asking yourself, what about the vowels that we just covered? Armenian, unlike Hebrew, uses an alphabet. This means that there are letters for the vowels and consonants. Now let’s get into the այբուբեն (ībuben)

The first letter of the alphabet is īb. Īb/Այբ it looks like this Աա. It makes the “a” sound. The next letter is Ben/Բեն it looks like this Բբ and it makes the “b” sound. The next letter is Gim/Գիմ and it looks like this Գգ, it makes the “g” sound. Then is Da/Դա which looks like this Դդ and makes the “d” sound. Furthermore, Yech/Եչ which looks like this Եե and makes the “e” sound. However, when yech is the first letter in a word it makes the “ye” sound. Next is Za/Զա which looks like this Զզ and makes the “z” sound. E/Է looks like this Էէ and makes the “e” sound. The only difference between yech and e is that e does not become ye at the beginning of words Then is ət’/Ըթ which looks like this Ըը and makes the “ə” sound. Additionally, T’o/Թո looks like this Թթ and makes the “t’” sound. Then is Zhe/Ժե which looks like this Ժժ and makes the “zh” sound. Next Ini/Ինի which looks like this Իի. Ini makes the “i” sound. Next is Lyun/Լյուն which looks like this Լլ and makes the “l” sound. Then is Khe/Խե which looks like this Խխ and makes the “kh” sound. After is Tsa/Ծա which looks like this Ծծ and makes the “ts” sound. Then is Ken/Կեն which looks like this Կկ and makes the “k” sound. Ho/Հո looks like this Հհ, it makes the “h” sound. Next is Dza/Ձա which looks like this Ձձ and makes the “dz” sound. This letter is Ghad/Ղադ it looks like this Ղղ. Che/Ճէ looks like this Ճճ and makes the “ch” sound. Then is Men/Մեն which looks like this Մմ and makes the “m” sound. Next is Hi/Հի which looks like this Յյ and makes the “y” sound. The letter is Nu/Նու. It looks like this Նն and makes the “n” sound. Then is the letter Sha/Շա which looks like this Շշ and makes the “sh” sound. Then the letter Vo/Ո which looks like this Ոո and it makes the “o” sound. Vo is again special in respect that like yech when vo at the beginning of a word it makes a “vo” sound, not just an “o” sound. Next is the letter Ch’a/Չա which looks like this Չչ and makes the “ch’” sound. Furthermore, there is the letter Pe/Պէ which looks like this Պպ and makes the “p” sound. Next is Je/Ջէ and it looks like this Ջջ and it makes the “j” sound. Then is Rra/Ռա which makes the “rr” sound and look likes this Ռռ. Next is Se/Սե which looks likes this Սս and makes the “s” sound. Additionally, is the letter Vev/Վեվ which looks like this Վվ and makes the “v” sound. Then is Tyun/Տյուն and it looks likes this Տտ and it makes the “t” sound. Re/Րե is the next letter and it makes the “r” sound. Re looks like this Րր. Then is Ts’o/Ցո and it looks like this Ցց and it makes the “ts’” sound. Next is a special letter that is part of a vowel pair and is never seen outside of the vowel pair. It is Hyun/Հյուն and it looks like this Ււ and if it were to ever be alone it would make the “v” sound. Next is P’yur/Փյուր and it looks like this Փփ and it makes the “p’” sound. Then is K’e/Քե and it looks like this Քք and it makes the “k’” sound. Next is O/Օ and it makes the “o” sound and looks like this Օօ. O is the e equivalent to vo. Last of the normal letters is Fe/Ֆե and it looks like this Ֆֆ and it makes the “f” sound. The next two letters are technically single letters, however, they are more, two letters combined into one. The first one is U/ՈՒ and it makes the “u” sound. It looks like this ՈՒու. This letter is a combination of vo and hyun. Lastly, is the letter Yev/և. Yev only has one case, not two like the rest of the letters. It makes the “ev” in the middle and end of words and a “yev” sound at the beginning. This is because yev is a combination of yech and vav.   

Digraph

A digraph is when two letters come together and make a new sound. For example, in English “t” and “h” come together to make “th” or “c” and “h” come together to make “ch”. Armenian has one digraph. The digraph is between ա and յ. When these combine they make the “ī” sound like in bite. For example Armenian in Armenian is հայերեն and it is pronounced hīeren. 

Positives

Armenian is very hard to learn. In fact, it is considered one of the hardest languages to learn. Armenian uses different punctuation symbols. For example, the question mark in Armenian is ՞ not ?. However, Armenian does have a thriving culture with dance, music, and food. Armenian grammar can be confusing at first, however, once you get the hang of it, it is pretty easy. Armenian is also written how it is pronounced so that makes the language easier. In all, Armenian is a challenging but rewarding language that has been in use for centuries. Fun fact, Armenia was the first Christian nation so one of the earliest translations of the Bible is in Armenian.

Useful Phrases

1. What’s up? –  Ի՞նչ կա 

2. Hello/Good-bye –  Բարև՛ ձեզ/Հրաժեշտ 
3. I’m Sorry –   Կներես
4. My name is _____ –   Իմ անունը _____ է
5. How much is this? –   Որքա՞ն է սա
6. I don’t speak Armenian –   Ես հայերեն չեմ խոսում 
7. Do you speak English? –  Խոսու՞մ եք անգլերեն
8. What time is it? –  Ժամը քանի՞սն է
9. Yes –   Այո՛
10. No –  Ոչ
11. Good morning–   Բարի առավոտ
12. Good evening –   Բարի գիշեր
13. One –  Մեկ
14. Two –  Երկու
15. Three –  Երեք
16. Four –  Չորս
17. Five –  Հինգ
18. Six –  Վեց
19. Seven –  Յոթ
20. Eight –  Ութ
21. Nine –  Ինը
22. Ten –  Տասը

Finale

In all, Armenian is one of the oldest languages, it is related to languages like Greek. Armenian is a thriving language with it being used in many pop songs and showing up on the international stage. The Armenian language contains 30 consonant sounds and six vowels, combining for 36 sounds: /p, ph, b, t, th, d, k, kh, g, f, v, s, z, ʃ, ʒ, x, ɣ, h, ts, tsh, dz, tʃ, tʃh, dʒ, m, n, l, j, ɾ, r, α, ε, i, ɔ, u, ə/. The Armenian language uses its own script with 40 characters: Աա Բբ Գգ Դդ Եե Զզ Էէ Ըը Թթ Ժժ Իի Լլ Խխ Ծծ Կկ Հհ Ձձ Ղղ Ճճ Մմ Յյ Նն Շշ Ոո Չչ Պպ Ջջ Ռռ Սս Վվ Տտ Րր Ցց Ււ Փփ Քք Օօ Ֆֆ ՈՒու և. Armenian has one digraph. Armenian is a very interesting language as it brings up many unique challenges, however, the language has so much history and culture behind it. You cannot lose if you choose to learn it.