Kipchak languages
The Kipchak languages (also known as the Kypchak, Qypchaq, or Northwestern Turkic languages) are a branch of the Turkic language family spoken by more than twenty five million people in an area spanning from Lithuania to China.
Linguistic features
The Kipchak languages share a number of features that have led linguists to classify them together. Some of these features are shared with other Turkic languages; others are unique to the Kypchak language family.
Shared features
Change of Proto-Turkic *d to /j/ (e.g. *hadaq > ajaq "foot")
Loss of initial *h sound (preserved only in Khalaj. See above example.)
Unique features
Extensive labial vowel harmony (e.g. olor vs. olar "them")
Frequent fortition (in the form of assibilation) of initial */j/ (e.g. *jetti > ʒetti "seven")
Diphthongs from syllable-final */ɡ/ and */b/ (e.g. *taɡ > taw "mountain", *sub > suw "water")
Classification
The Kipchak languages may be broken down into four groups, based on geography and shared features:
Kipchak–Bulgar (Uralian, Uralo-Caspian): Bashkir and Tatar
