Shawiya language

Shawiya, or Shawiya Berber, also spelt Chaouïa (native form: Tacawit ), is a Zenati Berber language spoken in Algeria by the Shawiya people. The language's primary speech area is the Awras Mountains in Eastern Algeria and the surrounding areas, including parts of Western Tunisia, including Batna, Khenchela, Sétif, Oum El Bouaghi, Souk Ahras, Tébessa and the northern part of Biskra. It is closely related to the Shenwa language of Central Algeria.

Language
The Shawiya people call their language Tacawit (Thashawith) ( or ). Estimates of number of speakers range from 1.4 to 3 million speakers.

The French spelling of Chaouïa is commonly seen, due to the influence of French conventions on Algeria. Other spellings are "Chaoui", "Shawia", "Tachawit", "Thachawith", "Tachaouith" and "Thchèwith". In Shawiya, the leading – pronounced  in that phonetic environment – is often reduced to an, so the native name is often heard as Hašawiθ.

Shawiya Berber was, until recently, an unwritten language and rarely taught at school. As the Shawiya people were predominantly rural and secluded, they often code-switch to Algerian Arabic, French or even English to discuss non-traditional technology and sociological concerns.

Recently, the Shawiya language, together with the Kabyle language, has begun to achieve some cultural and media prominence thanks to the Berber cultural and political movements in Algeria and to the introduction of Berber language education in some public schools.

Vowels

 * can also be laxed as.

Consonants

 * All consonants are geminated in tense positions. The tense equivalents of the spirants are the plosives . Simple  do not occur phonemically, and simple  is apparently uncommon.
 * Sounds are only heard when /n/ precedes semivowels /j, w/.
 * Sounds are only heard when in tense positions.