ABSTRACT
Abkhaz, Circassian and the now extinct Ubykh form the small North West Caucasian language family. As far as one can ascertain, the dialect divisions for Abkhaz were: Sadz, Ahchypsy, Bzyp, Abzhywa, Ashkhar and T'ap'anta. Of these only Bzyp and Abzhywa are today still found in the Republic of Abkhazia, roughly spoken to the north(-west) and south(-east) of Sukhum respectively The last two in the list are attested in the North Caucasian region of Karachay-Cherkessia, where they are viewed as dialects of the Abaza language. The majority of Abkhazians (including those who speak dialects no longer heard in Abkhazia) today live in Turkey, where knowledge of the language diminishes with the generations; there are also communities in Syria, Germany, Holland, Britain, Switzerland, and America.
