Proto-West-Caucasian: *χʷV
Meaning: 1 river 2 river valley 3 marsh, swamp
Abkhaz: a-ʒǝ́-ʕʷa 3
Abaza: ʒǝ-ʕʷ 1
Adyghe: psǝ-χʷ 1
Kabardian: psǝ-χʷa 1
Ubykh: tʷa-χʷá 1
Comments: PAT *ʒǝ-ʕʷV (with *ʒǝ 'water'; the meaning 'marsh' in Abkh. is secondary - the word has replaced an original *a-ʒǝ-bʕa = Abaz. ʒbʕa 'marsh'); PAK *psǝ́-χʷa (with *psǝ 'water' q.v.; Shagirov 2,19 discovers the root χʷa- also in Ad. χʷā-t 'ravine', χʷa-wǝ 'deep ravine'); the component tʷa- in Ub. is not quite clear (perhaps "liquid", cf. ja-ṭʷá 'sweat' < *'liquid'?). PAT has *ʕʷ instead of the expected *ħʷ as a result of assimilation to *ʒ within the compound *ʒǝ-ħʷV > *ʒǝ-ʕʷV.
See Abdokov 1973, 63; Shagirov 2, 19.
