Kurdish language
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Kurdish كوردی Kurdî |
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|---|---|---|
| Spoken in: | Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Armenia, Lebanon | |
| Region: | Middle East | |
| Total speakers: | 20–40 million (disputed) | |
| Ranking: | 33 (disputed) | |
| Language family: | Indo-European Indo-Iranian Iranian Western Iranian Northwestern Iranian Kurdish |
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| Writing system: | Kurdish alphabet(modified Arabic alphabet in Iraq and Iran, modified Latin alphabet in Turkey and Syria, modified Cyrillic in the former USSR) | |
| Official status | ||
| Official language of: | Iraq Kurdish Autonomous Region |
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| Regulated by: | no official regulation | |
| Language codes | ||
| ISO 639-1: | ku | |
| ISO 639-2: | kur | |
| ISO/FDIS 639-3: | variously: kur — Kurdish (generic) ckb — Central Kurdish kmr — Northern Kurdish sdh — Southern Kurdish |
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| Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. See IPA chart for English for an English-based pronunciation key. | ||
The Kurdish language is an Indo-Iranian language spoken in the region loosely called Kurdistan, including Kurdish populations in parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey.[1] Kurdish is an official language in Iraq while it is banned in Syria where it is forbidden to publish material in Kurdish [2]. Before August 2002, the Turkish government placed severe restrictions on the use of Kurdish, prohibiting the language in education and broadcast media.[3] The Kurdish alphabet is still not recognized in Turkey, and use of the Kurdish letters X, W, Q which do not exist in the Turkish alphabet have led to judicial persecution in 2000 and 2003 [4] [5]. In Iran, though it is used in the local media and newspapers, it is not allowed to be taught in schools [6] [7]. As a result many Iranian Kurds have left for Iraq where they can study in their native language.[8]
The Kurdish language belongs to the western sub-group of the Iranian languages which belong to the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages family. The most closely related languages to Kurdish are Balochi, Gileki and Talysh, all of which belong to the north-western branch of Iranian languages. Persian which belongs to the south-western branch, is also considered a related language.
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Origin and roots
Most of the ancestors of today's Kurds spoke various languages of the Indo-European family during the millennia BC. An exception to this was Hurrian, a non-Indo-European language belonging to the Caucasian family which is thought to have exerted a great deal of influence on Kurdish. These older languages which already had mixed and shaped closely related dialectes were replaced by Iranic (a branch of Indo-European) language around 850 BCE, with the arrival of the Medes to Kurdistan [9]. Some experts believes that Hurrian influence on Kurdish is most evident in its ergative grammatical structure and in toponyms[10]. But this argument is controversial, especially to know that many of other Indo-European Languages have some ergative charactrisitics. The most obvious example for those ergative languages among the Iranic branch of the Indo-Iranian Languages that had ergative characteristics was Pahlavi. It was the official language of the Persian Empire before Islam. A linguistic group also influential on Kurdish, but to a lesser degree was the Semitic group, especially languages such as Aramaic and Arabic. Today, more than three-quarters of Kurdish clan names and roughly two-third of topographical and urban names are of Hurrian (Khurrite) origin [11], e.g., the names of the clans of Bukhti, Tirikan, Bazayni, Bakran, Mand; rivers Murad, Balik and Khabur, lake Van; the towns of Mardin, Ziwiya, Dinawar and Barzan. So it is safe to say that the historical development of the Kurdish language (both grammar and vocabulary) is distinct and different than the other members of the Iranian language family.
History
Little is known about Kurdish in pre-Islamic times. The sacred book of the Yazidis, Mishefa Reş (Black Book) was written in Kurmanji Kurdish by Shaikh Adi's son in early 13th century [12]. From the 15th to 17th centuries, classical Kurdish poets and writers developed a literary language. The most famous classical Kurdish poets from this period are Ali Hariri, Ahmad Khani, Malaye Jaziri and Faqi Tayran.
In the beginning of the 20th century the countries that controlled the Kurdish-speaking regions refused to accept Kurdish as an official language and placed restrictions on its use. Today, only in Iraq, Kurdish is an official language. In Turkey the use of Kurdish is allowed, though with restrictions; In Iran, Kurdish is used in some publications, but it is not allowed to be taught in schools. Syria still opposes to the use of Kurdish in the country.
In March 2006, Turkey allowed private television channels to begin airing Kurdish language programming. However, the Turkish government said that they must avoid showing children's cartoons, or educational programs that teach the Kurdish language, and can only broadcast for 45 minutes a day or four hours a week. The programs must carry Turkish subtitles.[13]
Grammar
The Kurdish language is a typical example of an ergative language. There are many variations of ergatitviy such as split-ergativity of ergative-absolutive especially in the past tense forms in the Kurdish language. In Kurdish object agrees with the subject and the verb agrees with the object and this is unlike Persian, Turkish and Arabic in which object has an accusative marker and the verb in all tenses agrees with the subject of the sentence. Kurdish shows also a clitic reversing in all tense forms in sentences. Linguists believe Kurdish has inherited this attribute of ergativity from language of Hurrians (Khurrites) who are believed as one of the main ancestor of the Kurds.
- A simple example of ergative-absolutive in Kurdish (Sorani):
- Pênûsekeyan bo hênayn.
- Pênûs-eke-yan bo hêna-yn.
- Object-definite-subject preposition verb(past)-object.
- Pen-the-they for brought-us.
- They brought the pen for us.
In the above example the word pênûs(-eke) [= (the) pen] which is the object of the sentence agrees with the subject in case and becomes pênûseke-yan, and the verb hêna (brought) agrees with the indirect object of the sentence in case and becomes hêna-yn.
In addition to these, Kurdish uses various adpositions i.e. both prepositions and postpositions marking at the same time on a head noun. None of its neighbouring languages do it.
Dialects
Generally there are two types of Kurdish widely used in media and communications: Kurmanji in northern areas and Sorani in southern areas.
In dialectical and regional classifications Kurdish can be divided into two main branches of dialects: 1. The Kurmanji, and 2. Gorani. The Kurmanji branch consists of the sub-dialects, Northern Kurmanji and Southern Kurmanji also called Sorani. The Gorani branch consists of the sub-dialects: Kakeyi, Hewrami and Zazaki [14].
Other linguists classify the Kurdish language as the Northern Kurdish group of dialects also called Kurmanji and Badînî, the Central Kurdish group of dialects also called Sorani, and the Southern Kurdish group of dialects also called Gorani.
The detailed classification of Kurdish dialects is problematic. There is no widely-accepted appellative system for the various Kurdish dialects; not only in Western scholarly opinion, but even among the Kurds themselves. This often prompts arguments if these four different dialects are a language on their own or not.
A proposed system for the classification of the dialects is as follows [15]:
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- Northern Kurmanji (also called Kurmanji); (Spoken by most of Kurds in Turkey, All Kurds in Syria and the former Soviet Union. Kurds in Northern regions of western Azarbaijan province and in northern Khorasan of Iran. Kurds in Dohuk and Mosul governorates in Iraqi Kurdistan.)
- Southern Kurmanji (including Sorani and Kalhuri); (Spoken by most of Iraqi and Iranian Kurds)
- Pehlewanî
Indo-European linguistic comparison
Due to the fact that Kurdish language is an Indo-European language, there are many words that are cognates in Kurdish and other Indo-European languages such as Avestan, Persian, Sanskrit, German, English, Latin and Greek. (Source: Altiranisches Wörterbuch (1904) for the first two and last six.)
| Kurdish | Avestan | Persian | Sanskrit | Greek | English | German | Latin | Lithuanian | Russian | PIE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ez "I" | azəm | aham | egō | I (< OE ić) | ich | ego | aš | ja (OCS azŭ) | *h₁eĝh₂om | |
| jin "woman" | janay- "woman" | zan | janay- | gynē | queen | (OHG quena) | femina | (OPruss. genna) | žená | *gʷenh₂- |
| mezin "great" | maz-, mazant | mah(ī)-/mahānt- | megas | much (< OE mićil, myćil) | (OHG mihhil) | magnus | *meĝh₂- "big, great" [17] | |||
| mêzer "headband/turban" (from Greek?, cf. [18]) | miθra- "contract, Mithra" | mihr "sun" (< "Mithra") | mitra "contract, Mitra" | mitra "headband" (from Iranian?) | (mitre "bishop's tall hat" - from Greek [19]) | (Mitra - from Greek) | (mitra - from Greek) | *mei- "to tie" | ||
| pez "sheep" | pasu- "sheep, goats" | paśu "animal" | fee (< OE feoh "cattle") | Vieh "cattle" | pecus "cattle" | pekus "ox" | pastuh "shepherd" | *pek̂-u- "sheep"[20],[21] | ||
| çiya "mountain" | chakād "summit" | kakúd-, kakúbh- "peak/summit" | cacūmen | *kak-, *kakud- "top"[22] | ||||||
| zîndu "alive" jiyan "to live" | jī-/gay- | zende "alive", zîstan "to live" | jīvati | bios "life", zōō "live" | quick | quick "bright" | vīvus "alive", vīvō "live", vīta "life" | gývas | živój | *gʷih₃(u̯)- |
| mang "moon" | māh- | māh | mās- | mēn "month" | moon, month | Mond, Monat | mēnsis "month" | mėnuo/mėnesis | mésjac | *meh₁ns- |
| mirdu "dead", mirdin "to die" | mar-, məša- | morda "dead", mordan "to die" | marati, mrta- | brotos "mortal", ambrosios "immortal" | murder | Mord "murder" | morior "die", mors "death" | mirti "to die" | umerét’"to die", mërtvyj "tot" | *mer-, *mr̻to- |
| ser "head" | sarah- | sar | śiras- | ker[as] "horn", kara "head", krā[nion] "cranium" | dial. harns "brain" | [Ge]hir[n] "brain" | cereb[rum] "brain" | cherep "skull" | *k̂erh₂s- | |
| sed "hundred" | satəm | sad | śatam | [he]katon | hund[red] | Hund[ert] | centum | šimt[as] | sto | *dk̂m̻tom |
| [di]zan[im] "I know" zan[în] "to know" | zan- | [mi]dān[am] "I know", dān[estan] "to know" | jān[āti] | [gi]gnō[skō] | know | kennen | nō[scō], [co]gn[itus] | žin[au]"I know" žin[oti] "to know" | zná[ju]"I know" zn[at’]' "to know" | *ĝneh₃- |
Comparison between other indigenous languages
Following is a sample list of some words of ancient Urartian spoken from about 1000 BC, or earlier, until 585 BC found in Kurdish; However there are yet stronger similarities between Kurdish and other indigenous ancient languages spoken once in the same region, such as Hurrian. (The list is for comparison only).
| Urartian | Kurdish | English |
|---|---|---|
| ale | ale | he says |
| aba | awat | desire |
| ada | idi | again |
| patari | bajar | city |
| bid-u | bid-ewe | give back |
| ibirani | pirani | whole |
| par-u | par-inewe | cross over |
| kuri | qul | foot |
| şia | çún | go |
| şal-i | sal | year |
| sue | zé | lake |
| huş-u | hawiş-tin | throw |
Writing system
The Kurdish language uses three different writing systems. In Iran and Iraq is written using a modified version of the Arabic alphabet (and more recently sometimes with Latin Alphabet in Iraqi Kurdistan). In Turkey and Syria, it is written using the Latin alphabet. As an example, see the following online news portal published in Iraqi Kurdistan [23]. Also see the VOA News site in Kurdish [24]. Kurdish in the former USSR uses a modified Cyrillic alphabet. There is also a proposal for a unified international recognised Kurdish alphabet based on ISO-8859-1.[25]
Phonology
According to the Kurdish Academy of Language, Kurdish has the following phonemes:
Consonants
| Bilabial | Labiodental | Apical | Postalveolar | Palatal | Velar | Uvular | Glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stops | p b | t d | k g | q | ||||
| Fricatives | f v | s z | ʃ ʒ | ç | h | |||
| Affricates | ʧ ʤ | |||||||
| Nasals | m | n | ŋ | |||||
| Laterals | l ɫ2 | |||||||
| Flaps | ɾ | |||||||
| Trills | r | |||||||
| Approximants | ʋ | j |
Note 1: : Non-Latin scripts also have letters for /ħ/, /ʕ/, and /ɣ/. These may indicate variation among dialects in phoneme inventory, language change, or influence from nearby languages.
Note 2: : Just as in many English dialects, the velarized lateral does not appear in the onset of a syllable.
Vowels
| front | central | back | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| short | long | short | long | short | long | |
| close | i | iː | ʉ | u | uː | |
| mid | e | eː | ə | o | ||
| open | a | |||||
The vowel pairs /i/ and /iː/, /e/ and /eː/, and /u/ and /uː/ contrast in length and not quality. This distinction shows up in the writing system, for instance in the Kurdish Latin alphabet, short vowels are represented by o, u, i and e and long vowels have a circumflex ( ^ ), such as û, î and ê. Unlike Arabic, all vowels in Kurdish are mandatory and should be written down.
Dictionaries
Kurdish-only dictionaries
- Wîkîferheng (Kurdish Wiktionary)
- Husein Muhammed: Soranî Kurdish - Kurmancî Kurdish dictionary (2005)
- Khal, Sheikh Muhammad, Ferhengî Xal (Khal Dictionary), Kamarani Press, Sulaymaniya, 3 Volumes,
- Vol. I, 1960, 380 p.
- Vol. II, 1964, 388 p.
- Vol. III, 1976, 511 p.
Kurdish-English dictionaries
- Chyet, Michael L. , Kurdish Dictionary: Kurmanji-English, Yale Language Series, U.S., 2003 (896 pages) (see [26])
- Abdullah, S. and Alam, K. , English-Kurdish (Sorani) and Kurdish (Sorani)-English Dictionary, Star Publications / Languages of the World Publications, India, 2004 [27]
- Awde, Nicholas, Kurdish-English/English-Kurdish (Kurmanci, Sorani and Zazaki) Dictionary and Phrasebook, Hippocrene Books Inc., U.S., 2004 [28]
- Raman : English-Kurdish(Sorani) Dictionary, Pen Press Publishers Ltd, UK, 2003, (800 pages) [29]
- Saadallah, Salah, English-Kurdish Dictionary, Avesta/Paris Kurdish Insititue, Istanbul, 2000, (1477 pages) [30]
- Amindarov, Aziz, Kurdish-English/English-Kurdish Dictionary, Hippocrene Books Inc.,U.S., 1994 [31]
- Rizgar, Baran (M. F. Onen), Kurdish-English/English-Kurdish (Kurmancî Dictionary) UK, 1993, 400 p. + 70 illustrations [32]
References
- ^ Geographic distribution of Kurdish and other Iranic languages
- ^ Repression of Kurds in Syria is widespread, Amnesty International Report, March 2005.
- ^ Special Focus Cases: Leyla Zana, Prisoner of Conscience
- ^ [1](p.8)
- ^ [2]
- ^ The Kurdish Language and Literature, by Joyce Blau, Professor of Kurdish language and civilization at the National Institute of Oriental Language and Civilization of the University of Paris (INALCO).
- ^ The language policy of Iran from State policy on the Kurdish language: the politics of status planning by Amir Hassanpour, University of Toronto
- ^ Neighboring Kurds Travel to Study in Iraq
- ^ A. Arnaiz-Villena , J. Martinez-Laso, J. Alonso-Garcia, The correlation Between Languages and Genes: The Usko-Mediterranean Peoples, Human Immunology, vol.62, p.1057, 2001
- ^ A. Arnaiz-Villena, E. Gomez-Casado, J. Martinez-Laso, Population genetic relationships between Mediterranean populations determined by HLA distribution and a historic perspective, Tissue Antigens, vol.60, p. 117, 2002
- ^ M.R. Izady, Exploring Kurdish Origins, Kurdish Life, No. 7, Summer 1993
- ^ [3]
- ^ Turkey to get Kurdish television
- ^ [4]
- ^ [5]
- ^ [6]
- ^ [7]
- ^ [8], p.38
- ^ [9]
- ^ [10]
- ^ [11]
- ^ [12]
- ^ [13]
- ^ [14]
- ^ The Kurdish Unified Alphabet
- ^ [15]
- ^ [16]
- ^ [17]
- ^ [18]
- ^ [19]
- ^ [20]
- ^ [21]
See also
- Kurdish literature
- Common phrases in Kurdish
- Kurdish Institute of Paris
- Kurdish Institute of Istanbul
- Kurdistan
- List of Kurdish people
- Kurdish culture
- List of Kurdish given names
- Bahdini
External links
- The Kurdish Institute of Paris - Language and Literature
- Kurdish Institute of Istanbul
- KAL: The Kurdish Academy of Language
- Kurdish Kurdish links and language information, dictionary etc.
- Open Directory Project: Kurdish Language
- Online Kurdish-English Dictionary
- On-line Kurdish-English Dictionary
- Online English to Kurdish to English Dictionary (By Erdal Ronahî)
- Online Kurdish-German-Kurdish Dictionary
- Online Kurdish-English Ferheng Dictionary
- Online Turkish-Kurdish-Turkish Dictionary
- Online Kurdish School for Sorani,Kurmanji and Dimili
- Academic research about Zazaki
- MIT OpenCourseWare online course in Zazaki
- Comparison between alphabets used in Kurdish
Religious texts
Kurdish broadcast programs
- Voice of America, Kurdish Service
- Zayele, Radio Sweden
- SBS Radio's Kurdish Language Program, Australia
- "Evangeliums-Rundfunk of Germany" (ERF)- Christian Programs in Kurdish, Germany
- KurdSat Broadcasting Ltd., Sulaimania, Iraqi Kurdistan
- Kurdistan TV, Iraqi Kurdistan
- Zagros TV , Satellite Channel, Iraqi Kurdistan
- KNNTV
- Tehran Kurdish Radio
- Roj TV Streaming of Kurdish TV
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| Indo-Aryan | Varieties of Sanskrit: Vedic Sanskrit - Classical Sanskrit | Angika | Assamese | Bengali | Bhojpuri | Dhivehi | Dogri | Gujarati | Hindi | Hindustani | Konkani | Magadhi | Mahl | Maithili | Marathi | Nepali | Oriya | Pāli | Prakrit | Punjabi | Romani | Sindhi | Sinhala | Urdu | ||
| Iranian | Avestan | Varieties of Persian: Old Persian - Middle Persion (Pahlavi) - Modern Persian (Fārsī) - Darī (Afghanistan) - Tājikī | Bactrian | Balochi | Dari (Zoroastrianism) | Gilaki | Kurdish | Mazandarani | Ossetic | Pamir | Pashto | Saka | Scythian | Sogdian | Talysh | Tat | Yagnobi | Zazaki | ||
| Dardic | Dameli | Domaaki | Gawar-Bati | Kalasha-mun | Kashmiri | Khowar | Kohistani | Nangalami | Pashayi | Palula | Shina | Shumashti | ||
| Nuristani | Askunu | Kalasha-ala | Kamkata-viri | Tregami | Vasi-vari | ||
