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Resources on learning kurmanji

PostPosted: Tue Mar 06, 2007 7:44 pm
Author: azade_
Hi all,
My apologies if there's already a thread resembling to this one, I couldn't find anything though.

I'm basically just looking for any kind of materials for learning kurmanji. I have asked many places now but without luck. The best thing would be to find a book but I don't think there are any on the market yet. If anyone knows anything, I would greatly appreciate it.

PostPosted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 4:52 am
Author: sorgul

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 1:48 pm
Author: Ciwan

PostPosted: Sat Mar 10, 2007 11:00 pm
Author: azade_
Thank you so much for your links. The dictionary looks really good unfortunately I will have to wait to buy it, it looks really heavy and I'm travelling a lot at the moment :? The website is good as well but the problem is that I don't speak any kurdish whatsoever (I don't speak enough to understand the grammar anyway). I'm a real beginner so it gets too hard once I'm past the first couple of lessons. Truthfully, I'm not a Kurd, I'm married to one, and I want to learn in order to communicate easier with my mother in law + I also want our future children to speak kurdish fluently. I have embraced the kurdish culture and it pains me that my family in law has to switch to turkish (which I'm also learning) when we visit them.
Thanks once again, I appreciate your help :)

PostPosted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 2:48 am
Author: sorgul
http://www.amazon.com/Azadi-English-Kur ... 22&sr=11-1

^ link for another Kurdish-English dictionary..this time the Sorani dialect. Does any one have it...i wonder if it is any good

Kurmanci materials

PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2007 11:14 pm
Author: daristani
Check this URL for some comments on materials:

http://how-to-learn-any-language.com/fo ... =5256&PN=1

Re: Kurmanci materials

PostPosted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 5:33 pm
Author: azade_
daristani wrote:Check this URL for some comments on materials:

http://how-to-learn-any-language.com/fo ... =5256&PN=1


Thank you that was very useful :)

I found a textbook for learning but unfortunately it's sold out from the publisher.
Maybe the best thing to do is just to stay in Kurdistan until I speak fluently :D

PostPosted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 8:09 pm
Author: daristani
I'm sorry that the Kurdish textbook you wanted was sold out; perhaps it will turn up at some point in a search of used books.

In any event, since you're in Denmark, you might take a look at the "Kurdisk-Dansk Ordbog" by Mesud Zilan. It's small, and very good (but only goes Kurdish to Danish, and not the other way around.) It's published by Gyldendal.

In the meantime, if your husband is Kurdish and knows Turkish, he might be able to help you work your way through this on-line book, which is fairly good in providing the basic grammar and some useful vocabulary:

http://www.rojanu.org/dersen_zman/Dersen%20zman.pdf

Good luck!

PostPosted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 8:19 pm
Author: daristani
In addition to the textbook I cited above, the following should also be useful in explaining the grammar and providing examples, even if the explanations are sometimes a bit complicated:

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~iranian/Kurmanji/index.html

PostPosted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 10:08 am
Author: azade_
Thank you so much I appreciate your help greatly :)

PostPosted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 10:38 am
Author: UE_kurdophile
Actually there was a topic in this forum:

"Kurmanci and Sorani instructional materials - for free! " (in this section)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"English-speakers interested in learning Kurdish should check out this page on Iranian languages from Harvard University:

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~iranian/

It has two sets of documents by Wheeler Thackston, who's already published textbooks of Persian, Arabic, and Syriac, on Kurmanci and Sorani Kurdish. Each consists of a "reference grammar", which gives the fundamentals of the grammar in rather brief form, an annotated reader, and a glossary.

I think the site has just been put on line, but in my initial review of the Kurdish materials, they seem to be very well done. The Kurmanci reader, for instance, even has a few pages in the Kurdish Cyrillic alphabet used in the former Soviet Union. The documents are in PDF form, and total about 250 pages for each dialect. "

PostPosted: Fri Mar 16, 2007 1:36 pm
Author: Vladimir
Sprechen sie auch Deutsch?

http://www.kurdis.net/

PostPosted: Sat Mar 17, 2007 1:14 am
Author: Diri
This is very helpful and meaningful posting... :)

Thanks to everybody for contributing with questions and answers... It's all very informational! :D

PostPosted: Sun Mar 18, 2007 10:50 am
Author: Vladimir
Also check the website of FERHENG. It has dictionaries in Kurmanji and Kirmancki: http://www.ferheng.org/