Author: Emanoel Natawaparwar » Thu Sep 07, 2006 6:34 pm
Snă Şarăkăm! Ăwă Mn Ăŕom
Hărcăn Dĺwapăs Be Ĥûrmăti Tom
Xwărătawăkăy Lci Pasarëm
Ta La Keytăwă, Năma Asarëm
“Modern Kurdish Poem (In Ărdăĺani Accent of Sorani Dialect)”
*Hăwler (Irbil), current capital of southern Kurdistan, is an ancient Kurdish city. It was capital of Jewish Kingdom of Kurdistan which (if I’m not mistaken) Izătes established.
As I will explain it in later paragraphs there are two main Kurdish dialect or language. Kurmanji and Gorani which indeed belong to a same root and are the most closest relatives of each other. At first Hăwler was in Kurmanji spoken areas then by appearance of Sorani dialect became a Sorani speaking region. Even at present time it’s clear that Sorani dialect of Hăwler is the closest Sorani subdialect to Kurmanji dialect. Both Sorani and Kurmanji locals live in Hăwler and also Sorani and Kurmanji migrators.
*Dialect of Snă (Ărdăĺani)
If I’m not mistaken, since ~1100 to ~1920 Ărdăĺani dynasty rulled in some parts of eastern Kurdistan mainly including cities of Snă, Măriwan, Qûrwă, Bijaŕ, Kamyaran, Pawă and (around half millennium on) Kărkuk. They choosed Snă as capital and Gorani dialect as their territories language which by 1900 was spoken in Snă and still there are many folklores and expressions in Gorani in folks language.
Generally there are three Sorani subdialects : Hăwleri, Mukriyani and Ărdăĺani, which their degree of relation to Kurmanji dialect is respectively shown. Sorani dialect could be explained as containing Kurmanji grammer but Gorani ergativity and a vocabulary composed of both Kurmanji and Gorani words, also typical Sorani words. Sorani’s morphological development is progressing from east (as leader) to west and north. I can clearly remember by 1995 most of rustics of Măhabad could not understand “ăkăm” (I do). Like main body of Sorani dialect speakers they say “dăkăm” and “ăkăm” was fairly strange. But at present time they can understand “ăkăm” , tough still say “dăkăm”. Or in Săqqëz city they used to say both “dăkăm” (often) and “ăkăm” by same time. But now they often say “ăkăm”. In Snă city (not including its rural areas), atleast since 30-40 they say “ăkăm”. An important topic of morphological development in Gorani and Sorani (taken from Gorani) is to drop “d”. Tottaly all Kurdish dialects (Kurmanji, Gorani, Sorani, Krmanjki) have same tendency, but it’s so considerable in Gorani and Sorani. For example “păydă” (p. and p.p. find, clear) > “păyă”, “dă-“ (particular prefix attachs present tens verbs, ~ English ‘do, does’) > “ă”, “Kurdëstan” > “Kursan” (disappearance of ‘d’ and ‘t’; local people of Snă call it ), “zmëstan” > “zmsan” (“zstan” in other Sorani dialects which is derived from “zwëstan” from → “zvëstan” in Kurmanji which it self is derived from Old Kurdish “zmëstan” by changing ‘m’ into ‘v’ which is so common in Kurmanji and later Sorani dialects; e.g “nam” > “nav/w”, “şam” > “şav” > “şăv/w”, “dăm” > “dăv/w”, “cam, căm” > “cav/w”, “hamin” > “hav/win”, “-man” [an ancient suffix equal by English “-man, -woman” and “-er” in post-man or kill-er] > “-v/wan” in şăr-van, năcir-v/wan, probably –van in “caravan” has Kurdish root and later whole word)
As I mentioned above, Sorani and Krmanjki (which has appeared in the vice versa > influence of Gorani on Kurmanji speaking area) have their typical elements (especially in their vocabulary) which may has been disappeared in both Kurmanji and Gorani (as sources). For instance Sorani notăk and notă “dark, [occasionally] night” is remarkable, which is not found in other dialects.
Grammatically Ărdăĺani (especially that of Snă) is a bit different than other Sorani dialects :
Current Sorani Bu-wă (p.p to be) > Ărdăĺani Bu-gă
Current Sorani Krd-uwă (p.p. to do) > Ărdăĺani Krd-ëgă
An important topic of Kurdish development v/w > g. Ăvestan vărkă (wolf) > [gărkă] > [gorkă] > [gurkă] > Sorani gurg and Kurmanji gur but Krmanjki (so-called Zazaki) “vărg” and Swedish, Norwegian “varg”.
Current Sorani-Kurmanji-Gorani agër (fire) > Southern Sorani and Northern Gorani (Kamyrana, Juwanru and around Pawă) ăwër.
Current Sorani piyaw (man) > Ărdăĺani piyag and many other examples.
Another important difference between Ărdăĺani and other Sorani dialects is changing d and b into w in its sentences structure that its development has caused a remarkable ergativity : Sor. nă-t-bin-ëm > Ărdăĺani : nă-w-bin-ëm [as all none initial “aw” in informal Kurdish, Persian, etc chang into “ow“] > no-w-bin-ëm, Sor. dă-bar-et > Ărd. ă-war-et, etc.
The only important Turkish words existing in Ărdăĺani are : bayăqoş (owl), qoĺ (arm). Baĺ is pure Kurdish words meant arm and considerably is used. May bayăqoş is only Turkish word existing in Ărdăĺani subdialect which has many pure Kurdish alternatives
In other Kurdish dialects.
Ărdăĺani is a fair Kurdish subdialect. It incorrect to call it influenced by Persian or whatever if its current speakers in larg cities (Snă, Tehran) use some Persian words in favor of Kurdish. No doubt that there are several esencial Persian, Arabic and Jewish loanwords as every language human speaks is so. In initial poem which is composed in ninties, only three none-Kurdish words are found “ĥûrmăt” Arabic, “asar” Arabic and probably “dĺwapăs” Persian, which all have Kurdish alternatives as well : “heĵa, grameti”, “nişan”, “ngăran, bă trs”.
Turkish, a Language or a Dialect?
Languages known as Turkish (Osmali) and Azerbayjani (Azeri) are from same root and so close to each other. Oghuz Turks invaded Iran, Kurdistan and Anatolia (Eastern Greece) as heartless invaders. Since their settlement in Anatolia, Azerbayjan, Arran (so-called Azerbayjan Republic) Western Armenian, several parts of Kurdistan in several periods (cities of Mălăti, Qoniyă, Ăŕzërom, Qărs, Urmiya, Xoy, Năxădă, suburb of Kărkuk and south west of Musël) and flat pastures of Fars province of Iran, their languages have been changed. Turkic language are is basicly different from Indo-European (Aryan) and Semitic languages whence only accepts vocabulary affects from surrounding languages such as Arabic, Persian, Kurdish and Greek. There are as much loanwords in Turkish and Azerayjani as without them the language exactly would have no ability anymore! However its syntax still is Turkish. Also there are considerable esencial Turkish words of Iranian origin, such as “băyg” from Old Iranian “băĝ” God, Great. This word is found in many Turkish words : büyük, beyquş, beyg and bayram, the final which is composed of bay + ram, two Old Iranian words meant great + rest and in Turkish is meant “holyday, festival”. Also many other words and verbs like saymak “to coun” which comes from Old Iranian “sayaq” ‘to count tax’ and tohum “seed” that comes from Old Iranian “toxûmă”. These words have been entered Turkish before Turks invasion on Mid. East.
There are some Arabic, Persian and Kurdish which I collect in just 5 minuts! So you can imagine that how much of such words exist in Turkish :
From Arabic “Nisb”
Nispi > [Ar. nisbi] relative
Nispetçi > piteful (who related incorrect matters to s.m.o. els)
Nispeten > [Ar. Nisbătăn] compared to…
Nispet > [Ar. Nisbăt, Nisbă] ratio
Nisap > [Ar. Nisab] quorum
Nisai > [Ar. Nisai] gynecological
From Arabic “Nięmăt”
Nimetşinas > [Ar. Nięmăt + Persian / Kurdish Şenas/Şnas] grateful
Nimet > [Ar. Nięmăt] blessing
From Arabic “Nikah”
Nikahlanmak > to marry
Nikahlı > married
Nikahsız > unmarried
Nikbin > [Persian nik ‘good’ + bin ‘sight’] optimist
Nikbinlik > optimism
Diğer > [Persian digăr, Kurdish ‘dikă’] other
Her > [Kurdish/Persian hăr ‘every, each’] every, each
As I know no other language has as much loanwords as Turkish has, except other Turkic languages such as Uzbek and Uighur.