Judeo-Hamedani dialect
| Judeo-Hamedani | |
|---|---|
| Judeo-Persian | |
| Dzhidi | |
| Native to | Iran, USA, Israel |
|
Native speakers
|
8 (2001) |
|
Northwestern Iranian
|
|
| Hebrew script | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
| Glottolog | jude1268 |
The languages spoken by Iranian Jews are often lumped under the term "Judeo-Persian," a broad term that denotes the various forms of Modern Persian written in the Hebrew script. Native to Iranian Jews, it has also been used by Jews of Afghanistan, Central Asia, and the Chinese Jewish community of Ka'i Feng Fu. The original use of Judeo-Persian language is documented as early as sixth century B.C., however there are no literary documents that were preserved in this language prior to the eighth century A.D., according to Dariush Gitisetan from Brandeis University (Dariush Gitisetan, 13). Unfortunately the separation of Jews from their native areas created linguistic differences, giving rise to a large number of mutually incomprehensible dialects of Judeo-Persian. This is why, according to Habib Borjian, we need to separate Judeo-Hamadan from Judeo Persian(Habib Borjian, 117). Judeo-Persian shares many features in common with Modern Persian, while still manifesting distinct differences. According to Gitisetan, these include(Dariush Gitisetan, 13)
Besides those languages categorized under Judeo-Persian, there are also several other spoken languages that belong under the Iranian stock of languages that are associated with Jewish populations in Iran. What Habib Borjian refers to as “Judeo-Median,” are a number of languages that have their center in central Iran and are/were spoken by the Jewry of Isfahan, Kashan, Yazd, and outlying western towns (Habib Borjian, 117). Unfortunately, all of these varieties are on the verge of extinction, both in their original motherland and around the world. While Judeo-Median is categorized from the Northwest part of Iran, it differs from Persian, a Southwest language, not only in location but also in its vocabulary and grammar.
As explained before, beyond Judeo-Persian, there are other spoken Iranian languages used by various Jewish communities throughout Iran. These Judeo-Iranian languages can be classified into two groups. The first group belongs to the Southwest branch, just like traditional Persian, and consists of Bukhari, Juhuri, and Judeo-Shirazi. The second group consists of the Iranian languages spoken by the Jews belonging to the Northwest part of Iran. These dialects are part of a group loosely classified under the general designation of Central Plateau dialects (CPD's). Among this group are Khansar, Golpayegan, Khomeyn, Mahallat, and Delijan, which are located along the northwestern frontier of the CPD-speaking area. Further west are Hamadan Nehavand, Borujerd, Malayer, and Tuyserkan. The reason why Habib Borjian, along with many others, categorizes this group as part of Judeo-Median, is because of their location within the ancient province of Media (Habib Borjian, 119). This group is native to a region in central Iran that extends roughly from Kashan in the north to Isfahan in the south. Mainly spoken in individual villages and small towns, Judeo-Median languages comprise a much smaller speaking group. Thus, in larger towns, it would be very common for those who spoke most of the Judeo-Median languages to transition to traditional Persian. This was in exception of the Jewish residents, who had tried to preserve the native languages until recently.
...
Wikipedia