Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-75dct Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-05-01T07:46:28.323Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Gender in Kurdish

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 December 2009

D. N. Mackenzie
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

It is not yet generally accepted in European works that a distinction of grammatical gender exists in Kurdish. In the Northern group of Kurdish J dialects the Izafe appears in a number of forms, e.g. a, ā, ē, ī, and the nominal 5 oblique case ending as -ē and -ī. An analysis of these forms into a clear system, with two declensions according to grammatical gender, has been made by members of the princely family of Bedir Xan. A comparison of all the available texts in the light of their analysis serves to confirm the general validity of the paradigms and therefore of a distinction of grammatical gender, disguised to a varying extent by the generalization of certain forms. The history of a number of words of known gender suggests that the distinction is inherited.

A hitherto unexplained phenomenon is the appearance in the Central Kurdish Mukrī dialect of two forms of the nominal oblique case ending, -ē and -ī. The similarity of these forms to the corresponding Northern dialect forms is obvious. A comparison of related words in the two groups of dialects shows that in the Mukrī dialect also the difference of the forms marks a distinction of grammatical gender.

Type
Articles
Information
Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies , Volume 16 , Issue 3 , October 1954 , pp. 528 - 541
Copyright
Copyright © School of Oriental and African Studies 1954

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

page 528 note 1 The subject of this paper was first suggested in the course of one of many fruitful discussions with Prof. W. B. Henning and I must gratefully acknowledge here, albeit inadequately, the extent to which it has profited by his many and detailed criticisms and suggestions.

page 528 note 2 Grundriss der Iranischen Philologie, 1.2., p. 249.Google Scholar Bibliography, p. 253. Of the works there quoted the following are referred to in this article: Lerch, Forschungen über die Kurden, cited Lx page/line, Jaba, Becueil de notices et récits kurdes, Justi-Jaba, Dictionnaire kurde-français, cited JJ page, Prym and Socin, Kurdische Samnlungen, cited PS page/line, Makas, Kurdische Texte im Kurmānjī-Dialecte, cited Mk section/line. In some cases, which will be obvious, it has been necessary to modify in quotation the various transcriptions of different scholars.

page 528 note 3 Justi, F., Kurdische Grammatīk, St.-Petersburg, 1880, p. 127Google Scholar

page 529 note 1 op. cit., p. 276, § 155.

page 529 note 2 Capt.Jardine, E. F., Bahdinan Kurmanji, Baghdad, 1922.Google Scholar

page 529 note 3 Beidar, Abbé Paul, Grammaire Kurde, Paris, 1926.Google Scholar

page 529 note 4 Particularly Emir Djeladet Aali, Hawar—Revue Kurde, Damascus, 1931–. Each number has a full bibliography of the Kitēbxana Hawarē on the back cover. These, and the grammar (ef. fn.7), are cited generally BX.

page 529 note 5 Lescot, Roger, Texles Kurdes, 1, 2, Paris-Beirut, 1940–42.Google Scholar I, Conies, Proverbes et Enigmes, cited Lt page/line.

page 529 note 6 Mir Celadet Bedir Xan, Grammaire Kurde, Şam-Damas, 1933. Not available to me.

page 529 note 7 Langue Kurde. Eléments de Grammaire extraits des cours donnés à l'Ecole National des Langues Orientates Vivantes par L'Emir Kamuran Aali Bedir-Xan, Paris, 1953.Google Scholar

page 529 note 8 e.g. Nәṣ;ra hyḳmata şewre Ermәnistane. Komisariata Ronkaje Çbmbāti, Rәwan, 1930-. Cited generally Rwn. A number of these publications, school textbooks, are in the British Museum.

page 530 note 1 op. cit., p. vi.

page 530 note 2 ibid., pp. 241–244.

page 530 note 1 St. Matthew's Gospel, ABS, Constantinople, 1922. Transliterated by the Rev. H. H. Riggs from the Armenian script of the 1891 translation ‘ by native pastors from the region of Kharput’. cited Mat. chapter/verse.

page 535 note 1 op. oit., Pt. I, p. xx.

page 535 note 2 Mann, Oskar, Die Mundart der Mukri-Kurden I, 2, Berlin 1906–9Google Scholar(cited hereafter as MM page/line). II, p. xxvi, footnote 1.

page 537 note 1 Mann, and Hadank, , Mundarten der Gūrān, Berlin, 1930.Google Scholar Kändūläī dialect, cited G.

page 537 note 2 Mann, and Hadank, , Mundarten der Gūrān, Berlin, 1932.Google Scholar Dialect of Siverek cited SZ, of Bijaq cited BZ, and of Kor cited KZ.

page 537 note 3 Christensen, , Le dialecte de Sāmnān, Copenhagen, 1915.Google Scholar Cited Sem.

page 537 note 4 Morgenstierne, , Etymological Vocabulary of Pashto, Oslo, 1927Google Scholar, and NTS, vol. 12, pp. 88Google Scholar seq., cited Pxt. I am īndebted to Mr. G. Morrison for his advice in this connexion.

page 538 note 1 Quoted by Justi (above) from Chodzko, M. A., ‘ Etudes philologiques sur la langue kurde (dialecte de Soleimanie)’, JA, Avril–Mai 1857, p. 304Google Scholarbottom.

page 538 note 2 I am indebted to Mr. C. J. Edmonds, with whom I have been fortunate enough to study this dialect, for permission to reproduce these and later extracts from his manuscript grammatical notes.

page 538 note 3 op. cit., p. 305.

page 539 note 1 op. eit., I, pp. L et seq.

page 539 note 2 Rev.Fossum, L. O., Practical Kurdish Grammar, Inter-Synodical Ev. Lutheran Orient- Mission Society, 1919, p. 37.Google Scholar

page 541 note 1 Mann, ibid. I, pp. XLVII et seq.

page 541 note 2 ibid. I, p. LV, § 24.