Download Kurmanji lessons

M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
STANDARD KURDISH ORTHOGRAPHY TABLE
h 1990 Michael L. Chyet, updated 1998, 1999
Roman (Hawar)
A
a
B
b
C
c
Ç
ç
Ç’
ç’
D
d
[²] [±]
E
e
‘E
‘e
(E') (e')
Ê
ê
F
f
G
g
H
h
H
h
(H’) (h’)
I
i
Î
î
J
j
K
k
K’
k’
L
l
—
–
M
m
N
n
O
o
P
p
P’
p’
Q
q
R
r
R
rr
S
s
Ş
ş
[Ş/S] [ş/s]
T
t
T’
t’
[®/T] [-/t]
U
u
Û
û
V
v
W
X
Ù
w
x
x
Cyrillic
А
a
Á
Щ
щ
×
÷
×’
ч’
Д
д

’

’
E



’
e


h
h’



K
K’




O

’
Q

’





k
k’




o

’
q

’



’

’



W
X
’



w
x
’
Arabic
á
• 1 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Y
Z
‘
y
z


‘


• 2 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Pronunciation Guide
Vowels
a as in father Dara ga kiras
mal
nav
Zana
e as a in cat, but shorter ders dest ez Ferhad Leyla ser
ê as ay in day
erê
i as first i in
min
î as
i in
kitêb
nêr
divine, but shorter
machine Bengîn
enî
jî
wê
xwendekar
Xecê
kiras
kî
kitêb
pêçî Şîrîn
mezin
tilî
wî
o pronunciation varies from region to region:
may be
/o/ o in bone; /û/ oo in boot
Cano
mamosta
Memo
Zeyno
u wi as in
twig, but shorter guh
gund
tu
tune
û pronunciation varies from region to region:
may be /û/ oo in boot; /î/ i in machine; /y/ ~ /ü/ German ü in
kühl
hûn
namûs
piçûk
pirtûk
Consonants
c as j in
jack
ç as ch in
chat
Cano Xecê
birçî
H
‘e as Arabic
[’ayn] + e
‘eşîret
‘erebe
h as Arabic
j as s in
`[hÐ’]
measure
q as Arabic
quloz
¶
çav
çi
Miço pêçî piçûk
‘enî [variant of
enî]
‘Eyşan
hişk Mihê
jî
[qÐf]
r trilled as in Spanish
dirêj
deqe qedandin
birçî
qelew
ders kiras
• 3 •
qîçik
ser
xwendekar
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
rr, rr double trill as in Spanish perro
s always unvoiced, as s in soon
sivik
ş as ş in
Şîrîn
show
x as German ch in
ğ(x) as Arabic
hişk şil
machen
®[ghayn]
rreş terr
ders
pisîk
Xecê xwendekar
ağa
Meğrebzemîn
y only used as a consonant:
tilîya-- enîya-or as the second part of a diphthong (ay, ey, oy):
Zeyno
ç, k, p, and t occur both aspirated and non-aspirated. In written
Kurdish, only Kurdish materials from the former Soviet Armenia
maintain this distinction, by adding an apostrophe after the
aspirated variant of each pair, yielding:
ç [non-aspirated] - ç’ [aspirated]; k [non-aspirated] - k’
[aspirated];
p [non-aspirated] - p’ [aspirated]; t [non-aspirated] - t’
[aspirated].
This distinction will be indicated in the vocabularies only.
All other consonants as in Engliş
• 4 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Pêşîn [1]
{Pikkert 1.12; 2.1, 2.2, 2.3}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan [proverb]: Navê gund namûsa gund e.
DIALOGUE:
I.
Zeyno:
Lezgîn:
Z:
L:
Z:
L:
Z:
L:
Z:
L:
Z:
L:
Z:
L:
Z:
II.
Dara:
Şîrîn:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
Tu kî yî?
Ez Lezgîn im. Tu kî yî?
Ez Zeyno me.
Ew kî ye? Navê wî çi ye?
Ew -- mamostayê min e. Navê wî Zana ye.
Ev kî ye?
Ev hevala wî ye. Navê wê Dîlan e. Ev çi ye?
Ev kitêba min e.
Tu xwendekar î?
Erê, ez xwendekar im.
Dersdarê te kî ye?
Dersdara
a min Leyla ye. Tu jî xwendekar î?
Nexêr, ez dersdar im. Ez mamosta me. Bengîn kî
ye?
Bengîn hevalê min e. Tu dersdara min î?
Nexêr. Ez dersdara Bengîn im -- ez mamostaya
wî me.
Ev çi ye?
Ev destê te ye!
Lê ev çi ye?
Ev jî tilîya destê te ye.
Ew kî ye?
Ew hevala min e. Navê wê ‘Eyşan e.
‘Eyşan kî ye?
‘Eyşan mamostaya min e.
Ew çi ye?
Ew kitêba hevalê min e. Navê wî Bengîn e.
Lê ev çi ye?
Ew? Ew gayê wî ye!
Ev çi ye?
Ev kiras e.
Kirasê te ye?
Erê, kirasê min e.
Ev enîya min e?
Nexêr, ew tilîya te ye --- Ev enîya te ye!
• 5 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
DIALOGUE (translation):
I.
Zeyno:
Who are you?
Lezgîn:
I am Lezgîn. Who are you?
Z:
I am Zeyno.
L:
Who is he? What is his name?
Z:
He is my teacher. His name is Zana.
L:
Who is this?
Z:
This is his friend (f.). Her name is Dîlan. What
is this?
L:
This is my book.
Z:
Are you a student?
L:
Yes, I am a student.
Z:
Who is your teacher?
L:
My teacher (f.) is Leyla. Are you a student too?
Z:
No, I am a teacher. I am an instructor. Who is
Bengîn?
L:
Bengîn is my friend. Are you my teacher?
Z:
No. I am Bengîn's teacher -- I am his instructor.
II.
Dara:
Şîrîn:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
D:
Ş:
VOCABULARY:
çi?
ders, f.
dersdar, m.&f.
dest, m.
e
enî, f.
erê
ev
What is this?
This is your hand!
But what is this?
This is the finger of (on) your hand.
Who is şe?
Şe is my friend. Her name is Eyşan.
Who is Eyşan?
Eyşan is my teacher.
What is that?
That is the book of my friend. His name is Bengîn.
But what is this?
That? That is his ox!
What is this?
This is a şirt.
Is it your şirt?
Yes, it is my şirt.
Is this my forehead?
No, that is your finger --- This is your forehead!
what
lesson
teacher
hand
is
forehead
yes
this
k’î?
mal, f.
mamosta, m.&f.
me
min
mê
namûs, f.
nav, m.
• 6 •
who
house
teacher
[I] am
my, of me
feminine
honor
name
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
ew
ez
ga, m.
gotina pêşîyan, f.
gund, m.
heval, m.&f.
hûn
im
in
î
jî
kiras, m.
k’itêb1, f.
that; he, şe, it
I
ox, bull
proverb
village
friend
you (pl.)
[I] am
[they] are
[you] are
also, too
şirt
book
nexêr
no
nêr
masculine
pêçî, f. [also: bêçî] finger
ser, m.
head
te
your, of you
t’ilî, f.
finger
tu
you (sing.)
wê
her, of her
wî
his, of him
xwendek’ar, m.&f.
student
ye
is
yî
[you] are
GRAMMAR:
a. Ez … im = I am …
Ez Lezgîn im. I am Lezgîn.
Ez Bengîn im. I am Bengîn.
Ez Dîlan im.
Ez ‘Eyşan im.
I am Dîlan.
I am Eyşan.
If the name ends in a vowel, instead of im we say me:
Ez Simko me.
Ez Zana me.
Ez kî me?
I am Simko.
Ez Xecê me.
I am Zana.
Ez Leyla me.
Who am I? [literally: I who am?]
I am Khej.
I am Leyla.
Remember: Ez Lezgîn im ; Ez Simko me
b. Tu … î = You (singular [sing.]) are …
Tu Bengîn î?
Are you Bengîn?
Tu Dîlan î?
Are you Dîlan?
If the name ends in a vowel, instead of î we say yî:
Tu kî yî? = Who are you?
Tu Simko yî?
Are you Simko?
Tu Xecê yî?
Are you Khej?
c. Ew … e = He/Şe/It is …
Ew Ferhad e = HE is Ferhad (or, It is Ferhad)
Ew Şîrîn e = SHE is Şirin (or, It is Şirin)
If the name ends in a vowel, instead of e we say ye:
Ew kî ye?
Who is he/she/it?
1Note
that the k- in k’itêb and in k’î is aspirated, while the k- in kiras in nonaspirated.
• 7 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Ew Cano ye
He/it is Jano
d. Ev çi ye?
What is this?
Ew çi ye?
What is that?
Ew Zeyno ye
Remember: ev = this ; ew = he/şe/it and
e. Tu kî yî?
Ez : Min
Tu : Te
Şe/it is Zeyno
that
Navê te çi ye?
•My
•Your
Navê
Navê
Navê
Navê
Ew : Wî
•His
Navê
(masculine [m.]) Navê
Wê •Her
Navê
(feminine [f.])
Navê
min Dara ye.
te çi ye?
te Bengîn e.
te Memo ye.
wî çi ye?
wî Memo ye.
wê çi ye?
wê Zîn e.
My name is Dara.
What is your name?
Your name is Bengîn.
Your name is Memo.
What is his name?
His name is Memo.
What is her name?
Her name is Zîn.
f. Kurmanji nouns have gender. A noun is either masculine or
feminine.
One way of telling a noun's gender is the ending it takes before
pronouns like
min, te, wî, wê. This ending is called ezafe:
-[y]ê (nêr = masc. [m.])
navê
ê min [my name]
destê
ê te [your hand]
kirasê
ê wî [his şirt]
gay
yê wê [her ox]
-[y]a (mê = fem. [f.])
mala
a min [my house]
kitêba
a te [your book]
tilîy
ya wî/pêçîy
ya wî [his finger]
enîy
ya wê [her forehead]
g. Some nouns can be of either gender, depending on the sex of the
person.
For example, heval = friend. If the friend is a man or boy (Memo,
Bengîn), heval will be masculine. If the friend is a woman or girl
(Xecê, Zeyno), heval will be feminine.
heval [friend]
hevalê
ê min
my friend (m.)
hevala
a min
xwendekar [student]
xwendekarê
ê te your student (m.)
xwendekara
a te
dersdar [teacher/instructor]
mamosta [teacher/instructor]
• 8 •
my friend (f.)
your student (f.)
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
dersdarê
ê min
mamostay
yê te
my instructor (m.)
your teacher (m.)
dersdara
a min
mamostay
ya te
my instructor (f.)
your teacher (f.)
Ez kî me?
Who am I?
Ez dersdar im = Ez mamosta me I am a teacher.
Ez dersdarê
ê te me = Ez mamostay
yê te me I am your teacher (m.).
Tu kî yî?
Who are you?
Xwendekar
Memo, tu xwendekarê
ê min î.
Zeyno, tu xwendekara
a min î.
Hûn kî ne?
Hûn … in
Hûn xwendekarê
ên min in
Memo, you are my student (m.).
Zeyno, you are my student (f.).
Who are you (plural [pl.])?
You [pl.] are …
You [pl.] are my students.
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) What is this? It is my book. 2) What is that? It is
her head (ser [m.]). 3) Who is this? He is my friend. His name is
Dara. 4) Who is that? Şe is my student. Her name is Zeyno. 5) Who
are you? I am your friend [f.]. 6) What is the name of your [sing.]
village? The name of my village is Axirmat. 7) What is that? It is
the ox of my teacher [m.]. 8) What is her name? Her name is Leyla. Şe
is my friend. 9) What is the honor of the village? The name
[=reputation] of the village is the honor of the village. 10) What is
that? That is your şirt.
II. Make up ten sentences using the vocabulary and structures from
this lesson. For example: What is this? This is …; What is that? That
is…; What is my/your/his/her name? My, etc. name is…; Who is he/şe?
He, etc. is my, etc. …
III. Fill in the blanks with the correct forms: <im/me ; î/yî ; e/ye>
1) Ez hevalê te ____. 2) Navê wê Zeyno ____. 3) Navê gundê min
Gozelderê ____. 4) Navê gundê wî Soybilax ____. 5) Leyla kî ____? Ew
hevala min ____. 6) Tu dersdarê wê ____. 7) Cano hevalê mamostayê te
____? 8) Ez Şîrîn ____. Navê hevala min Xecê ____. 9) Ez Zeyno ____.
Ez Dîlan ____. 10) Ew Memo ____. Ew ‘Eyşan ____. 11) Ev kitêba min
____. Ew kitêba te ____. 12) Tu Zîn ____? Tu Memo ____? 13) Ez Bengîn
____. Navê min Bengîn ____. 14) Ez Xecê ____. Navê min Xec ____. Navê
min Xecê ____. 15) Ew çi ____? Ew gayê min ____.
• 9 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
KURDIŞ PERSONAL NAMES
Male:
Bengîn
Cano
Dara
Ferhad
Lezgîn
Memo
Zana
Female:
Dîlan
‘Eyşan
Leyla
Şîrîn
Xecê
Zeyno
Zîn
• 10 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Didua [2]
{Pikkert 1.3; 2.4}
FOLKLORE:
Mamik, f. [riddle]: Qîz pîr e, dê cahil e. Ev çi ye?
Sê bira ne: hersê bira jî zikrreş in.
DIALOGUE:
I.
Dara:
Miho:
D:
M:
D:
M:
D:
M:
D:
M:
D:
M:
D:
M:
D:
[pembû]
[dûstan]
Çawan î2? Baş î?
Ez baş im. Tu çawan î?
Ez jî baş im.
Hûn kî ne?
Em xwendekar in. Tu kî yî?
Navê min Miho ye. Ez mamosta me. Ez mamostayê we me.
Ez Dara me. Ev jî hevalê min Rêbaz e. Em xwendekarên
te ne.
Ev du keç kî ne?
Ew -- xûşkên min in. Navên wan Zîn û Xecê ne.
Herdu xûşkên te jî xwendekar in?
Nexêr, Zîn xwendekar e, lê Xecê xwendekar nîne3.
Xecê xwendekar nîne?!
Nexêr, ew hêj piçûk e! Mamosta, çend xwendekarên te
hene?
Gelek xwendekarên min hene!
Gelek hevalên me jî hene!
Northern version:
II. Leyla:
Ferhad, çend birayên te hene?
Ferhad: Sê birayên min hene.
L:
Navên wan çi ne?
F:
Navên wan Bêkes, Rêdûr û Bûrhan in.
L:
Çend xûşkên te hene?
F:
Çar xûşkên min hene.
L:
Navên wan çi ne?
F:
Navên wan jî ev in: ‘Eyşan, Şîrîn, Dilxwaz û Dilvîn.
Em çar kurr in û çar keç in: Em çar bira ne û çar xûşk
in.
L:
Xûşk û birayên te hemî xwendekar in?
F:
Hemî xûşkên min xwendekar in, û birayên min Rêdûr û
Bûrhan jî xwendekar in. Lê Bêkes hêj piçûk e!
L:
Hemî xûşkên te mezin in?
F:
Nexêr, ‘Eyşan û Şîrîn mezin in, lê Dilxwaz û Dilvîn
2Çawa
3or:
yî? is also possible.
lê Xecê ne xwendekar e.
• 11 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
L:
F:
III. Abûzer:
Meryem:
A:
M:
A:
M:
A:
M:
A:
M:
A:
M:
A:
piçûk in.
Du xûşkên te mezin in, û didu jî piçûk in!
Erê! Du birayên min jî mezin in, û didu jî piçûk in!
Ev çi ye?
Ev -- kitêba min e.
Ew çi ne?
Ew -- kitêbên birayê min in.
Çend kitêbên wî hene?
Pênc kitêbên wî hene -- û hemî piçûk in.
Çend çavên te hene?
Du çavên min hene.
Çend guhên bavê te hene?
Du guhên wî hene.
Herdu destên dîya min piçûk in. Herdu pîyên bavê min
mezin in.
Tilîyên destê min çend in?
Tilîyên destê te pênc in.
Southern version:
II. Leyla:
Ferhad, te çend bira hene?
Ferhad: Min sê bira hene.
L:
Navêt wan çi ne?
F:
Navêt wan Bêkes, Rêdûr û Bûrhan in.
L:
Te çend xûşk hene?
F:
Min çar xûşk hene.
L:
Navêt wan çi ne?
F:
Navêt wan jî eve4 ne: ‘Eyşan, Şîrîn, Dilxwaz û Dilvîn.
Em çar kurr în û çar kiç în: Em çar bira yne û çar
xûşk în.
L:
Xûşk û birayêt te hemî xwendekar in?
F:
Hemî xûşkêt min xwendekar in, û birayêt min Rêdûr û
Bûrhan jî xwendekar in. Bes Bêkes hêj piçûk e!
L:
Hemî xûşkêt te mezin in?
F:
Nexêr, ‘Eyşan û Şîrîn mezin in, bes Dilxwaz û Dilvîn
piçûk in.
L:
Du xûşkêt te mezin in, û du jî piçûk in!
F:
Erê! Du birayêt min jî mezin in, û du jî piçûk in!
III. Abûzer:
Meryem:
A:
M:
Eve çi ye?
Eve -- kitêba min e.
Ew çi ne?
Ew -- kitêbêt birayê min in.
4In
southern dialects, eve is used as a pronoun (without a noun), and ev…-e with a
noun: Eve çi ye? = What is this; Ev kitêbe
e kitêba min e = This book is my book.
• 12 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
A:
M:
A:
M:
A:
M:
A:
M:
A:
Wî çend kitêb hene?
Wî pênc kitêb hene -- û hemî piçûk in.
Te çend çav hene?
Min du çav hene.
Babê te çend guh hene?
Wî du guh hene.
Herdu destêt dayka min piçûk in. Herdu pîyêt babê min
mezin in.
Tilîyêt destê min çend in?
Tilîyêt destê te pênc in.
Please note that dialogues II and III are provided in separate
Northern and Southern dialect versions. We recommend that all
students familiarize themselves with both varieties, and for the
purposes of actively speaking Kurdiş choose the one that is best
suited to their needs.
VOCABULARY: [*Southern dialect forms will be designated as S: ]
baş
good
in
(we, you,
they) are
bav, m. [S: bab]
father
în
(we) are
bes [S]
but
keç’, f. [S: kiç] girl, daughter
bira, m.
brother
kurr, m.
boy, son
cahil [also: cihêl]
young; ignorant law, m.
boy, son
ç’av, m.
eye
lê
but
çawa[n]?
how?
ling, m.
leg
çend?
how many?
mamik, f.
riddle
dest, m.
hand
me
our
dê, f. (dîya-) [also: dayk]mother
mezin
big, large
dûstan, f.
tripod (one of three stones on which a pot is placed over
the fire);
em
we
ev [pl.]
ew [pl.]
gelek
guh, m.
hemî
these
ne [2]
they; those
pembû, m.
much, many; very p’ê, m. (p’îyê-)
ear
piçûk [also: biçûk]
all
pîr
hene
herdu
hersê
heye
hêj [also: hê]
hûn [also: hûng]
there are
both
all three
there is
still, yet
you [pl.]
5Colloquially,
ne [1]
(we, you, they)
are
not
cotton
foot
little, small
old (of
people)
qîz, f.
girl, daughter
wan
their
we [also: hewe, hingo] your [pl.]
xûşk5, f.
sister
-yne
(we) are
zikrreş black-bellied; hostile, jealous
such forms as xweh, xuh, xayîng, xweyîng, xang may also be
encountered.
• 13 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
NUMBERS:
yek [S: êk]
didu - du
sisê - sê
one, 1
two, 2
three, 3
çar
pênc
four, 4
five, 5
In southern dialects, du (2) and sê (3) are used throughout. In
northern dialects, du (2) and sê (3) are used before a noun, but when
counting, or without a noun, didu and sisê are used. E.g.:
Sê k’itêb = three books; but
Çend k’itêb? Sisê = How many books? Three.
GRAMMAR:
a. Em … in = We are …
Em xwendekar in.
Em heval in.
Em dersdar in.
If the name ends in a vowel, instead of in we say ne:
Em mamosta ne.
Em bira ne.
Em kî ne? = Who are we? [literally: We who are?]
Remember: Em dersdar in ; Em mamosta ne
 In southern dialects (Behdinan in Iraqi Kurdistan, and Hekkari
across the border in Turkey), there is a special form for the first
person plural (=WE form) of the verb:
Em … în before a consonant, e.g.:
Em xwendekar în ; Em heval în ;
Em dersdar în
and Em … yne before a vowel, e.g.:
Em mamosta yne ; Em bira yne; Em kî yne?
Remember: Southern dialects: Em dersdar în ; Em mamosta yne
b. Hûn … in6 = You (plural [pl.]) are …
Hûn xwendekar in?
Hûn heval in?
If the name ends in a vowel, instead of in we say ne:
Hûn kî ne? = Who are you?
Hûn mamosta ne?
Hûn bira ne?
c. Ew … in = They/Those are …
6Hûn
has a variant hon. In Behdinan, one often encounters the form hûng.
• 14 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Ew
Ew
Ew
dest in = They/Those are hands
çav in = They/Those are eyes
xwendekar in = They/Those are students
If the name ends in a vowel, instead of in we say ne:
Ew kî ne? = Who are they/those?
Ew bira ne
Ew mamosta ne
d. To sum up: in northern dialects, plural verbs have the same ending
in all three persons (we, you, they): in after a consonant, and ne
after a vowel. However, in southern dialects, the first person plural
(=WE) has a special form: în after a consonant, and yne after a
vowel.7
Em kî ne? Em heval in. [Southern: Em kî yne?
Ew çi ne? Ew xwendekar in.
e. Plural possessives:
Em : Me
•Our
Hûn : We8 •Your [pl.]
Ew : Wan
sister?]
•Their
Em heval în.]
Bavê me Dara ye. [=Our father is Dara]
Mamostayê we kî ye?[=Who is your
teacher?]
Xûşka wan kî ye? [=Who is their
f. Plural ezafeh:
Whereas in the singular, the gender of a noun can be told by the
ezafeh ending (-ê is masculine; -a is feminine), there is no such
distinction in the plural. The plural ezafeh is -ên in all northern
dialects and in Hekkari, and -êt (or -êd) in Behdinan:
Hûn kî ne? Hûn xwendekarê
ên min in. [S: Hûn xwendekarê
êt min in.]
Ev çi ne? Ev dest in -- Ev destê
ên min in [S: Eve destê
êt min in.]
Ev
Ev
Ev
Ev
çav in -- Ev çavê
ên te ne
[S:
guh in -- Ev guhê
ên wî ne
[S:
pê ne -- Ev pêyê
ên (pîyê
ên) wê ne [S:
ling in -- Ev lingê
ên me ne
[S:
Eve
Eve
Eve
Eve
çavê
êt te ne.]
guhê
êt wî ne.]
pîyê
êt wê ne.]
lingê
êt me ne.]
g. Negatives:
There are two ways to make the verb to be (he is, they are) negative:
either the negative particle ne is placed before the predicate, or
7This
distinction is standard in Sorani (Central) Kurdish dialects.
some southern dialects, the form is hewe; in Behdinani dialects which have hûng
instead of hûn, the corresponding oblique form is hingo: Mamostayê hewe/hingo kî
ye? Remember: Southern dialects: hûn : [he]we & hûng : hingo
8In
• 15 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
the verb form (e.g., e) is replaced with nîne9. Both are correct, but
some regions seem to prefer one over the other. E.g.:
Ew hevalê min e = He is my friend ;
Ew ne hevalê min e = Ew hevalê min nîne = He is not my friend.
Plural:
Ew hevalên me ne = They are our friends ;
Ew ne hevalên me ne = Ew hevalên me nînin = They are not our friends.
Remember: nîne / ne … e [= is not]
Ev destê min e?
Ne, ev ne destê te ye, ev guhê te ye!
Ne, ev destê te nîne, ev çavê te ye!
h. There is/are
The way to say there is in Kurdish is heye; the plural there are is
hene. The negative of this (particularly in northern dialects) is
tune (=there isn't), with plural tunin (=there aren't). E.g.:
Çi heye, çi tune? [=What's new, lit. 'What is there, what isn't
there']

In southern dialects, the forms nîne and nînin are more common.
There is no separate verb to have in Kurdish. The idea of having is
expressed with heye (infinitive: hebûn). In Kurdiş, instead of saying
"I have two hands" one says "To me there are two hands" [southern] or
"There are my two hands" [northern]. Although the southern and
northern variants are similar, they are different enough that we will
explain each one separately, beginning with the northern
construction.
•In the north, the ezafeh-plus-pronoun construction is used, e.g.:
du çavê
ên min
= my two eyes [+ hene = there are]
Du çavên min hene
= I have two eyes.
yek serê
ê min
= my one head [+ heye = there is]
Yek serê
ê min heye
= I have one head.
Çend destê
ên te hene? Du destê
ên min hene.
Çend xûşkê
ên te hene?
Çend birayê
ên te hene?
 In the south, a construction consisting of possessive pronoun10 plus
the simple form of the noun is used, e.g.:
9Some
10or,
prefer to put a space between nîn and the verb to be: nîn e and nîn in.
oblique pronoun
• 16 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
min = my (or, to me) + du çav = two eyes
Min du çav hene = I have two eyes
Te çend dest hene? Min du dest hene11.
Te çend xûşk hene?
Te çend bira hene?
[+
hene = there are]
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) These are my hands. 2) Those are not your [sing.]
ears, they are my ears. 3) What are these? These are his şirts. 4)
Who are they? They are our friends. 5) They are not your students. 6)
We are his teachers. 7) How many eyes do I have? You have two eyes.
8) Their village is large. It has many houses [Say this in two
ways!]. 9) Are your sisters little? Are their ears big? No, they are
not big, they are small. 10) How many names do you have? How many
names does your father have? He has many names.
II. Make up ten sentences on the following pattern: Is this your ear?
No, it is not my ear, it is my eye.
III. Turn your sentences from exercise II. into the plural (or into
the singular), e.g.: Is this your ear? --> Are these your ears?
IV. Fill in blanks with correct forms: <in/ne ; în/-yne>
1) Herdu xûşkên min mezin __. 2) Ev sê kurr birayên wê __. 3) Destên
te piçûk __. 4) Herdu birayên te hevalên min __. 5) Birayên we
xwendekarên me __. 6) Navên wan çi __? 7) Ev kirasên min __ yan
kirasên te __? 8) Ev ling û pê __; Ev pê û ling __. 9) Sê bira __:
hersê bira jî zikrreş __; 10) Guhên herdu mamostayên me piçûk __.
V. Make the sentences in exercise IV. negative, giving two ways of
saying each one. [Skip sentences 6 and 7]
VI. Şow the gender of the following nouns, by using them in an ezafeh
phrase. E.g.: guh (= ear) is masculine, as in guhê
ê min; ders
(=lesson) is feminine, as in dersa
a wî.
1) kurr; 2) xûşk; 3) bira; 4) çav; 5) dest; 6) ling; 7) mal; 8) tilî;
9) kiras; 10) dê; 11) bav [bab]; 12) kitêb; 13) heval; 14) mamosta;
15) xwendekar; 16) mamik; 17) zik; 18) pembû; 19) dûstan; 20) gund.
11or,
Min du dest yêt heyn. This construction is too complex for beginners. For
fuller treatment of it, see: "Demonstrative Izafe" in: D.N. MacKenzie. Kurdish
Dialect Studies - I (Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1961 [reprinted 1981 by
London School of Oriental and African Studies]), ¶266, p. 162-163 .
• 17 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
KURDISH PERSONAL NAMES
Male:
Abûzer
Bêkes
Bûrhan
Miho
Rêbaz
Rêdûr
Female:
Bêrîvan
Dilvîn
Dilxwaz
Meryem
Nalîn
Nesrîn
• 18 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Sisîya [3]
{Pikkert 2.8, 2.9}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan: Dizî dizî ye, çi hêkek, çi gamêşek.
DIALOGUE:
I.
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Dara:
Bêrîvan:
Gelawêj:
Miho:
Dara:
Miho:
Gelawêj:
Miho:
Gelawêj:
Bêrîvan:
Miho:
Bêrîvan:
Miho:
II.
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Roj baş! Ez mamostayê we me. Navê min Miho ye.
Navên we çi ne?
Navê min Rêbaz e.
Ez jî Dara me. Rêbaz hevalê min e.
Navê min Bêrîvan e.
Û ez Gelawêj im. Bêrîvan hevala min e.
Dara, çend xûşk û birayên te hene?
Birayekî min heye. Navê wî Bahrî ye. Du xûşkên
min jî hene. Navên wan Xecê û Zîn in.
Û tu, Gelawêj?
Xûşkeke min heye. Navê wê Mehabad e.
Birayên te tunin?
Belê, birayekî min heye: navê wî Sebrî ye.
Mamosta, xûşkeke te jî heye, ku navê wê Gulistan
e, ne wisa?
Belê! Gulistan xûşka min e. Hevaleke wê jî
heye, ku navê wê Bêrîvan e.
Ez im, mamosta! Xûşka te Gulistan hevala min e!
Bi rastî?! Dinya çend piçûk e!
Bêrîvan! Pisîka te heye?
Erê! Pisîkeke min heye, û kûçikekî min jî!
Bi rastî? Pisîka te çawa ye? Mezin e yan piçûk e?
Pisîka min mezin û qelew e. Ew bi xwe spî ye û
gelekî pîr e jî. Çavekî wê heşîn e, û yek kesk
e. Ew tim birçî ye!
Navê wê çi ye?
Navê wê Dîcle ye. Navê kûçikê min jî Devrreş e.
Devê wî bi rastî rreş e?
Erê! Ew hemî rreş e! Lê çavên wî zer in.
Baş e, Devrreş -- kûçikekî qelew e?
Nexêr! Pisîka min Dîcle qelew û pîr e, lê kûçikê
min Devrreş ze‘îf û piçûk e.
• 19 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Southern version:
I.
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Dara:
Bêrîvan:
Gelawêj:
Miho:
Dara:
Miho:
Gelawêj:
Miho:
Gelawêj:
Bêrîvan:
Miho:
Bêrîvan:
Miho:
II.
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Roj baş, xwendekarêt min! Ez mamostayê we me.
Navê min Miho ye. Navêt we çi ne?
Navê min Rêbaz e.
Ez jî Dara me. Rêbaz hevalê min e.
Navê min Bêrîvan e.
Û ez Gelawêj im. Bêrîvan hevala min e.
Dara, te çend xûşk û bira hene?
Min birayek heye12. Navê wî Bahrî ye. Min du
xûşk jî hene13. Navêt wan Xecê û Zîn in.
Û tu, Gelawêj?
Min xûşkek heye. Navê wê Mehabad e.
Te bira nînin?
Belê, min birayek heye: navê wî Sebrî ye.
Mamosta, te xûşkek jî heye, ku navê wê Gulistan
e, ne wisa?
Belê! Gulistan xûşka min e. Wê hevalek jî heye,
ku navê wê Bêrîvan e.
Ez im, mamosta! Xûşka te Gulistan hevala min e!
Bi rastî?! Dinya çend piçûk e!
Bêrîvan! Te kitik heye14?
Erê! Min kitikek heye, û seyek jî!
Bi rastî? Kitka te ya çawan e? Ya mezin e? Ya
piçûk e15?
Kitka min ya mezin û qelew e. Ew bi xwe ya spî ye
û gelek ya pîr e jî. Çavekê wê yê şîn e, û
yek yê kesk e. Ew her û her ya birsî ye!
Navê wê çi ye?
Navê wê Dîcle ye. Navê seyê min jî Devrreş e.
Devê wî bi rastî yê rreş e?
Erê! Ew hemî yê rreş e! Lê çavêt wî t zer in.
Baş e, Devrreş -- seyekê qelew e?
Nexêr! Kitka min Dîcle ya qelew û pîr e, lê seyê
min Devrreş yê zirav û cihêl e.
12or,
Min birayek yê hey. This construction is too complex for beginners.
Min du xû¤k jî yêt heyn.
14or, Te kitikek ya hey.
15In Behdinani, all predicate adjectives are preceded by what D.N. MacKenzie calls
demonstrative ezafeh. In other words, all adjectives are marked for gender and
number by an ezafeh marker preceding the adjective: yê for masculine singular; ya
for feminine singular; t (for yêt) for plural of both genders. The prevalence of
this gender marking is one of the distinctive characteristics of Behdinani speech.
Whereas in the north, 'Are you well?' is simply Tu ba¤ î?, in Behdinan it is Tu yê
ba¤ î? to a male, and Tu ya ba¤ î? to a female.
13or,
• 20 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
VOCABULARY:
baş
belê
bi rastî
birçî [S: birsî]
bi xwe
bor
dev, m.
dinya, f.
dirêj
diz, m.&f.
dizî, f.
gamêş, m.&f.
gelekî
her û her [S]
heşîn [S: şîn]
hêk, f.
hişk*
ji
k’esk
kevn
k’itik, f. [S]
ku
NUMBERS:
şeş
heft
heşt
good
yes
really
hungry
oneself
grey
mouth
world
long, tall
thief
theft
buffalo
very
always
blue
egg
dry
from, of
green
old (of things)
cat
that, which
(relative pronoun)
kurt
şort
kûç’ik, m.
dog
ne wisa?
isn't that so?
nû
new
p’isîk, f.
cat
qelew
fat
rreş
black
rroj, f.
day
Roj baş!
Hello
se, m. [S]
dog
sor
red
spî
white
şil*
wet
terr*
wet
t’êr
full, sated
t’im
always
t’î [S: t’êhnî]
thirsty
xirab
bad
yan [also: an]
or
ze‘îf
thin, lean
zer
yellow
ziwa*
dry
six, 6
seven, 7
eight, 8
neh
deh
nine, 9
ten, 10
GRAMMAR:
a. In Kurmanji, all nouns are definite unless they are specifically
made indefinite. A noun is made indefinite by adding -ek to it. For
example, dest = 'the hand' or 'hand', while deste
ek = 'a hand' or 'one
hand'. Nouns that end in a vowel add -yek, e.g. tilîy
yek = 'a finger'
or 'one hand'. Note that the indefinite suffix never receives the
stress (e.g., dé
éstek, never *desté
ék). Here are some examples of nouns
with the indefinite article:
Note: Ziwa is dry of animate things and parts of living beings, e.g., earth,
hair, lips, whereas ©i¤k is dry of inanimate things, e.g., trees and
*
plants. Likewise, ¤il is wet of living things, and te¢ is wet of inanimate things.
Remember: ziwa / ¤il for living things; ©i¤k / te¢ for inanimate things.
• 21 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
-ek [indefinite article = a/an (or one)]
(nêr = masc. [m.])
(mê = fem. [f.])
dest-ek [=a/one hand]
mal-ek [=a/one house]
nav-ek [=a/one name]
enî-yek [=a/one forehead]
kiras-ek [=a/one şirt]
tilî-yek [=a/one finger]
ser-ek [=a/one head]
pêçî-yek [=a/one finger]
çav-ek [=an/one eye]
kitêb-ek [=a/one book]
guh-ek [=an/one ear]
pirtûk-ek [=a/one book]
heval-ek [=a/one friend]
xwendekar-ek [=a/one student]
dersdar-ek [=a/one teacher]
mamosta-yek [=a/one teacher]
b. Whereas the simple form of the indefinite article does not change
for gender, when an indefinite noun is followed by a modifier such as
a possessive pronoun (min, te, wî, wê, etc.) or an adjective, the
indefinite article (-ek) must have an ezafeh ending.16
-ek + ezafeh
(-ek-î = masc. [m.])
dest-ek-î min
(-ek-e = fem. [f.])
mal-ek-e min
[a hand of mine/one of my hands]
[a house of mine/one of my…]
nav-ek-î te
kiras-ek-î wî
çav-ek-î wê
heval-ek-î me
dersdar-ek-î wan
tilî-yek-e te
pêçî-yek-e wê
kitêb-ek-e me
heval-ek-e we
mamoste-yek-e wan
 In Behdinan, the indefinite article -ek
endings as the definite form of the noun:
and -a for fem. (hence -eka). E.g.:
dest-ek-ê min
nav-ek-ê te
çav-ek-ê wê
takes the same ezafeh
-ê for masc. (hence -ekê),
mal-ek-a min
tilî-yek-a te
kitêb-ek-a me
c. The indefinite article -ek can mean one as well as a/an. Consider
the following sentences:
16Although
one will also come across the indefinite article + modifier without
ezafeh, this is most probably due to foreign (Turkish and Persian) influence.
Because grammatical gender does not exist in Turkish or Persian (or Armenian, for
that matter), whereas Kurmanji does have gender, there seems to be a tendency -which needs to be resisted -- to simplify constructions that require a knowledge of
gender. For the purposes of this course, omitting the ezafeh ending on an
indefinite noun + modifier will be considered a grammatical error.
• 22 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Çend xûşkên te hene?
How many sisters do you have?
Xûşkeke te heye?
Do you have a sister?
Çend birayên wan hene?
How many brothers do they have?
Birayekî wê tune?
Doesn't şe have a brother?
Xûşkeke min heye.
I have one sister.
Birayekî wan heye.
They have one brother.
 The same sentences in the southern dialects will look like this:
Te çend xûşk hene?
How many sisters do you have?
Te xûşkek heye?
Do you have a sister?
Wan çend bira hene?
How many brothers do they have?
Wê birayek nîne?
Doesn't şe have a brother?
Min xûşkek heye17.
I have one sister.
Wan birayek heye.
They have one brother.
Consequently, there are two ways to express 'one' + noun. For
example, 'one sister' can be: yek xûşk or xûşkek. The difference
between them is a matter of emphasis. Yek xûşk means 'one sister', as
opposed to 'two sisters', whereas xûşkek means 'one sister', as
opposed to 'one brother'. So, unless you want to stress the word
'one', use the indefinite form of the noun when speaking of one thing
or one person.
d. Note again that some nouns may be masculine or feminine, depending
on whether the person in question is male or female. The gender is
reflected in the indefinite form of the noun as well.
Hevalekî
î min heye, ku navê wî Bahrî ye.
Hevaleke
e min heye, ku navê wê Gulistan e.
e. Another way of rendering 'one of her fingers', 'one of our şirts',
etc., is to say 'a finger of her fingers', 'a şirt of our şirts',
etc. E.g.:
Tilîyek ji tilîyên
Kirasek ji kirasên
Malek ji malên wan
Kûçikek ji kûçikên
Pisîkek ji pisîkên
wê
me
we
wî
f. When a noun is modified by an adjective, the adjective will follow
17or,
Min xû¤kek ya hey. This construction is too complex for beginners.
• 23 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
the noun, and be connected to it by ezafeh. This holds true for both
definite and indefinite nouns18. E.g.:
mala piçûk
kitêbeke sor [S: kitêbeka sor]
kurrê birçî
gundekî mezin [S: gundekê mezin]
çavên rreş
[S: çavêt rreş]
the small house
a red book
the hungry boy
a large village
black eyes
Here are some simple rrengdêr = adjectives that you will need. As
much as possible, they have been arranged in groups of opposites:
mezin [big]
nû [new]
baş/xweş/qenc [good]
dirêj [long, tall]
qelew[fat]
şil/terr[wet]
birçî [S: birsî] [hungry]
birçîtî [S: têhnî] [thirsty]
piçûk [small]
kevn [old]
xirab [bad]
kurt [şort]
zirav [thin]
hişk/ziwa [dry]
têr [full, sated]
têr [full, sated]
Colors:
spî [white]
kesk [green]
sor [red] heşîn [S: şîn] [blue]
zer [yellow]
rreş [black]
bor [grey]
g. In a phrase such as 'one of my dogs is big and one [of my dogs]
is small', it is not necessary to repeat the entire noun phrase [one
of my dogs - kûçikekî min/seyekê min]. Instead, in the second part,
yek can be used. Hence, one can say:
Kûçikekî min mezin e, û yek piçûk e.
Kirasekî min kevn e, û yek nû ye.One of my SHirts is old, and one is new.
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) This is a white şirt. 2) He has a green eye and a
blue one [=One of his eyes is green and one blue]. 3) I have two
houses: one of my houses is grey and one is green. 4) Şe has two
legs: one of her legs is long, and one of them is şort. 5) We have
three brothers: one of our brothers is old and two of them are young.
6) They have four books: one of their books is new and big, and three
of them are old and small. 7) You (s.) have two friends: one of your
friends is tall and thin, and one is şort and fat. 8) You (pl.) have
two teachers: one of your teachers is very good, and one is very bad.
9) He has many şirts: one of his şirts is wet, and two of them are
dry. 10) My father has two sons: one of them is always hungry, and
18See
note 16 above.
• 24 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
one is a good student.
II. a) Fill in the blank with the correct ezafeh form (m. or f.); b)
then change each noun to the indefinite form; c) then translate both.
E.g.: ders_ min: a) dersa min; b) derseke min; c) my lesson; a lesson
of mine.
1) kitêb_ min. 2) kiras_ wî. 3) dest_ bavê me. 4) tilî_ hevala we. 5)
kurr_ wê. 6) heval_ te. 7) diz_ gundê we. 8) hêk_ me. 9) mamosta_
wan. 10) pisîk_ xûşka min.
III. Make sentences combining the indefinite forms from exercise II.
with adjectives, and translate. E.g. derseke min: Derseke min dirêj e
= One of my lessons is long.
IV. Make up ten sentences using the numbers 1-10.
KURDISH PERSONAL NAMES
Male:
Bahrî
Ramazan
Sebrî
Female:
Gelawêj
Gulistan
Mehabad
• 25 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Çara [4]
{Pikkert 3.3}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan:
1. Şûr kalanê xwe nabirre.
2. Filan gund deh mal in, dwazdeh rrîspî ne.
3. Ew dibêje, lê napêje.
DIALOGUE:
I.
Miho:
Roj baş, xwendekarên min! Hûn çawan in, baş in?
Rêbaz/Dara/Gelawêj/Bêrîvan:
Sax bî, bijî, mamosta Miho! Em
baş in.
Miho:
Hûn çi dikin?
Gelawêj: Em dixwînin. Em dersa xwe dixwînin.
Miho:
Gelekî baş e! Hûn dersa xwe fêm dikin?
Rêbaz:
Erê, mamosta Miho! Em dersa xwe baş fêm dikin!
Miho:
Ez kurrekî nû dibînim. Ew kî ye? Navê wî çi ye?
Dara:
Navê wî Bêkes e, mamosta. Ew birayê min e.
Miho:
Ew çi dike? Bêkes, tu çi dikî?
Dara:
Ew nan dixwe, mamosta!
Bêkes:
Ez nan dixwim, mamosta!
Miho:
Bêkes, tu çima nan dixwî?
Bêkes:
Ez nan dixwim, ji ber ku ez birçî me!
Miho:
Ez fêm dikim ku tu birçî yî, lê em niha nan naxwin.
Hêj zû ye! Niha em dersa xwe dixwînin.
Bêkes:
Baş e, mamosta. Ez êdî nan naxwim.
Miho:
Sipas, Bêkes! Tu kurrekî baş î! … Niha ew çi dike?
Dara:
Ew digrî, mamosta!
II.
Gelawêj:
Miho:
Dara:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Bêrîvan:
Miho:
Dara:
Mamosta, bavê te hêj sax e?
Erê, bavê min sax e! Ew rrîspîyê gundê me ye.
Bavê te çi dike?
Bavê min gelekî hiz ji mamik û gotinên pêşîyan
dike. Ew gelek mamikên kevn dibêje. Hûn jî
hiz ji wan dikin?
Mamosta, em mamikên kevn nizanin. Tu çend
mamikên bavê xwe nabêjî?
Hûn mamikeke bavê min dixwazin! Baş e. Yek ji
wan wisa ye: "Dixwe, dixwe, têr naxwe." Çi
ye?
Ez dizanim, mamosta! Ga ye, ne wisa?
Nexêr! Ga nîne! Kî dizane çi ye?
Em nizanin, mamosta. Çi ye?
• 26 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Miho:
Aş e! Aş! Hûn fêm dikin? Aş dixwe û dixwe, lê têr
naxwe.
VOCABULARY:
aş, m.
ji ber ku
Bijî!
kalan, m.
çend
k’ê? [obl. of k’î?]
çima?
li k’u?
dibêjim
ná[+ pres. ind.]
dibirrim
nan, m.
dibînim
nan dixwim
didim [S: didem]
digrim
niha
digrîm
nizanim
dikim [S: dikem]
p’irtûk, f.[=kitêb]
dipêjim
dişom
rrîspî, m.
dixwazim
sax
dixwim [S: dixom]
Sax bî!
dixwînim
sipas!
dizanim
şûr, m.
êdî
t’êr dixwim
fêm dikim
wisa
filan
zarok, m.&f.
goşt, m.
zû
hiz dikim ji…
mill
because
Live long! (greeting)
şeath (of a sword)
some
whom?
why?
where?
I say
not
I cut
bread
I see; I find
I have a [meal, I eat
I give
I take, catch; I close
now
I cry
I don't
know
I do
book
I bake, cook
I wash
village elder
I want; I ask for
alive, healthy
I eat
Be well!(greeting)
I read, I study
Thank you!
I know
sword
no longer, no more
I eat my fill
I understand
so, such
so and so, such and such
child
meat
early; fast
I like, I love
• 27 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
NUMBERS:
yanzdeh19
eleven, 11
dwazdeh [also: donzdeh]twelve, 12
sêzdeh
thirteen, 13
çardeh
panzdeh
fourteen, 14
fifteen, 15
GRAMMAR:
a. We are ready to start learning how to conjugate simple verbs (fêl,
f. or lêker, f. ). In the present tense20, practically all verb
forms consist of three parts: a prefix (di-); a verb stem (e.g., bîn- = 'see'); and a personal ending (-im, -î, -e, -in). The stress
falls on the verb stem, occasionally on the personal ending, but
never on the di- prefix (e.g., dibî
î´nim, or dibîní
ím, but never
*dí
íbînim). Consider the following example for the verb 'to see':
'to see'
Ez
Tu
Ew
di-bîn-i
im 'I see'
di-bîn-î
î 'you (s.) see'
di-bîn-e
e22 'he/şe/it sees'
Em
Hûn
Ew
di-bîn-i
in21 'we see'
di-bîn-i
in 'you (pl.) see'
di-bîn-i
in 'they see'
This pattern can be applied to practically every verb in the
language. So, for example:
Ez
di-xwaz-i
im
'I want or
ask for'
Tu
di-xw-î
î23
'you (s.) eat'
Ew
di-gr-e
e24
'he/şe takes or closes'
Em
di-bêj-i
in25
'we say'
Hûn
di-d-i
in26
'you (pl.) give'
Ew
di-k-i
in27
'they do'
A few verbs have a long vowel throughout the personal endings, such
as Ez digrîm = I cry. The full conjugation of this verb in the
19In
western regions such as Dersim [Tunceli], Adiyaman, and Bingöl the forms deha
û yek, deha û didu, deha û sisê, etc. are more common.
20Present indicative active, to be more precise.
21[S: di-bîn-î
în]
22[S: di-bîn-î
ît/d
di-bîn-î
îtin/d
di-bîn-i
it/d
di-bîn-i
itin]
23[S: di-xo-y
y]
24[S: di-gr-î
ît/d
di-gr-î
îtin/d
di-gr-i
it/d
di-gr-i
itin ]
25[S: di-bêj-î
în]
26[S: di-de-n
n]
27[S: di-ke-n
n]
• 28 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
present tense is like this:
Ez
Tu
Ew
di-grî-m
m
di-grî
di-grî28
'I cry'
'you (s.) cry'
'he/şe/it cries'
Em
Hûn
Ew
di-grî-n
n 'we cry'
di-grî-n
n 'you (pl.) cry'
di-grî-n
n 'they cry'
Note that Tu digrî could theoretically mean either 'You take or
close' or 'You cry', and in southern dialects, Em digrîn could mean
either 'We take or close' or 'We cry'. Context will usually make the
meaning clear.
Here is another common verb with a stem in a different vowel: di-şo= 'to wash':
Ez
Tu
Ew
di-şo-m
m
di-şo-y
yî
di-şo30
'I waş'
'you (s.) waş'
'he/şe/it waşes'
Em
Hûn
di-şo-n
n29 'we waş'
di-şo-n
n 'you (pl.) waş'
Ew
di-şo-n
n 'they waş'
b. Remember the set of pronouns that we use to express possession
(min for 'my', te for 'your' (s.), wî for 'his' or 'its', wê for
'her' or 'its', me for 'our', we for 'your' (pl.), and wan for
'their')? Those are called oblique pronouns (or object pronouns), and
they are also used to express the direct object of transitive verbs
in the present tense.
In this case, min = me (as in 'He sees me'); te = you (s.) (as in 'Şe
knows you'); wî = him or it (as in 'You like him', 'You like it'); wê
= her (as in 'I ask her'); me = us (as in 'They hear us'); we = you
(pl.) (as in 'We see you'); wan = them (as in 'You hear them'). When
serving as direct object, these objects come before the verb.
Consider the following examples.
Ez
Tu
Ew
wî
min
wê
di-bîn-im 'I see him'
Em wan di-bîn-in
di-bîn-î 'you see me'
Hûn me di-bîn-in
di-bîn-e 's/he sees her'Ew te di-bîn-in
'we see them'
'you see us'
'they see you'
Note that all masculine nouns will be referred to with wî, and all
feminine nouns will be referred to with wê. Hence, depending on the
context, Ew wê dibîne could mean either 's/he sees her' or 's/he sees
it' -- in referring to a feminine noun, such as kitêb or mal.
Likewise, Ez wî dibînim could mean either 'I see him' or 'I see it' - if it refers to a masculine noun, such as kiras or dest.
c. To form the negative of the present indicative, we must replace
the affirmative prefix di- with the negative prefix na-. Note that
28[S:
di-grî-t
t/d
di-grî-t
ti n]
di-¤o-y
yn]
30[S: di-¤o-t
t/d
di-¤o-t
tin]
29[S:
• 29 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
this prefix always receives the stress (e.g., ná
ábînim, ná
áxwaze). Here
is the full negative conjugation of the present indicative of dibînim
'I see':
Ez
Tu
Ew
na-bîn-i
im
'I don't see'
Em na-bîn-i
in31 'we don't see'
na-bîn-î
î
'you (s.) don't see' Hûn na-bîn-i
in 'you (pl.) see'
na-bîn-e
e32 'he/şe/it doesn't see' Ew na-bîn-i
in
'they don't see'
In the second person (i.e., tu and hûn), this form is often used in
making polite commands, or in inviting people to do something. E.g.:
Tu derîyê min nagrî?
Won't you close my door? or, Please close my door!
Tu navê xwe nabêjî?
Won't you say your name? or, Please tell [us] your name!
Tu nan naxwî?
Won't you have something to eat? or, Please have something to eat!
Note also that the verb dizanim = 'I know' is slightly irregular. It
is one of two verbs that forms the negative of the present indicative
with ni- rather than with na-. Here is the complete conjugation of
the negative present indicative:
Ez
ni-zanim
Em ni-zanin33
Tu
ni-zanî
Hûn ni-zanin
Ew
ni-zane34
Ew ni-zanin
'I don't know'
'we don't know'
'you (s.) don't know'
'you (pl.) know'
'he/şe/it doesn't know'
'they don't know'
d. A word about word order! Kurdiş is an SOV [Subject - Object Verb] language. In other words, the normal word order in a Kurdiş
sentence is:
Subject
1
(Direct) Object
2
Verb
3
e.g.,
Ez
I
te
you (thee)
dibînim
see =
31[S:
na-bîn-î
în]
na-bîn-î
ît/n
na-bîn-î
îtin/n
na-bîn-i
it/n
na-bîn-i
itin]
33[S: ni-zan-î
în]
34[S: ni-zan-î
ît/n
ni-zan-î
îtin/n
ni-zan-i
it/n
ni-zan-i
itin]
32[S:
• 30 •
I see you.
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Bûrhan
Burhan
destê xwe
his hand
Xwendekar
dersa dirêj
(The) students the long lesson
dişo
washes = Burhan waşes his
hand.
dixwînin
read/study = The students study
the long lesson.
•Question words (interrogatives) take the place in the sentence that
their grammatical function requires. E.g.,
Ew
They
çi
what
dixwazin?
want? = What do they want?
Bavê te
Your father
li ku
(at) where
ye?
is?
Tu
You
kê
whom
dibînî?
see? = Whom do you see?
= Where is your father?
•Most verbal complements are placed before the verb, similarly to the
direct object. E.g.,
Kûçik
Dogs
Bavê min
My father
ji goşt
from meat
li mal
at home
hiz dikin
derive pleasure = Dogs like meat.
e
is
= My father is at home.
e. Xwe. When the subject and the object refer to one and the same
person, a special pronoun will be used instead of min, te, wî, wê,
etc. That special pronoun is xwe. So, for example, if in Engliş we
say ‘I waş my hands’, where I and my both refer to the same person,
in Kurdiş we will say Ez destên xwe dişom instead of: *Ez destên
min dişom. Note that xwe is used for all persons and numbers. Here
are some more examples:
Tu xûşka xwe dibînî?
'Do you see your sister?'instead of:
*Tu xûşka te dibînî?
Em dersa xwe fêm nakin
'We don't understand our lesson.' instead of:
*Em dersa me fêm nakin.
Hûn kitêbên xwe dixwînin
'You read your books.' instead of:
*Hûn kitêbên we dixwînin
Therefore, we must distinguish between: Ew destên xwe dişo = 'He
washes his (i.e., his own) hands' and Ew destên wî dişo = 'He washes
• 31 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
his (i.e., someone else's) hands'.
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) What do you want? I want my book. 2) Why is he
waşing his hands? He is waşing them because they are red. 3) My
sister waşes her hands. My sister is waşing her (=Dilvîn's) hands. 4)
What are they doing? They are eating (=having a meal). 5) Whose book
is this? (=This is the book of whom?). Memo knows, but he won't
(=doesn't) say. 6) Who does not understand his/her lesson? All the
girls understand it, but the boys are not reading it. 7) Why are you
(pl.) closing your books? Ferhad says that you are all studying your
lesson. 8) The eleven students are reading fifteen big books. 9) The
thirteen young boys do not understand the riddle of the old village
elder. 10) Why is Bêkes crying? He is crying because he can't catch
(=doesn't catch) my cat.
II. In the following sentences, replace the underlined words (direct
objects) with the correct object pronoun, then translate both. E.g.,
Bêkes pisîka te nabîne --> Bêkes wê nabîne. Bêkes doesn't see your
cat-->Bêkes doesn't see it.
1) Gulistan destên xwe naşo. 2) Kî nanê min dixwe? 3) Şûr kalanê xwe
nabirre. 4) Em xwendekarên birçî dibînin. 5) Xwendekar dersa xwe
naxwînin? 6) Hûn mamika rrîspîyê me fêm dikin? 7) Mamosta deh
pirtûkên kevn digre. 8) Mamosta pirtûka kevn digre. 9) Em mamikên
rrîspîyê we nizanin. 10) Ew xwendekara xwe nabîne.
III. Fill in the blanks with xwe or with another object pronoun, as
appropriate.
1) Bêkes destên _____ naşo. Ez destên _____ (=destên Bêkes) dişom.
2) Bavê te sê kitêbên _____ nagre. Tu kitêbên _____ (=kitêbên bavê
te) digrî. 3) Dilxwaz xûşka _____ nabîne. Abûzer xûşka _____
(=xûşka Dilxwazê) dibîne. 4) Rîspî mamikên _____ dizane. Zarok
mamikên _____ (=mamikên rrîspî) nizanin. 5) Ev sêzdeh kurr dersên
_____ naxwînin, lê ew panzdeh keç dersên _____ dixwînin. 6) Ew kurr
hêkên _____ naxwe. Ez hêkên _____ (hêkên kurr) dixwim! 7) Dara
kirasê _____ naşo. Dîya wî kirasê _____ dişo. 8) Birayê min ji
mamostayê _____ hiz dike, lê xûşka min ji mamostayê _____
(mamostayê birayê min) hiz nake. 9) Xûşka min ji dersdara _____ hiz
dike, lê ew ji dersdarê birayê _____ hiz nake. 10) Em hiz ji gundê
_____ dikin, lê ew sê kurr hiz ji gundê _____ (=our village) nakin.
IV. a) Take three verbs from this lesson, and conjugate them fully
in the present tense, both affirmative and negative forms. b) Make
three sentences with each verb. Be sure to use both affirmative and
negative forms!
• 32 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Pênca [5]
{Pikkert 1.9, 1.13, 1.14, 1.15, 1.16}
FOLKLORE:
Mamik: Li kêvir dixim, naşkê; li avê dixim, dişkê [pelê cixarê]
DIALOGUE:
I.
Bêrîvan:
Dara:
Bêrîvan:
Dara:
Bêrîvan:
Dara:
Bêrîvan:
Dara:
Bêrîvan:
Dara:
Bêrîvan:
Dara:
Bêrîvan:
Dara:
Bêrîvan:
Dara:
II.
Dara, tu çend kitêban dixwînî?
Ez sê kitêban dixwînim.
Tu sê kitêban dixwînî!?
Erê! Hersê kitêb jî baş in! Bavê min jî gelek kitêban
dixwîne. Tu kitêban naxwînî?
Nexêr, ez kitêban naxwînim.
Çima tu naxwînî? Ez fêm nakim.
Ez naxwînim ji ber ku çavên min baş nabînin.
Tu wî çîyayî nabînî?
Belê, Dara, ez wî çîyayî dibînim!
Tu tilîyên destê min nabînî?
Belê, Dara, ez tilîyên destê te jî dibînim!
Tu çend tilîyan dibînî?
Ez pênc tilîyan dibînim.
Çavên te baş dibînin, ez dibêjim!
Ez wan tiştan baş dibînim, lê ez tiştên piçûk baş
nabînim.
Niha ez fêm dikim çima tu naxwînî!
Rêbaz:
Gulistan:
Rêbaz:
Gulistan:
Rêbaz:
Gulistan:
Rêbaz:
Gulistan:
Rêbaz:
Gulistan:
Gulistan, tu wê xwendekara nû nabînî?
Belê, ez wê dibînim. Çima tu dipirsî?
Ji ber ku ez nizanim navê wê çi ye.
Ez jî nizanim navê wê çi ye.
Tu ji mamosta Miho napirsî, navê wê çi ye?
Çima tu bi xwe jê napirsî?
Ji ber ku ez fedî dikim.
[dikene.]
Gulistan, çima tu dikenî?
Niha ez fêm dikim! Tu ji wê xwendekara nû hiz
dikî, ne wisa?
Rêbaz:
Nexêr!!! Ez hêj jê hiz nakim...
Gulistan: Tu HÊJ jê hiz nakî!? Ez bawer nakim!
Rêbaz:
Tu çi dibêjî?
*****
Gulistan: Roj baş mamosta!
Miho:
Roj baş Gulistan! Çawan î?
• 33 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Gulistan: Sax bî, bijî. Tu jî baş î?
Miho:
Sipas. Gulistan, tu wî derî nagrî?
Gulistan: Ser çava, mamosta. [Ew dêrî digre.] Mamosta
Miho, dibêjin ku xwendekareke nû heye. Tu
navê wê nizanî?
Miho:
Ez bawer dikim ku navê wê Ziyawer e. Tu wî kurrê
çavrreş jî dibînî?
Gulistan: Erê mamosta, ez wî dibînim. Ew kî ye?
Miho:
Ew jî xwendekarekî nû ye. Ez dibêjim, ku Ziyawer
xûşka wî ye.
Gulistan: Mamosta Miho, tu navê wî nizanî?
Miho:
Nexêr, ez navê wî hêj nizanim.
*****
Gulistan: Rêbaz! Mamosta Miho bawer dike ku navê wê
Ziyawer e.
Rêbaz:
Ziyawer. Navekî xweş e, ne wisa?!
Gulistan: Belê. Û tiştekî din jî heye!
Rêbaz:
Çi ye?
Gulistan: Birayekî wê jî heye.
Em nizanin navê wî çi ye, lê
ew çavrreş e.
Rêbaz:
[dikene.]
Gulistan: Tu çima dikenî?
Rêbaz:
Ji ber ku tu ji wî xwendekarê çavrreş hiz dikî!
Gulistan: Nexêr!! Ez navê wî jî nizanim!
Rêbaz:
Lê tu çawa dibêjî ku ez ji xûşka wî hiz dikim, û tu
baş dizanî ku ez navê wê jî nizanim!?
Gulistan: Xebera te ye!
VOCABULARY:
av, f.
water
li… dixim
I hit
bawer dikim
I believe
nan, nên, vî nanî, m. bread
cixare, f.
cigarette
niha [S: noke]
now
ç’avrreş
black-eyed
p’el, m./f.
leaf, sheet of paper
ç’îya, ç’îyê, vî ç’îyayî, m. mountain
ser çava
gladly
derî, dêrî, vî derî,m.door
sipas!
Thank you!
din [S: dî]
other, another
tişt, m.
thing
dik’enim
I laugh
tiştek [m.]
something
• 34 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
dipirsim [+ ji]
I ask (someone)
van, pl. obl.
these
dişkê
it breaks (vi.)
vê,f.obl.; vî,m.obl.this
wan, pl. obl.
those
fedî dikim
I am shy, ashamed
wê,f.obl.; wî,m.obl.that
jê [=ji wî/wê]
from him/her/it
xebera te ye!
You're right!
kevir, kêvir, vî kevirî, m. rock, stone35
xweş
pleasant, nice
NUMBERS:
şanzdeh
hivdeh
hijdeh
sixteen, 16
seventeen, 17
eighteen, 18
nozdeh
bîst
nineteen, 19
twenty, 20
GRAMMAR:
a. We have seen that pronouns have a special form when they are the
object of a present tense verb or of a preposition (e.g., min vs. ez,
or in Engliş me vs. I). This special form is called the oblique case.
In Kurdiş, this is also true of nouns. The gender (masculine or
feminine) and number (singular or plural) of a Kurdiş noun determine
the ending that a noun will have in the oblique case.
I. Let us start with feminine nouns. These are nouns that take an -a
in the singular ezafeh form, e.g. kitêba
a min, xûşka
a te, etc. The
corresponding oblique case form ends in -ê (-yê after a vowel).
Hence, for kitêb the oblique case is kitêbê
ê, and for tilî it is
tilîy
yê. This -ê şould not be confused with the masculine singular
ezafeh form! The oblique case has many uses, but for right now we
will focus on one of its most common uses: to express the direct
object of a transitive verb in the present tense.36 Note that in the
feminine singular ev and ew become vê and wê respectively in the
oblique case. Hence, the oblique case of ev kitêb [this book] is vê
kitêbê; likewise, ew tilî [that finger] becomes wê tilîyê in the
oblique case. Here are some examples of the oblique case in use.
Again, note the word order!:
Em
wê pisîkê
ê
digrin.
We
Ew
dersê
ê
dixwînin.
They study the lesson.
35In
catch
that cat.
Behdînan, kevir is used only for large rocks. For small stones, ber, m. is
used. In Turkey [except Hekkari and environs], kevir does duty for both.
36In the past tenses of transitive verbs, this is not true. More on this in a later
chapter!
• 35 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Tu devê vê pirtûkê
ê
digrî.
You close this book37.
Ez
dibînim.
I see the student (f.).
xwendekarê
ê
Note also that feminine indefinite nouns also take the ending -ê in
the oblique case (-ek-ê
ê): kitêb-ek-ê, tilî-yek-ê. Here are the same
sentences, but with indefinite direct objects:
Em
pisîkekê
ê
digrin.
We
Ew
dersekê
ê
dixwînin.
They study a lesson.
digrî.
You close a book.
dibînim.
I see a student (f.).
Tu devê
Ez
pirtûkekê
ê
xwendekarekê
ê
catch
a cat.
It is important to note that when a noun is used as an object at the
same time that it has an ezafeh (e.g., 'my book' = kitêba min in 'He
reads my book' = Ew kitêba min dixwîne), the ezafeh takes precedence
over the oblique case. Hence, while one says Ew kitêbê dixwîne for
'He reads the book', with kitêbê = 'the book' as the direct object in
the oblique case, if we change kitêb to kitêba min = 'my book', the
sentence will read Ew kitêba min dixwîne = 'He reads my book'. With
this in mind, let us take the same sample sentences again, this time
with direct objects that have ezafeh + modifier:
Em
pisîka te
digrin.
We
Ew
dersa dirêj
dixwînin.
They study the long lesson.
digrî.
You close the new book.
Tu devê pirtûka nû
Ez
xwendekareke nû dibînim.
catch
your cat.
I see a new student (f.).
One last point. Suppose we have the sentence Ew vê kitêbê dixwîne =
'He reads this book'. What will happen to the demonstrative vê if we
add a modifier to kitêb? In other words, how do we say 'He reads this
new book' or 'He reads this book of mine'? In the direct case (or
nominative case), 'this new book' would be ev kitêba nû, and 'this
book of mine' would be ev kitêba min. However, when functioning as an
object, 'this book' would change from ev kitêb to vê kitêbê. But what
happens when there is a modifier? Here is the answer: while ev will
change to vê, thereby şowing that kitêb is in the oblique case,
kitêba nû will remain kitêba nû. Consequently, when ev kitêba nû is
used as an object, it will become vê kitêba nû. Consider the
37Literally:
"You close the mouth of this book". Without the word dev [=mouth;
front part], the sentence might mean "You take this book".
• 36 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
following examples:
Em
but: Em
vê pisîkê
vê pisîka
a te
digrin.
digrin.
Ew
but: Ew
wê dersê
dixwînin. They study that lesson.
wê dersa
a dirêj dixwînin. They study that long lesson.
Tu devê vê pirtûkê digrî.
but: Tu devê vê pirtûka
a nû digrî.
Ez
but: Ez
We
We
catch
catch
this cat.
this cat of yours.
You close this book.
You close this new book.
wê xwendekarê dibînim.
I see that student (f.).
wê xwendekara
a nû dibînim.I see that new student (f.).
II. Plural nouns. Whereas in the direct or nominative case, all nouns
are identical in the singular and plural (e.g., kitêb can mean either
'[the] book' or '[the] books'), in the oblique case, all nouns end in
-an (sometimes şortened to -a, particularly in southern dialects).
Hence, the oblique plural of kitêb is kitêba
an (or kitêba
a in the
south), and for heval -- regardless of gender -- it is hevala
an (or
hevala
a). Here are some sample sentences with plural oblique forms:
Hûn keça
an dibînin.
You (pl.) see the girls.
Em hêka
an dixwin.
We eat [the] eggs.
Ez sê kitêba
an dixwînim.
I read [the] three books.
The oblique plural forms of ev and ew are van (these) and wan (those)
respectively. Let us add them to the above sentences:
Hûn van keça
an dibînin.
You (pl.) see these girls.
Em wan hêka
an dixwin.
We eat those eggs.
Ez van sê kitêba
an dixwînim.
I read these three books.
Once again, if an object has modifiers, the ezafeh will take
precedence over the oblique case. Observe the following:
Hûn keçê
ên birçî dibînin.38
You (pl.) see the hungry girls.
Em hêkê
ên te dixwin.
We eat your
Ez sê kitêbê
ên nû dixwînim.
I read the three new books.
38These
eggs.
three sentences in Behdinani would look like this:
Hûn [or hûng] kiçê
êt birsî dibînin; Em hêkê
êt te dixoyn; Ez sê kitêbê
êt nû dixwînim.
• 37 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
However, as mentioned above, if an object has both a demonstrative
(these, those) and another modifier, the demonstrative will şow the
oblique case, while the noun will take the ezafeh form followed by
the modifier. For example:
Hûn van keça
an dibînin.
You (pl.) see these girls.
but: Hûn van keçê
ên birçî dibînin. You (pl.) see these hungry girls.
Em wan hêka
an dixwin.
but: Em wan hêkê
ên te dixwin.
We eat those eggs.
We eat those eggs of yours.
Ez van sê kitêba
an dixwînim.
I read these three books.
but: Ez van sê kitêbê
ên nû dixwînim.I read these three new books.
III. We have left masculine singular nouns for last, because they
are a little bit more complicated. In all Kurmanji dialects, whether
northern or southern, in conjunction with the demonstratives,
masculine singular nouns take -î (-yî before final vowels) in the
oblique case. The demonstratives ev and ew have the masculine
singular oblique forms vî and wî respectively. Hence, 'this hand'
(ev dest39) and 'that brother' (ew bira) have the oblique forms vî
destî
î and wî biray
yî. Consider the following sample sentences:
Ew vî tiştî
î dixwaze.
Şe wants this thing.
Em wî kûçikî
î digrin.
We catch that dog.
Tu çima vî nanî
î dixwî?
Why do you eat this bread?
Ez wî çiyay
yî dibînim.
I see that mountain.
As with feminine nouns, note that masculine indefinite nouns also
take the same oblique case ending as their definite counterparts: -î
in (-ek-î
î): dest-ek-î, bira-yek-î. Let's look at our sample sentences
for more examples:
39ev
Ew tiştekî
î dixwaze.
Şe wants something.
Em kûçikekî
î digrin.
We catch a dog.
Tu çima nanekî
î dixwî?
Why are you eating a [loaf of]
bread?
Ez çiyayekî
î dibînim.
I see a mountain.
deste
e in some dialects -- including, among others, Behdinan.
• 38 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
By now it şould come as no surprise that when a masculine noun is an
object at the same time that it has an ezafeh (e.g., 'my brother' =
birayê min in 'Şe sees my brother' = Ew birayê min dibîne), the
ezafeh will take precedence over the oblique case. Our sample
sentences will demonstrate this:
Ew tiştê te dixwaze.
She wants your thing.
Em kûçikê birçî digrin.
We catch the hungry dog.
Tu çima nanê min dixwî?
Why do you eat my bread?
Ez çiyayê mezin dibînim.
I see the large mountain.
Once again, if the object has a demonstrative as well as another
modifier, the demonstrative (ev or ew) will go into the oblique case
(vî or wî), while the noun will take the ezafeh + modifier.
Examples are:
Ew vî tiştî
î dixwaze.
but: Ew vî tiştê
ê te dixwaze.
She wants this thing.
She wants this thing of yours.
Em wî kûçikî
î digrin.
but: Em wî kûçikê
ê birçî digrin.
We catch that dog.
We catch that hungry dog.
Tu çima vî nanî
î dixwî?
but: Tu çima vî nanê
ê min dixwî?
Why do you eat this bread?
Why do you eat this bread of mine?
Ez wî çiyay
yî dibînim.
but: Ez wî çiyay
yê mezin dibînim.
I see that mountain.
I see that large mountain.
So far, the masculine singular has not differed from the feminine
singular or from the plural. Here comes the hard part: simple
masculine singular nouns in the oblique case are treated differently
in the northern dialects than they are in the south. In the south,
i.e., in Behdinan and in Hekkari, the pattern is simple: all
masculine singular nouns get -î (or -yî before a vowel40) in the
oblique case, e.g. çavî
î, biray
yî, nanî
î. However, in the north, the
situation is a bit more complex: when accompanied by a demonstrative
(vî or wî), masculine oblique nouns take the ending -î (e.g., vî
çavî
î, wî biray
yî, vî nanî
î). But, simple nouns (without a
demonstrative) do not take the ending -î. Instead, many (but not all)
of them change the last -e- or -a- in the word to -ê
ê-, e.g. çavî -->
çê
êv; birayî --> birê
ê; nanî --> nê
ên. The technical term for such stemchanging vowels is ablaut. Masculine nouns that do not have an -a- or
40
In Behdinan, often just -y before a vowel, e.g. biray
y, çiyay
y.
• 39 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
an -e-, such as gund (village), remain unchanged in the simple
oblique case (although with the demonstrative it becomes vî/wî
gundî). Three principle parts of masculine nouns şould be memorized:
direct case, simple oblique case, and oblique case with
demonstrative.
The following is a list of the three principle parts of the masculine
nouns we have had thus far which manifest ablaut:
aş
bira
çav
dest
dev
ga
heval
kiras
nan
êş
birê
çêv
dêst
dêv
gê
hevêl
kirês
nên
vî
vî
vî
vî
vî
vî
vî
vî
vî
aşî
birayî
çavî
destî
devî
gayî
hevalî
kirasî
nanî
At the end of this chapter, you will find a chart summarizing the
declensions for masculine singular, feminine singular, and plural
nouns. Please study it carefully, and refer to it whenever you need
it.
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) Ez te nabînim. 2) Tu tiştekî naxwazî. 3) Ew nagrî.
4) Em pisîkan nagrin. 5) Hûn dêrî nagrin. 6) Ew dersê naxwînin. 7)
Ew dersa pêşîn naxwîne, ew dersa didua dixwîne. 8) Tu destê min
dibînî. 9) Hûn kitêban dibînin. 10) Em hêkan dixwin. 11) Ew tiştan
dibînin. 12) Ew tiştekî dixwaze. 13) Tu pirtûkê digrî. 14) Mamosta
dêrî digre.
15) Dara çiyê dibîne?
II. Change the affirmative sentences in exercise I to negative, and
change the negative sentences to affirmative. Then translate.
III. Where possible, add demonstratives (ev and ew) to the sentences
in exercise one. Then translate. (e.g., Ez xwendekarê dibînim --> Ez
wê xwendekarê dibînim).
IV. Where possible, add modifiers (min, te, etc. or adjectives) to
the sentences in exercise one. Then translate. (e.g., Ez xwendekarê
dibînim --> Ez xwendekara nû/xwendekara te dibînim).
V. Where possible, add demonstratives and modifiers to the sentences
in exercise one. Then translate. (e.g., Ez xwendekarê dibînim --> Ez
wê xwendekara nû dibînim).
VI. Where possible, add numbers (1-20) and any combination you choose
(from exercises II, III, IV, and V) to the sentences in exercise one.
• 40 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Then translate.
Declension of Nouns
Direct
Ezafeh
Oblique
Masc.
-ê
(-ê-) ø [S: -î]
vî -î
Fem.
-a
-ê
Pl.
-êt/-êd/-ên
-a[n]
Direct
Ezafeh
çav
çavê te
jin
jina te
Oblique
çêv
vî çavî
jinê
çav : jin
çavên te :
jinên te
çava[n] :
jina[n]
Direct
Ezafeh
bira
birayê te
(birê te)
birê
vî birayî
tilî
tilîya te
Oblique
tilîyê
bira : tilî
birayên te :
tilîyên te
biraya[n]
(bira[n]) :
tilîya[n]
Declension of Indefinite Nouns
Direct
Ezafeh
Oblique
Masc.
-ek
-ekî
-ekî
Fem.
-ek
-eke
-ekê
Pl.
-in
-ine
-ina
Dir
Çav-ek
jin-ek
Ezaf
çavekî te
jineke te
Obl
çavekî
jinekê
*çav-in :
*jin-in
çavine te :
jinine te
çavina :
jinina
Dir
bira-[ye]k
tilî-yek
Ezaf
birakî/
birayekî te
birakî/
birayekî
tilîyeke te
Obl
tilîyekê
• 41 •
*bira-yin :
*tilî-yin
birayine te :
tilîyine te
birayina :
tilîyina
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Şeşa [6]
{Pikkert 3.1; 3.7}
FOLKLORE:
Mamik: Vedikim naçe, girêdidim diçe. Ew çi ye? [çarix]
another version:
Tiştek heye, ku girê didim, diçe; ku divekim, disekine. [çarox]
DIALOGUE:
I.
[Kesek li dêrî dixe.]
Helîme:
Bextiyar, hinek li dêrî dixin. Rabe, dêrî veke û
bibîne, kî ye!
Bextiyar: Baş e. Ser çava. [Bextiyar dêrî vedike.] … Roj
baş, Mamosta Miho! Bi xêr hatî! Kerem ke! Kerem ke!
Miho:
Nav xêrê da bî! Çawan î, Bextiyar? Baş î?
Bextiyar: Ser serê min! Kerem ke, rrûne! Ser pîyan nesekine!
Tu çi vedixwî? Çay? Qawe?
Miho:
Ez gelek hiz ji çayê dikim!
Bextiyar: Ser çava. Helîme, mêvanekî me heye! Tu bo me
çayê çê nakî?
Helîme:
[Ji mezela din tê.] Mêvanê me kî ye? [Mêvên
dibîne.] Ah! Mamosta Miho! Gelek bi xêr hatî!
Çawan î? Baş î?
Miho:
Nav xêrê da bî! Sax bî, bijî. Ez baş im.
Tu jî baş î?
Helîme:
Ser serê min! Çay niha tê! [derdikeve.]
*****
Helîme:
Miho:
Helîme:
II.
[Çayê tîne.]
Keremdar bî!
Xan, çaya te
Destê te sax
Noşî can be!
Çay hazir e! Kerem ke!
… [Çayê vedixwe.] … Hmm! Helîme
gelek xweş e! Germ e, û şîrin e!
be!
[derdikeve.]
Bextiyar: Eh, Mamosta. Tu nabêjî, xwendingeh çawan e?
Xwendekarên te çawan in?
Miho:
Xwendekarên min baş in!
Bextiyar: Çend xwendekarên te hene?
Miho:
Bîst û pênc xwendekarên min hene.
Bextiyar: Baş e, çend kurr û çend keç in?
Miho:
Deh kurr û panzdeh keç in.
Bextiyar: Û hemî xwendekarên te her rroj tên û dersên xwe
dixwînin?
Miho:
Erê! Her rroj tên.
• 42 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Bextiyar: [Dibîne ku Miho çayeke din dixwaze.] Helîme!
Çayeke din bo Mamosta Miho dagre û bîne!
Helîme:
[Ji mezela din]
Ser çava! Çay niha tê!
Bextiyar: Hemî xwendekarên te zû tên?
Miho:
Xwendekareke min heye ku tim dereng tê. Lê hemî
xwendekarên din zû tên.
Bextiyar: Ew xwendekara te ku tim dereng tê -- kî ye?
Navê wê çi ye?
Miho:
Navê wê Perwîn e.
Bextiyar: Perwîn! Lê navê keça min jî Perwîn e! Tu nabêjî ku
keça min Perwîn tim dereng tê xwendingehê!?
Miho:
Belê Bextiyar! Ez wisa dibêjim!
VOCABULARY:
bo, prep.
çarix/çarox, f.
çay, f. [S: ça]
çêdikim
for
peasant şoe
tea
I make, fix, repair,
prepare (e.g., a meal)
dadigrim
I fill up (vt.)
derdik’evim + ji
I leave, exit, go out of
derdixim
I cause to leave,
I throw/take/bring out
dereng
late
destê te sax be
greeting said to anyone
who does stg. for you, e.g.
serves you tea
diçim
I go
diherrim
I go
disekinim
I stand, I stop
germ
warm, hot
girêdidim
I tie, bind
hinek [pl.]
someone, somebody,
some people
hazir
ready
K’erem ke!
greeting said to a guest
when offering or inviting
K’eremdar bî!
response to Kerem ke.
mezel, f.
room, chamber
mêvan, mêvên, vî mêvanî, m.&f.
guest
Nav xêrê da bî!
response to Bi xêr hatî.
Noşî can be!
Bon appetit!
qawe, f.
coffee
rradibim
I get up, rise
rradizêm
I lie down, go to sleep
rrûdinim
I sit
ser pîyan
standing, on one's feet
ser serê min
expression denoting that one is pleased to see
• 43 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
şîrin
têm
tînim
someone [lit.'on my head']
sweet
I come
I bring [towards the
(neg. naynim/naînim; imperative
vedikim
vedixwim
wisa
Xan
xwendingeh, f.
NUMBERS:
bîst û yek
bîst û pênc
sî [also: sih, sîh]
I open
I drink
so, thus; such
respectful title after
school
twenty one, 21
twenty five, 25
thirty, 30
bîne)
speaker]
names
çil
pêncî
şêst
forty, 40
fifty, 50
sixty, 60
GRAMMAR:
a. Compound verbs. Some verbs have prefixes. Let us begin by giving
an Engliş parallel: we have in Engliş the verb to stand, and the verb
to understand. The verb understand is conjugated the same way as the
verb to stand, e.g. both have the same past tense form: stood,
understood. Under- is a prefix. In Engliş, we also have verbs that
change meaning when accompanied by a separate word or particle, e.g.
to stand up, to stand for, to stand still. The meanings of Kurdiş
verbs can be modified in a similar faşion with the addition of
prefixes. In most dialects, the prefixes precede the present stem
marker di- (e.g., ve-d
di-kim = 'I open'). For the purposes of this
course, we will use this structure. However, it is important to note
that in some dialects, the di- comes first (e.g., di-ve-kim = 'I
open').
Common prefixes (or preverbs) include: da-, der-, hil-, jê-, lê-, pê, rra-, tê-, ve-, wer-. Less common ones are: çê- and rrû-.
I. Here is the present tense affirmative of some common verbs: rrûdi-nim = 'I sit'; ve-di-kim = 'I open'; and rra-di-bim = 'I get up'.
'to sit'
Ez
rrû-d
di-nim41
Em
rrû-d
di-nin
Tu
rrû-d
di-nî
Hûn rrû-d
di-nin
Ew
rrû-d
di-ne
Ew
rrû-d
di-nin
'I sit'
'we sit'
'you (s.) sit'
'you (pl.) sit'
'he/şe/it sits'
'they sit'
'to open'
41[S:
Ez di-¢û-nim; Tu di-¢û-nî; Ew di-¢û-nît(in); Em di-¢û-nîn; Hûn di-¢û-nin; Ew
di-¢û-nin]
• 44 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Ez
Em
Tu
Hûn
Ew
Ew
ve-d
di-kim42
ve-d
di-kin
ve-d
di-kî
ve-d
di-kin
ve-d
di-ke
ve-d
di-kin
'I open'
'we open'
'you (s.) open
'you (pl.) open'
'he/şe/it opens'
'they open'
'to get up, rise'
Ez
rra-d
di-bim43
Em
rra-d
di-bin
Tu
rra-d
di-bî
Hûn rra-d
di-bin
Ew
rra-d
di-be
Ew
rra-d
di-bin
'
'I get up'
'we get up'
'you (s.) get up'
'you (pl.) get up'
'he/şe/it gets up'
'they get up'
II. The negative of the present indicative of compound verbs is
formed the same way as it is with simple verbs, i.e. by replacing diwith an accented (stressed) ná-. Here is the negative present
indicative of rrû-di-nim:
'not
Ez
Em
Tu
Hûn
Ew
Ew
to sit'
rrû-n
ná-nim44
rrû-n
ná-nin
rrû-n
ná-nî
rrû-n
ná-nin
rrû-n
ná-ne
rrû-n
ná-nin
'I don't sit'
'we don't sit'
'you (s.) don't sit'
'you (pl.) don't sit'
'he/şe/it doesn't sit'
'they don't sit'
Other compound verbs include:
•çê-d
di-kim
I make, fix, repair, prepare (e.g., a meal)
•da-d
di-grim
I fill up (vt.)
•der-d
di-kevim + ji I leave, exit, go out of
•der-d
di-xim
I cause to leave, I throw/take/bring out
•girê-d
di-dim
I tie, bind
•rra-d
di-zêm
I lie down, go to sleep
•ve-d
di-xwim
I drink
b. Imperatives.
imperative form
Imperatives are
the door' means
When we want to give someone a command, we use the
of the verb, e.g. 'Close the door!' or 'Come here!'.
always addressed to the second person (you): 'Close
'Hey you, close the door!'.
42[S:
Ez di-ve-kem; Tu di-ve-key; Ew di-ve-ket(in); Em di-ve-keyn; Hûn di-ve-ken;
Ew di-ve-ken]
43[S: Ez di-¢a-bim; Tu di-¢a-bî; Ew di-¢a-bît(in); Em di-¢a-bîn; Hûn di-¢a-bin; Ew
di-¢a-bin]
44[S: Ez ná-¢û-nim; Tu ná-¢û-nî; Ew ná-¢û-nît(in); Em ná-¢û-nîn; Hûn ná-¢û-nin; Ew
ná-¢û-nin]
• 45 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
I. In English, the imperative is very easy to form: it is the simple
form of the present tense and infinitive. However, in Kurdish, the
situation is slightly more complex. To form a simple imperative in
Kurdish, the di- of the present tense must be replaced with bi-, and
the personal ending will change, depending on whether one or more
people are being commanded to do something. The ending for the
singular will be -e45 (-ø or no ending after a vowel), and for the
plural, -in (-n after a vowel). The 'formula', then, is:
singular: bi-X
X-e (bi-A
A)
plural:
bi-X
X-in (bi-A
A-n),
where X = verb stem ending in a consonant, and A = verb stem ending
in a vowel.
So, for example, from di-k-im = 'I do', we will get bi-k-e (s.) and
bi-k-in (pl.) = 'Do!' Here are some more examples:
Singular
bi-b
bîn-e
bi-x
xw-e
bi-g
gr-e
bi-ş
şo
bi-x
xwaz-e
Plural
bi-b
bîn-in
bi-x
xw-in
bi-g
gr-in
bi-ş
şo-n
bi-x
xwaz-in
English
See!
Eat!
Take! Close!
Waş!
Want!46
II. The negative imperative (e.g. 'Don't close the door!', 'Don't
go!') is formed by replacing the bi- prefix of the affirmative
imperative with an accented (stressed) né-, or with an accented mé47. Hence, 'Don't do!' would be né-k-e/m
mé-k-e (s.) and né-k-in/m
mé-kin (pl.).
**Note that whereas the negative of the simple present tense is ná
á[with an á], the negative of the imperative is né
é- [with an é]**
Here are the negative imperatives of the verbs listed above:
Singular
Plural
English
né-bîn-e • mé-bîn-e
né-xw-e • mé-xw-e
né-gr-e • mé-gr-e
né-bîn-in • mé-bîn-in
né-xw-in • mé-xw-in
né-gr-in • mé-gr-in
Don't
Don't
Don't
Don't
45In
see!
eat!
take!
close!
some regions, such as Mardin in Turkey, there is no ending (-e) for the
imperative singular. Hence, instead of bi-k-e they say bi-k. The singular
imperatives of the other verbs shown here in Mardin dialect are: bi-bîn; bi-xu; bigir; bi-¤o; bi-xwaz.
46or, Ask for! Request!
47Negative imperatives with me- have a cognate in Persian as well.
• 46 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
né-şo • mé-şo
né-xwaz-e • mé-xwaz-e
né-şo-n • mé-şo-n
né-xwaz-in • mé-xwaz-in
Don't wash!
Don't want!
III. Compound verbs. The imperative of compound verbs in the negative
follows the same principle outlined above, simply inserting an
accented (stressed) -né- between the preverb and the stem, e.g. çêné-k-e (s.) & çê-n
né-k-in (pl.) = 'Don't make!'. In the affirmative,
however, the -bi- is generally dropped. Hence, instead of çê-b
bi-k-e
and çê-b
bi-k-in, one generally finds çê-k-e and çê-k-in. Here are
some more examples:
neg.
neg.
neg.
neg.
Singular
ve-xw-e
ve-n
né-xw-e
ve-m
mé-xw-e
rrû-n-e
rrû-n
né-n-e
rrû-m
mé-n-e
da-gr-e
da-n
né-gr-e
da-m
mé-gr-e
rra-b-e
rra-n
né-b-e
rra-m
mé-b-e
Plural
ve-xw-in
ve-n
né-xw-in
ve-m
mé-xw-in
rrû-n-in
rrû-n
né-n-in
rrû-m
mé-n-in
da-gr-in
da-n
né-gr-in
da-m
mé-gr-in
rra-b-in
rra-n
né-b-in
rra-m
mé-b-in
Engliş
Drink!
Don't drink!
Sit!
Don't sit!
Fill!
Don't fill!
Get up!
Don't get up!
In some instances, the affirmative imperative can optionally take the
-bi-, e.g.:
neg.
neg.
kerem [bi-]k-e
kerem né-k-e
kerem mé-k-e
guh [bi-]d-e
guh né-d-e
guh mé-d-e
kerem [bi-]k-in
kerem né-k-in
kerem mé-k-in
guh [bi-]d-in
guh né-d-in
guh mé-d-in
~Please!
~Please don't!
Listen!
Don't listen!
IV. Irregular imperatives. Some very common verbs form irregular
imperatives.
•herr-e
né-herr-e/n
né-ç-e
mé-herr-e/m
mé-ç-e
•wer-e
né-wer-e/n
né-yê
mé-wer-e/m
mé-yê
•bêj-e
né-bêj-e
mé-bêj-e
herr-in
né-herr-in/n
né-ç-in
mé-herr-in/m
mé-ç-in
wer-in
né-wer-in/n
né-yên
mé-wer-in/m
mé-yên
bêj-in
né-bêj-in
mé-bêj-in
• 47 •
Go!
Don't go!
Come!
Don't come!
Say! Tell!
Don't say!
Don't tell!
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
c. Irregular verbs: to go and to come. These extremely common verbs
şow certainly irregularities which need to be explained.
I. to go. The verb 'to go' has two alternative stems for the present
tense, 1) one based on the imperative (herr-) -- extremely common in
the north, and 2) one based on the past tense (ç-) -- the norm in the
south. Both form their negatives regularly. Here is their
conjugation:
1.
Ez
Em
Tu
Hûn
Ew
Ew
di-h
herr-im
di-h
herr-in
di-h
herr-î
di-h
herr-in
di-h
herr-e
di-h
herr-in
'I go'
'we go'
'you (s.) go'
'you (pl.) go'
'he/şe/it goes'
'they go'
negative:
Ez ná-herr-im, etc.
2.
Ez
Em
Tu
Hûn
Ew
Ew
di-ç
ç-im
di-ç
ç-in
di-ç
ç-î
di-ç
ç-in
di-ç
ç-e
di-ç
ç-in
'I go'
'we go'
'you (s.) go'
'you (pl.) go'
'he/şe/it goes'
'they go'
negative:
Ez ná-ç-im, etc.
II. to come. The original forms of this verb are still preserved in
the southern dialects (dihêm). However, in the north a şortened form
has arisen (têm), with a negative that needs a bit of attention. We
will list the northern form first:
1.
Ez
Em
Tu
Hûn
Ew
Ew
tê-m
tê-n
tê-yî
tê-n
tê[-t]
tê-n
'I come'
'we come'
'you (s.) come'
'you (pl.) come'
'he/şe/it comes'
'they come'
note negative: Ez ná-yê-m, etc.
2.
Ez
Em
di-h
hê-m
di-h
hê-yn
'I come'
'we come'
• 48 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Tu
Hûn
Ew
Ew
di-h
hê-y
di-h
hê-n
di-h
hê-t[in]
di-h
hê-n
'you (s.) come'
'you (pl.) come'
'he/şe/it comes'
'they come'
negative:
Ez ná-hê-m, etc.
d. Hev. There is a good deal of variety in the ways to say 'each
other' or 'one another' in Kurdiş. Some regions prefer hev, or hev û
du or hev û din, while others (largely in the south) prefer yek û du
(êk û du). So, for example:
Em ji hev [û
û du] hiz nakin
We don't like one another
Note the use of hev, etc. in the following, where the Engliş does not
require it:
Bêrîvan û Gulistan hevalê
ên hev in
Bêrîvan and Gulistan are friends [literally, 'friends of each
other'].
Dara û Bêkes biray
yên hev in
Dara and Bêkes are brothers [literally, 'brothers of each other'].
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) Do you (s.) like this boy? Yes, I like him, we are
friends [of one another]; 2) Stand up (pl.)! Don't sit down!; 3) I
don't know what you want. Say what you want; 4) Our dogs are
coming. Open (s.) the door!;
5) Our mother likes both tea and
coffee; 6) We are bringing eggs and white bread; 7) Why are you
(pl.) leaving [from] your house? Don't leave your house!; 8) Our
friend (f.) is making tea for her guest; 9) We like both our
cats. Do you (s.) like our cats? Don't you (pl.) like our cats?;
10) They are taking their dog out of their friend's (m.) house. I
am taking my dog out of my daughter's school.
II. a. Change these polite commands into simple imperatives. b. Then
make them into negative imperatives. E.g., a. Tu destên xwe naşoyî? -> Destên xwe bişo! --> b. Destên xwe neşo!
1) Tu vê dersa xwe naxwînî? 2) Hûn çayê bo vê mêvana xwe çênakin û
naînin? 3) Hûn vê pisîka min naşon? 4) Tu navê xwe nabêjî? 5) Hûn vî
derîyê kevn nagrin? 6) Hûn çaroxên xwe girênadin? 7) Hûn nayên, hûn
mêvanê me nabînin? 8) Tu naherrî, tu xûşka xwe ji wê xwendingeha wê
naînî? 9) Tu ji wan xwendekarên nû napirsî, navên wan çi ne? 10) Hûn
kerem nakin, hûn rrûnanin? 11) Tu vê qaweya germ û şîrin venaxwî? 12)
Tu rranabî, tu dêrî bo dîya xwe venakî?
• 49 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
III. Choose three simple verbs and
each one in the affirmative present
indicative; affirmative imperative;
IV. Write out and say the following
16; 18; 57; 39; 46; 52; 43.
KURDIŞ PERSONAL NAMES
Male:
Bextiyar
three compounds verbs. Conjugate
indicative; negative present
negative imperative.
numbers in Kurdiş: 34; 65; 28;
Female:
Helîme
Perwîn
• 50 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Hefta [7]
{Pikkert
1.11; 2.6}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan: Deynê Sibatê li Adarê ye
READING:
Hevalekî min heye, navê wî Bahrî ye. Bahrî xelqê Sêwregê ye, lê
ew îro li Sêwregê najî. Ew li Îstanbolê dijî. Bahrî xwendekar e, li
zanîngeha Îstanbolê dixwîne. Bahrî xwendekarekî ze‘f baş e; ew her
rroj pirr pirtûkan dixwîne. Gava ku Bahrî naxwîne, li stranên Kurdî
guhdarî dike, ji ber ku kêfa wî ji stranên Kurdî rra tê. Bahrî pirr,
pirr ji stranên Şivên hiz dike. Şivan stranbêjekî Kurdî ye: ew
Karagêçî ye. Karagêçî ‘Eşîreteke mezin e, nêzîkî Wêranşehrê, di
herêma Rehayê da. Bahrî û Şivan hev nas dikin, ji ber ku Karagêçî
nêzîkî Sêwregê ne jî.
Bahrî bêjin e, lê jina Şivên heye; navê wê Gulistan e. Gulistan
xelqê Wêranşehrê ye. Kurrekî wan heye, navê wî Serxwebûn e. Şivan,
Gulistan û Serxwebûn li Tirkîyê najîn, ew li Swêdê dijîn. Herdu
çavên Serxwebûn rreş in, mîna çavên bavê wî. Gulistan jî dibêje ku
çavên wê heşîn in. Kêfa te ji çavên heşîn rra tê?
Kêfa xûşka min ji çavên heşîn rra nayê: kêfa wê ji çavên rreş
rra tê. Gava ku ez herdu çavên xwe di neynikê da dibînim, ez dibêjim
ku “Herdu çavên min rreş nînin! Tu çima dibêjî ku ez çavrreş im?!”
Gava ku tu herdu guhên xwe di neynikê da dibînî, tu çi dibêjî? Kêfa
te ji guhên te rra tê? Guhên te dirêj in, yan jî kurt in? Destên te
jî: tu destên xwe çawa dibînî? Kêfa te ji wan rra tê yan ne? Destên
te biçûk in, yan jî mezin in?
Em lingên xwe çawa dibînin? Lingên me dirêj in yan kurt in? Bi
pirç in yan bê pirç in? Lingên van keçan bê pirç in, lê lingên wan
kurran ze‘f bi pirç in. Destên wî kurrî gelek mezin in! Tu wî nas
dikî? Erê, ez wî nas dikim. Çima tu dipirsî? Ji ber ku kêfa min ji
destên mezin rra tê. Destên bavê min jî mezin in!
Hûn ji pisîka min hiz dikin? Kêfa we ji pisîkan rra tê? Pisîka
min pirr bi aqil e. Navê wê Reşê ye, ji ber ku rrengê wê rreş e.
Kêfa wê ji solên mêvanan rra ze‘f tê. Ew bi solên wan dileyîze.
• 51 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Pisîka hevalê min jî, ku navê wê Dîcle ye, bi qelemên mêvanan
dileyîze.
Kerem kin, bi pisîkên me rra bileyîzin!
VOCABULARY:
Adar, f.
March (the month)
ango
that means, i.e.
bê
without
bêjin
unmarried (man)
bê p’irç’
hairless
bi
with, by means of; in (a language)
bi aqil
intelligent, smart
bi p’irç’
hairy
bi … rra
with, together with
bo
for
deyn, m.
debt
digel [S]
with, together with
dijîm
I live
dileyîzim (bi)
I play (with something)
‘Eşîret, f.
tribe
gava ku
when
guhdarî dikim, vt. [+li] I listen (to)
herêm, f.
region, province, district
îro
today
ji
from
ji … rra
to, for
jin, f.
woman, wife
k’êfa min ji X rra [S: bi X] tê I like …
mêr, m.
man
mîna
like, similar to
nas dikim [S: dinyasim] I know (a person), recognize
nexweş
sick, ill
neynik, f.
mirror
nêzîkî
near to, close to
p’irr [=gelek]
very; much
p’irç’, f.
body hair
qelem, f.
pen
rreng, m.
color
rrûp’el, f.
page (of a book)
Sibat, f.
February
sol, f.
shoe
stran, f.
song
stranbêj, m.&f. singer
Swêd, f.
Sweden
şivan, şivên, vî şivanî, m. shepherd
T’irkîye, f.
Turkey
xelqê…
from,native of
zanîngeh, f.
university
• 52 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
ze‘f [=gelek]
very; much
NUMBERS:
Heftê
heştê
seventy, 70
eighty, 80
not
sed
ninety, 90
one hundred, 100
GRAMMAR:
a. The oblique case has several functions in Kurdiş. So far, we have
covered the use of it as direct object, e.g.
Ez
Ez
Ew
Em
te dibînim
kitêbê dixwînim
dêrî vedike
wan pisîkan digrin
'I see you'
'I read the book'
'He opens the door'
'We catch those cats'
The oblique case is also used as the second part of a possessive (or
genitive or ezafeh) construction. In English, we have such
constructions as 'the hair of the girl' (or, 'the girl's hair) or
'the hands of the teacher' (or, 'the teacher's hands'). The
italicized part of these phrases is the second part of the
possessive construction. We already know how to do this in Kurdish
with pronouns: kitêba min = 'my book', or 'the book of me'. If we
were to substitute the pronoun min = 'my' with a noun, that noun will
always be in the oblique case, e.g.
kitêba keçê= 'the book of the girl' (or, 'the girl's book)
In this construction, the first part of the possessive (or genitive
or ezafeh) construction takes the ezafeh ending (k
kitêb-a keçê; dest-ê
vî kurrî; çav-ên keçan); the second part takes the oblique case
(kitêba keç-ê; destê vî kurr-î; çavên keç-an).
Here are some sentences with this construction:
Navê keçê Gulbahar e
Bavê xwendekarê mamosta ye
Birayên jinê nexweş in
Guhên pisîkan dirêj in
Rûpelên kitêbê pirr in
The
The
The
The
The
girl's name is Gulbahar.
student's (f.) father is a teacher.
woman's brothers are ill.
cats' ears are long.
pages of the book are many.
b. Another use of the oblique case is as the object of prepositions.
Engliş prepositions include: in, on, to, with, for, beside, through,
and many more besides. Kurdiş prepositions include: bê = 'without',
bo = 'for', ji = 'from', li = 'in, at', mîna = 'like, similar to',
and nêzîkî = 'near'.
Nouns and pronouns governed by prepositions are in the oblique case,
e.g.:
ji wan
from them
• 53 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
li Îstanbol-ê
ê
nêzîkî Wêranşehr-ê
ê
in Istanbul
near Viranşehir
It should also be noted that the four prepositions bi (with, by means
of), di (inside), ji (from), li (in, at) can combine with the third
person singular pronouns wî (him) and wê (her). The following
transformations are then as follows:
bi
di
ji
li
+
+
+
+
wî/wê
wî/wê
wî/wê
wî/wê
pê
tê
jê
lê
For example,
Ez jê hiz dikim
Em lê dijîn
with him/her/it
inside him/her/it
from him/her/it
in or at him/her/it
I love him/her
We live in it.
c. Ambipositions. In addition to prepositions, Kurdiş also has
constructions that consist of a preposition coupled with a
postposition, for example di … da48 = 'in, inside'. This is sort of
like a sandwich (a circumfix or ambiposition), in that di precedes
the noun, and da follows it, e.g. di xwendingeh-ê
ê da = 'in school'.
Other examples of such 'sandwiches' are bi … rra49 = '[together]
with' and ji ... rra50 = 'to': bi min rra = 'with me'; ji te rra =
'to you'. Traditionally, students of Kurmanji are taught that there
are three postpositions: da [or de] indicating position, rra [or rre]
indicating motion towards or across, and ve indicating togetherness.
These meanings are only meant to be a general guide, but it şould be
noted that these postpositions can radically change the meaning of
the accompanying preposition, e.g.:
ji wan
ji wan rra
from them
to or for them
Note that the contractions mentioned above also apply to
ambipositions, e.g.
ji + wî/wê + rra
di + wî/wê + da
jê rra
tê da
for him/her/it
in him/her/it
It şould be noted that in southern dialects (both Hekkari and
Behdinan), the simplest way to say 'with' is digel, equivalent to bi
… rra in the north: digel min = bi min rra = with me. Also, in
Behdinan bo is used instead of ji … rra for 'to' or 'for'.
48Variant:
di … de
e
bi … ¢e
e
50Variant: ji … ¢e
e
49Variant:
• 54 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
d. I like, you like, etc. We have already learned the expression
hiz dikim ji …, which really means 'I love'. If I want to say that I
like something, rather than love it, another very common expression
is used: Kêfa min ji … rra tê. In southern dialects, they replace the
sandwich ji … rra with the simple preposition bi51, and say Kêfa min
bi … têt. Here are a few examples of how this is used:
Kêfa wî ji hêkan rra [S: bi hêkan] nayê
Kêfa te ji pisîkan rra [S: bi kitikan] têt?
Kêfa min ji vê kitêbê rra tê
He doesn't like eggs.
Do you like cats?
I like this book.
With the contractions mentioned above, we obtain the following:
Kêfa min jê rra tê [S: Kêfa min pê têt]
I like it.
e. What do you think of this? In Kurdish, instead of asking someone
what s/he thinks of something, one asks how s/he sees it: Tu … çawa
dibînî? For example: Tu destên xwe çawa dibînî? = What do you think
of your hands? In other words, when asking someone his/her opinion
about something, this construction can be used.
f. Where are you from? The way to ask someone where s/he is from in
Kurdish is different from its English equivalent. One asks 'You are
the people of what place?' = Tu xelqê ku derê yî? Xelq, m. is a noun
meaning 'people'. The answer is: 'I am the people of [X]' = Ez xelqê
[X]ê me. The place is in the oblique case, as it is the second part
of an ezafeh (genitive or possessive) construction. E.g., Ez xelqê
Rehayê me = I am from Urfa; Ew xelqê Dihokê ye = S/he is from Dihok.
Note that xelq is used for both genders and both numbers: Bavê min
xelqê Dihokê ye; Dîya min xelqê Wêranşehrê ye [never *xelqa
a
Wêranşehrê ye]; Herdu xwendekarên te xelqê Swêdê ne [never *xelqê
ên
Swêdê ne].
g. to know. As in many other languages, Kurdish has two different
words for 'to know'. Ez dizanim is used for facts, e.g. 'I know that
he is a teacher' = Ez dizanim ku ew mamosta ye. Note that this is
often used with ku. Remember: Ez dizanim ku … This is the equivalent
of German wissen, French savoir, Spanish saber, Turkiş bilmek, and
Persian dÐnestan.
However, when one knows or is acquainted with a person, a different
verb is used: Ez nas dikim [S: Ez dinyasim52]. This can also mean 'to
recognize'. Hence, this is much the same as German kennen, French
connaître, Spanish conocer, Turkish tanışmak, and Persian şenÐkhtan.
51For
52In
this expression only -- NOT in general!
Hekkari, they say Ez dinaysim, and near Akre they say Ez dinasim.
• 55 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Note the following distinction:
Ez wê keçê nas dikim, lê ez navê wê nizanim
I know that girl, but I don't know her name.
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) What are the cats doing? They are playing with the
guests' şoes. 2) The dogs are playing with the guest's (f.) books. 3)
Do you like children? I like the şepherd's children. 4) What do you
think of that girl's eyes? They are green and very big. 5) Does Şivan
live in Istanbul? No, he doesn't live in Istanbul, he lives in Sweden
with his {careful!} wife. 6) Are you sitting in the boy's room? No, I
am not sitting in the boy's room, I am sitting in his sister's room.
7) Why are you reading that old book? Because I like the book's name!
8) Do you know that man? I know him, but I don't know his name. 9) He
knows that our teacher's friend lives in that big house. 10) They
don't know that our friends' teacher knows the şepherd. 11) Don't you
know where Şivan is from? He is from Urfa, isn't he? 12) My mother is
from Sweden.
II. Translate into English: 1) Navê xwendekarê Zîn e. Navê birayê wê
jî Ehmed e. 2) Bavê wê hevala me li Sêwregê dijî. 3) Em navê wî
stranbêjî nizanin. Em wî hêj nas nakin. 4) Bahrî, tu nizanî ku dîya
vê keçikê dersdar e? 5) Birayê rrîspîyê gundê me nexweş e. 6) Hemî
xwendekarên me xelqê Tirkîyê ne. 7) Tu nizanî ew stranbêj xelqê ku
derê ye? Nexêr, ez wî nas nakim. 8) Derîyê wê mezelê venekin! Di wê
mezelê da neleyîzin! 9) Em nizanin çima tu tim dixwînî, ji ber ku
kêfa te bi dersan nayê. 10) Kûçikê Gulistanê kirasên birayê wê dixwe.
Kêfa wî bi kirasan têt.
III. Answer these questions in the negative, then give the
affirmative answer in parentheses: e.g.: Navê te Ramazan e? [nexêr;
Dara] --> Nexêr, navê min Ramazan nîne; navê min Dara ye.
1) Tu mêrê vê jinê nas dikî? [nexêr; wê jinê bi xwe]; 2) Ew navê wê
zanîngehê dizane? [nexêr; ez]; 3) Kêfa we bi/ji gotinên pêşîyan rra
tê? [nexêr; bi mamikan]; 4) Xûşka wî şivanî xwendekar e? [nexêr;
stranbêj]; 5) Bavê wan zarokan li Tirkîyê dijî? [nexêr; li Swêdê]; 6)
Îro rrîspîyên wî gundî tên? [nexêr; li mala Şivên rrûdinin]; 7) Jina
Sebrî xelqê Sêwregê ye? [nexêr; xelqê ‘Efrînê]; 8) Mêvanê Lezgîn çayê
vedixwe? [nexêr; qawê]; 9) Ferhad û Bûrhan birayên hev in? [nexêr;
hevalên hev]; 10) Bêkes destên xwe dişo? [nexêr; destên Xecê].
IV. Translate the following prepositional phrases into Kurdiş; then
change the noun into the corresponding pronoun (plus contraction when
appropriate), e.g. with the girl --> bi keçê rra --> pê rra: 1) with
my father; 2) inside the school; 3) to the friends; 4) from the
friends; 5) near the house; 6) in Istanbul; 7) with (=by means of) a
pen; 8) without a name; 9) for my sister; 10) in the book.
• 56 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
V. Write out and say the following numbers in Kurdiş: 73; 38; 61; 88;
46; 94; 97; 49; 76; 55; 82.
KURDISH PERSONAL NAMES
Male:
Serxwebûn
Şivan
KURDISH PLACE NAMES
Dihok
Reha [=Urfa]
‘Efrîn
Sêwreg [=Siverek]
Karagêçî [tribe]
Wêranşehir
• 57 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Heşta [8]
{Pikkert
6}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan: Çil heravî nikarin rrûtekî bişêlînin.
READING:
Rojekê xwendekarên Mamosta Miho dibêjin ku, “Îro em naxwazin
herrin cem Mamosta Miho. Em dixwazin ku ew bê mala me!” Ew dibêjin,
“Bila îro Mamosta Miho bê mala me!” Xwendekarek tê cem Mamosta Miho
û jê rra dibêje ku, “Mamosta, divê ku tu îro bêyî cem me, em naxwazin
herrine xwendingehê. Eger tu hazir nînî bêyî mala me, tu ji me hiz
nakî!”
Mamosta Miho ji xwendekarên xwe rra dibêje ku, “Ez naxwazim ku
hûn bêjin ku ez ji we hiz nakim. Ez dikarim bêm cem we, lê divê
(=lazim e) hûn çay û mêst bidine min; ku hûn çay û mêst nedin, ez
hazir nînim bême mala we!” Xwendekar dibêjin ku, “Bila! Bila
Mamosta Miho bê cem me, bila ew pisîka xwe jî bîne! Em çayê didine
mamostê, û em şîr didine pisîka wî.” Mamosta Miho dibêje ku, “Gelek
sipas dikim, lê divê ku hûn şîr nedine pisîka min: pisîka min hiz
nake şîr vexwe, ku ew şîr vexwe, ew nexweş dikeve.” Xwendekar
dibêjin ku, “Wê gavê, pisîka xwe neyne: tu bi tenê were, bila pisîk
li malê bimîne!”
VOCABULARY:
bajar, bajêr, vî bajarî, m.[S: bajêr]
bê aqil
bila [or, bira] [+ subj.]
bi t’enê
cem
da [ku] [+ subj.]
datînim
city
stupid
let (something be); okay
alone; only
at/over someone's house
in order to/that
I put, place
(neg. danaynim/danaînim;imperative
dayne)
dibihîzim
dibim
difroşim
[di]karim [+ subj.]
I hear
1) [S: dibem] I take [away from the
speaker]; 2) [S: dibim]I become, get
I sell
I can, am able
• 58 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
(neg. níkarim)
dik’irrim
dimînim
dipeyivim
dişêlînim
dişêm [+ subj.] (neg. néşêm)
dişînim
divê[t] (neg. névê[t])
diyarî, f.
eger
gerek
her tişt
hingiv, m. [S: hingivîn]
heravî, m. [= diz]
ji bo[na] ku [+ subjunctive]
ji … rra
ku [+ subjunctive]
lazim e
mase (vê masê), f.
mast, mêst, vî mastî, m.
min divêt
nexweş dik’evim
nînim
nînî
pirsyar, f.
qayîl
rrazî
rrojekê
rrût
şekir, şêkir, vî şekirî, m.
şîr, m.
wê gavê
NUMBERS:
dusid
sêsid
çarsid
pêncsid
şeşsid
I buy, purchase
I stay, remain
I speak, talk
I undress, strip; I rob
I can, am able [S}
I send
it is necessary, must
gift, present
if
it is necessary, must
everything
honey
thief
in order to/that
to
if
it is necessary, must
table
yoghurt
I want [S]
I get sick, fall ill
I am not
you (s.) are not
question
willing
willing
one day
naked
sugar
milk
then, in that case
200
300
400
500
600
heftsid
heştsid
nehsid
hezar
700
800
900
1,000
GRAMMAR:
a. Subjunctive. In Engliş, when we express a fact -- as opposed to a
wiş -- we say "All your wişes are coming true", or "It is". These may
be contrasted with such constructions as "May all your wişes come
true" or "Let it be". In Kurdiş, these latter notions are expressed
• 59 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
with the Subjunctive Mood. First we will discuss how the Subjunctive
is formed; after that, we will learn how to use it.
I. Formation: The Subjunctive Mood is formed in much the same way as
the Imperative mood.53 In the affirmative, the di- prefix of the
Indicative Mood is replaced with bi-. In the negative, ná- is
replaced by né-. Here is an example:
ez
tu
ew
Subjunctive Affirmative
bi-bîn-i
im
em
bi-bîn-i
in54
bi-bîn-î
î
hûn bi-bîn-i
in
55
bi-bîn-e
e
ew
bi-bîn-i
in
Subjunctive
ez
tu
ew
NOTICE:
né-bîn-i
im
né-bîn-î
î
né-bîn-e
e
Ez nabînim
Ez nebînim
Negative
em
né-bîn-i
in
hûn né-bîn-i
in
ew
né-bîn-i
in
I don't see/find
(that) I may not see/find
With compound verbs, bi- is optional. Hence: Ez ve-kim or Ez ve-bikim (in either case, the negative is Ez ve-n
né-kim).
IRREGULAR:
•Ez im (to be):
Ez bim, tu bî, ew be, em/hûn/ew bin56
•Ez dibêjim (to say):
Ez [bi]bêjim, tu [bi]bêjî, ew [bi]bêje, em/hûn/ew [bi]bêjin.
Note that the bi- prefix is optional.
•Ez diherrim/diçim (to go):
Ez herrim, tu herrî, ew herre, em/hûn/ew herrin
[or: Ez biçim, tu biçî, ew biçe, …]
53One
could even say that the Imperative is derived from the Subjunctive.
bi-bîn-î
în
55S: bi-bîn-î
ît(i
in)
56S: ew bît, em bîn
54S:
• 60 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Note that with the stem herr-, the bi- prefix is absent.
•Ez têm (to come):
Ez bêm/werim, tu bêyî/werî, ew bê/were, em/hûn/ew bên/werin.
Note that with the stem wer-, the bi- prefix is absent. In Behdinani,
the preferred form is dihêm, with a regularly formed subjunctive
bihêm.
•heye, hene (there is/are): hebe57, hebin.
II. Usage.
1) After auxiliary verbs:
•Ez dixwazim = 'to want' + subj.:
e.g.: Ez dixwazim bibînim = I want to see [lit. 'I want that I see']
Note that in this construction that whereas in Engliş the infinitive
remains unchanged regardless of the subject of the verb 'to want', in
Kurdish the subjunctive takes the same person as the modal auxiliary
dixwazim:
Tu dixwazî bibînî
You want to see [lit. 'You want that you see']
Em dixwazin bibînin We want to see [lit. 'We want that we see']
The subjunctive may be in a different person, in a construction such
as the following:
Ez dixwazim [ku] tu bibînî
I want you to see
In Behdinan, dixwazim means only 'I request', 'I ask for'. For 'I
want, you want, he-şe wants' they use min divêt, te divêt, wî-wê
divêt, etc. instead (see divêt below). Note also that the negative is
formed with né-: Min névêt = Ez naxwazim:
e.g.:
Min divêt bibînim
I want to see
Min divêt [ku] tu bibînî
I want you to see
57S:
hebît
• 61 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
•Ez [di]karim = 'can, to be able' + subj.:
e.g.:
Ez [di]karim herrim
I can go
NEGATIVE:
Ez ní-karim, tu ní-karî, ew ní-kare, em/hûn/ew ní-karin
e.g.:
Em nikarin te bibihîzin We cannot hear you
In southern dialects, rather than dikarim, the most common way to
say 'I can' is Ez dişêm.
The negative is formed with né-: Ez neşêm = Ez nikarim:
e.g.: Ez dişêm biçim
I can go
Em neşêyn te bibihîzîn
We cannot hear you
•Ez [di]zanim = 'to know how to' + subj.:
e.g.: Ez [di]zanim bileyîzim I know how to play
NEGATIVE:
Ez ní-zanim, tu ní-zanî, ew ní-zane, em/hûn/ew ní-zanin
e.g.: Hûn nizanin bi Kurmancî bipeyivin?
Don't you know how to speak [in]
Kurdish?
Note that for both dikarim and dizanim the di- prefix is optional.
•divê[t] (NEGATIVE: névê[t]) = gerek = lazim e:
all three mean 'must, have to'
e.g.: Divê [ku] bixwî
You must eat (It is necessary that you eat)
With a negative subjunctive, it means '[you] must not', e.g.:
Divê [ku] néxwî
You must not eat (It is necessary that you not eat)
• 62 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Lazim e [ku] dêrî ven
nékî
You must not open the door
As mentioned above, with oblique pronouns, divêt expresses 'to want'
in southern dialects (Min divêt = Ez dixwazim).
2) After conjunctions.
bila/bira = 'let58':
e.g.: Bila herrin
Let them go
da ku/ji bo[na] ku = 'in order to/that':
e.g., Em diherrine bajêr ji bona ku nên bikirrin
We are going to town in order to buy bread
eger/heke/ku = 'if'
e.g., Eger pirsyareke wan hebe, bila niha bêjin
If they
have a question, let them say so now
Ku hûn wisa nekin, ez hazir nînim bêm
If you don't do so, I'm not willing to come
3) After certain adjectives.
hazir = 'ready' or 'willing'
rrazî/qayîl = 'willing'
e.g.,Ez hazir im bixwînim
Ew qayîl nîne bê
I am ready to study
He's not willing to come
b. Word Order: Indirect Object. The indirect object can be expressed
in two alternative ways (which is also true of Engliş!):
1) With the ambiposition/circumfix/“sandwich” ji … rra/rre placed
before the verb. E.g.,
Dîya min ji min rra
diyarîyekê
dişîne
58This
is known as the jussive in traditional grammar books. Note that in English,
'let' is an imperative rather than a conjunction.
• 63 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
My mother to me
a gift
sends
My mother sends me a gift, or: My mother sends a gift to me.
Dersdar
ji xwendekaran rra
çîrokan
dixwîne
The teacher
to the students
stories
reads
The teacher reads the students the stories, or: The teacher reads the
stories to the students.
2) With the oblique case placed after
the dative construction. E.g.,
Dîya min
goşt
My mother (the) meat
Dersdar
The teacher
dide
gives
the verb. We will call this
min
to me
kitêban
dide
the books gives
xwendekaran
to the students
This latter construction is also used to express motion to which
(generally with a verb of motion). Note that this construction is
often preceded by the “preposition” -e suffixed to the preceding verb
. E.g.,
Em
We
diherrin-e
e
are going-to
Mêvan
The guests
Ez
I
bajêr
the city
tên-e
e
are coming-to
kitêba xwe
my book
mala me
our house
didim-e
e
am giving-to
te
you
Note that in the third person, before this "preposition" the verb
often takes the ending -it-. E.g., Ew van kitêban tîne = 'He brings
these books', but: Ew van kitêban tîni
ite bavê xwe = 'He brings these
books to his father'.
Question words (interrogatives) take the place in the sentence that
their grammatical function requires. E.g.,
Em
We
diherrin-e
e
are going-to
ku?
}
Mêvan
tên-e
e
The guests
are coming-to
c.
ku derê?
where?
dibim #1 & #2. There are two verbs with the present tense dibim.
• 64 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
One is a transitive verb meaning 'to take or carry [away from the
speaker]'59. This corresponds to tînim = 'to bring [toward the
speaker]'. E.g.:
Vî nanî bibe bavê xwe!
Ez van kitêban dibime xwendingehê
Take this bread to your father!
I take these books to school.
Note that dibim #1 often has both a direct object before the verb and
an indirect object after the verb.
 In southern dialects -- both Hekkari and Behdinan -- the form of
dibim #1 is dibem (dibey - dibet[in] - dibeyn - diben).60
The second verb with dibim in the present tense is the verb to
become.61 This verb patterns with the dative construction. For
example, to say 'I am becoming a teacher' we would say 'Ez dibim[e]
mamosta', with mamosta following the verb. If we were to say 'Ez
mamosta dibim' (or 'Ez mamostê
ê dibim'), it would mean 'I am taking
the teacher (somewhere)'.
The most important point to remember here is that word order is
essential in distinguişing dibim #1 (=to take) from dibim #2 (=to
become).
d. Oblique case. Another use of the oblique case is to express time.
For example, rrojekê = 'one day'. During the day, in the daytime is
rrojê; at night is şevê. In the summer is havînê; in the winter is
zivistanê.
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) I want to go to Bitlis [Bidlîs, f.]. Don't you want
to come too?; 2) They don’t want to go to Van [Wan, f.]. We don't
want them to come; 3) They don’t want us to go to Mehabad. But we
must go; 4) You (s.) cannot eat my bread, but you must drink your
tea; 5) Şe must come to my house, but şe does not want to; 6) Let him
sit beside [li ber] the table, and read his lesson; 7) The cats want
to drink their milk. I don’t want them to drink the milk; 8) I want
her not to read those books. I don’t want her to read that red book;
9) They do not know how to say their (own) names. I am not ready to
say that [ku] they are stupid; 10) We are ready to go to the town of
Urmiye in order to buy honey, sugar and yoghurt.
II. Give the present subjunctive, affirmative & negative, of the
following verbs:
•dibînim •dikim
•dixwim
•didim
•rradibim
59The
infinitive of this verb is birin.
in southern dialects the two verbs are distinct: dibem = 'to take' and
dibim = 'to become'.
61The infinitive of this verb is bûn. This is actually the verb 'to be'.
60Hence,
• 65 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
•dibihîzim
•vedixwim •tînim
•dibim
•difroşim
III. Translate the following into Engliş. 1) Birayê min dixwaze bibe
mamosta. 2) Xûşka min dixwaze mamostayê xwe bibite malê. 3) Tu
nabihîzî, hevala te çi dibêjite te? 4) Hûn van kitêbên xwe yên kevn
nafroşine me? 5) Çima ew naxwaze bêjite min [or, ji min rra bêje] ew
çi dikirre gava ku ew diçite bajêr? 6) Ew sê zarrok mastê dîya xwe
tînine mamostayên xwe li xwendingehê. 7) Gava ku ew mêst dixwe, ew
tim nexweş dikeve. 8) Hevalên min diherrine bajêr da ku ew ji min rra
mêst bikirrin û bînin. 9) Divêt ku birayê te mastê dîya xwe bibite
bajêr. 10) Ji bona ku tu bibî xwendekarekî baş, ez dixwazim te bibime
zanîngehê.
IV. Make up ten sentences using subjunctives and indirect objects.
KURDISH PLACE NAMES
Bidlîs
Ûrmiye
Mehabad
Wan
• 66 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Neha [9]
{Pikkert
7}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan: Zikê tijê birinc be, wê tijê xencer be.
DIALOGUE:
I.
Gulistan: Ez dixwazim tiştekî ji te bipirsim.
Bêrîvan: Kerem ke, bipirse! Navê[t] bitirsî, bipirse. Ango,
divê netirsî bipirsî!
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Gulistan:
Bêrîvan:
Baş e: Heftêya tê tu yê çi bikî?
Heftêya tê ez ê herrime mala xwe.
Heta kengî tu yê li wê derê bimînî?
Ez ê pênc rrojan li wê derê bimînim. Tu çima dipirsî?
Çimkî heftêya tê ez naxwazim li vir bi tenê bimînim.
Ez
dixwazim bi te rra bêm, lê ez ditirsim ku tu yê
bêjî ‘Nexêr! Tu
nikarî bi min rra bêyî! Lazim e ku
tu li vî bajarî bimînî.’
Ez nikarim tutiştî bibêjim bêî ku îzinê ji dê û bavê
xwe bixwazim. Tu li vir bimîne, ez ê herrim ji wan
bipirsim û bêm. [Bêrîvan derdikeve, telefonî dê û bavê
xwe dike, û tê].
Gulistan: Ew çi dibêjin?
Bêrîvan: Ew dibêjin ‘Ser seran û ser çavan!’ Heftêya tê em ê
pevrra [=bi hev rra] herrine mala dê û bavê min! Tu
yê mêvana me bî!
II.
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Meha tê ez ê hespê xwe bifroşim.
Bi çendê tu yê wî bifroşî?
Miho:
Ez ê wî bi hezar banqnotan bifroşim. Gelo tu dixwazî
wî bikirrî? Tu ji hespan hiz dikî?
Ez gelekî ji hespan hiz dikim, lê sala tê bavê min dê
çêleka xwe bifroşe ü gamêşekê bikirre.
Ew ê li ku derê gamêşekê bibîne ku bikirre? Kêfa min
ji gamêşan rra nayê: ez ji wan ditirsim.
Tu çima ji wan ditirsî?
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
• 67 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Miho:
Çimkî ez her ditirsim ku ew ê pê li min bikin û min
bikujin!
VOCABULARY:
banqnot, f.
[also: panqnot](Turkish) lira
bêî ku [+ subjunctive] without ...-ing
bi çendê?
for how much?
ç’êlek, f. [=mange] cow
çimkî [=ji ber ku] because
dê û bav, pl.
parents
dikujim
ditirsim [+ji]
to kill
to fear [someone], be afraid of [someone]
gelekî
gelo …?
hesp, m./f.
heyv, f.
heftê, f.
•heftêya tê
heta
îzinê (dixwazim)
very
interrogative particle
horse
moon; month [S]
week
next week
until
(to ask for) permission
k’engî?
when?
k’êfxweş
happy
li vir
here
li wê derê = li wir there
mange , f. [=ç’êlek]cow
meh, f. [S: heyv]
month
•meha tê
next month
nîvrro, f.
noon
paş
after
p’evrra [S: pêkve]
together
p’ê li … dikim
to cruş, stomp on
pê rra [=bi wî/wê rra]with him/her
sal, f.
year
•sala tê
next year
ser seran û ser çavan! welcome!
sib[eh]ê [S: subahî] tomorrow
• 68 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
telefonî … dikim
to call … on the phone, ring up
t’ijî
t’ucar
t’utişt
xencer, f.
zik, m.
full
never
nothing
dagger
tomach
NUMBERS:
du hezar
sê hezar
çar hezar
pênc hezar
şeş hezar
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
heft hezar
heşt hezar
neh hezar
deh hezar
mîlyon
7,000
8,000
9,000
10,000
1,000,000
GRAMMAR:
a. Future tense. The future tense (e.g., 'I will see') is formed as
follows:
I. Affirmative: 'future marker' dê [variants: wê or -ê] + present
subjunctive.
follows:
Personal pronouns combine with the future marker, as
Affirmative
ez ê
bi-bîn-im
em ê bi-bîn-in
tu [y
y]ê
ê bi-bîn-î
hûn ê bi-bîn-in
ew ê
bi-bîn-e
ew ê bi-bîn-in
I will see
we will see
you (s.) will see
you (pl.) will see
s/he will see
they will see
 In Behdinan, the Future Affirmative is formed slightly differently.
The particle dê is followed by the naked present stem without any
prefix, e.g.:
ez dê bîn-im
em dê bîn-în
tu dê bîn-î
hûn dê bîn-in
I will see
we will see
you (s.) will see
you (pl.) will see
• 69 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
ew dê bîn-ît[in]
ew dê bîn-in
s/he will see
they will see
II. Negative: identical with present indicative:
Negative
ez
na-bîn-im
em na-bîn-in
tu
na-bîn-î
hûn na-bîn-in
I won't see
we won't see
you (s.) won't see
you (pl.) won't see
ew
na-bîn-e
ew na-bîn-in
s/he won't see
they won't see
Therefore,
Ez nabînim = I don't see; I don't find;
I won't see; I won't find.
In some regions, forms such as Ezê nebînim exist, but many people
consider this to be unacceptable usage. There is no single answer
regarding the correctness of such forms. Because they do in fact
exist, we are mentioning them, albeit only in passing.
III. Note the future tense of the following verbs:
•to know:
Ez ê bizanibim, tu yê bizanibî, etc. (in Behdinan: Ez dê zanim)
negative: Ez nizanim, tu nizanî, etc.
•to be able:
Ez ê bikaribim, tu yê bikaribî, etc. (in Behdinan: Ez dê şêm)
negative: Ez nikarim, tu nikarî, etc.
•to be:
Ez ê bim, tu yê bî, etc.
negative: Ez nabim, tu nabî, etc.
•to go:
Ez ê herrim, tu yê herrî, etc.
[also: Ez ê biçim, tu yê biçî, etc.] (in Behdinan: Ez dê çim)
negative: Ez naherrim, tu naherrî, etc.
[also: Ez naçim, tu naçî, etc.]
•to say:
• 70 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Ez ê [bi]bêjim, tu yê [bi]bêjî, etc. (in Behdinan: Ez dê bêjim)
negative: Ez nabêjim, tu nabêjî, etc.
•there is:
Dê hebe, dê hebin (in Behdinan: Dê hebît)
negative: Nabe, nabin
Strictly speaking, these are only irregular in the way that they form
the subjunctive.
b. Double negatives. In Kurdiş, it is correct
negatives, e.g.:
to use double
Ez nikarim tutiştî bêjim
I can't say anything [lit. 'I can't say nothing']
Ew tucar naxwaze herre
He doesn't ever want to go [lit. 'He never doesn't want to go']
c. Nouns that end in -e
e. There is some variety in the inflection of
nouns that end in -e. Let us take the noun qawe (f.) = 'coffee' as
an example. There are two inflections that are possible: 1) ezafeh
and 2) the oblique case. The ezafeh of qawe can be either qawey
ya- or
qawa
a-. Likewise, the oblique case can be either qawey
yê or qawê
ê. So
also mase (f.) = 'table' and mange (f.) = 'cow'
d. Interrogative particle. In Engliş, when we want to change a
statement into a question, we often need to change the verb. For
example, if we wiş to change the sentence "He wants to see my father"
into a question, we must add the auxiliary verb do, yielding "Does he
want to see my father?". In Kurdiş, there are several possible ways
to change a statement into a question. The simplest way is simply to
change the intonation: "Ew dixwaze bavê min bibîne" --> "Ew dixwa
aze
bavê min bibî
îne?" with rising intonation on -xwaz- in dixwaze and bîn- in bibîne. A second way is to start the sentence with gelo.
This can transform any (yes-no) statement into a question, e.g., Gelo
ew dixwaze bavê min bibîne?
e. For how much? When you tell how much you paid for something -- or
intend to charge for it -- in Kurdiş you use the preposition bi:
e.g., Bi çendê tuyê wî bifroşî? = How much will you sell it for? Ezê
wî bi hezar banqnotan bifroşim = I will sell it for 1,000 liras.
EXERCISES:
I. Translation: 1) He asks us what
we will do; 2) Cats are afraid of
cats?; 3) I cannot come study with
will come to your house tomorrow;
we are doing. He will ask us what
dogs. When will dogs be afraid of
(bi…rra) you today, but (lê) I
4) Next week my sister will go to
• 71 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Diyarbakir with her husband in order to buy bread, milk, and new
şirts; 5) When will your parents sell their horse? They will take him
to Van next month in order to sell him; 6) For (bi) how much will
your friends sell the cow? They will sell her for 1200 liras; 7) Do
you [pl.] want to stay in this city? We will be very happy if you
[will] stay; 8) Are her children afraid of their [own] horses? When
will they sell them?; 9) I must ask my brother if he will go to Zakho
(Zaxo, f.) next year. I want to go with him; 10) How many thieves
will strip a naked woman? I don’t know: you must ask your teacher.
II. Translate into English:
1) Ew du diz dê bavê te bikujin; 2) Ez ê hingiv û goşt bikirrim; 3)
Tu yê hezar û yek pirsyaran ji min bipirsî; 4) Hûn ê van sê pisîkan
bifroşin; 5) Em ê wan çil kûçikan bidine mamostayên xwe; 6) Ew
xwendekara nû dê van pênc kitêban bixwîne; 7) Ew ê li vî bajarî
bimînin; 8) Paş nîvrro dîya min dê telefonî min bike; 9) Zarokên me
dê bi zarokên we rra bileyîzin; 10) Paş nîvrro ez ê gelek birçî bim.
III. Make the sentences in Exercise II. into questions.
IV. Change the sentences in Exercise II. into the negative.
V. Write out and say the following numbers in Kurdiş: 173; 238;
1,261; 8,847; 46,000; 494; 3,972; 493; 7,654; 5,508; 625.
KURDISH PLACE NAMES
Dîyarbekr [Amed]
Zaxo
• 72 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Pronunciation drills
ev
van
xwe
kêç’
kirin
digrim
kurr
guh
ew
wan
xwê
keç’
k’irrîn
digrîm
k’ûr
gû
vê
vîn
bixwe
keys
karîn
digerrim
kor
got
wê
viyan
bixwîne
k’ês k’es
din
şiv
şêr
te
ji
beş
dibe
dev
ew dev
dîn
şîv
şîr
tê
jî
bêş
dibêje
dêv
ev dew
dên
şev
şerr
terr
jê
baş
divê
dew
wan devan
deyn
ew dew
ew devê wê
keç’
nîv
binive!
wê divêt
navê vê keç’ê
navê wê keç’ê
ev dev
ev dewê wê
keç’ik
nivîn
binivîse!
we divêt
navê wî kurrî
navê vî kurrî
van devên wan
ew devê we
keç’ek
nivistin
nîvişk
navê we
navê vê xwendek’arê
navê wî xwendek’arî
• 73 •
şî’ir
t’êr
davêje
dêw
ev dewê we
keç’ikek
nivîsîn
navê wê
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Deha [10]
{Pikkert
9.4}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan62:
•Ji guran birçîtir e, ji maran tazîtir e.
Hungrier than wolves, more naked than snakes (said of very poor
people)
•Xew - ji hesin girantir e, ji şêkir şîrintir e.
Sleep -- it’s heavier than iron, sweeter than sugar.
•Şam şekir e - lê welat şîrintir e.
Damascus is sugar, but home is sweeter.
•Têjikên maran ji maran pîstir in.
The snakes’ young are dirtier than the snakes.
Mamik:
•Hilindir milindir, kurr ji bavê bilindtir.
Hilindir milindir, the son is taller than the father.
[kurr = dû; bav = agir]
DIALOGUE:
I.
Miho:
Bêrîvan:
Miho:
Bêrîvan:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
62See
Xwendekarno! Îro ezê ji we bixwazim ku hûn
behsa xûşk û birayên xwe bikin. … Bêrîvanê!
Çend xûşk û birayên te hene?
Du xûşk û sê birayên min hene.
Tu ji hemiyan mezintir î?
Nexêr, birayê min Lezgîn ji min mezintir e. Du
birayên min yên din û herdu xûşkên min ji min
piçûktir in.
Baş e, Rêbazo! Birayê te Bêkes ji te piçûktir e,
ne wisa?
Belê, Seydayê Miho. Ez çar salan jê mezintir im.
T’u xûşk û birayên te yên din tunin, Rêbazo?
Belê! Xûşkeke min jî heye. Ew ji min gelekî
mezintir e. Navê mêrê wê Xemgîn e. Sê zarokên wan
hene.
Tu ji zarokên xûşka xwe mezintir î? Ango, hemî
xwarzîyên te ji te piçûktir in?
Ez pênc salan ji mezintirîn xwarzîyê xwe mezintir
im.
also Lescot #90-94, p. 202; #165, p. 212; #272, p. 225
• 74 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Miho:
Rêbaz:
II.
Miho:
Ferhad:
Miho:
Gelawêj:
Bêrîvan:
Miho:
Bêrîvan:
Miho:
Gelawêj:
Bi gotineke din, tu pênc salan ji nuxurîyê xûşka
xwe mezintir î.
Erê, rrast e.
Ferhado! Mala te ji xwendingehê dûr e yan nêzîk e?
Mala min du kîlometreyan ji xwendingehê dûr e.
Û tu, Gelawêjê, mala te dûrtir e yan nêzîktir e?
Mala min nêzîktir e, Mamosta. Mala min kêmtir ji
kîlometreyekê ji vir dûr e.
Seyda! Mala Gelawêjê ji hemiyan nêzîktir e!
Bi rrastî? Baş e, dûrtirîn mal --- mala kê ye?
Seyda, ez dibêjim ku mala Şêxmûs ji hemiyan
dûrtir e.
Mala wî çend dûr e?
Mala wî ne li vî bajarî ye! Ew li gundekî dijî!
VOCABULARY:
agir, êgir, vî agirî, m.
fire
baran, f.
rain
behsa … dikim [S: behsê…]I discuss, talk about
bêtir
more
bi gotineke din
in other words
bilind
high, tall
çêtir
better
demsal, f.
season (of the year)
dibare
it rains, it falls (of rain or snow)
dinya, f.
world
dû, m.
smoke
dûr [+ ji]
far [from]
gelî [+ oblique case plural] plural vocative particle: O [people]!
giran
heavy; expensive
gundî, m.
villager, peasant
gur, m. [S: gurg]
wolf
here/herî
most, -est
hesin, m. [S: asin]
iron (mineral)
jê [=ji wî/wê]
from him/her; than he/her
kêm
little, few
k’itêbxane, f.
library
k’îjan?
which?
kîlometre, f.
kilometer
lê
feminine vocative particle
lo
masculine vocative particle
mar, m.
snake
mirîşk, f.
chicken
nêzîk
near, close
nîv
half
nuxurî, m.&f.
oldest child
• 75 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
p’itir
more [S]
p’îs
dirty
rrast
right
sar
cold
seyda, m. [=mamosta]
teacher
Şam, f.
Damascus
tazî [=rrût]
naked
têjik, m. [also: çêjik]
cub, whelp, young (of animal)
-tir
more, -er
t’u [S: çu]
no, none
welat, welêt, vî welatî, m. country, homeland
xew, f.
sleep
xwarzî, m.&f.
nephew, niece [child of one's sister]63
SEASONS:
bihar, f.
biharê
havîn, f.
havînê
spring
in the spring
summer
in the summer
payîz, f.
payîzê
zivistan, f.
zivistanê
fall, autumn
in the fall
winter
in the winter
GRAMMAR:
a. The comparative degree of adjectives.
Add -tir to the positive (simple) degree. E.g.,
dirêj
xweş
xirab
kevn
kêm
long
pleasant
bad; ruined
old (things)
little, few
dirêjt
tir
xweşt
tir
xirabt
tir
kevnt
tir
kêmt
tir
longer
more pleasant
worse
older
less, fewer
A few common adjectives have irregular forms:
çêt
tir
bêt
tir, pit
tir
mezt
tir
better (also: başt
tir, qenct
tir)
more (also: pirrt
tir, ze‘ft
tir)
bigger (also: mezint
tir)
“Than” is expressed by the preposition ji, e.g.,
ji min bilindt
tir
ji şêkir şîrint
tir
63The
higher/taller than me
sweeter than sugar
children of one's brother are called birazî.
• 76 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
b. The superlative degree. Several different constructions are used.
I.
ji hemîyan + comparative adjective [-tir] (than all) (more [X])
ji hemîyan
çêtir
=
the best (of all)
ji hemîyan
pîstir
=
the dirtiest
II.
li
1
Li
+
noun
+
simple adjective
2
Kurdistanê
3
Dîyarbekir
64
mezin e.
Diyarbekir is the greatest/largest place in all of Kurdistan
III. here/herî +
here mezin
herî xweş
IV.
simple adjective
the largest
the nicest
simple adjective
mezint
tirîn
+ -tirîn
[under Persian & Sorani influence]
the largest
Note that this precedes the noun it modifies:
Dîyarbekr
Diyarbakir
mezint
tirîn bajarê Kurdistanê ye.
is the largest city in Kurdistan.
Did you notice that in the last sentence the Kurdish says literally
"the largest city of Kurdistan"? In English we can say "the best
little boy in the world", "the prettiest garden in the city", etc.;
we also say "the shortest month of the year", "the greatest day of my
life", etc. In Kurdish, this is expressed with an ezafeh
construction, e.g.:
Xweştirîn rroja
a payîzê
ê
or
Roja
a payîzê
ê ya ji hemîyan xweştir
the loveliest day in/of the fall
Dirêjtirîn rroja
a salê
ê
or
the longest day of the year
Roja
a salê
ê ya herî dirêj
c. Secondary ezafeh. We know how to say "my book" (kitêba min) and
"the new book" (kitêba nû), but how can we say "my new book"? As with
most things in Kurdiş, there are two ways to render this! The
simplest way is with independent ezafeh markers: yê for masculine
64see
Pikkert 9.4, p. 36
• 77 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
singular, ya for feminine singular, and yên [S: yêt] for plural.
Hence, "my new book" would be kitêba min ya nû. Likewise, "his old
şirt" would be kirasê wî yê kevn. Notice also that in the last
section, one way of saying "the longest day of the year" was rroja
salê ya herî dirêj. The rule is that when you have two modifiers for
the same noun, one is attached to the noun by ezafeh and the second
follows with an independent ezafeh marker65. In other words, if we
want to add a modifier to a noun which is already modified (by a
noun, adjective, or pronoun), we must use secondary ezafeh.66
The second way to render such constructions is like this: kitêba mine
e
nû. Instead of the independent ezafeh markers, the endings -î
(masculine singular and all plural nouns) and -e (feminine singular)
are added at the end of the first ezafeh construction. E.g.:
qelema mine
e dirêj = qelema min ya dirêj = my long pen
destê tey
yî rrast = destê te yê rrast = your right hand
kitêbên wêy
yî nû = kitêbên wê yên nû = her new books
qelema mine
e dirêje
e nû = qelema min ya dirêj ya nû = my long, new pen
kitêbên wêy
yî nûy
yî mezin = kitêbên wê yên nû yên mezin = her big,
new books
d. Vocative. When you address a person or call him or her by name,
in many dialects of Kurdiş a special form of the name is used: the
vocative case. To form this case, add -o to masculine singular
nouns, -ê to feminine singular nouns, and -no to plural nouns. In
addition, the particles lo (masculine singular), lê (feminine
singular) and gelî (+ oblique plural [-an]) may be added as well,
e.g.:
lo Bêkeso
o!
lê Bêrîvanê
ê!
O Bêkes!
O Bêrîvan!
gundîn
no!
gelî gundîy
yan!
}O
villagers!
e. Oblique case. In Lesson 8 we mentioned that the oblique case is
used to express time. For example, rrojekê = 'one day'. In the
dialogue of this chapter, we have seen more extended examples of the
oblique case, to express measurement:
65Another
way to put this might be as follows: when you have two modifiers for the
same noun,
one is attached to the noun by primary ezafeh and the second follows with a
secondary ezafeh
marker.
66This is a paraphrase of Pikkert #2.10, p. 16.
• 78 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Ez çar salan jê mezintir im = I am four years older than him.
[I am older than him by four years]
Ez pênc salan ji mezintirîn xwarzîyê xwe mezintir im = I am five
years older than my oldest nephew.
[I am older than my oldest nephew by five years]
Mala min du kîlometreyan ji xwendingehê dûr e = My house is two
kilometers [far] from the school.
[My house is far from the school by two kilometers]
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) My dog is smarter than your nephew; 2) Which is the
coldest season? Winter is the coldest; 3) Let your brother eat
[bread, i.e., a meal]. He is hungrier than you; 4) Are you your
father's eldest child? In other words, are you the biggest son of
your parents or not?; 5) Is your niece fatter than your sister? No,
my niece is thin -- my sister is much fatter than her!; 6) Do you see
those two men? They are father and son. The father is much şorter
than his son; 7) In the winter, there is no city colder than Erzurum
[a city colder than Erzurum there is not]; 8) They say that Seattle
is the wettest city in the world; every day it rains!; 9) What will
you do in the summer? I will play with my nieces and nephews; 10) My
eldest child will come see me in the fall.
II. Say each of these sentences in more than one way: 1) The newest
book in the library; 2) The thirstiest student in the school; 3) My
father's fattest sister; 4) The wettest day of the year; 5) The
bluest eyes in this world; 6) The coldest room in the house; 7) Your
brother's oldest şirt; 8) Our chicken's whitest egg; 9) The worst
school in the city; 10) The hottest month of the year; 11) Your old
book; 12) Their red chicken; 13) My new friend; 14) Our smart, new
teacher; 15) Their large, pleasant city.
III. Translate: 1) Hevlêr mezintirîn bajarê Kurdistana 'Îraqê ye?
Nexêr, Kerkûk ji Hevlêrê mezintir e; 2) Dihok ji Zaxoyê mezintir e, û
Zaxo ji Amêdîyê mezintir e; 3) Silêmanî ji Hevlêrê piçûktir e; 4)
Kîjan bajar xweştir e: Silêmanî yan Kerkûk?; 5) Hevlêr ji Mehabadê
kevntir e, ne wisa?; 6) Şîrintirîn keça xwendingeha me -- xûşka te
ye!; 7) Mezintirîn bajarê Kurdistana Tirkîyê kîjan bajar e? Dîyarbekr
e, yan bi gotineke din, Amed ji hemîyan mezintir e; 8) Germtirîn
demsal kîjan e? Havîn ji hemîyan germtir e; 9) Xweştirîn demsal kîjan
e? Bihar ji hemîyan xweştir e; 10) Havînê, bajarekî ji Mêrdînê
hişktir tune.
IV. Make up five sentences using comparative and superlative forms
of adjectives, and five sentences using secondary ezafeh.
• 79 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
KURDISH PERSONAL NAMES
Male:
Şêxmûs
KURDISH PLACE NAMES
Amêdî
Kerkûk
Erzirom
Mêrdîn
Hevlêr
Silêmanî
• 80 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Yanzdeha [11]
{Pikkert 4.1, 4.2, 4.6}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan:
•Roj rreş bû, tu jê rreştir be.
If the day is [lit. 'was'] black, you be blacker than it.
•Rûnişt li germa, rrabû li serma.
He sat around when it was warm, he got up when it got cold.
•Ber baranê rrevîm, bin zîpikê ketim.
I ran from the rain, I landed under the hail.
[ber = ji ber = from in front of]
DIALOGUE:
I.
Bêrîvan:
Ferhad:
Bêrîvan:
Ferhad:
Bêrîvan:
Ferhad:
Bêrîvan:
Ferhad:
Bêrîvan:
Ferhad:
Bêrîvan:
Ferhad:
II.
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
67or,
Heftêya çûyî, ez çûm dê û bavê xwe bibînim.
Tu çend rrojan li wir mayî?
Ez pênc rrojan li wir mam.
Û tu kengî zivirrî vî bajarî? Dihî yan pêr?
Dihî em zivirrîn.
Em?! Tu bi tenê neçûyî malê?
Nexêr, hevala min Gulistan bi min rra bû -- em
pevrra çûne serêdanê.
Çawa derbaz bû?
Baş bû?
Erê! Gelekî xweş derbaz bû! Kêfa Gulistanê ji
bajarê min rra hat. Em di wî bajarî da gelekî
gerryan.
Gulistan çima bi te rra hat? Ew çima li vir nema, yan
jî ew çima neçû dê û bavê xwe bibîne?
Ew bi min rra hat ji ber ku mala dê û bavê wê gelekî
dûr e. Çêtir bû ku ew bi min rra hat, da ku heftêyekê
li vir bi tenê nemîne.
Xebera te ye!
Seydayê Miho, tu kengî hatî vî bajarî?
Ez pêrar hatime vî bajarî -- ango berî du salan.
Tu li kuderê mezin bûyî?
Ez li gundekî li bakura Diyarbekrê mezin bûm.
Gundê te mezin e yan piçûk e?
Wê demê gundê me mezin bû, lê niha gelekî
piçûk e. Herkes rrevî, çû bajêr67.
Ma kes li gundê we nemaye, mamosta Miho?
çûy
ye bajêr.
• 81 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Rêbaz:
Miho:
Bi rrastî ez nizanim -- ji mêj ve ye ez neçûme gundê
xwe.
Dê û bavê te jî ji gund derketin, yan li wir man?
Dîya min li gund ma, lê bavê min rrabû, çû bajêr.
Bavê te çima ji gund derket? Ew çima çû bajêr?
Bavê min çûye bajêr da ku li kar bigerre.
Li gund kar tune?
Di wextê xwe da kar hebû, lê êdî nema. Niha herkes
mecbûr e ji gund derkeve û herre bajêr.
VOCABULARY:
berî
before (of time); ago
dem, f.
time
derbaz bûn (derbaz dibe), vi. to pass
dihî [also: duh]
yesterday
‘erd, f.
earth, floor, ground
êdî nema
it's all gone, there is no more
firrîn (difirrim), vi.
to fly
gerryan (digerrim), vi.
to roam, wander
herk’es
everyone, everybody
heftêya çûyî
last week
ji mêj ve
for/since a long time
k’ar, m.
work, labor
k’etin (dik’evim), vi.
to fall
lê gerryan (li …digerrim), vi.to look for, search, seek
ma
signals a question
mecbûr [+ subjunctive]
forced, required (to do stg.)
meha çûyî
last month
par
last year
pêr
two days ago, day before yesterday
(par na) pêrar
two years ago, year before last
rrevîn (dirrevim), vi.
to flee, escape, run away
serêdan, f.
visit
serma, f.
cold weather, the cold
sêv, f.
apple
wê demê = di wextê xwe da
formerly, once, in the past
zivirrîn (dizivirrim), vi.
to return, go or come back
zîpik, f.
hail [form of precipitation]
DIRECTIONS:
bakur, f.
rrojhilat, f.
Rojhilata Navîn
north
east
Middle East
başûr, f.
rrojava, f.
• 82 •
south
west
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
GRAMMAR:
a. Past Tense of Intransitive Verbs [vi.] With this lesson, we will
be introducing the past stem of the verb system. This is formed by
removing the final -[i]n from the infinitive, which we will also be
introducing at this time. In English, the infinitive is the basic
form of the verb preceded by the preposition 'to', e.g.: 'to eat',
'to be', 'to go', 'to see', etc. Up till now we have been referring
to verbs by the first person singular of the present tense, e.g.,
dikirrim = 'I buy'; dikim = 'I do'; dixwazim = 'I want'. From now on,
we will refer to verbs by their infinitive forms (kirrîn = 'to buy';
kirin = 'to do'; xwestin = 'to want'). Whereas in Engliş it is
necessary to learn three principal parts of every verb (e.g., see saw - seen; go - went - gone; walk - walked - walked, etc.), in
Kurdish verbs only have two principal parts: present stem (e.g.,
dikirrim) and infinitive (e.g., kirrîn). If we know these two forms
and whether the verb is transitive or intransitive, it is possible to
conjugate verbs fully. At the end of this chapter, we have included
a table showing the infinitives of all the verbs introduced thus far
as well as whether they are transitive (vt.) or intransitive (vi.).
This information will enable you to form the past tense. Note that
infinitives with consonant stems end in -in (e.g., hati
in = 'to come',
xwesti
in = 'to want', dîti
in = 'to see'), and those with vowel stems
end in -n (e.g., çûn
n = 'to go', bûn
n = 'to be', girîn
n = 'to cry', dan
n
= 'to give'). For this lesson, you need only concern yourself with
verbs marked as vi. [intransitive].
I. The endings for the past tense of intransitive verbs are the same
as those for the present tense, except that the third person singular
receives no ending (-ø). To form this tense, take the infinitive of
the verb, and remove the final -[i]n. E.g., hati
in --> hat; çûn
n -->
çû. The endings are added to this past tense stem. The negative is
formed by prefixing né- to the affirmative form. Notice that ne- is
identical with the negative particle for the Present Subjunctive.
Paradigm:
I.
hatin
= 'to come'
Affirmative
Ez
hati
im
Em
hati
in68
Tu
hatî
î
Hûn hati
in
Ew
hat
Ew
hati
in
68S:
'I came'
'we came'
'you (s.) came'
'you (pl.) came'
's/he came'
'they came'
em hatî
în
• 83 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Negative
Ez
néhati
im
Em
néhati
in
Tu
néhatî
î
Hûn néhati
in
Ew
néhat
Ew
néhati
in
II.
çûn
'I didn't come'
'we didn't come'
'you (s.) didn't come'
'you (pl.) didn't come'
's/he didn't come'
'they didn't come'
= 'to go'
Affirmative
Ez
çûm
m
Em
çûn
n69
Tu
çûy
yî
Hûn çûn
n
Ew
çû
Ew
çûn
n
'I went'
'we went'
'you (s.) went'
'you (pl.) went'
's/he went'
'they went'
Negative
Ez
néçûm
m
Em
néçûn
n
Tu
néçûy
yî
Hûn néçûn
n
Ew
néçû
Ew
néçûn
n
'I didn't go'
'we didn't go'
'you (s.) didn't go'
'you (pl.) didn't go'
's/he didn't go'
'they didn't go'
It must be stressed that in this chapter we are dealing only with
intransitive verbs -- verbs that do not take a direct object. In the
next chapters we will introduce the past tense of transitive verbs
(verbs that take a direct object). This distinction is basic to the
Kurdiş verb system. To illustrate the difference between transitive
and intransitive verbs in Engliş, consider the following: We can say
'Şe closes the door', or 'Şe sees the boy', or 'Şe reads a book'. In
all three cases, we can ask 'What (or whom) does şe close or see or
read?':
What does she close? answer: the door
Whom does she see? answer: the boy
What does she read? answer: a book
This tells us that 'to close', 'to see' and 'to read' are transitive
verbs: they require direct objects. However, if we say 'She goes to
the city', or 'She laughs', or 'She lives in Paris', it would make no
sense to ask
69S:
em çûy
yn
• 84 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
*What does she go?
*What does she laugh?
*What does she live?
This is because the verbs 'to go', 'to laugh' and 'to live' are
intransitive70. To test whether verb X is transitive or
intransitive, ask the question 'What does s/he X?'. If the question
makes grammatical sense and seems answerable, the verb is probably
transitive. However, if the question seems not to make sense
grammatically, the verb is more than likely intransitive.
The following verbs are intransitive:
•bûn (-im/dibim)
•çûn (diçim/diherrim)
•derk’etin (derdik’evim)
•firrîn (difirrim)
•girîn (dig[i]rîm)
•hatin (têm)
•hebûn (heye, hene)
•jîn (dijîm)
•k’enîn (dik’enim)
•k’etin (dik’evim)
•lê gerryan (lê digerrim)
•man (dimînim)
•peyivîn (dipeyivim)
•rrabûn (rradibim)
•rrazan (rradizêm)
•rrevîn (dirrevim)
•rrûniştin (rrûdinim)
•sekinîn (disekinim)
•tirsîn (ditirsim)
•zivirrîn (dizivirrim)
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
'to
be; to become'
go'
leave, go out'
fly'
cry'
come'
exist, there is/are'*
live' (≠ to die)
laugh'
fall'
seek, look for, search for'
remain, stay'
speak, talk'
get up, rise'
go to sleep, lie down'
flee, escape, run away'
sit'
stand, stop'
fear, be afraid of'
return, go or come back'
70One
can think of examples in which these verbs could be made transitive in
English (although not in Kurdish), e.g., 'to go an extra mile', or 'to live a long
life', or 'to laugh up a storm'.
* Negative tune (pl. tunene), past tense tunebû (pl. tunebûn).
• 85 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) We stayed; We did not stay; 2) They fell; They have
not fallen for a long time; 3) You (sing.) flew; You didn't fly; 4)
He laughed; He did not laugh; 5) I lived; I didn’t live; 6) You
(pl.) were; You were not; 7) Who fell? No one fell; 8) What was
there? There were two cats; 9) Did the child cry? No, he has not
cried for a long time -- he laughed; 10) When did the guests come?
They did not come yesterday; 11) What did you look for in
Diyarbekir?; 12) I looked for work to the south of [li başûra] that
city.
II. Translate the following sentences into Kurmanji.
1) I will come to your house next month; 2) My friend (f.) will go
to Van next year; 3) His şirt will fall on the floor ('erdê); 4) We
will be afraid of your dogs tomorrow; 5) Your (pl.) sister is a
student in this school; 6) You (pl.) have apples, and we have eggs;
7) Your sister is laughing; 8) The boys come out of the school; 9)
The chicken will fly to Mardin tomorrow; 10) Why is Bêkes crying?
III. Put the sentences in Exercise II. into the negative.
IV. Put the sentences in Exercise II. into the past (negative) -making all necessary changes (e.g., tomorrow-->yesterday).
V. Put the sentences in Exercise II. into the past (affirmative).
VI. Make up ten questions using intransitive
answer them.
past tense verbs, and
Another proverb:
•Gerîyam dora dinê, xilas nebûm ji mirinê (Z-1440)
Infinitives of verbs introduced up to lesson 11:
Present Tense
çêdikim
dadigrim
datînim
derdik’evim
derdixim
dibare
dibêjim
dibihîzim
dibim I
dibim II [S: dibem]
dibirrim
dibînim
Meaning
Infinitive
± Transitivity
I make, fix
çêkir-in
vt.
I fill up
dagirt-in
vt.
I put, place
danî-n [S: dana-n]
vt.
I leave, exit
derk’et-in
vi.
I cause to leave derxist-in
vt.
it rains, falls
barî-n
vi.
I say, tell
got-in
vt.
I hear
bihîst-in
vt.
I become
bû-n
vi.
I take, carry [away]bir-in
vt.
I cut
birrî-n
vt.
I see; I find
dît-in
vt.
• 86 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
diçim
didim [S: didem]
difroşim
digrim
digrîm
diherrim
dijîm
[di]karim
dik’enim
dikim [S: dikem]
dik’irrim
dikujim
dileyîzim
dimînim
din[y]asim
dipeyivim
dipêjim
dipirsim
disekinim
dişêlînim
dişêm
dişînim
dişkê
dişom
ditirsim
divê[t]
dixwazim
dixwim [S: dixom]
dixwînim
dizanim
fedî dikim
fêm dikim
girêdidim
heye
-im
lê digerrim
nas dikim
rradibim
rradizêm
rrûdinim
têm
tînim
vedikim
vedixwim
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
go
çû-n
give
da-n
sell
firot-in
take, catch; I close girt-in
cry
girî-n
go
çû-n
live
jî[ya]-n
can, am able
karî-n
laugh
k’enî-n
do
kir-in
buy, purchase
k’irrî-n
kill
kuşt-in
play
leyîst-in
remain, stay
ma-n vi.
know [S}
n[y]asî-n
speak, talk
peyivî-n
I bake, cook
pat-in
I ask
pirsî-n
I stand, stop
sekinî-n
I strip, rob
şêland-in
I can, am able
şiya-n
I send
şand-in
it breaks
şkest-in
I waş
şûşt-in
I fear, am afraid tirsî-n
must, it is necessaryviya-n
I want; I ask for xwest-in
I eat
xwar-in
I read, I study
xwend-in
I know
zanî-n
I am aşamed
fedî kir-in
I understand
fêm kir-in
I tie
girêda-n
there is
hebû-n
I am
bû-n
I seek, look for lê gerrya-n
I know
nas kir-in
I get up, rise
rrabû-n
I go to sleep
rraza-n
I sit
rrûnişt-in
I come
hat-in
I bring
anî-n [S: îna-n]
I open
vekir-in
I drink
vexwar-in
• 87 •
vi.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vi.
vi.
vi.
vt.
vi.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vi.
vt.
vt.
vi.
vt.
vi.
vt.
vi.
vt.
vi.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vt.
vi.
vi.
vi.
vt.
vi.
vi.
vi.
vi.
vt.
vt.
vt.
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Donzdeha [12]
{Pikkert
4.3,4.4,4.6}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan:
•Me hingî got, me tu jê nesot.
We said [it] then, [but] we didn't burn anything of it
•Mirîşkê çav li betê kir, qûna xwe ç’irrand71
The chicken imitated the bustard, and tore its own backside
•Xanima min, min tu li jêr jî dîtî, li jor jî dîtî72
My lady, I have seen you from below, I have seen you from above
•Eger ez dîtim, ez im; eger nedîtim, diz im.
If they saw me, it's me; if they didn't see me, it is a thief
[lit., 'I am a thief']
READING:
Bavê min ez birime bajêr
Wextê ku ez biçûk bûm, bavê min ez birim bajêr. Bajar gelekî
mezin bû, ji gundê me mezintir bû. Li gund hesp ze‘f in, lê li bajêr
min tu hesp nedîtin. Min kerek didû dîtin. Gava em gihîştin bajêr,
ez gelekî tirsîm. Min tutişt fêm nekir, min tukes nas nekir.
Min ji bavê xwe pirsî, ku, “Bavo, te çima ez anîm vê derê, vî
bajarî? Te çima ez anîm vî bajarê mezin?” Bavê min got, “Lawo, tu
mezin bûyî û lazim e ku tu bibînî dinya çiqas mezin e.” Min fêm kir,
û gotina bavê xwe rrast dît. Min dîsa jê pirsî: “Bavo, wê gavê, te
çima birayên min yên biçûk jî neanîn?” Got, “Lawo, ew hê biçûk in,
ji te biçûktir in, bila li malê, li cem dîya xwe bimînin. Wextê ku
wek te mezin dibin, ezê wana jî bînim bajêr.” Ez kenîm û min ji xwe
rra got, “Ez çiqas bextewar im ku bavê min merivekî wisa ye!”
Hinekî paşê, min tiştek dît, ku kêfa min gelek jê rra hat. Ez
birçî bûm û min ji bavê xwe rra got, “Bavo, ez birçî me. Emê kengî
nan bixwin?” Bavê min tiştek negot, wî destê min girt û ez birim
cihekî, ku jêrra dibêjin “xwaringeh”. Em li ber masekê rrûniştin, û
merivek hat û ji me pirsî: “Hûn dixwazin çi bixwin?” Min fêm nekir,
min nezanî ev meriv kî bû û çi ji me xwest. Di gundê me da tiştekî
wisa tune. Bavê min kenî, û ji mêriv rra got, “Du dew û du döneran
ji me rra bîne.” Pênc deqe şûnda, ew zivirrî û xwarina me danî ser
masê. Min zanî, dew çi ye -- li gundê me jî dew pirr e. Lê min
nezanî ‘döner’ çi ye. Nan e, û di nava nên da goşt heye. Ev goşt jî
71Lescot
72Lescot
#40, p. 194.
#226, p. 220.
• 88 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
goştê berxan e. Min di ‘emrê xwe da tiştekî wisa nexwaribû* -- ze‘f
kêfa min jê rra hat. Ez dikarim bêjim ku min hiz ji dönerê kir. Ji
wê rrojê û were, xwarina min ya here hizkirî, ev döner e.
VOCABULARY:
berx[ik], f.
lamb
bet, f.
type of duck, bustard
bextewar
glad; lucky, fortunate
cih, m. [also: cî]
place; bed
ç’av kirin, vt. [li]
to copy s.o., imitate
çiqas?
how much?; how
çiqas bextewar im
how lucky I am
ç’irrandin (diç’irrînim), vt. to tear, rip
dew, dêw, vî dewî, m.
drink made of yoghurt and water
[Turkish ayran]
di nava … da
inside of, within, in the middle of
dîsa[n]
again
döner [Turkish]
gyros, şawermah, lamb cooked on a
rotating spit
'emir, m. (‘emrê min)
life(time); age
gihîştin (-gih[êj]-), vi.
to reach, arrive at
gotin (-bêj-), vt.
to say
gotin, f.
(one's) words, what one says
hinekî
a little, a little bit
hinekî paşê
a little bit later
hingî
then, at that time
hizkirî
belovèd, favorite
jêr
below
ji … û were
ever since [T -den beri]
jor
above
k’er, m.&f.
donkey
k’erek didû
a donkey or two
li cem
at the house of, over s.o.'s house
meriv, mêriv, vî merivî, m.
man, person
paşê
after(wards)
p’encere, f.(p’encera-; p’encerê) window
qûn, f.
rear end, backside
rrast dîtin
to consider [something] right or
correct
sotin (disojim), vt.
to burn (vt.)
şûnda
after(wards), later
t’u [S: çu]
no, none
t’uk’es
nobody, no one
wek
like, as
wextê (ku)
when (conj.)
*This
is past perfect. See lesson 13.
• 89 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
wê gavê
xwarin, f.
xwaringeh, f.
then, in that case
food
restaurant
DAYS OF THE WEEK:
Şemî, f. [S: Şembî]
Yekşem, f.[S: ‰kşembî]
Duşem, f. [S: Duşembî]
Sêşem, f. [S: Sêşembî]
Çarşem, f. [S: Çarşembî]
Pêncşem, f. [S: Pêncşembî]
Înî, f. [S: (H)eynî]
rroja ~ê
rroja Duşemê
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
on ~
on Monday
GRAMMAR:
a. Past tense of transitive verbs [vt.]. Transitive verbs (vt.),
i.e., verbs that take a direct object, behave differently in the past
tenses from intransitive verbs (vi.). The type of construction which
occurs in the past tense of transitive verbs in Kurdiş is called an
ergative construction.73
Historically, the past tense of a transitive verb in an ergative
construction is turned into a passive construction. E.g., 'I opened
the door' becomes 'The door was opened by me'. The logical direct
object (the door) becomes the grammatical subject, and the logical
subject (I) becomes the grammatical agent (by me). Therefore,
instead of saying ‘I (you, he, şe, etc.) did something’, in Kurdiş
one is actually saying ‘something was done by me (you, him, her,
etc.)'.
b. Formation:
1) As with intransitive verbs (vi.), the past stem is formed by
removing the final -[i]n from the infinitive, e.g.,
kir-in
girt-in
-->
-->
kir
girt
xwar-in
dît-in
-->
-->
xwar
dît
vekir-in
-->
vekir
anî-n
-->
anî
73For
the comparative linguists among our readers, the distinction which German,
French, Italian, Dutch, and Danish maintain between transitive and intransitive
verbs in the past tense is comparable to the distinction made in Kurdish. E.g.,
German 'ich habe gesehen' vs. 'ich bin gegangen'; French 'j'ai vu' vs. 'je suis
allé'; Italian 'ho visto/veduto' vs. 'sono andato', etc. For an interesting
discussion of this, drawing parallels with the ergative in Iranian languages, see:
Émile Benveniste. Problèmes de linguistique générale (Paris : Gallimard, 1966),
esply chap. XV "La construction passive du parfait transitif", vol. 1, pp. 176-186.
• 90 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
2) The logical subject goes into the oblique case, while the verb
takes no personal ending. (The personal ending of the verb is
determined by the person and number of the logical direct object -see d. below). E.g.,
Ez dikim
I do
---->
Tu dikî
You do
---->
Min kir
I did
(by me was done)
Te kir
You did
(by you was done)
Ew dike
---->
S/he does
Wî/wê kir
He/şe did (by him/her was done)
Em dikin
We do
Me kir
We did
(by us was done)
Hûn dikin ---->
You do
We kir
You did
(by you was done)
Ew dikin
They do
Wan kir74
They did (by them was done)
---->
---->
c. As with intransitive verbs, the negative of the past tense is
formed by prefixing stressed
né- to the verb, e.g.,
min né-kir, te né-kir, wî né-kir, wê né-kir …
min ve-n
né-xwar, te ve-n
né-xwar, wî ve-n
né-xwar, wê ve-n
né-xwar …
d. If the logical direct object is plural, the verb must agree with
it in number. *Note that it is irrelevant whether the logical
subject is singular or plural. E.g.,
1) Present tense:
I open the door.
Ez dêrî vedikim.
I open the doors
s.
Ez derîy
yan vedikim.
Past tense:
I opened the door.
Min derî vekir.
I opened the doors
s.
Min derî vekiri
in.
historically
74In
the north, forms such as wan kiri
in, wan goti
in, etc. are very common, due to
influence from foreign languages and/or internal transformation. In this course,
such forms will be considered incorrect, unless they are agreeing with a plural
direct object. For an in depth study of this curious phenomenon, see:
Margreet
Dorleijn. The Decay of Ergativity in Kurmanci : Language Internal or Contact
Induced? (Tilburg : Tilburg University Press, 1996), 183 p.
• 91 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
By me the door was opened.
By me the doors
s were opened.
Present tense:
You don’t see the girl.
Tu keçikê
ê nabînî.
You don’t see the girls
s.
Tu keçika
an nabînî.
Past tense:
You didn’t see the girl.
Te keçik nedît.
You didn’t see the girls
s.
Te keçik nedîti
in.
historically
By you the girl was not seen. By you the girls
s were not seen.
2) With a noun as the logical subject:
Present tense:
The şepherd finds the wolf.
Şivan gur dibîne.
The şepherd finds the wolv
ves.
Şivan gura
an dibîne.
Past tense:
The şepherd found the wolf.
The şepherd found the wolv
ves.
Şivê
ên gur dît.
Şivê
ên gur dîti
in.
historically
By the şepherd the wolf was found.
By the şepherd the wolves
s were found.
3) With a plural subject:
Present tense:
The şepherds
s find the wolf.
Şivan gur dibîni
in.
The şepherds
s find the wolves.
Şivan guran dibîni
in.
Past tense:
The şepherds
s found the wolf.
Şivana
an gur dît.
The şepherds
s found the wolves.
Şivana
an gur dîtin.
e. Let us look once again at a pair of sentences from above:
Şivên gur dît
The shepherd found the wolf (By the shepherd the wolf was found)
and
Şivên gur dîtin
The shepherd found the wolves (By the shepherd the wolves were found)
In these paired sentences, the number of the verb is determined by
the logical direct object. As Pikkert states in 4.3, in an ergative
• 92 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
past tense, “the verb will agree with the object in number and
person.” Since all nouns are by definition third person, there is no
question of person when the logical direct object is a noun (gur in
the above sentences). But what if the logical direct object is a
pronoun ? Suppose we want to say ‘The şepherd found me (you, us,
etc.)’?
Let us begin by taking a look at the past tense endings for
intransitive verbs, using the verb hatin as an example:
Ez hati
im
Em hati
in
Tu hatî
î
Hûn hati
in
Ew hat
Ew
hati
in
Transitive verbs can take these same endings, however, the meaning
will be passive rather than active. Observe:
Ez dîti
im
Em dîti
in
Tu dîtî
î
Hûn dîti
in
Ew dît
Ew
dîti
in
‘Ez dîtim’ does not mean *‘I saw/found’, but rather ‘I was
seen/found’ (passive); another way of seeing this is to translate it
as ‘[someone] saw/found me’. Hence, the full paradigm of the
transitive verb dîtin and the two possible translations for each form
are as follows:
Ez dîti
im
I was seen
or
[X] saw me
Tu dîtî
î
You (s.) were seen
or
[X] saw you (s.)
Ew dît
S/he was seen
or
[X] saw him/her
Em dîti
in
We were seen
or
[X] saw us
Hûn dîti
in
You (pl.) were seen
or
[X] saw you (pl.)
Ew
They were seen
or
[X] saw them
dîti
in
Now back to our earlier question: How does one say ‘The shepherd
found me (you, us, etc.)’? If we convert the sentence to its
corresponding passive in English, we come one step closer to the
answer:
• 93 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
By the shepherd I was seen
Şivên ez dîti
im
The shepherd saw me
By the şepherd you were seen
Şivên tu dîtî
î
The şepherd saw you
Another example of this construction can be found in the reading
passage at the beginning of this chapter:
Bavê min
ez birim[e]
bajêr
By my father
I was taken to
town
My father took me to town [or, to the city]
f. Here is another way of looking at the formation of the past tense
of transitive verbs:
1. singular
2. singular
3. singular
1 direct case
Ez
Tu
Ew
2 oblique case
min
te
wî (masc.)
wê (fem.)
I (me)
you
he (him)
şe (her)
1. plural
2. plural
3. plural
Em
Hûn
Ew
me
we
wan
we (us)
you
they (them)
indef. sing. f.
def. sing. f.
def. pl.
def. pl.
sêvek
Keç
Sêv
kitêb
sêvekê
keçê
sêvan
kitêban
an apple
[the] girl
[the] apples
[the] books
Each clause with a transitive verb can have only one from column 1
and only one from column 2.
In the present tense, the logical subject will be in the direct case
(column 1), and the direct object will be in the oblique case (column
2), e.g.:
Ez
(1)
I-dir.
I see you.
te
(2)
dibînim
you-obl.
see
so also with nouns rather than pronouns:
Şivan
(1)
Shepherd-dir.
min
(2)
me-obl.
dibîne
sees
• 94 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
The shepherd sees me.
Keç
(1)
Girl-dir.
The girl reads
kitêban
dixwîne
(2)
books-obl.
reads
the books.
For transitive verbs, in the past tense the logical subject will be
in the oblique case (column 2), and the direct object will be in the
direct case (column 1), e.g.:
Min
(2)
I-obl.
I saw you.
tu
(1)
you-dir.
dîtî
saw-2nd pers. sing.
[Ez (1) --> min (2); te (2) --> tu (1) ; {ez}dibînim
Şivên
ez
(2)
(1)
Shepherd-obl. me-dir.
The şepherd saw me.
--> {tu} dîtî]
dîtim
saw-1st pers. sing.
[Şivan (1) --> Şivên(2); min (2) -> ez (1); {şivan}dibîne
--> {ez}dîtim]
Keçê
kitêb
xwendin
(2)
(1)
Girl-obl.
books-dir.
read-3rd pers. pl.
The girl read the books.
[Keç (1)--> Keçê (2); kitêban (2) --> kitêb (1); {keç}dixwîne
--> {kitêb} xwendin]
In both past and non-past tenses, the verb agrees with whatever is in
the direct case. In the present tense75, the logical subject is in
the direct case, and the verb agrees with it in person and number:
Ew
sêvekê
(1)
(2)
She-dir.
an-apple-obl.
She eats an apple.
dixwe
e
Ew
sêvekê
(1)
(2)
They-dir.
an-apple-obl.
They eat an apple.
dixwi
in
Ew
du sêvan
(1)
(2)
She-dir.
2-apples-obl.
She eats two apples.
dixwe
e
[Ew dixwe]
eats-3rd pers. sing.
[Ew dixwin]
eat-3rd pers. pl.
[Ew dixwe]
eats-3rd pers. sing.
75i.e.,
in all non-past tenses of the transitive verb, and in all tenses of the
intransitive verb.
• 95 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Ew
du sêvan
(1)
(2)
They-dir.
2-apples-obl.
They eat two apples.
dixwi
in
[Ew dixwin]
eat-3rd pers. pl.
Em
te
nas diki
in
(1)
(2)
We-dir.
you-sing.-obl. know-1st pers. pl.
We know you (s.).
[Em nas dikin]
In the past tense of the transitive verb, the logical direct object
is in the direct case, and the verb agrees with it in person and
number:
Wê
sêve
ek
(2)
(1)
She-obl.
an-apple-dir.
She ate an apple.
xwar
Wan
sêve
ek
(2)
(1)
They-obl.
an-apple-dir.
They ate an apple.
xwar
Wê
du sêv
(2)
(1)
She-obl.
2-apples-dir.
She ate two apples.
xwari
in
Wan
du sêv
(2)
(1)
They-obl.
2-apples-dir.
They ate two apples.
xwari
in
[sêvek xwar]
ate-3rd pers. sing.
[sêvek xwar]
ate-3rd pers. sing.
[du sêv xwarin]
ate-3rd pers. pl.
[du sêv xwarin]
ate-3rd pers. pl.
Me
tu
nas kirî
î
[tu nas kirî]
(2)
(1)
We-obl.
you-sing.-dir. knew-2nd pers. sing.
We knew you (s.).
EXERCISES:
I. Translate:
1)
I give; I don’t give; I gave;
I didn’t give.
2)
You (s.) see; You don’t see; You saw; You didn’t see.
3)
She comes; She doesn’t come; She came; She didn’t come.
4)
He reads; He doesn’t read; He read; He didn’t read.
5)
We drink; We don’t drink; We drank; We didn’t drink.
• 96 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)
11)
12)
13)
14)
15)
II.
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)
11)
12)
You (pl.) open; You don’t open; You opened; You didn’t open.
They catch;
They don’t catch; They caught; They didn’t catch.
The şepherd saw us on Wednesday. The şepherds did not see us on
Thursday.
Did they catch you (s.)? No, they did not catch me.
When did you (pl.) return home? We returned home on Sunday.
Our mother waşed us. Did your (s.) mother waş you?
The student (f.) took her to school. The students did not take
them to school.
You (s.) have not seen us for a long time.
Who brought you (pl.) home on Thursday? My friends brought me
home.
They heard us yesterday. We heard them two days ago.
Translate, giving the four forms (singular and plural direct
object, present and past tense):
She reads (read) the book(s).
The dogs catch (caught) the cat(s).
The boy opens (opened) the door(s).
The teacher does not (did not) read the lesson(s) on Tuesday.
The student waşes (waşed) his hand(s).
The woman does not (did not) sell her cow(s) on Saturday.
My sisters eat (ate) the bread(s).
You (pl.) do not (did not) close the window(s).
We bring (brought) the yoghurt home on Monday.
Your (s./pl.) mothers loves (loved) you (s./pl.).
They don’t (didn’t) tell me anything [=They don’t say a thing to
me].
Do (did) the fathers take the children to school today
(yesterday)?
III. Translate into English:
1)
Te em dîtin, nedîtin? Me tu dîtî, nedîtî?; Roja înê min hûn
negirtin. Roja Pêncşemê we ez negirtim;
2)
Wê destên xwe neşûştin;
3)
Roja Çarşemê me dîya xwe bire Wanê. We dê û bavê xwe birine
Sêrtê?;
4)
Wan ez nas kirim, lê “rroj baş” negote min;
5)
Ji mêj ve min tu nedîtî;
6)
Wextê ku tu çûyî Rehayê rroja Şemîyê, te çi kirrî?
7)
Min sê kirasên nû kirrîn;
8)
Yên ku ez anîm, dê min dîsa bibin.
IV. Make up ten sentences using
transitive and intransitive.
verbs in the past tense, both
KURDISH PLACE NAMES
Sêrt
• 97 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Sêzdeha [13]
{Pikkert 4.5, 4.7, 5.3}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan:
Mêra mêr dikuştin, Cibo ûr dişûştin
Men were killing men, Jibo was waşing intestines.
Kelb bin sîya 'erebêda rrûniştibû, ewî tirê sîya boçika wî ye
The dog sat under the şade of the wagon, he thoughT it was the şade
of his own tail.
READING:
Merivekî gundîyek kuştibû û dirrevî. Gundîyan dabûye pey
merivkuj ku bigrin. Wî dît di rrê da çend rêwîyên din ber bi wî ve
tên. Tirsî ku wî bigrin, xwe zûzûka avête zevîya nîskan ya li devê
rrê, baqek nîsk çinî û rrevî. Gundîyên ku dabûye pey wî -- gazî
rêwîyan kir, ku wî bigrin. Rêwîyên ku ji pêşber dihatin, mêrik girt.
Wan pirsî, çima gundî wisa bi pey wî ketin. Mêrik got: "Ez di rrê da
dihatim, min ji zevîya wan baqek nîsk çinî, niha dixwazin min bigrin,
bikujin." Rêwîyan ew berda û gundîyên ku dabû dû -- girtin, wan got:
"Şerm e, şerm, ji ber baqek nîsk hûnê mêr bikujin, çi ye?" Gundîyan
ku ew yek bihîst 'ecêbmayî man, wan got: "Kî zane -- zane, kî nizane
-- baqê nîskan e."76
VOCABULARY:
avêtin (davêjim), vt.
xwe avêtin, vt.
bala xwe dan, vt.
baq, m.
ber bi [… ve]
ber•dan (berdidim), vt.
berî ku
bilûr, f.
bîr, f.
ji bîr kirin, vt.
boç’ik, f.
carina
Cibo
to throw
to jump, leap
to realize, see
handful
towards
to let go, release
before (conjunction + verb)
flute (Turkiş kaval)
memory
to forget
tail
sometimes
man's name
76Adapted
from: Ordikhane Dzhalil & Dzhalile Dzhalil. Mesele û Met'elokê K'urda bi
Zimanê K'urdî û Rûsî = Kurdskie Poslovitsy i Pogovorki na Kurdskom i Russkom
IAzykakh (Moskva : Glavnaia redaktsiia vostochnoπ literatury, 1972), anecdote #18,
p. 385. The punchline "Kî zane -- zane, kî nizane -- baqê nîskan e" is a well known
Kurdish proverb.
• 98 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
cînar, m.&f. [also: cîran] neighbor
çinîn (diçinim), vt.
to pick (fruits)
dan pey/dû, vt. = k’etin pey to follow, chase, pursue
dev, dêv, vî devî, m.
mouth; edge
devê rrê
the side/edge of the road
dû = pey
after
'ecêbmayî man, vi.
to be amazed, şocked, stunned, surprised
'erebe, f. ('ereba-; 'erebê)cart, wagon
gazî kirin, vt.
to call
gelek caran
often, usually
gihandin (digihînim), vt. to cause to arrive, to bring someone to
hergav
always
her heftê
every week
her rroj
every day
hiştin (dihêlim), vt.[hêlan (S)]to leave, let
heta
until
ji ber
because of, for the sake of
jin anîn, vt.
to get married (of a man)
k’elb, m. = kûçik
dog
k’etin pey, vi.
to follow, chase, pursue
lê•xistin [li… dix(în)e],vt.to play (an instrument)
mal77, m.
property
merivkuj, m.
murderer
mêrik, m.
man, fellow, chap
mêr kirin, vt.
to be married off (of a woman)
nazik
delicate, gentle
nîsk, f.
lentil(s)
p’al, f.
slope, side (of mountain)
pey = dû
after
pê hesîn (pê dihesim), vi.to find out, become aware of
pêşber
opposite, facing
p’irrîcar
often, usually
piştî ku
after (conjunction + verb)
qesr, f.
castle
rrêwî, m.&f.
traveller, here: people on the road
se‘at, f.
hour; clock
sî, f.
shade
sûk, f.
market
şerm, f.
shame, disgrace
t’eslîm kirin
to deliver, hand over (to someone)
[(ji) oblique case] + t’irêit seems to [s.o.], [s.o.]
thinks (that stg. is so)
[ji] min t’irê
it seems to me.
ûr/’ûr, m.
intestine(s)
77Notice
the gender difference between these two homonyms: mal, f. = house, home;
mal, m. = property.
• 99 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
wekî = ku
xort, m.
ze‘f caran
zevî, f.
zûzûka
that (conj.)
young man
often, usually
field
quickly, fast, in a flaş
MONTHS:
K’anûna Paşîn, f.
Sibat, f.
Adar, f.
Nîsan, f.
Gulan, f.
Hezîran, f.
January
February
March
April
May
June
Tîrmeh, f.
July
T’ebax, f.
August
Îlon, f.
September
Çirîya Pêşîn, f.
October
Çirîya Paşîn, f.
November
K’anûna Pêşîn, f.
December
GRAMMAR:
a. Past Continuous Tense. The past continuous tense (Pikkert’s
“Progressive Past Tense”) is used for events which occurred
repeatedly or habitually in the past. This is rendered in Engliş by
such constructions as: I was going, I used to go, I would go78
In Kurdish, there is a past continuous tense, formed by prefixing the
present indicative tense marker di- to the past tense. This holds
true for both transitive and intransitive verbs. E.g.,
Ez diçûm
Min dixwar
Tu dihatî
Te ved
dikir
Ew dikenî
Wî digot
I used to go, I was going, I would go
I used to eat, I was eating, I would eat
You used to come, you were coming, you would come
You used to open, you were opening, you would open
He used to laugh, he was laughing, he would laugh
He used to say, he was saying, he would say
The negative is formed by prefixing a stressed né- to the prefix di-.
Note that unlike the present tense, in which the negative particle
replaces the di-, in the past continuous tense, these two prefixes
stand side by side. E.g.,
Present:
Ez diçim
Ez náçim
Ez dixwim
Ez náxwim
Past continuous:
Ez diçûm
Ez
diçûm
Min dixwar
Min
dixwar
78In
Turkish, both gidiyordum and giderdim correspond to this.
• 100 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
This tense is often signalled by adverbs indicating habitual
activity, e.g., every day (her rroj), every week (her heftê),
sometimes (carina), always (her [û her]/hergav/tim [û tim]), never
(tucar), often or usually (gelek caran/pirrîcar/ze‘f caran).
b. Relative clauses. In Engliş, typical sentences with relative
clauses include the following:
a) The man who was my friend is now a senator.
b) The book which you are reading is fabulous.
c) ... that live in the house that Jack built.
Relative clauses are often signalled, then, by such markers as who,
which, and that, although these markers could be omitted in examples
b) and c) above.
Particularly from a Kurdiş perspective, but in other languages as
well, we may view relative clauses as equivalent to adjectives in
that both modify their nouns. The difference is that while an
adjective is a single word, a relative clause is a whole phrase.
A noun is connected to its modifying relative clause by an ezafeh
construction. In this way also, adjectives and relative clauses
behave similarly. E.g.,
•Keça
a bedew
xûşka min e.
The beautiful girl
•Keça
a (ku) tu dibînî
is my sister.
xûşka min e.
The girl (whom) you see
•Em diherrine
is my sister.
bajarê
ê mezin.
We are going to
•Em diherrine
the big city.
bajarê
ê (ku) tu têda dijî.
We are going to
the city (which) you live in.
[lit., '(which) you live in it']
Therefore, relative clauses are constructed according to the
following formula:
noun + ezafeh (+
A
+-ê/-a/-ên
ku)
+
(B)
• 101 •
phrase
C
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Because the ku is optional, sometimes a noun in its ezafeh form will
be encountered without any apparent modifier (i.e. adjective). In
such situations, one is undoubtedly in the presence of a relative
clause. E.g.,
Rîya
a tu li ser
The road (which) you are on
Mêrê
ê tu nas dikî
The man (whom) you know
The following sentences contain embedded relative clauses. Try them
on for size!:
1) Ew firrî û çû cem kevirê li pala çîyê bû.
[pal, f. = slope, side (of mountain)]
He flew and went to the rock which was on the side (or foot) of the
mountain.
2) Gelo nabe, wekî em evê qîza nazik bigihînine ewî xortê tu dibêjî?
[wekî = ku; gihandin (digihînim), vt. = to cause to arrive, to bring
someone to; xort, m. = young man; nazik = delicate, gentle]
Why don't we bring this delicate girl to that young man you are
talking about?
3) Ezê vê qesrê û malê tê de timam teslîmê te bikim.
[qesr, f. = castle; mal, m. = property; teslîm kirin = to hand over
to someone]
I will hand over to you this palace and all the property [that is] in
it.
c. To express such things as "he who…", "the one who...", two
constructions are possible:
1) the interrogative pronoun kî may be used, e.g.:
Kî zane -- zane, kî nizane -- baqê niskan e
He who knows knows, he who does not know [thinks] it's a handful of
lentils
2) the independent ezafeh markers: yê for masculine singular, ya for
feminine singular, and yên [S: yêt] for plural79 + ku are used. E.g.,
Yên ku ez anîme dê min dîsa bibin
79see
Lesson Ten, c. Secondary ezafeh.
• 102 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Those who brought me will take me back
d. Past Perfect Tense. The past perfect (or pluperfect) tense is used
when speaking of two past events, one of which is further back in
time than the other, e.g. ‘He had already left when I arrived.’ The
formula for constructing this tense in Engliş is: past tense of
auxiliary verb have + past participle.
In Kurdish, the construction is similar, in that it also consists of
an auxiliary verb (bûn) plus a special participle. The participle is
formed by removing the -n from the infinitive, e.g.
girti-n
--->
girti-
çû-n
da-n
kenî-n
vekiri-n
--->
--->
--->
--->
çûdakenîvekiri-
The auxiliary verb bûn is attached (suffixed) to this participle.
Hence, the past perfect of girtin is girtibû.
As with other past tenses, the distinction between transitive and
intransitive verbs is preserved in this tense also. What follow are
paradigms for the past perfect tense with the transitive verb girtin
and the intransitive verb hatin.
80With
vt.
min girtib
bû80
te girtib
bû
wî/wê girtib
bû
me girtib
bû
we girtib
bû
wan girtib
bû
I had taken/caught
you (s.) had taken/caught
he/şe had taken/caught
we had taken/caught
you (pl.) had taken/caught
they had taken/caught
vi.
ez hatib
bûm
tu hatib
bûyî
ew hatib
bû
em hatib
bûn
hûn hatib
bûn
ew hatib
bûn
I had come
you (s.) had come
he/şe had come
we had come
you (pl.) had come
they had come
a plural direct object, the form will be min girtibûn
n.
• 103 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
The negative is formed by prefixing accented né- to the participle,
e.g.
Ez
hatib
bûm = I had not come.
In Northern Kurmanji, for the verbs zanîn (to know) and karîn (to be
able), the past perfect is most often used to express the simple past
tense, e.g.:
Dibêjin sultan Sulêman pêxember bi zimanên çûk û çivîka gişka zanibû
They say that Sultan Suleyman the Prophet knew the languages of all
the birds.
EXERCISES:
I. Translate into Kurdiş: 1) When I was a boy, I would go to school
every day; 2) When you were a student, you never studied your
lessons; 3) We used to live in a big house; 4) The şepherd used to
play; 5) Our father used to bring small chickens home from the
market; 6) The boy who ate the apples is our neighbor; 7) I used to
study in the room in which you are sitting; 8) My father brought the
chickens which you (pl.) were eating from the market; 9) My father
had gone to the city before it rained; 10) I had not seen my brother
before he died; 11) He had seen me in the winter, in the month of
February; 12) Şe had [already] read the lesson, when you asked her;
13) I didn’t know that you were (=are) from Malatya; 14) You had
[already] seen the house we lived in [it].
II. Translate into Engliş: 1) Mamoste nan xwaribû berî ku mêvan
bigihine mala wî; 2) Piştî ku tu bi rrê ketî, min bala xwe da ku te
kitêba xwe li cem min hiştibû; 3) Berî ku ew pê bihesin, em
gihîştibûn çîyê; 4) Ehmedê Xanî ji Kurdan rra gotibû: “Hon (=hûn),
berî her tiştî, Kurd in.”; 5) Min dixwest tiştekî ji te bipirsim; 6)
Bavê min nedihişt ku ez piştî se‘at nehan ji malê derkevim; 7) Dihî
birayê min hat me bibîne. Ji meha Tebaxê û were -- ango ji havîna
çûyî -- ew nehatibû malê û me ew nedîtibû; 8) Gelo te ji bîr kir ku
wan tiştek ji te xwestibû?; 9) Li mehên biharê û havînê -- ango ji
Adarê heta Tebaxê -- em diçûne mala wan û ew dihatine mala me; 10)
Bavê Meyroyê du hesp kirrîbûn gava ku Meyroyê ji bavê xwe xwest ku
jêrra hespekî bikirre.
III. Give the past continuous tense of the following verbs in the
person and number indicated in parentheses; indicate whether the verb
is transitive (vt.) or intransitive (vi.). E.g., dîtin (ez) --> min
didît, vt.
1) gotin (tu); 2) bihîstin (em); 3) girîn (hûn); 4) derketin (ew,
pl.); 5) vexwarin (ez); 6) xwestin (ew, sing. f.); 7) çinîn (em); 8)
berdan (ew, sing. m.); 9) pirsîn (tu); 10) tirsîn (hûn); 11) hiştin
(em); 12) zivirrîn (ew, pl.).
• 104 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
IV. Give the negative of the past continuous tense for the verbs in
Exercise III.
V. Give the past perfect tense of the verbs in Exercise III.
VI. Give the negative of the past perfect tense for the verbs in
Exercise V.
VII. Make up ten sentences using verbs in the past continuous and
past perfect tenses. Make sure to include negative verbs and plural
direct objects!
KURDISH PERSONAL NAMES
Male:
Cibo
Female:
Meyro
KURDISH PLACE NAMES
Meletîye
• 105 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Çardeha [14]
{Pikkert 10.8 ff.}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan: Bar min naêşîne, serbar diêşîne.
READING:
Rovîyekî xapînok hebû. Ew birçî bû, dilê wî diçû mirîşk û kewan.
Da ku ew mirîşk û kewan bixapîne, wî deholek kire stûyê xwe û li ber
kuna xwe sekinî, li dehola xwe xist û digot, "Xebereke mezin! Lîstika
mişkan di vê kunê da! Rabin! Rabin! Vê delîveya zengîn û rengîn winda
nekin! Werin! Werin! Derbazbûna mirîşk û kewan belaş e." Bi vî
awayî rovî dixwest mirîşk û kewan bigihîne kuna xwe bêî ku wan
bitirsîne.
Kewek û mirîşkek hatin. Rovî ew sekinandin. Wan bangê rovî
bihîst, û ji hev ra got, "Were, em derbazî wê de’watê bibin, ji ber
ku bê pere ye."
Gava ku derbaz bûn, rovî got, "De werin, werin, ez we bixwim.
Hûn ketin dava min." Bi vê gotinê, rovî dilê kew û mirîşkê şewitand.
Kew û mirîşkê dest bi girînê kir û got, "Apê rovî, dev ji me
berde! Canên me bihêle!"
Rovî got, De, îro xem nake, taştê û şîva min heye, ezê sibehê we
bixwim," û rovî kevirek danî ber kuna xwe û çû. Kew û mirîşkê got,
'Emê dersekê bi‘elimînine wî rovîyê xirab!' Wan bi nikilên xwe kevir
wergerrand, derketin û revîn.81
VOCABULARY:
awa, m.
bi vî awayî
bang, m.
bar, bêr, vî barî, m.
belaş
beş, f.
bê p’ere
bi kurtayî
can, m.
çarek, f.
dan (didim), vt. + infinitive
dav, f.
dehol, f.
delîve, f.
deqe, f.
derbaz bûn (derbaz dibe), vi.
dest pê [bi …] kirin (dikim),
81adapted
way, manner, faşion
in this way
call, cry
load, burden
free of charge
part, section
free of charge
shortly, briefly
soul, spirit, life
quarter, fourth
to have someone do something
trap
(snare) drum
opportunity, chance
minute (60 seconds)
here: to enter
vt. to begin, start (doing stg.)
from: Stig Wikander. Antolojîya Tekstên Kurdî (Stockholm : Orfeus, 1996)
• 106 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
dev jê [ji …] berdan (berdidim), vt. to let go of, cease and desist
de’wat, f.
(wedding) celebration
dibistan, f.
elementary school
dil, m.
heart
dilê wî diçe ...
He feels like (eating something)
dîrok, f.
history
dotin (didoşim), vt.
to milk (cows, şeep, etc.)
'elimandin (di'elimînim), vt. to teach, accustom
'elimîn (di'elimim), vi. + dative construction82 to learn, get used to
êşandin (dêşînim), vt.
to hurt, cause pain
êşîn (dêşe), vi. [also: êşan], to hurt (vi.),
smart
[ê]xistin (têxim/dixim/dixînim), vt. to drop, insert; to take off
(clothes)
firrandin (difirrînim), vt.
to cause to fly (off)
firavîn, f.
lunch, midday meal
fîlm, f.
film, movie
gihandin (digihînim), vt.
to convey, bring, cause to reach
guneh, m.
pity; guilt
hiştin (dihêlim), vt.
here: to save from death
ji holê rra•bûn (rradibe), vi. to cease to exist, disappear
ji holê rra•kirin (rradike), vt. to get rid of, do away with
kew, m.
partridge
kêm
minus, less (-)
kun, f.
hole, opening (to an animal's lair)
lîstik, f.
game
ma
interrogative particle signaling a negative
answer
mişk, m.
mî, f. [also: mih]
name, f.
nêç’îr, f.
nikil, m.
nivîsîn (dinivîsim), vt.
p’adşa, p’adşê, vî p’adşayî, m.
rasthatî, f.
rrengîn
rrû•ç’ikandin (rrûdiç’ikîne),
sekinandin (disekinînim), vt.
serbar, m.
sibehê
stû, m.
kire stûyê xwe
82See
mouse (pl. mice)
female şeep, ewe
letter, epistle
hunting
beak, bill (of bird)
to write
king
event, occurrence
colorful
vt. to pluck, pull out (feathers)
to stop (vt.), cause to stop, put a
stop to
that which is on top of the load;
here: rider
tomorrow
neck
he hung it from (put it around) his
neck
Lesson 8, ¶b.2.
• 107 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
şewitandin (dişewitînim), vt. to burn (vt.) [set on fire, consume]
şewitîn (dişewitim), vi.
to burn (vi.) [be on fire]
şîv, f.
dinner, evening meal
taştê, f. [S: têşt] breakfast
t’emaşe kirin (~ dikim), vt. [+ li]
to watch, look at (a movie)
tirsandin (ditirsînim), vt.
to frighten, scare
vegerr, f.
return[ing], coming/going back
wer•gerrandin (werdigerrînim),vt. to overturn, knock over
winda kirin (dikim), vt.
to lose; to miss (an opportunity)
xapandin (dixapîne), vt.
to deceive, fool
xapînok, m./adj.
cheater, deceptive
xeber, f.
news; words
zengîn
rich
zivirrandin (dizivirrînim), vt.to return (vt.), give back
TIMES OF THE DAY: {all are feminine}
spêde = sehar
early morning
rroj
day; sun
berî nîvrro
forenoon, mid morning
êvar [S: (h)êvarî] evening
nîvrro
noon
şev
night
piştî nîvrro
afternoon
nîveşev
midnight
GRAMMAR:
a. The Causative Verb. A causative verb is one which causes something
to happen, or causes someone to do or become something. As such,
causatives are by definition transitive, as they always take a direct
object83. They can often be paired off with a corresponding
intransitive verb. The follow are English examples:
to rise
to raise (to cause to rise)
to sit
to seat (to cause to sit)
to lie
to lay (to cause to lie)
to
to
to
to
go
come
die
learn
to
to
to
to
take (to cause to go)
bring (to cause to come)
kill (to cause to die)
teach (to cause to learn)
In English, other causatives are formed from adjectives, e.g.
83This
is equivalent to Turkish ettirgen verbs (e.g., yapmak - yap-tðr-mak).
• 108 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
thick
to thicken
large
sad
to enlarge
to sadden
In Kurdish, causatives are always transitive, and generally end in andin in the infintive, with a present stem in -în- 84. The -andin
is generally added to the present stem of the corresponding simple
verb, as will be seen in the following examples of verb pairs:
tirsîn
'to fear'
tirs-andin
'to frighten'
gihan/gihîştin
'to reach, arrive'
gih-andin
'to convey, bring, cause to reach'
'elimîn
'to learn, get used to'
'elim-andin
'to teach, accustom'
sekinîn
'to stop (vi.), stand'
sekin-andin
'to stop (vt.), cause to stop
zivirrîn
'to return (vi.), go back'
zivirr-andin
'to return (vt.), give back'
êşîn
'to hurt (vi.)'
êş-andin
'to hurt (vt.), cause pain'
şewitîn
'to burn (vi.)' [be on fire]
şewit-andin
'to burn (vt.)' [set on fire, consume]
Some very common verbs have causatives formed from different roots:
çûn
hatin
84-ên-
'to go'
'to come'
birin 'to take (away from speaker)'
anîn [S: înan] 'to bring (towards speaker)'
in some dialects.
• 109 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
k’etin 'to fall, enter'
[ê]xistin 'to drop, insert'
bûn 'to be, become'
man 'to remain, stay'
kirin 'to make, do'
hiştin [S: hêlan] 'to let, leave'
b. A second degree of causativity also exists85. This is used when
one has a third party do something for one. In English, we express
this by combining the verb to have with another verb, e.g.:
to have someone cut one’s hair
to have someone fire the employee
to have someone removed by force
to have dinner brought to the room
In Kurdish, this is expressed by combining the verb dan with the
infinitive (either direct or oblique case)
are some examples:
dan sekinandin[ê]
'to have someone
dan zanîn[ê]
'to have it made
dan rrûçikandin[ê]
'to have [birds]
of a second verb86. Here
stopped'
known, i.e., to announce'
plucked'
This construction may involve three individuals: 1) the subject
[person giving the command]; 2) the intermediary [person charged with
carrying out the subject's command]; and 3) the recipient(s)
[person(s) or thing(s) upon whom the intermediary carries out the
subject's command].
The intermediary (#2 above) can be identified by the preposition bi
preceding it. E.g.,
Padşê
bi celaçî
the king
the executioner
serên dizan
heads of the thieves
dan birrîn
caused to be cut off
1 subject
2 intermediary
3 recipient
The king had the executioner behead the thieves.
Şivan
85
bi birayê xwe
mîyan
Turkish yap-tðr-t-mak.
10.12.
86Pikkert
• 110 •
dide dotin
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
the şepherd his brother
the ewes (şeep)
1 subject 2 intermediary
3 recipient
The şepherd has his brother milk the ewes.
Note also that the verb
causes to milk
dan must agree in number and person with the
recipient, which is the logical direct object. In the first sentence
above, if the king had the executioner behead only one thief, the
sentence would look like this:
Padşê
bi celaçî
serê
ê diz
da
birrîn
the king
the executioner
head of the thief caused to be cut off
1 subject 2 intermediary
3 recipient
The king had the executioner behead the thief.
c. Telling time. To ask what time it is, one says "Se‘at çend e?"87
The four quarters of the hour are expressed as follows, using the
hour of 5:00-6:00 as an example:
5:00
5:15
5:30
5:45
Se‘at
Se‘at
Se‘at
Se‘at
pênc e.
pênc û çarekek e.
pênc û nîv e.
şeş kêm çarekek e.
The following terms are essential to know in telling time:
çarek
nîv
kêm
=
=
=
quarter, fourth
half
minus, less (-)
The other fractions of the hour are expressed as follows:
5:05
5:10
5:20
5:25
Se‘at
Se‘at
Se‘at
Se‘at
pênc
pênc
pênc
pênc
û
û
û
û
pênc e.
deh e.
bîst e.
bîst-û-pênc e.
Notice that between half past the hour (5:30) and the next hour
(6:00), one figures the minutes remaining to the next hour, using
kêm. (5:45 is Se‘at şeş kêm çarekek). So also:
5:35
5:40
5:50
87Other
Se‘at şeş kêm bîst-û-pênc e.
Se‘at şeş kêm bîst e.
Se‘at şeş kêm deh e.
possibilities are: Çi ©în e? and Çi heyam e?
• 111 •
[6:00 minus 25]
[6:00 minus 20]
[6:00 minus 10]
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
5:55
Se‘at şeş kêm pênc e.
[6:00 minus 5]
d. Whereas Se‘at pênc e means "It is 5:00", to express at what time
something happens, the following construction is used:
Se‘at di pêncê da or Se‘at di pêncan da = "at
5:00".88
Consider the following distinctions:
Se‘at çar û çarekek e
Se‘at di çar û çarekekê
ê da
It is 4:15
at 4:15
Heft kêm çarekek
Se‘at di heft kêm çarekekê
ê da
6:45
at 6:45
Neh û nîv
Se‘at di neh û nîvê
ê da
9:30
at 9:30
Yanzdeh kêm deh
Se‘at di yanzdeh kêm deha
an or dehê
ê da
10:50
at 10:50
e. Other important time expressions include:
Tê neha[n] or nehê = It is coming up on 9:00; It is almost 9:00
A.M. is spêdê/siharê [in the morning] or berî nîvrro [before noon]
P.M. is piştî nîvrro [after noon] or êvarê [in the evening] or şevê
[at night]
Şeş spêdê yan şeş êvarê? = 6:00 A.M. or 6:00 P.M.?
Yanzdeh û nîv berî nîvrro yan şevê? = 11:30 A.M. or P.M.?
EXERCISES:
I. Translate: 1) Ma ne guneh e, ku ji bona jina xwe tu me gişkan
bidî rrûçikandin?; 2) Tu dikarî bi kurtayî xwe bidî nas kirin?; 3)
Wextê ku Ûsib ji nêçîrê vegerre, emê wî bidne sekinandinê; 4) Wî jê
rra da zanîn ku sibehê naherre dibistanê; Wî jê rra got ku sibehê
neherre [neçite] dibistanê; 5) Îro mamostê ji me rra da zanîn ku
sibehê se‘at di heşt û nîvê da emê li fîlmekê temaşe bikin; 6) Ezê
ji te rra roja vegerra xwe bidim zanîn; 7) Ew dîrokê bi kurrê xwe
dide xwendin; 8) Dîroka dinyaê ji me re dide zanîn ku heta niha,
gelek zimanên dinyaê ji holê rabûn; 9) Her spêdê se’at di şeşan da
bavê min bi xûşk û birayên min mî û çêlek didan dotin; 10) Berî
nîvrro dîya min bi Birûskî çar nameyên dirêj dan nivîsîn.
II. Write out the following time expressions: E.g., 8:00 = se‘at
88In
northern dialects, all numbers except one (and 21, 31, 41, etc.) are treated
as plurals, and receive the plural oblique ending -an. In southern dialects
(including Hekkari), on the other hand, all numbers are treated as feminine
singulars, and receive the feminine oblique ending -ê.
• 112 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
heşt e. a) 4:30; b) 12:20; c) 7:15; d) 7:45; e) 1:45; f) 3:35; g)
11:05; h) 10:55; i) 9:25; j) 9:35; k) 2:10; l) 1:50.
III. Change the time expressions in Exercise II so that they tell at
what time. E.g., 8:00 = se‘at heşt --> se‘at di heştan or heştê da.
IV. Make up ten sentences using causatives, e.g.:
KURDISH PERSONAL NAMES
Male:
Birûsk
Ûsib
.
Female:
Gelawêj
• 113 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Panzdeha [15]
{Pikkert}
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan:
•Bende ji bende tê nas kirinê
A slave is recognized by another slave.
•Mêr bi te‘na tê kuştin
A man is (=can be) killed by reproach.
•Her çêlek tê dotinê, lê her gilî nayê gotinê
Every cow can be milked, but not every word can be said.
LECTURE:
Wek tê zanîn, li welatên demokratîk, serok ji alîyê gel ve tê
hilbijartin. Piştî hilbijartinê, dengên dengderan tên hejmartin, û
çend rojên paştir, encamên hilbijartinê tên ragihandin. Encamên
hilbijartinê bi giringtirîn nûçeyên wê rojê tên zanîn, û di hemî
rojnameyan da û di destgehên ragihandinê yên din da -- wek radyo û
televîzyonê -- tên belav kirin. Gelek caran middeta heftîyekê di
bernameyên radyo û televîzyonê da, behsê tiştekî din ji bilî
hilbijartinan naête kirin. Rûpelên pêşîn yên rojname û kovaran bi
wêneyên serokê nû-hilbijartî ve têne xemilandin. Piştî çend rojan
gelek kes dibêjin, "Êdî bes e! Gelo tiştekî din tune ku em behs
bikin? Gelo li radyo û televîzyonê ji bilî hilbijartinê, behsê
bûyerên din naête kirin? Bê guman li dinyayê bûyerên din hene ku
hêjayê behs-kirinê bin!" Û hêdî hêdî destgehên ragihandinê dev ji
behs-kirina hilbijartinê berdidin, û tiştên din peyda dikin ku behs
bikin.
VOCABULARY:
behsê … kirin vt.
belav kirin vt.
to discuss, talk about
to distribute, spread; to
broadcast
• 114 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
bende m.
slave; human being
bername f.
bê guman
bêguneh
bi sedan [precedes its noun]
bi … ve
bi … zanîn vt.
bûyer f.
civîn (dicivim) vi.
civîn f.
program
sans doute
innocent
hundreds of …
with
to consider, regard
event, occurrence
to gather; (f.) gathering
gathering
ciwan
ciwanî f.
çap kirin vt.
ç’îrrok f.
dawî f.
demokratîk
deng m.
dengder m.&f.
destgeh f.
young; (S) beautiful
(one’s) youth
to print
story, tale
end
democratic
voice; vote
voter
apparatus, organization
destgehên ragihandinê
dev ji… ber•dan vt.
di dû … rra
di nav … da
encam f.
faşîst
gel m.
gilî m.
giring
the media
to let go of, quit doing stg.
after
inside, within, in
result
fascist
the people, the folk
words, speech, talk; complaint
important
girtî
arrested, imprisoned; (m.)
hatin ser hukm
hejmartin (dihejmêrim)
hêjayê …
prisoner
to come to power (government)
to count; to regard, consider
worth (doing, discussing),
vt.
hilbijartin (hildibijêrim)
hilbijartin f.
worthy of
vt.to elect; to choose, select
election
• 115 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
hilweşandin (hildiweşînim)
vt.
to wreck, ruin, destroy
hin
hikûmet f.
ji bilî
ji dûr ve
kerî m.
kovar f.
metre f.
middet f.
middeta heftîyekê
some (+ plural noun)
government
except for, besides
from afar
herd, large flock
magazine, journal, periodical
meter
period (of time)
for (the period of) a week
nîşan dan vt.
nûçe pl.
nû-hilbijartî
radyo f.
ragihandin (radigihînim)
rejîm f.
rojname f.
rrûpel f.
serok m.
to şow
news
newly-elected
radio
to announce, report, communicate
regime
newspaper
page (of a book)
president
vt.
şerr, şêrr, vî şerrî m.
şor kirin vt.
televîzyon f.
te‘n m.
welat, welêt, vî welatî m.
wêne f.
xemilandin (dixemilînim) vt.
zarrotî f.
war
to speak
television
reproach, reproof
country, state
picture, image
to adorn, decorate
childhood
GRAMMAR:
a. The Passive Voice. Whereas in the active voice, it is generally
the subject that is the focus of attention, in the passive voice it
is the direct object -- the recipient of the action -- that is
emphasized. As a general rule, only transitive verbs can be made
passive. For the purposes of those studying Kurdish, this means that
only those verbs which form an ergative past tense can be made
passive. Whereas the ergative itself is historically a type of
• 116 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
passive construction, it is not perceived as such today.
There
exists another, explicitly passive construction formed with a helping
(auxiliary) verb (i.e., in a periphrastic construction), which can be
used in all tenses, unlike the ergative, which in Kurdish is limited
to the past tenses. It should be noted, however, that the passive is
relatively little used in Kurmanji; although it seems to be more
common in journalistic language.
In English, the sentence
The boy
closes
the door
1
2
3
can be made passive by making the logical direct object (the door)
into the subject of the passive verb, and the logical subject (the
boy) into the agent: the verb will change from closes to is closed.
The resulting construction yields:
The door is closed
by
3
2
In English, then, the passive verb is
verb to be (or, colloquially, to get)
the boy
1
formed by using the auxiliary
plus the past participle of the
transitive verb. In Kurdiş, passives are formed using the auxiliary
verb hatin (to come) [in all tenses] plus the infinitive (in the
direct or oblique case). Consider the following:
hatin kuştin(ê)
Ew hat kuştin(ê)
Tuyê bêyî kuştin(ê)
Bi sedan girtî tên kuştin(ê)
to be killed
He was killed
You will be killed
Hundreds of prisoners are killed
The agent of the passive verb (by the boy) is expressed with ji alîyê
… ve, or less commonly with bi destê, e.g.:
Serok ji alîyê gel ve tê hilbijartin
The president is elected by the people.
Soro ji alîyê hikûmetê ve hat girtin
Soro was imprisoned by the government.
• 117 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Axayê me bi destê Mîşo hat birîndar kirin
Our agha was wounded by Mişo.
b. Indefinite plural. There is an indefinite plural form which is
more common in some regions than in others89. It consists of the
morpheme -in added to the end of the direct case of the noun, and has
the following oblique case and ezafeh forms:
direct:
oblique:
ezafeh:
-in
çîrok-in
stories, some stories
-ina
çîrok-ina
car-ina
-ine
heval-ine min
çîrok-ine dirêj
[I listen to] some stories
sometimes
some friends of mine
(some) long stories
These forms can be found in the chart at the end of Lesson Five.
The form -in comes from the independent word hin = some, which can be
used independently as well, and precedes the noun it modifies:
hin çîrok = çîrok-in
hin meriv = meriv-in
=
=
some stories
some people
EXERCISES:
I. Translate into Engliş: 1) Serekî birrî nayê k’irrîn; 2) Xwîn bi
xwînê nayê şûştin, xwîn bi avê tête şûştin; 3) Di salên min ên zarotî
û ciwanîyê de, di nav mala me da bi Zazakî û Kurmancî dihat şorkirin;
4) Di sala 1960'an (hezar-û-nehsid-û-şêstan) da hatim girtin. Di dû
du salan re hatim berdan; 5) Di dû 1972'an re -- wek tê zanîn -- ez
tim girtî mam; 6) Gelek mirovên bêguneh; zarrok, jin, kal û pîr
hatine kuştin, xanîyên gundîyan hatine hilweşandin û zeviyên wan
hatine şewitandin; 7) Di dawîya civînê da fîlma Yilmaz Güney, “Kerî”
hate nîşan dan; 8) Çawa tê zanîn, di sala 1971-ê (hezar-û-nehsid-û89This
form is particularly common in the region of Mardin, Kurdistan of Turkey.
• 118 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
heftê-û-yekê) da rejîma faşîst hate ser hukm; 9) Bi sedan metre ji
dûr ve dengê muzîka kurdî dihate bihîstin; 10) Rûpelên wê kovarê bi
ç’îrrok û wêneyên rrengîn hatine xemilandin.
II. Translate into Kurdiş: 1) The people elect the president; 2) The
students read the newspapers; 3) The father killed his daughter; 4)
My nephew prints that magazine in Istanbul; 5) The newly-elected
president announces the end of the war; 6) The media report (on) that
important event; 7) Hundreds of students will buy the book and read
it; 8) They hear the sounds of this war even (jî) in the farthest
villages; 9) The Kurdiş people will never forget the name (of) Ehmedê
Xanî [Ahmed-i Khani]; 10) Will the newly-elected president fool the
people of this country?; 11) The newspapers often frighten everyone;
12) The students lost hundreds of colorful magazines; 13) The new
government will not release the prisoners; 14) This is the first time
in history that a president milks hundreds of cows.
III. Convert the sentences in Exercise II. into the passive voice.
(The direct object becomes the subject; the subject becomes the
agent, e.g., He sees the boy --> The boy is seen by him).
IV. Give the indefinite plural forms (direct case, oblique case, &
ezafeh) of the following nouns: 1) xwendekar; 2) dersdar; 3) mal; 4)
pirtûk; 5) dest; 6) ling; 7) çav; 8) kûçik; 9) pisîk; 10) xûşk.
More proverbs exhibiting the passive voice:
•Kirasê merîya tê guhastin, xeysetê merîya nayê guhastin (Z-1233)
•K’inc têne p’îne kirinê, gilî nayêne p’îne kirinê (Z-1246)
• 119 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Şanzdeha [16]
{Pikkert
}
FOLKLORE:
•Te hîn kir -- ji bîr neke, te ji bîr kir -- hîn neke.
What you've taught don't forget, what you've forgotten, don't teach.
•Yê dirreve jî gazî xwedê dike, yê dide pey jî gazî xwedê dike.
Both the one being chased and the chaser call on God.
•Zilamek got: "Ez ji kûç’kê xwe hînî mêranîyê bûm."
A man said: "I learned what is it to be a man from my dog."
READING:
Tê bîra min, gava ku ez piçûk bûm, bapîrê min gazî min kiribû û
gotibû, "Lawo, hindik ma ku ez terkî vê dinyaê bikim, û berî ku ez
derbazî cennetê (bihiştê) bim, çend gotinên min ji te ra hene. Serê
min bi te bilind e -- paşeroja te ronahî ye. Ez dizanim ku rojekê ji
rojan tu yê bibî zanayekî mezin. Ji niha ve xwe hînî gelek tiştan
bike: çend ji te bê, hînî zimanên biyanî be, û kitêban bixwîne.
Kitêb û pirtûk her tiştî nîşanî me didin, û alîkarîya me dikin ku em
vê dinyaê çêtir fêm bikin. Ji bona vê yekê, ez dixwazim vê pirtûkê
pêşkêşî te bikim." Û wî pirtûkek da min. Wan rojan ez fêrî zimanên
biyanî nebûbûm, û kitêba ku bapîrê min pêşkêşî min kiribû bi zimanekî
din bû. Dîsan min zanîbû ku ew pirtûka hanê diyarîyeke hêja ye. Min
dixwest sipasîya bapîrê xwe bikim, lê berî ku ez bikaribim bersiva wî
bidim, bapîrê min çavên xwe li dinyaê girtin, û çû ber dilovanîya
Xwedê.
Niha ez mezin im, û çend ez behsê bapîrê xwe bikim, têrê nake. Ez
gelekî bêrîya wî dikim. Min gelekî jê hiz dikir. Min bi a wî kir, min
xwe hînî gelek zimanan kir, û rojekê ji rojan ez ê bibim mamosta.
VOCABULARY:
ft-î (filan tiştî)
fk-î (filan kesî)
alîkarî, f.
alîkarîya [fk-î] kirin, vt.
bapîr, m.
bersiv, f.
something, anything
someone, anyone
help, aid, assistance
to help, assist
grandfather
answer, response
• 120 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
bersiva [fk-î] dan, vt.
bes
beşdarî [ft-î] bûn, vi.
bêrîya [fk-î] kirin, vt.
bi a [wî] kirin, vt.
bi-dehan [pre-posed modifier]
bi-hezaran [pre-posed modifier]
bihişt, f.
bilind
bi-mîlyonan [pre-posed modifier]
bi-sedan [pre-posed modifier]
biyanî
bîr, f.
hatin bîra [fk-î], vi.
ji bîr kirin, vt.
cennet, f.
çavên xwe li dinyaê girtin, vt.
çûn ber dilovanîya xwedê, vi.
derbaz bûn, vi.
derbazî [ft-î] bûn, vi.
derbaz kirin, vt.
[fk-î] derbazî [ft-î] kirin, vt.
dilovanî, f.
diyarî, f.
êkê [S]
fêrî [ft-î] bûn, vi. [S]
[fk-î] fêrî [ft-î] kirin, vt. [S]
xwe fêrî [ft-î] kirin, vt. [S]
gazî [fk-î] kirin, vt.
hêja
hînî [ft-î] bûn, vi.
[fk-î] hînî [ft-î] kirin, vt.
xwe hînî [ft-î] kirin, vt.
îsal
ji bona vê yekê
ji niha ve
mêranî, f.
miqatî [fk-î] bûn, vi.
navneteweyî
[ft-î] nîşanî [fk-î] dan, vt.
paşeroj, f.
peyiv, f.
pêşîn
[ft-î] pêşkêşî [fk-î] kirin, vt.
pişikdarî [ft-î] bûn, vi. [S]
rojekê ji rojan
to answer s.o.
enough, sufficient
to participate in
to miss s.o., long for s.o.
to do as [he] said, to follow
[his] advice
tens of; [loosely: dozens of]
thousands of
paradise, heaven
high, tall
millions of
hundreds of
foreign
memory
to remember, recall
to forget
paradise, heaven
to close one's eyes on the world
to die, pass away
to pass, cross over
to pass into; to enter
to pass (time) [vt.]
to let s.o. pass
mercy, compassion
gift, present
first
to learn
to teach
to learn, study stg.
to call, summon s.o.
precious, valuable
to learn; to get used to
to teach; to accustom to
to learn, study stg.
this year
therefore, for this reason
(starting) from now
manliness, bravery
to take care of s.o.
international
to şow s.o. stg.
future
word
first
to present stg. to s.o.
to participate in
some day, one day (in the future)
• 121 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
ronahî, f.
salvegerr, f.
serbilind
sipasîya [fk-î] kirin, vt.
terkî [ft-î] kirin, vt.
têr[ê] kirin, vt.
tixûb, m.
xwedê, m.
yekem[în]
zana, adj & m.
zilam, zilêm, vî zilamî, m.
EXPRESSIONS:
Çend gotinên min ji te ra hene
Çend ji te bê [or tê]
(source of) light, brightness
anniversary
proud [lit., 'with head high']
to thank s.o.
to leave (behind)
to be enough, satiate
border, limit, frontier
god
first
learnèd, well-educated;
[m.] scholar
man
hanê: ev pirtûka hanê
Miqatî xwe be!
Serê min bi te bilind e
Tê bîra min
Têra min dike
I have some things to tell you
As much as you can
[lit.'how much it comes from you']
this here: this book here
Take care of yourself!
I am proud of you
I remember
It is enough for me
LANGUAGES:
inglîzî
elmanî
‘erebî
farisî
spanyolî
firensî90
rûsî
tirkî
swêdî
polonî
English
German
Arabic
Persian (Farsi)
Spanish
French
Russian
Turkish
Swedish
Polish
GRAMMAR:
a. Generic ezafeh. In addition to the ezafeh endings that have been
introduced thus far (-ê masc. sing.; -a fem. sing.; -ên [S: -êt]
pl.), there is also a generic ezafeh ending in -î, which does not
change for gender or number. It is used in conjunction with
adjectives that need a complement, e.g.:
bes enough:
Tu bes- me yî
You are enough for us.
dûr far:
Ew dûr- me ye
He is far from us.
nêzîkî
near:
Em nêzîk- te ne
We are near you.
90The
form firensizî can also be heard, from the Turkish form fransðz.
• 122 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
beşdar participating:
Ez beşdar- civînê dibim
I'm participating in the meeting.
The last example above exemplifies a special class of verbs which
consist of a noun or adjective + verb, most often bûn = 'to be' and
kirin = 'to make, do'. Such verbs employ the generic ezafeh to
express the object or recipient of the action.
For example, hîn bûn means 'to learn' or 'to get used to': Ez hîn
dibim means 'I learn' or 'I get used to'. If we wish to add an
object to this phrase, e.g. 'I learn Kurdish' or 'I am getting used
to my new life', we must do so by adding a generic ezafeh (-î)91 to
hîn, yielding Ez hîn-î
î Kurdî dibim and Ez hîn-î
î jiyana xwe ya nû
dibim. (The title of this book is 'Em hînî Kurmancî dibin' = We are
learning Kurdiş).92
The following is a list of common verbal phrases which require the
generic ezafeh:
•ft-î (filan tiştî)
•fk-î (filan kesî)
•hînî ft-î bûn
accustomed to stg.
•fêrî ft-î bûn
•beşdarî ft-î bûn
•pişikdarî ft-î bûn
•miqatî fk-î bûn
•telefonî fk-î kirin
•gazî fk-î kirin
•derbazî ft-î bûn
•terkî/terka ft-î kirin
•nêzîkî ft-î bûn
•dûrî ft-î bûn
something, anything;
someone, anyone}
to learn stg.; to get used or
to learn stg.
to participate in stg.
to participate in stg. [S]
to take care of s.o.
to call s.o. up (on the phone)
to call, summon s.o.
to enter, pass over into
to leave off doing stg., quit doing
stg. (e.g., smoking)
to be close to, to approach
to be far from
Note that such verbs may take two objects. For example,
•hînî (fêrî) ft-î kirin
Ew hînî (fêrî) Kurdî dike
'to teach stg.' For example,
'[S]he teaches Kurdish'.
If we wish to say '[S]he teaches me Kurdish', one must make the verb
kirin take an additional direct object, yielding:
91Cf.
MacKenzie Kurdish Dialect Studies (London : Oxford University Press, 196162), vol. 1, §264 (d), p.161.
92Note that in speech one often hears such forms as: Ez Kurdî hîn dibim instead of
Ez hînî Kurdî dibim. For the purposes of this course, we will avoid this type of
construction.
• 123 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Ew min hînî (fêrî) Kurdî dike.
So also:
•fk-î suwarî ft-î kirin = to have s.o. mount [a horse, donkey]
e.g.,
Ezê te suwarî vî kerî bikim
'I will have you ride this donkey',
'I will put you on the back of this donkey'.
•ft-î/fk-î derbazî ft-î kirin = to let s.o. pass, cross, enter
e.g., Wan em derbazî tixûbê navneteweyî kirin
'They let us pass across the international border'.
With the following verbs, there are also two objects. However, the
order is reversed here: the direct object (stg.) is the object of the
main verb, and the indirect object (s.o.) is the object of the noun +
generic ezafeh:
•ft-î nîşanî fk-î dan = to şow s.o. stg.
e.g., Ezê van kitêban nîşanî te bidim
'I will şow these books to you'
•ft-î pêşkêşî fk-î kirin = to present stg. to s.o.
e.g., Em vê bernamê pêşkêşî we dikin
'We present this program to you'
b. There are other verbs that consist of a noun + verb (often kirin,
bûn or man) which form their objects using a regular ezafeh
construction, for example :
•alîkarîya fk-î kirin
•bêrîya fk-î kirin
•bersiva ft-î/fk-î dan
to help, assist
to miss, long for s.o.
to answer, respond to
e.g., Ezê yeko yeko bersiva pirsyarên te bidim
'I will answer your questions one by one'.
•li hêvîya/benda fk-î bûn/man/sekinîn
•çavnihêrîya fk-î kirin
•behsa (behsê) ft-î kirin
•qala ft-î kirin
•têra ft-î kirin
•spasîya fk-î kirin
to
to
to
to
to
to
wait for s.o.
wait for s.o.
discuss, talk about stg.
discuss, talk about stg.
be enough for, satisfy
thank s.o.
c. Ordinal numbers. There are several possible inventories of ordinal
numbers.
• 124 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
The traditional northern Kurmanji system is to use the plural oblique
case of the numbers, with a special word for 'first':
pêşîn (pêşin)
first, 1st
diduya[n]
second, 2nd
sisîya[n]
third, 3rd
çara[n]
fourth, 4th
pênca[n]
fifth, 5th
şeşa[n]
sixth, 6th
hefta[n]
seventh, 7th
heşta[n]
eighth, 8th
neha[n]
ninth, 9th
deha[n]
tenth, 10th
yanzdeha[n]
eleventh, 11th
diwazdeha[n] <also: donzdeha[n]> twelfth, 12th
sêzdeha[n]
thirteenth, 13th
etc.
bîsta[n]
sîya[n]/siha[n]
çila[n]
pêncîya[n]
şêsta[n]
etc.
twentieth, 20th
thirtieth, 30th
fortieth, 40th
fiftieth, 50th
sixtieth, 60th
seda[n]
hundredth, 100th
In southern Kurmanji, the numbers are in the feminine singular
oblique case:
êkê
duwê
sêyê
çarê
pêncê
şeşê
heftê
heştê
nehê
dehê
yanzdehê
diwazdehê
sêzdehê
etc.
first, 1st
second, 2nd
third, 3rd
fourth, 4th
fifth, 5th
sixth, 6th
seventh, 7th
eighth, 8th
ninth, 9th
tenth, 10th
eleventh, 11th
twelfth, 12th
thirteenth, 13th
bîstê
sihê
twentieth, 20th
thirtieth, 30th
• 125 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
çilê
pêncîyê
şêstê
etc.
fortieth, 40th
fiftieth, 50th
sixtieth, 60th
sedê
hundredth, 100th
A third system, borrowed from Sorani, suffixes -em or -emîn to the
cardinal number. Note that this type of ordinal number may precede or
follow the noun it modifies: dersa duwem or duwemîn ders = 'second
lesson'.
yekem[în]
duwem[în]
sêyem[în]
çarem[în]
pêncem[în]
şeşem[în]
heftem[în]
heştem[în]
nehem[în]
dehem[în]
yanzdehem[în]
diwanzdehem[în]
sêzdehem[în]
etc.
bîstem[în]
sihem[în]
çilem[în]
pêncîyem[în]
şêstem[în]
etc.
sedem[în]
first, 1st
second, 2nd
third, 3rd
fourth, 4th
fifth, 5th
sixth, 6th
seventh, 7th
eighth, 8th
ninth, 9th
tenth, 10th
eleventh, 11th
twelfth, 12th
thirteenth, 13th
twentieth, 20th
thirtieth, 30th
fortieth, 40th
fiftieth, 50th
sixtieth, 60th
hundredth, 100th
d. Preposed modifiers. This last group of ordinal numbers is one of
several categories of modifiers that precede the noun they modify. In
all such cases, there is no ezafeh connecting the modifier to its
noun -- a situation markedly different from modifiers that follow
their nouns, always linked by an ezafeh construction. Many of these
preposed modifiers have to do with quantity or counting (nos. 1., 2.,
3., 6. [çend],
8., 9. below):
1. cardinal numbers: du kitêb, sê meh, çar jin
2. ordinal numbers (optional): Duwem[în] Şerrê Cîhanê = 'World War
• 126 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Two' (note: Şerrê Duwem/Diduya[n]/Duwê yê Cîhanê is also possible)
3. bi-dehan = tens of (or dozens of), bi-sedan = hundreds of, bihezaran = thousands of, bi-mîlyonan = millions of: bi-dehan xwendekar
= 'dozens of students'
4. superlatives of adjectives in -tirîn: dirêjtirîn roja salê = 'the
longest day of the year'
5. demonstratives: ev = this & these (oblique: vî [m.] - vê [f.] van [pl.]) and ew = that & those (oblique: wî [m.] - wê [f.] - wan
[pl.])
6. question words: kîjan = which (di kîjan bajarî da = 'in which
city?' -- note: with masculine singular nouns in the oblique case,
kîjan behaves like the demonstratives
ev and ew: one cannot say *di kîjan bajêr da, just as one must say
di vî bajarî
î da and not *di vî bajêr da); çend = how many; çi = what,
which
7. xweş (xoş): Xoş mirov e = He's a nice person.93
8. Words meaning 'some': çend, hin(ek): çend gotin = 'some words',
hinek kes = 'some people'
9. gelek - ze'f - pirr [much, many, lots of]: gelek kitêb = 'many
books', pirr tişt = 'lots of things'; kêm [few]: kêm jin = 'few
women'; hemû - gişk - her [all, each]: hemû zarok = 'all the
children', her rroj = 'every day'.
EXERCISES:
I. Translate into Kurdiş: 1) I want to help you (pl.); 2) Without
your help, we cannot teach our children Kurdiş; 3) If the voters
don't participate in the election, no one will be elected; 4) If you
don't take care of yourself, who will take care of you?; 5) Şe did
not answer her grandfather; 6) They want to present some books to
their teacher; 7) The [village] elder summoned all the young men of
the village; 8) Which stories do you want to şow us?; 9) Every night
I telephone my friend and speak with him for an hour; 10) What is the
longest word in (of) the Kurdiş language?; 11) Thousands of children
crossed the international border yesterday, and hundreds of women
will cross it tomorrow; 12) We miss the stories and riddles of our
grandfather, who passed away last year.
II. Translate each of the following phrases in three (3) different
ways: 1) the first lesson; 2) in the fourteenth year; 3) the
twentieth day; 4) after the third war; 5) the hundredth book; 6) the
93This
construction is borrowed from Turkish, although the word xwe¤ itself is
originally of Iranian origin: Persian khÝsh sËa - passed into Turkish as ho¤.
• 127 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
eleventh president; 7) the sixty-fourth anniversary; 8) the twentyninth student; 9) the happiest child; 10) before the second word.
III. Translate into Engliş: 1) Îsal emê hînî zimanekî bin; 2) Gişk
xwendekarên min zanayên mezin in, ku xwe fêrî her tiştî dikin; 3) Ez
çend caran ji te dipirsim, lê tu bersiva min nadî; 4) Îro se'at di
nehan da li televîzyonê pêşkêşî bernameyeke nû dikin; 5) Bapîrê min
her digote min: "Serê min bi te bilind e; xwe hînî hemî zimanên
dinyaê bike, da ku paşeroja te ronahî be"; 6) Çend ji min bê, ez
miqatî xûşk û birayên xwe dikim; 7) Gelo tu yê beşdarî çaremîn civîna
dersdaran bî? Nexêr, ez beşdarî civînên wisa nabim; 8) Ev cara çaran
e ku ez tême serêdana mala bavê xwe; 9) Were bi me ra çayekê vexwe!
Ev se'atek e ku em li hêvîya te disekinin!; 10) Îsal heştemîn sal e
ku ew beşdarî wê civînê dibe.
IV. Transform the following sentences: change bûn into kirin, adding
a second object: in the new sentence, the subject will always be in
the first person plural (we/us), e.g.: Ew hînî ingilîzî dibe = 'Şe
learns Engliş' --> Em wî hînî ingilîzî dikin = 'We teach her Engliş':
1) Hûn hînî vî zimanî dibin; 2) Tu suwarî wê trênê dibî; 3) Ew
derbazî vî welatî bû; 4) Ew keçik dê fêrî swêdî be; 5) Ev sê kurr
derbazî xwendingehê nebûn; 6) Xûşka te hînî polonî nabe -- ew hînî
rûsî dibe; 7) Tu fêrî ‘erebî nebûyî?; 8) Hûn ê suwarî trimbêla me
bin; 9) Hevalê te hînî spanyolî dibe; 10) Hemî xwendekar fêrî tirkî
bûbûn, û niha fêrî kurdî dibin.
• 128 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Hivdeha [17]
FOLKLORE:
mamik:
•Gulek derk’etîye ji qudretê,
Hin dinê kêrî me tê,
Hin axretê.
Ew çiye?94
A flower has come out from God,
Some of it is of use to us in this
world,
Some in the next.
What is it?
•Odeke şûştî-mûştî
Çil feqîr têda rrûniştî.
Ew çiye?95
A waşed-maşed room
Forty paupers have sat down in it.
What is it?
•Ro betilî
Şev xemilî.
Ew çi ye?96
Idle during the day
Dressed up at night.
What is it?
LECTURE:
Dapîra min ji min ra got ku ‘Eyşê li de’watê xortek nas kiriye,
û dilketiyê da, û ku wan civan daye hev. Piştî ku de’wat xilas bûye,
‘Eyşe çûye malê, bi şevê ew xort hatiye bin pencera wê, bang lê
kiriye. Wê jî buxçika xwe daye hev û bi wî xortî ra revîye. Dotira
rojê dê û bavê wê daye pey wan û li mala wî xortî ew zeft kirine.
Gundî ketine navbera wan. Dê û bavê xort jî hatine, pişt re wan
şandiye dûv melayekî, wî jî fesla wan kiriye û ew li hev anîne.
Piştî hingî çi qewimîye? Çi qewimîye dayka min jî hew dizane.
Xwedê zane keçik û xort pevre zewicîne û gehîştine mirada xwe.
Min ev serpêhatî ji we ra gotin, ku hûn feydê jê werbigrin.
94Answer:
pembû = cotton.
dev û didan = mouth and teeth.
96Answer: ç’ira = lamp.
95Answer:
• 129 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
VOCABULARY:
axret, f.
the next world, hereafter
betilî
idle
buxçik, f.
parcel, pack (for traveling)
civan, m. [also: jivan]
rendez-vous
ç’ira, f.
lamp
didan, didên, vî didanî, m. [also: diran]tooth {pl. teeth}
fesla [fk-î] kirin, vt.
to settle a feud
feyde (feydê), f.
benefit, use
hew
negative particle;
scarcely, hardly
kêr
useful; necessary
li hev anîn, vt.
to reconcile
qudret, f.
[heavenly] power
serpêhatî, pl.
story; adventure, experience
şandin[e] dûv [şandin, vt.]
to send for, send after
xemilî
adorned, dressed up
zeft kirin, vt.
to catch (redhanded), seize
EXPRESSIONS:
buxçika xwe dane hev
civan dane hev
Kêrî me tê
to pack up one's things
to make a date, rendez-vous
It is of use to us
GRAMMAR:
a. Past participle. The past participle is both adjective and verb at
one and the same time. In Engliş, the third principle part of the
verb is the past participle (eat - ate - eaten; go - went - gone;
talk - talked - talked). In Kurmanji, the past participle is formed
from the infinitive, by removing the final -in (-n if the stem ends
in a vowel) and adding -î (-yî before a vowel stem), e.g.:
girt-in
hat-in
bû-n
da-n
--->
--->
--->
--->
girt-î
hat-î
bû-yî
da-yî
'taken; captured'
'[having] come'
'been'
'given'
{Particularly in southern dialects, there is a plural form in -în
(girt-în; hat-în; bû-yîn; da-yîn), for when the referent of the past
participle is plural in number, i.e., to agree grammatically with a
plural subject for vi., and with a plural direct object for vt. More
on this in the section on relative clauses.}
Some common adjectives are in fact past participles:
girtî
'closed, şut'
vekirî
'open'
borî / çûyî
'past, last (week, month)'
• 130 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
dilketî
şkestî
xeyalşkestî
dilşkestî
'beloved'
'broken'
'disillusioned'
'broken-hearted', 'heartbroken'
Past participles may also be nouns (substantives):
girtî
(m.&f.)
=
destgirtî/dergistî (m.&f.)=
'prisoner'
'fiancé(e)'
b. Past participles in relative clauses. Particularly in southern
Kurmanji dialects, the past tense verb in a relative clause is in the
past participial form. In addition, the following conjunctions signal
the relative clause:
ku
berî[ya] ku
piştî ku
gava ku/demê ku/wextê ku
heta ku
'that, which'
'before'
'after'
'when'
'until'
Here are some examples of this usage:
[KDS-II]
•Behrem Fêris zadê xo xar û k’ete ser enîşka xo. (742.) Wextê k’etîye
ser enîşka xo bera xo daê, eve k’afirekî têtin, çil û êk destêt pêve
Bahram Féris ate his food and leant back on his elbow. (742.) When he
leant back on his elbow he noticed a monster coming, with forty-one
hands
•Rabû, hespê xo li axûrê derêxist, suwar bû, çû. Wextê çûyî biraê wî
Ehmed Çelebî dûvrra kire hewar…
He got up, took his horse out of the stable, mounted it and went.
When he went his brother Ahmed Chelebi şouted after him.
•Em rrabûyn, me bo xo agir di wê dirkêve helkir, em rrûniştîne xarê
li wê dirkê gelek, heta me bo xo çayek çê kirî, me zadê xo xar
We got up, we made a fire for ourselves there and we sat there a long
time until we had made ourselves some tea and eaten our food.
•Di dîwana da demê suhbet tên kirin liser wan roja, delîvek buha
peyda dibet [sic] ji bo wan kesa ewên ew çîrok bi serê wan hatîn
bêjin, bi rengekî dramatîkî.
In the diwans, when those days are discussed, a golden opportunity
arises for those people to whom those stories happened to tell [it]
• 131 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
in a dramatic way
from: Metîn 3:6 (1992), 32.
•Ew ezim yê biraê te ez kuştîm
I am he whom your brother killed.
from: KDS II Gulli #757, 350
c. Perfect tense. The perfect tense97 is used to express an action
that began in the past and continues into the present. It often
corresponds to the Engliş Present Perfect tense, e.g., 'I have seen,
you have gone, şe has left', etc. The distinction between transitive
(vt.) and intransitive (vi.) verbs applies to this tense.
E.g.
Ez hatime
Min dîtiye
I have come
I have seen
Tu çûye
Te xwariye
You have gone
You have eaten
It can sometimes be used to express the adverb 'already' (German
'schon'; French 'déjà'), e.g.:
Min xwariye
Te ew pirtûk xwendiye?
Wê jinê mêr kiriye
I've (already) eaten.
Have you (already) read that book?
That woman is (already) married,
has (already) gotten married.
This is one of the tenses whose formation and usage differs markedly
between the north and the south. In all cases, the negative is formed
with the accented prefix ne-.
Both northern and southern forms are given below:
Northern:
vi. Ez hatime
I have come
Tu hatiye*
You have come
Ew hatiye*
He/şe has come
{*Also may be written hatîye}
97Or
Em hatine
Hûn hatine
Ew hatine
We have come
You have come
They have come
Present Perfect tense. The intricacies of this tense and its usage are far
more complex, and bear an in depth study. In some cases this tense is used for
reporting hearsay (i.e., telling about something one has heard second hand), as
opposed to something which one has witnessed -- for which the simple past (or past
perfect in some cases) is used. It can also be used in speaking of an imagined
scenario, and in folktales. There is a certain resemblance between the use of this
tense and the mi¤li past tense of Turkish, used for reporting hearsay. The extent
of this resemblance has yet to be examined in detail.
• 132 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
vt.
Min kiriye** I have done
Te kiriye
You have done
Wî/Wê kiriye
He/şe has done
{**Also may be written kirîye}
Southern:
vi. Ez hatîme
Tu hatiye
Ew hatiye
{hatîye}
or
Ez yê/ya hatîm
Tu yê/ya hatî
Ew yê/ya hatî
vt.
Min kiriye
Te kiriye
Wî/Wê kiriye
{kirîye}
Me kiriye
We kiriye
Wan kiriye
We have done
You have done
They have done
I have come
You have come
He/şe has come
Em hatîne
Hûn hatîne
Ew hatîne
We have come
You have come
They have come
I have come
You have come
He/şe has come
Em yêt hatîn
Hûn yêt hatîn
Ew yêt hatîn
We have come
You have come
They have come
I have done
You have done
He/şe has done
Me kiriye
We kiriye
Wan kiriye
We have done
You have done
They have done
or
Min yê/ya kirî I have done
Te yê/ya kirî
You have done
Wî/Wê yê/ya kirî He/şe has done
Me yê/ya kirî We have done
We yê/ya kirî You have done
Wan yê/ya kirî They have done
The secondary ezafeh marker (yê/ya/yêt) agrees in gender and number
with its referent (the subject for vi., the direct object for vt.).
The southern forms indicates that the present perfect tense is based
on the past participle, (hatî + me, kirî + ye), whereas this
connection is less obvious in the north.
d. Subjunctive of Perfect tense. The formation of the subjunctive is
as follows: remove the -n from the infinitive (e.g., girti- [girtin]; hati- [hati-n]; da- [da-n]; çû- [çû-n]); add -be [singular] & bin [plural] for transitive verbs, and -bim, -bî, -be, -bin for
intransitive verbs (i.e., the present subjunctive of the auxiliary
verb bûn). E.g.:
vt.
Min kiri-be98 [-bin]
Te kiri-be [-bin]
Wî/Wê kiri-be [-bin]
Me kiri-be [-bin]
We kiri-be [-bin]
Wan kiri-be [-bin]
Min da-be98 [-bin]
Te da-be [-bin]
Wî/Wê da-be [-bin]
Me da-be [-bin]
We da-be [-bin]
Wan da-be [-bin]
98Southern:
kiri-bit[in]/kiri-bît[in]; da-bit[in]/da-bît[in]; hati-bit[in]/hatibît[in]; çû-bit[in]/çû-bît[in].
• 133 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
vi.
Ez hati-bim
Tu hati-bî
Ew hati-be98
Em hati-bin99
Hûn hati-bin
Ew hati-bin
Ez çû-bim
Tu çû-bî
Ew çû-be98
Em çû-bin99
Hûn çû-bin
Ew çû-bin
Examples of usage:
99Southern:
hati-bîn; çû-bîn.
• 134 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Dersa Hijdehan [18]
FOLKLORE:
Ji gotinên pêşîyan:
•Bextê k’esiva wekî hebîya, cotê wan çolê nedima.
If the poor had any luck, their plow would not
wilderness.
remain
in
the
•Heke hemî ç’îç’ka hijîr xar bana, çi xudanî nediman.
If all the chicks ate the figs, there would be none left for their
owner.
•Heker gurg ji baranê tirsaba, da bo xo k’urkekî çêket.
If the wolf feared the rain, he would make himself a fur coat.
•Eger gur tirsa wî ji baranê hebana, wê serkumekî
çêbikirana (L -#294, p. 228; see also Dz-#600, p. 137)
ji
xwe
re
•Gur qewata xwe bizanbya, wê dinya xirab kira (Dz-#583, p. 135)
If the wolf knew his strength, he would destroy the world.
READING:
Kurik … tênagihîje ku diya wî ji bo çi wisa digrî. Herweha heta
demeke kurt jî her li hêsrên diya xwe temaşe dike û bêdeng dimîne.
Diya wî jî … di nava giriyê xwe de dilorîne û:
--Ax!.. Bêvankes sax bûya! dibêje. --Ax ku … ku aniha bêvankes î
sermiyanê mala min sax bûya!.. Ax ku ew aniha ne li pişta goristanê
ramedî bûya!.. Ax!
Li ser van lavelavên diya xwe şikeke sar li lawik çêdibe û
tirsek lê radibe. Tirsa dînbûna diya wî dikeve dilê wî. Bi dev û
lêvên ziwa vedigere ser diya xwe û dibêje:
--Ji bona Xwedê, dako! Ma nuha bavê min sax bûya wî ê çi
bikira!?..
Bawer bike ku bavê min jî di dewsa min da bûya, wî ê jî fena min
çar bizin bikirana ber karmendên qamçûrî. Qamçûr vatiniyeke
karmendan e, rêdareke dewletê ye. Ma ji te wetrê ku bavê min ê
bizineke kêm bida wan? Ez dizanim… ez dizanim ku wî ê jî çar bizin
bidana wan. Ma wî ê wekî din çi bikira? … Dako! Ez bi gorî!.. Bi
navê Xwedê ku bavê min jî îro li vir bûya, em ê dîsa ji wan çar serê
bizinên xwe bibana. Îcar tu çima ewqas dilê xwe teng dikî, daka min!
[adapted from: Hesenê Metê. “Qamçûr” in: Ardû ji kurteçîrokên gelêrî
(Stockholm: Weşanên Welat, 1990), p. 114-117.]
• 135 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
VOCABULARY:
Bêxîret
lacking initiative; carefree
bira = bila [+ subj.]
let (it be)
cî-nivîn pl.
beds, bedding, mattresses
ç’are f. (çara)
remedy, cure; solution
dest pê kirin (dest bi .. dike) to begin
êp’êce (=T epeyce)
quite a bit
gêzî kirin vt.
to sweep
hildan vt. (hil*dide)
to pick up, lift
hîştin/hiştin vt. (dihêle)
to leave, let
pê nedibû
did not succeed, did not work out
qasî
as much as
qe (qet)
at all
sibê şebeqêda
at the crack of dawn
sivetira din [sibetira din]
on the next day
dîna xwe dan vt.
to see, take a look
şuxul m.
work, labor; şuxul û ‘emel = do.
şûnda: ji wê şûnda
from then on, after that
t’emî [=t’enbîh] dan vt.
to instruct, give directions
wekî usane
in that case, if that is so
xebat f.
work, labor
xebitîn vi. (dixebite)
to work
GRAMMAR:
a. The Past Subjunctive (Pikkert, 6.8)
Formation
As it is a past tense, the Past Subjunctive a) preserves the
distinction between transitive and intransitive verbs; b) is formed
differently in the north than in the south (Hekkari and Behdinan). In
both cases the -(i)n of the infinitive is removed, e.g.
girt-in
çû-n
-->
-->
girt
çû
In the north, the stem is preceded by the subjunctive prefix bi- (bbefore vowels) and followed by the following personal suffixes,
corresponding to the subject for intransitive, and to the logical
direct object for transitive verbs:
Ez
Tu
Ew
bi-X-ama
bi-X-ayî
bi-X-a
Em
Hûn
Ew
bi-X-ana
bi-X-ana
bi-X-ana
In the south, there is no bi- prefix: instead, the stem is followed
by the following personal suffixes, with the usual distinctions for
transitive and intransitive verbs:
• 136 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Ez
Tu
Ew
-bam
-bayî
-ba
Em
Hûn
Ew
-bayn
-ban
-ban
The following are examples of an intransitive and a transitive verb
conjugated in the Past Subjunctive:
•hatin (vi.):
northern:
Ez bihatama
Tu bihatayî
Ew bihata
Em bihatana
Hûn bihatana
Ew bihatana
southern:
Ez
hatibam
Tu
hatibayî
Ew
hatiba
Em hatibayn
Hûn hatiban
Ew hatiban
•girtin (vt.):
northern:
Min bigirta
Te bigirta
Wî/wê bigirta
Me bigirta
We bigirta
Wan bigirta
southern:
Min girtiba
Te girtiba
Wî/wê girtiba
Me girtiba
We girtiba
Wan girtiba
as logical direct object:
northern:
Ez bigirtama
Tu bigirtayî
Ew bigirta
Em bigirtana
Hûn bigirtana
Ew bigirtana
southern:
Ez
girtibam
Tu
girtibayî
Ew
girtiba
Em
Hûn
Ew
girtibayn
girtiban
girtiban
Usage
The Past Subjunctive is used primarily in conditional sentences, to
express unreal or contrafactual conditions. It often corresponds to
English constructions like “If I were …” or “If I had been …”. The
Turkiş past conditional (gelseydi, yapsaydð, etc.) corresponds to
this tense.
• 137 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Examples of usage:
•Wekî tu bedew bûya[y]î, te ez kora nedistandim
If you were beautiful, you would not have married a blind man like
me.
•Min ew zû bixara, ewî ev ‘emel neanî serê min
If I had eaten him early on, he would not have done this to me
[=Turkish: bu işi başıma getirmezdi]
There are two Past Conditional tenses, one in use in the northern
dialects, the other in the south. In the north, this tense is formed
using the future tense marker wê/dê/-ê plus the Past Subjunctive.
Hence, although Min bikira means “[If] I had done [it]” (=Turkish
yapsaydım), Min-ê bikira means “I would have done [it]” (=Turkis
yapacaktım, yapardım).
In Behdinan, this tense is formed using the independent morpheme DA
plus the naked present tense stem (without bi- or di- prefix). Hence,
Southern Ez da kem = Northern Min-ê bikira = I would have done [it].
Note that the negative of this southern form is expressed with the
imperfect tense: Ez da çim = I would have gone, but Ez nediç^um = I
would not have gone.
Here are some examples of both northern and southern versions of this
tense:
N: Te yê bidîta = S: Tu da bînî
You would have seen/found [it]
N: Ew ê biçûya = S: Ew da çît
He would have gone
N: Me yê bigirta = S: Em da girîn
We would have closed/captured [it]
N: Hûn ê bihatana = S: Hûn da hên
You (pl.) would have come
N: Wan ê bixwenda = S: Ew da xwînin
They would have read/studied
Examples of usage:
•Ev, ko zilamekî diz bûya, wê îslehê me bidizîya, wê şerefa me
bişkenanda
• 138 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
If this man were a thief, he would steal (or, have stolen) our
weapons, he would tarnish [lit. ‘break’] our honor.
•Teyê bigota
Almost [lit. ‘You would say’, ‘you would have said’]
•Memê ewqasî bêxem û bêxîyal bû, qet teyê bigota, ew t’enêye ba=çêda
Mem was so unconcerned and uninterested, it was almost as if he was
alone in the garden
[lit. ‘You would have said he is alone in the garden’]
The Past Subjunctive is also used after modal auxiliaries that
require the subjunctive (e.g., lazim, gerek, divê[t]), specifically
with reference to the past tense.
Examples of usage:
•Lazim bû ko we bi a Beyrim bikira
You were supposed to obey Beyrim
[lit. ‘it was necessary that you did according to that (f.) of
Beyrim’]
•Divîya duhû çûbama [divîya = past tense of divêt]
I should have gone yesterday
•Vira zinarên usa mezin hebûn, ku weke panzdeh-bîst soyara dikaribû
xwe piş wana
veşarta [soyar = suwar/siyar = horseman, rider,
knight]
Here there were boulders so large that 15-20 horsemen could have
hidden behind them.
• 139 •
M.L. Chyet / Em hînî Kurmancî dibin
Pronunciation drills
terr
k’êr
bîn
kêç’
kirin
digrim
kurr
guh
din
t’êr
k’er
bin
keç’
k’irrîn
digrîm
kûr
gû
dîn
tîr
kerr
şiv
şêr
ji
şîv
şîr
jî
şev
şerr
jê
tirr
karîn
digerrim
kor
dên
Q - K
ked
qab
kîr
p’ak
qed
kap
qîr
paqij
kar
beq
noqav
qoç’
qirrke
kul
qar
Bek’o
nok
koç
qelemek
qul
• 140 •