Gilaki Language

The Gilaki language is a Caspian language, and a member of the northwestern Iranian language branch, spoken in Iran's Gīlān Province.

The language is divided into three dialects: Western Gilaki, Eastern Gilaki, and Galeshi (in the mountains of Gilan). Furthermore, the Gilaki language is closely related to Mazanderani, and the two languages have similar vocabularies. The western and eastern dialects are separated by the Sefid River. According to Ethnologue, there were more than 3 million native speakers of Gilaki in 1993.

  • Example for noun-noun possessives in Western Gilaki: məhin zakan (Mæhin's children) (Bæče-ha-ye Mæhin in Persian), Baγi gulan (garden flowers) (Gol-ha-ye Baγ in Persian). In Eastern Gilaki: Xirsi Kuti (bear cub) (Bæč-e Xers in Persian).
  • Example for adjectival modification: Western Gilaki: pilla-yi zakan (big children), Surx gul (red flower). Eastern Gilaki: Sərd aw (cold water) (ɑb-e særd in Persian), kul čaqu (sharp knife) (čaqu-ye Tiz in Persian).

Read more about Gilaki Language:  Some Gilaki Words, Comparison of Gilaki and Kurdish, Phonology, Verb System, Nouns, Cases and Postpositions, Adjectives

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