Judeo-Persian ()

Judeo-Persian ()

Judæo-Persian, or Jidi ( /ˈdʒiːdiː/; also spelled Dzhidi or Djudi), refers to both a group of Jewish dialects spoken by the Jews living in Iran and Judæo-Persian texts (written in Hebrew alphabet). As a collective term, Dzhidi refers to a number of Iranian languages or dialects spoken by Jewish communities throughout the formerly extensive Persian Empire. On a more limited scale, spoken Dzhidi refers to the Judæo-Persian dialect spoken by the Jewish communities of the area around Tehran, Mashhad. Judaeo-Persian dialects are generally conservative in comparison with those of their Muslim neighbours: for example, Judaeo-Shirazi remains close to the language of Hafiz.

Another name used for some Judaeo-Persian dialects is Latorayi, sometimes interpreted by folk etymology as "not of the Torah". This refers to a form of the language in which the number of Hebrew and Aramaic loanwords is deliberately maximised to allow it to function as a secret code. In general, however, the number of such loanwords is small compared with that in other Jewish languages such as Yiddish or Judaeo-Spanish.

Read more about Judeo-Persian ():  Persian Words in Hebrew and Aramaic, Literature