Kurdish phrasebook
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Kurdish (Kurdî / کوردی) is the language of the Kurdish people who live in the region known as Kurdistan, which includes parts of four countries Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria.
Kurdish is an Indo-European language, part of an enormous language family that includes many languages of the Indian sub-continent and most of the languages of Europe. Its branch of that family includes the other modern languages Persian, Pushtu and Balochi, but none of those are mutually intelligible. Kurdish is completely unrelated to Turkish and Arabic, though it includes some loanwords from those languages.
This phrase book is for the Kurmanji dialect (Northern Kurdish) which covers most of the Bhadinan area of Iraqi Kurdistan and Kurdistan of southern Turkey. Sorani (Central Kurdish) is spoken in most of Iraqi Kurdistan and parts of Iranian Kurdistan, Pehlewani (Southern Kurdish) mostly in Iran. The dialects are not mutually intelligible.
The script of choice for written Kurdish differs according to the country — the Roman alphabet is in use in Turkey and Syria while the Kurds of Iraq and Iran use the Arabic script.
Pronunciation guide
Vowels
Consonants
Common diphthongs
Phrase list
Basics
- Hello.
- Rojbaş! (روژباش): Ev dema te xweş be! (اڤ دما ته خوش بت)
- How are you?
- Tu çawa yî? (singular) (تو چاوا یی؟): Hûn çawa ne? (plural) (هون چاوا نه؟)
- Fine, thank you.
- Spas, ez baş im! (سپاس، از باشم)
- What is your name?
- Navê te çi ye? (ناڤی ته چیه؟)
- My name is ______ .
- Navê min ______ e/ye. (ناڤی من ـه/یه)
- Nice to meet you.
- Ez gelek kêfxweş bûm. (از گلک کیفخوش بوم)
- Please.
- Zehmet nebe. (زحمت نه‌بت)
- Thank you.
- Spas. (سپاس): Destxweş bî! (دستخوش بی)
- Thank you very much
- Gelek spas! (گلک سپاس)
- You're welcome.
- Spasxweş! (سپاسخوش): Ser çava! (سر چاڤان/چهڤان)
- Yes.
- Erê. (اری)
- No.
- Na. (نا)
- Excuse me. (getting attention)
- Ca bala xwe bide min! (جا بالا خوه بده من): Ji min re binêre!
- Excuse me. (begging pardon)
- Li min bibore/bibihure! (لمن ببوره)
- I'm sorry.
- Li min bibore/bibihure! (لمن ببوره)
- Goodbye
- Bi xatirê te! (بخاطری ته): Emê hev bibînin! (ام دی هڤ ببینین)
- I can't speak Kurdish.
- Ez nikarim bi kurdî biaxivim.: Ez bi kurdî nizanim. (Literally "I don't know Kurdish.") (از بانگلیزی/بترکی/بعربی/بکردی نزانم)
- Do you speak English?
- ()
- Do you speak Kurdish?
- Gelo (ma) tu bi kurdî dizanî? (Literally "Do you know Kurdish?") (گلو/ما تو بکردی دزانی؟)
- Who speaks English here?
- Li min bibore, li vir kî bi îngilîzî dizane? (Literally " Excuse me, who knows english here?") (لمن ببورن، لڤر کی بانگلیزی دزانت؟)
- Help!
- Hawar! (هوار)
- Look out!
- Berê xwe bide! (بری خوه بده)
- Good morning.
- Rojbaş! (روژباش): Beyanîbaş! (بیانیباش)
- Good evening.
- Êvarbaş! (ایڤارباش)
- Good night.
- Şevbaş! (شڤباش): Şevxweş! (شڤخوش)
- Good night (to sleep)
- Şevxweş! (شڤخوش)
- I don't understand you.
- Ez te fehm nakim. (از ته فهم ناکم)
- Where is the toilet?
- Hemam li kû ye? (حمام لکو یه؟)
- Right now.
- niha (نها)
- I Love you
- Ez ji te hez dikim. (از ژ ته حظ دکم)
- Do you have .... ?
- -a/-ê/-ên/-êt te/we/hewe .... heye/hene/heyin? (ـا/ـی/ـین/ـیت ته/وه/هوه هیه/هنه/هین؟): Te/we/hewe ... heye/hene/heyin? (ته/وه/هوه ـ هیه/هنه/هین؟)
- I am hungry.
- Ez birçî me. (از برسی/برچی مه)
- I am a foreigner.
- Ez biyanî me. (از بیانی مه): Ez xerîb im. (از غریبم): Ez ne ji vir im. (از نه ژ ڤرم)
- Please notice
- In kurdish language, pronouncation of "x" is not like in english. It sounds like "r" in german. Simply a thick "h" which comes from deep throat.
Problems
Numbers
½ - nims
0 - sifir
-1 - dibin sifirin de yek
1 - yek
2 - du
2½ - dula nims
3 - se
4 - char
5 - penc
6 - shesh
7 - haft
8 - hesht
9 - nuh
10 - deh
11 - yazdeh
12 - duazdeh
13 - sezdeh
14 - chardeh
15 - pencdeh
16 - shesdeh
17 - hafdeh
18 - hesdeh
19 - nuzdeh
20 - bisd
50 - pencih
60 - sheshdi
90 - noavad
100 - sad
200 - dusad
300 - sesad
400 - charsad
500 - pencsad
600 - sheshsad
700 - haftsad
800 - heshtsad
900 - nuhsad
1000 - hezar
2000 - du hezar
Time
Clock time
Duration
Days
Monday - Dushem
Tuesday - Seshem
Wednesday - Charsem
Thursday - Pencsem
Friday - Ini
Saturday - Semi
Sunday - Yeksem
Months
Writing time and date
Colors
Red:Sor
, Yellow:Zard
, Green:Saoz
, Black:Resh
, White:sepid
, Blue:kaow
Transportation
Bus and train
Bus : Pass Train : Kitar / Shamenafer
Directions
right: rast Left: cep Turn:bsurewe Go Straight: rast bro Street: sheqam Lane:kolan neighborhood: gerek city: shar Market : bazar
Taxi
Lodging
Money
Para or dinar
Eating
Xwardan
Bars
Shopping
Driving