The Judeo-Iranian languages (or dialects) are a number of related
Jewish variants of
Iranian languages spoken throughout the formerly extensive realm of the
Persian Empire. Judeo-Iranian dialects are generally conservative in comparison with those of their Muslim neighbours.
Judeo-Shirazi, for example, remains close to the language of
Hafez.
Like most Jewish languages, all the Judeo-Iranian languages contain great numbers of
Hebrewloanwords, and are written using variations of the
Hebrew alphabet. Another name used for some Judeo-Iranian dialects is Latorayi, sometimes interpreted by folk etymology as "not [the language] 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.[2]
Luterā'i (a secret language combining an Aramaic and Hebrew vocabulary with
Persian conjunctions and grammatical morphemes)[3][4][5]
Bukhori (Judeo-Bukharic, Judeo-Tajik, the Jewish language of the distinctive Jewish community centered in
Bukhara)
Judeo-Golpaygani, the Judeo-Persian language traditionally spoken by the
Jewish community in the environs of
Gulpaigan and western
Isfahan Province,
Iran.[6] The first records of Jewish communities in this region date to approximately 750 BC. Like most Jewish languages, Judæo-Golpaygani was written using
Hebrew characters[citation needed], and contained many
Hebrewloanwords. [citation needed] Following the decline and consolidation of the
Persian Jewish community in the mid-20th century, Judæo-Golpaygani fell into disuse, being replaced by
Dzhidi,
Judæo-Hamedani, and
Persian, among those speakers remaining in Iran, and by
English and
Hebrew by those emigrating to the
United States and
Israel.
^Borjian, Habib (2014). "What is Judeo-Median and how does it differ from Judeo-Persian?". The Journal of Jewish Languages. 2 (2): 117–142.
doi:
10.1163/22134638-12340026.
^Habib Borjian, “Judeo-Iranian Languages,” in Lily Kahn and Aaron D. Rubin, eds., A Handbook of Jewish Languages, Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2015, pp. 234-295.
[1].
^
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