M. Dehqan

A Kurdish Garshuni Grammar from Baghdad

 Abstract: The term “Garshuni” originally refers to Arabic texts written in Syriac script. The history of the Garshuni tradition of the Kurdish literature written down in Kurmanci dialect by Syriac authors active especially in Iraqi Kurdistan from ca. 1800 onwards, appears to have been much complicated by various factors and different aspects. The goal of the article is a short presentation of a Kurdish Garshuni manuscript Ktaba d‑Turas Mamlla Kartwaya  (“Grammar of the Kurdish Language”) by Father Ablahad kept at the Iraqi Department of Antiquities and Heritage, in Baghdad.

 Key words: Kurdo‑Syriac contact zones, Kurdish Garshuni manuscript, Iraqi Department of Antiquities and Heritage, Father Ablahad