View source for Mazanderani language

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{{short description|Northwestern Iranian language}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Mazandarani
| ethnicity        = {{sigfig|4.840000|2}} million [[Mazanderani people|Mazanderanis]] (2023)<ref>{{e28|mzm}}</ref>
| speakers         = {{sigfig|1.35000|3}} million
| date             = 2023
| ref              = <ref>{{e28|mzn}}</ref>
| nativename       = {{lang|mzn|مازِرونی‎}} {{tlit|mzn|Mazeruni}}<ref>{{e28|mzn}}</ref><br/>{{lang|mzn|تَبَری}} {{tlit|mzn|Tabari}}<ref>{{e28|mzn}}</ref>
| states           = Iran (Province of [[Mazandaran]] and parts of the provinces of [[Alborz]], [[Tehran]], [[Qazvin Province|Qazvin]],<ref>{{cite web|publisher=پرتال جامع علوم انسانی|title=Considerations about the dialect of Alamut district from the northern dialects of Iran|url=http://ensani.ir/fa/article/209141/ملاحظاتی-درباره-ی-گویش-ناحیه-ی-الموت-از-گویش-های-شمالی-ایران}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Jaafari Dehaghi|first1=Mahmoud|last2=Khalilipour|first2=Nazanin|last3=Jaafari Dehaghi|first3=Shima|title=Iranian Languages and Dialects Past and Present|location=Tehran|page=261}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|publisher=[[Islamic Republic News Agency]] |title=کاهش توجه به زبان مازندرانی در قرن بیستم |trans-title=Decreased attention to Mazandarani language in the 20th century |date=16 July 2018 |url=https://www.irna.ir/news/83385759/کاهش-توجه-به-زبان-مازندرانی-در-قرن-بیستم |access-date=19 December 2020|last1=Borjian|first1=Habib |language=fa}}</ref> [[Semnan Province|Semnan]] and [[Golestan Province|Golestan]])
| region           = South coast of the [[Caspian Sea]]
| familycolor      = Indo-European
| fam2             = [[Indo-Iranian languages|Indo-Iranian]]
| fam3             = [[Iranian languages|Iranian]]
| fam4             = [[Western Iranian languages|Western Iranian]]
| fam5             = [[Northwestern Iranian languages|Northwestern]]
| fam6             = [[Caspian languages|Caspian]]
| dia1             = Gorgani-Mazandarani (East)
| dia2             = Katuli-Mazandarani (East)
| dia3             = Tabari-Mazandarani (Center)
| dia4             = Kojuri-Mazandarani (West)
| dia5             = Kelarestaqi-Mazandarani (West)
| dia6             = Gilaki-Mazandarani (West)
| dia7             = Galeshi-Mazandarani (South)
| dia8             = Taleqani-Mazandarani (South)
| dia9             = Shahmirzadi (South)
| dia10            = Ilikaei (South)
| dia11            = Qasrani (South)
| script           = [[Persian alphabet]]
| agency           = None<br>the Linguistic faculty of Mazandaran University officially gathers materials and resources about the language{{citation needed|date=April 2012}}
| lc1              = mzn
| ld1              = Mazandarani
| lc2              = srz
| ld2              = Shahmirzadi
| glotto           = maza1305
| glottoname       = Mazanderani–Shahmirzadi
| ELP              = 9250
| ELPname          = Shahmirzadi
| map              = Mazandarani Language Map.PNG
| mapcaption       = Areas where Mazandarani is spoken as the mother tongue
| notice           = IPA
| image            = [[File:Mazanderani in Nastaliq.png|200px]]
| imagecaption     = Mazanderani (Mazeruni) written in [[Nastaliq]] script. (مازِرونی)
}}
'''Mazandarani''' (Mazanderani: {{lang|fa|مازِرونی}}, ''Mazeruni''; also spelled '''Mazani''' ({{lang|mzn|مازنی}}) or '''Tabari''' ({{lang|mzn|تبری}}); also called '''Taveri''', '''Mazeruni''', '''Tati''', '''Geleki''' and '''Galeshi'''<ref>{{Cite web |title=ساری {{!}} مرکز دائرةالمعارف بزرگ اسلامی |url=https://www.cgie.org.ir/fa/article/272244/%D8%B3%D8%A7%D8%B1%DB%8C |access-date=2024-03-25 |website=www.cgie.org.ir}}</ref>)<ref>{{e28|mzn}}</ref> is an [[Iranian language]] of the [[Northwestern Iranian languages|Northwestern branch]] spoken by the [[Mazanderani people]]. {{As of|2023}}, there were 1.35 million native speakers. The language appears to be decreasing, as it is threatened, and due to the majority of its speakers shifting to [[Iranian Persian]].<ref>{{e28|mzn}}</ref> As a member of the Northwestern branch (the northern branch of Western Iranian), etymologically speaking, it is rather closely related to [[Gilaki language|Gilaki]] and also related to [[Persian language|Persian]], which belongs to the Southwestern branch. Though the Mazani and Persian languages have both influenced each other to a great extent, both are independent language with different origins in the Iranian plateau.<ref>Coon, "Iran:Demography and Ethnography" in Encyclopedia of Islam, Volume IV, E.J. Brill, pp. 10,8. Excerpt: "The Lurs speak an aberrant form of Archaic Persian" See maps also on page 10 for distribution of Persian languages and dialect</ref><ref>Kathryn M. Coughlin, "Muslim cultures today: a reference guide," Greenwood Publishing Group, 2006. p. 89: "...Iranians speak Persian or a Persian dialect such as Gilaki or Mazandarani"</ref>

Mazandarani is closely related to Gilaki, and the two languages have similar vocabularies.<ref name="Dictionary of Languages">{{cite book |last=Dalb |first=Andrew |title=Dictionary of Languages: The Definitive Reference to More Than 400 Languages |publisher=Columbia University Press |date=1998 |page=226 |url=https://archive.org/details/dictionaryoflang00dalb/page/226 |isbn=978-0-231-11568-1 |url-access=registration }}</ref> The Gilaki and Mazandarani languages (but not other Iranian languages)<ref name="sciencedirect.com"/> share certain [[Linguistic typology|typological]] features with [[Caucasian languages]] (specifically the non-Indo-European [[South Caucasian languages]]),<ref name="sciencedirect.com">{{cite journal|title=Concomitant Replacement of Language and mtDNA in South Caspian Populations of Iran|doi=10.1016/j.cub.2006.02.021|pmid=16581511|volume=16|issue=7|journal=Current Biology|pages=668–673|year=2006|last1=Nasidze|first1=Ivan|last2=Quinque|first2=Dominique|last3=Rahmani|first3=Manijeh|last4=Alemohamad|first4=Seyed Ali|last5=Stoneking|first5=Mark|doi-access=free|bibcode=2006CBio...16..668N }}</ref><ref name="Grolier Incorporated page 294">Academic American Encyclopedia By Grolier Incorporated, page 294</ref><ref name="D.Stilo pages 137-185">{{cite journal |title=The Tati Language Group in the Sociolinguistic Context of Northwestern Iran and Transcaucasia |last=Stilo |first=Donald L. |pages=137–185 |journal=Iranian Studies |volume=14 |issue=3/4 |date=1981 |doi=10.1080/00210868108701585 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4310364 |jstor=4310364|url-access=subscription }}</ref> reflecting the history, ethnic identity, and close relatedness to the [[Caucasus]] region and [[Peoples of the Caucasus|Caucasian peoples]] of Mazandaranis and [[Gilak people]].<ref>{{Cite CiteSeerX|title=Bilingualism in Mazandaran: Peaceful Coexistence with Persian|citeseerx = 10.1.1.501.9468}}</ref><ref name="Borjian2004">{{cite journal |jstor=4030997 |title=Māzandarān: Language and People |journal=Iran & the Caucasus |last=Borjian |first=Habib |volume= 8| issue =2 |date=2004 |publisher=[[Brill Publishers|Brill]] |pages=289–328 |doi=10.1163/1573384043076045}}</ref>{{rp|295}}

== Etymology ==
The name ''Mazanderani'' (and variants of it) derives from the name of the province of [[Mazandaran]] (''Mazerun'' in Mazanderani), which was part of the historical region of [[Tapuria]].  People traditionally call their language ''Tabari'', as the Tabari themselves do.<ref name="Borjian2004"/>{{rp|289–291}}

The name ''Tapuri'' / ''Tabari'' (which was the name of an ancient language spoken somewhere in former Tapuria) is now used in preference to the name ''Mazandarani'' by the young.

However, both Gilan and Mazanderan formed part of the region known as Tapuria.

The earliest references to the language of Mazandaran, called Tabari, are to be found in the works of the early Muslim geographers. [[Al-Maqdisi|Al-Muqaddasī]] (or Moqaisi, 10th century), for example, notes: "The languages of [[Qumis (region)|Komish]] and [[Gorgan|Gurgan]] are similar, they use ''hā'',  as in ''hā-dih'' and ''hāk-un'', and they are sweet [to the ear], related to them is the language of Tabaristan, [similar] save for its speediness."<ref name="Borjian2004" />{{rp|291}}

== History ==
Among the living [[Iranian languages]], Mazanderani has one of the longest written traditions, from the tenth to the fifteenth century. This status was achieved during the long reign of the independent and semi-independent rulers of [[Mazandaran]] in the centuries after the Arab invasion.<ref>Windfuhr, G. L. 1989. New Iranian languages: Overview. In Rüdiger Schmitt, ed., ''Compendium linguarum Iranicarum''. Wiesbaden: L. Reichert. pp.&nbsp;246–249.</ref>

The rich literature of this language includes books such as ''[[Marzban Nameh]]'' (later translated into Persian) and the poetry of Amir Pazevari. Use of Mazanderani, however, has been in decline for some time. Its literary and administrative prominence had begun to diminish in favor of Persian by the time of the integration of [[Mazandaran]] into the national administration in the early seventeenth century.<ref name="M. Borjian 2005">Borjian, Maryam. 2005. [http://www.tc.columbia.edu/students/sie/LCEjr05/pdfs/Borjian.pdf Bilingualism in Mazandaran: Peaceful Coexistence With Persian]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060921001601/http://www.tc.columbia.edu/students/sie/LCEjr05/pdfs/Borjian.pdf |date=September 21, 2006 }}. ''Language, Communities and Education''.  ''Languages, Communities & Education: A Volume of Graduate Student Research''. New York: [http://www.tc.edu/students/sie/LCEjr05/home.htm Society for International Education] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727230834/http://www.tc.edu/students/sie/LCEjr05/home.htm |date=2011-07-27 }}, Teachers College, [[Columbia University]]. pp.&nbsp;65–73.</ref>

== Classification ==
The Mazanderani language is closely related to [[Gilaki language|Gilaki]] and the two languages have similar vocabularies. In 1993, according to ''[[Ethnologue]]'', there were three million native Mazanderani speakers.<ref name=e18>{{e18|mzn}}</ref>

The dialects of Mazanderani are Saravi, Amoli, Baboli, Ghaemshahri, Chaloosi, Nuri, Shahsavari, Ghasrani, Shahmirzadi, Damavandi, Firoozkoohi, Astarabadi and Katouli.

The native people of [[Aliabad-e Katul]], [[Gorgan]], [[Kordkuy]] and [[Bandar-e Gaz]]  in [[Golestan province]] are Mazandarani and speak the mazandarani language.
The native people of [[Shemiranat County|Shemiranat]], [[Damavand, Iran|Damavand]] and [[Firuzkuh]] in [[Tehran province]] are Mazandarani and speak the mazandarani language.
The native people of north of [[Karaj County|Karaj]] and [[Taleqan County|Taleqan]] in [[Alborz province]] are Mazandarani and speak the mazandarani language.
The people of east of [[Alamut]] in [[Qazvin province]] are Mazandarani and speak the mazandarani language.
The native of people of [[Aradan, Iran|Aradan]], [[Garmsar]], [[Shahmirzad]] and north of [[Damghan]] in [[Semnan province]] are Mazandarani and speak the mazandarani language.
The native people of [[Galugah]], [[Behshahr]], [[Neka]], [[Sari, Iran|Sari]], [[Qaem Shahr|Shahi]], [[Babol]], [[Amol]],  [[Nowshahr]], [[Chalus, Iran|Chalus]], [[Kelardasht]], [[Abbasabad, Mazandaran|Abbasabad]] and [[Tonekabon]] in [[Mazandaran province]] are Mazanderani people and speak the Mazanderani language.<ref name=Glottolog>{{cite web |title=Spoken L1 Language: Mazanderani |website=Glottolog 4.6 |url=https://glottolog.org/resource/languoid/id/maza1291}}</ref><ref name=Windfuhr>{{cite book |author=Windfuhr, G. L. |year=1989 |chapter=New Iranian languages: Overview |editor=Rüdiger Schmitt |title=Compendium linguarum Iranicarum |location=Wiesbaden |publisher=L. Reichert |page=490}}</ref>
[[file:Map of Mazandarani-inhabited provinces of Iran , according to a poll in 2010.png|300px|right|Mazandaranis in Iran]]
[[File:Map of Caspian Language.png|thumb|right|Map depicting areas where the various dialects of Mazandarani are spoken]]

== Grammar ==
[[File:Linguistic Map of Mazandaran Province.jpg|thumb|300px|Linguistic Map of Mazandaran Province]]
Mazanderani is an [[inflected]] and [[genderless language]].<ref>Fakhr-Rohani, Muhammad-Reza. 2004. She means only her 'husband': politeness strategies amongst Mazanderani-speaking [[rural women]]. (Conference abstract) CLPG Conference, University of Helsinki, Finland, [http://www.nord.helsinki.fi/clpg/CLPG/Muhammed-Reza%20Fakhr-Rohani.pdf PDF]</ref> It is SOV,  but in some tenses it may be SVO, depending on the particular dialect involved.<ref>Johanson, Lars. [https://books.google.com/books?id=YB1UWaDMCKcC&dq=mazanderani&pg=PA310 Turkic-Iranian Contact Areas Historical and Linguistic Aspects.] Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2006.</ref><ref>Csató, Éva Ágnes, Bo Isaksson, and Carina Jahani. [https://books.google.com/books?id=OjWoG6XDKNIC&q=verb&pg=PT41 Linguistic Convergence and Areal Diffusion: Case Studies from Iranian, Semitic and Turkic.] London: RoutledgeCurzon, 2005.</ref>

=== Typology ===

=== Morphology ===
Just as in other modern [[Iranian languages]], there is no distinction between the dative and accusative cases, and the nominative in the sentence takes almost no indicators but may be inferred from word order (depending on dialect it may end in a/o/e). Since Mazanderani lacks [[Article (grammar)|articles]], there is no inflection for nouns in the sentence (no modifications for nouns).
For definition, nouns take the suffix ''e'' (''me dətere'' meaning ''The daughter of mine'' while ''me dəter'' means ''my daughter''). The indefinite article for single nouns is ''a-tā'' with ''tā'' for determination of number (''a-tā kijā'' meaning ''a girl'').
There exist some remnants of old Mazanderani indicating that, in the nominative case, female nouns used to end in ''a'', while male nouns ended in ''e'' (as in ''jənā'' meaning ''the woman'' and ''mərdē'' meaning ''the man''). Grammatical gender is still present in certain modern languages closely related to Mazandarani such as [[Semnani language|Semnani]], [[Sangesari language|Sangesari]] and [[Zazaki language|Zazaki]].

=== Pronouns ===
In the Mazandarani language, independent personal pronouns have three cases: active, passive and possessive.<ref>{{cite journal |title=
The Mazandarani Dialect of Kalijān Rostāq |journal=Iranian Studies |date=2019 |volume=52 |issue=3–4 |url= https://www.academia.edu/38367668 |pages=555 |doi= 10.1080/00210862.2019.1611371|access-date= |language=en |last1=Borjian |first1=Habib }}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Identification !! Singular 1 !! Singular 2 !! Singular 3 !! Plural 1 !! Plural 2 !! Plural 3
|-
| Subject (Sari dialect) || mən || tə || və || əmâ || šəmâ || vəšún
|-
| Object (Sari dialect) || məre || təre || vəre || əmâre || šəmâre || vəšúnre
|-
| Possessive (Sari dialect)
| me || te  || ve || ame || šeme || vešúne
|}

=== Conjugation ===
Conjugation (hākārden) "to work" in Mazandarani language (Sari dialect).<ref>{{cite journal |title=
The Mazandarani Dialect of Kalijān Rostāq |journal=Iranian Studies |date=2019 |volume=52 |issue=3–4 |url= https://www.academia.edu/38367668 |pages=561 |doi= 10.1080/00210862.2019.1611371|access-date= |language=en |last1=Borjian |first1=Habib }}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Tense/person !! Sg1 !! Sg2 !! Sg3 !!  Pl1 !!  Pl2 !!  Pl3
|-
|  Preterit || hâkârdeme || hâkârdi || hâkârde || hâkârdemi || hâkârdeni || hâkârdene
|-
|  Pluperfect || hâkârde-bime || hâkârde-bi || hâkârde-bie || hâkârde-bimi || hâkârde-bini || hâkârde-bine
|-
| Past subjunctive || hâkârde-buem || hâkârde-bui || hâkârde-bue || hâkârde-buim || hâkârde-buin || hâkârde-buen
|-
|  Pluperfect subjunctive  || hâkârde-bai-buem || hâkârde-bai-bui || hâkârde-bai-bue || hâkârde-bai-buim || hâkârde-bai-buin || hâkârde-bai-buen
|-
|  Imperfect (type 1) || kârdeme || kârdi || kârde || kârdemi || kârdeni || kârdene
|-
|  Imperfect (type 2) || kândesseme || kândessi || kândesse || kândessemi || kândesseni || kândessene
|-
|    Past progressive (type1)  || dai(me)-kârdeme || dai(i)-kârdi || dai(e)-kârde || dai(mi)-kârdemi || dai(ni)-kârdeni || dai(ne)-kârdene
|-
|    Past progressive (type 2)   || dai(me)-kândesseme || dai(i)-kândessi || dai(e)-kândesse || dai(mi)-kândessemi || dai(ni)-kândesseni || dai(ne)-kândessene
|-
| Present || kâmbe/kândeme || kândi || kânde || kâmbi/kândemi || kândeni || kândene
|-
|  Present progressive   || dar(eme)-kâmbe || dar(i)-kândi || dar(e)-kânde || dar(emi)-kâmbi || dar(eni)-kândeni || dar(ene)-kândene
|-
| Subjunctive  || hâkânem || hâkâni || hâkâne || hâkânim || hâkânin || hâkânen
|-
| Future || xâmbe hâkânem || xâni hâkâni || xâne hâkâne || xâmbi hâkânim || xânni hâkânin || xânne hâkânen
|}

== Usage ==
=== Function cases ===
{| class=wikitable
|-
! Case
! Position
! Meaning
|-
| Sere -(a/o/e)
| Nominative
| The Home
|-
| Sere re
| Accusative
| (Action) the Home
|-
| Sere -(o/e)
| Vocative
| Home!
|-
| Sere şe
| Genitive
| Home's
|-
| Sere re
| Dative
| To the Home
|-
| Sere ye jä
| Ablative/Instrumental
| By the Home
|}

=== Adjectives ===
{| class=wikitable
|-
! Adjective
! Position
! Meaning
|-
| And-e Sere
| Applicative
| &nbsp;
|-
| Gat-e Sere
| Comparative
| Great Home
|-
| Untä Sere
| Determinative
| That Home
|}

=== Notable postpositions ===
Adpositions in Mazanderani are after words, while most of other languages including English and Persian have preposition systems in general. The only common postpositions that sometimes become preposition are ''Še'' and ''tā''. Frequently used postpositions are:
{| class="wikitable"
|+
|-
! postposition !! meaning
|-
| dəle || in
|-
| re || of / to
|-
| je || from / by
|-
| vəse || for
|-
| tā || to
|-
| həmrā / jā || with
|-
| səri || on / above
|-
| bəne || under / below
|-
| pəli || near / about
|-
| vāri/ tarā || like
|-
| derū || among / inside
|}

=== Suffixes ===
The list below is a sample list obtained from the [https://web.archive.org/web/20070518152850/http://www.tabarestan.ir/ Online Mazanderani-Persian dictionary].

==== Locatives ====
{| class=wikitable
|-
! Suffix
! Example
! Meaning
|-
| -kash
| Kharkash
| Good place
|-
| -kel
| Tutkel
| Mulberry limit{{clarify|date=June 2021}}
|-
| -ij
| Yoshij
| Yoshian
|-
| -bon
| Chenarbon
| At the plantain{{clarify|date=June 2021}}
|-
| -ja
| Səreja
| Relating to home
|-
| -sar
| Bənesar
| Underneath
|}

==== Subjectives ====
{| class=wikitable
|-
! Suffix
! Example
! Meaning
|-
| -chaf
| Auchhaf
| Water-sucker
|-
| -rush
| Halikrush
| Berry-seller
|-
| -su
| Vərgsu
| Wolf-hunter
|-
| -kaf
| Ukaf
| One who performs actions in water
|-
| -vej
| Galvej
| Mouse-finder
|-
| -yel
| Vəngyel
| Bandmaster
|}

==Phonology==
=== Vowels ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
!
![[Front vowel|Front]]
![[Central vowel|Central]]
![[Back vowel|Back]]
|- align="center"
![[Close vowel|Close]]
| {{IPA link|i}}
|
| {{IPA link|u}}
|- align="center"
![[Mid vowel|Mid]]
| {{IPA link|e}}
| {{IPA link|ə}}
| {{IPA link|o}}
|- align="center"
![[Open vowel|Open]]
| {{IPA link|a}}
|
| {{IPA link|ɑ}}
|}
/{{IPA|a}}/ may also range to near-open [{{IPA|æ}}] or a more back [{{IPA|ʌ}}]. Allophones of /{{IPA|e, u, o, ɑ}}/ are heard as [{{IPA|ɪ, ʊ, ɒ}}]. /{{IPA|ə}}/ can also be heard as [{{IPA|ɛ}}] or [{{IPA|ɐ}}].

=== Consonants ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="2" |
![[Labial consonant|Labial]]
![[Dental consonant|Dental]]/<br>[[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
!([[Palato-alveolar consonant|Palato-]])[[Palato-alveolar consonant|<br>alveolar]]
![[Velar consonant|Velar]]
![[Uvular consonant|Uvular]]
![[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
! colspan="2" |[[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
|{{IPA link|m}}
|{{IPA link|n}}
|
|
|
|
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[Stop consonant|Stop]]/<br>[[Affricate consonant|Affricate]]
!<small>voiceless</small>
| {{IPA link|p}}
| {{IPA link|t}}
|{{IPA link|t͡ʃ}}
| {{IPA link|k}}
| {{IPA link|q}}
| ({{IPA link|ʔ}})
|-
!<small>[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]</small>
| {{IPA link|b}}
| {{IPA link|d}}
|{{IPA link|d͡ʒ}}
| {{IPA link|ɡ}}
| ({{IPA link|ɢ}})
|
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
!<small>voiceless</small>
|{{IPA link|f}}
| {{IPA link|s}}
| {{IPA link|ʃ}}
| {{IPA link|x}}
|
| {{IPA link|h}}
|-
!<small>[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]</small>
| rowspan="2" |{{IPA link|v}}~({{IPA link|w}})
| {{IPA link|z}}
| {{IPA link|ʒ}}
|
| {{IPA link|ʁ}}
|
|-
! colspan="2" |[[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
|{{IPA link|l}}
|{{IPA link|j}}
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" |[[Flap consonant|Tap/Flap]]
|
|{{IPA link|ɾ}}
|
|
|
|
|}
/{{IPA|w}}/ appears as an allophone of /{{IPA|v}}/ in word-final position. /{{IPA|ɾ}}/ may appear as a voiceless trill in word-final position [{{IPA|r̥}}]. An occasional glottal stop /{{IPA|ʔ}}/ or voiceless uvular fricative /{{IPA|ʁ}}/ or voiced plosive /{{IPA|ɢ}}/ may also be heard, depending on the dialect.<ref>Yoshie, Satoko. 1996. ''Sārī Dialect''. Tokyo: Institute for the Study of Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa. Series: Iranian Studies; 10.</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=When Tradition Meets Modernity: Five Life Stories from the Galesh Community in Ziarat, Golestan, Iran|last1=Shokri |first1=Guiti |last2=Jahani |first2=Carina |last3=Barani |first3=Hossein |publisher=Uppsala Universitet|year=2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Borjian |first=Habib |title=The Mazandarani Dialect of Kalijān Rostāq |publisher=Iranian Studies |year=2019}}</ref>

== Orthography ==
Mazanderani is commonly written in the [[Perso-Arabic script]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.language-keyboard.com/resource/indo-euro/mazanderani.htm|title=language-keyboard.com - language-keyboard Resources and Information.|website=www.language-keyboard.com}}</ref> However, some use the [[Roman alphabet]], for example in SMS messages.{{citation needed|date=April 2012}}

== Vocabulary ==
Spoken in a territory sheltered by the high Alborz mountains, Mazanderani preserves many ancient Indo-European words no longer in common use in modern [[Iranian languages]] such as [[Persian language|Persian]]. Listed below are a few common Mazanderani words of archaic, Indo-European provenance with Vedic cognates.

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 88%"
|-
! [[English language|English]]
! Mazanderani
! [[Persian language|Persian]]
! [[Vedic Sanskrit|Vedic]]
! [[Proto-Indo-European language|Proto-Indo-European]]
! Example of
|-
| new
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|neo}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|no}} / {{lang|fa-Latn|now}}
| lang="vsn-Latn" style="font-style:italic;" | návas
| {{PIE|*néwos}}
| '''adjective'''
|-
| great
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|gat}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|bozorg}}, {{lang|fa-Latn|gozorg}}, {{lang|fa-Latn|gonde}}, {{lang|fa-Latn|got}}
|
|
| '''adjective'''
|-
| better
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|better}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|behtar}}
|
|
| '''adverb'''
|-
| been
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|bine}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|budeh}}
|
|
| '''auxiliary verb'''
|-
| being
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|bien}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|budan}}
| lang="vsn-Latn" style="font-style:italic;" | bhū-
| {{PIE|*bʰuH-}}
| '''infinitive of verb'''
|-
| father
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|piar}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|pedar}}
|
|
| '''noun'''
|-
| mother
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|mâr}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|mâdar}}
|
|
| '''noun'''
|-
| brother
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|berar}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|barâdar}}
|
|
| '''noun'''
|-
| daughter
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|deter}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|dokhtar}}
| lang="vsn-Latn" style="font-style:italic;" | dúhitā
| {{PIE|*dʰugh₂tḗr}}
| '''noun'''
|-
| grandpa
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|gatepa}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|pedar bozorg / pedar gozorg}}
|
|
| '''noun'''
|-
| moon
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|moong}} / {{lang|mzn-Latn|mong}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|mâh}}
| lang="vsn-Latn" style="font-style:italic;" | mā́s
| {{PIE|*mḗh₁n̥s}}
| '''noun'''
|-
| cow
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|go}} / {{lang|mzn-Latn|gu}} / {{lang|mzn-Latn|guw}}<!-- Please note that Guw means COW, While Junika in mazanderani means BULL, So in persian it would be Gaav Made for Cow, Gaav Nar for Bull -->
| {{lang|fa-Latn|gâv}}
| lang="vsn-Latn" style="font-style:italic;" | gáuṣ
| {{PIE|*gʷṓws}}
| '''noun'''
|-
| wolf
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|verg}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|gorg}}
|
|
| '''noun'''
|-
| my
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|me}} / {{lang|mzn-Latn|mi}} (before the noun)
| {{lang|fa-Latn|am}} (after the noun), {{lang|fa-Latn|om}}
| lang="vsn-Latn" style="font-style:italic;" | máma
| {{PIE|*méne}}
| '''verb'''
|-
| gab
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|gab}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|gap}}
|
|
| '''verb'''
|-
| right
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|rast}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|râst}}
|
|
| '''adjective'''
|-
| damage
| {{lang|mzn-Latn|damej}}
| {{lang|fa-Latn|âsib}}
|
|
| '''noun'''
|}

Mazandarani is rich in [[synonyms]], some such nouns also retaining the gender they possessed in Indo-European times: for instance the words {{lang|mzn-Latn|miš}}, {{lang|mzn-Latn|gal}}, {{lang|mzn-Latn|gerz}} all have the meaning of [[mouse]], although they are not all of the same gender. While many Indo-Iranian languages use a masculine noun taking such related forms as {{lang|mzn-Latn|muš}} or {{lang|mzn-Latn|muska}} or {{lang|mzn-Latn|mušk}}, in Mazandarani the most commonly used name for the mouse is the feminine noun {{lang|mzn-Latn|gal}}.{{vague|date=May 2015}}

Another example relates to the cow, the most important animal in the symbolism of Indo-European culture: in Mazanderani there are more than 1000 recognized words used for different types of cow. The table below lists some specimens of this rich vocabulary. In Mazandaran there are even contests held to determine those with the greatest knowledge of this bovine nomenclature.

{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Mazanderani  name
!Meaning
!Mazanderani name
!Meaning
|-
|ahl
|Bull subdued{{clarify|date=June 2021}}
|nū dūş
|Young plough bull used for the first time
|-
|āhy
|Black-eyed cow
|paei varzā
|Single bull used for ploughing
|-
|alaşt
|Miner's tool, ending in two wooden arcs
|parū
|Cattle for ploughing
|-
|baKhte bāri
|Bullock and traces
|raji
|A cow that is ready to mate
|-
|bāreng
|Reddish-brown cow
|raş go
|Crimson cow with black spots
|-
|batkoniye
|Castrated male bovine cattle to eliminate it from washing down{{clarify|date=June 2021}}
|raş jūnkā
|Young bull with red and black streaks
|-
|būr gele
|Yellow / red cow
|raş kamer
|Brown-and-white cow
|-
|būr şāx
|Sharp, red points of a cow's horns
|sārū
|Bull with a white forehead
|-
|būrek
|Light yellow bull
|sārū
|Bull with a white forehead
|-
|būreng
|Blonde cow
|şelāb beze gozūr
|The new wide calf rain caused a sharp volley crumbled{{clarify|date=June 2021}}
|-
|būrmango
|Fawn cow
|selnāz
|Cow streaked with white from nose to tail
|-
|das kare
|Place where bull fights held
|sembe band
|Ox bearing a wooden yoke
|-
|de jet
|Rust-coloured cow killed by two bulls
|serxe sel
|Red cow with a white stripe from neck to tail
|-
|demes mār
|Cow with a two-year-old calf
|setāre
|Black-and-white-spotted cow
|-
|demis mār
|Two-year-old bull calf
|seyā bare
|Black cow with a white forehead.
|-
|dūşt hākerden
|Provoke a bull to attack
|seyā kachal
|Black cow with black spots on the tail end of the frontal{{clarify|date=June 2021}}
|-
|elā elā şāğ
|Cow with horns growing in opposite directions
|seyā sel
|Black cow with a white line running along its spine to its tail
|-
|elā kal
|Cow with large open horns
|seyel
|White-bellied cow
|-
|elā şiro
|Cow with spreading horns
|şir vej
|Gelded calf or bull
|-
|elāşāx
|A bull that has large open horns
|şirū
|A cow with a white head and tail
|-
|emūj
|Ox that once trained for ploughing
|şūkā
|Pale yellow cow
|-
|eşte
|Pair of cows for work
|tā şū
|Miner's cow, only to be closed{{clarify|date=June 2021}}
|-
|ezāli
|Cow that is bred to plough
|tağr in
|Pair of four-year-old cows inseminated naturally
|-
|fal
|Cow ready for mating
|tal go
|A cow that is ready for ploughing
|-
|fares
|Ox that has not been taught to portage
|tāle mār
|Cow with bells hung around his neck
|-
|ğalfer
|Bovine of a yellowish colour
|tarise
|Cow whose first calf is female and has reached two years of age
|-
|jandek
|Bull bison that used for mating
|tersekā
|Two-and-a-half-year-old cow that is ready to mate
|-
|jānekā
|Strong, young bull left ungelded for the purposes of breeding or combat
|teş kūle
|A young bull
|-
|jinekā
|Young bull
|teşk
|Young bull that is not yet ready for ploughing
|-
|jonde kā sare
|Place where young bulls and breeding cattle are raised
|teşkel
|Small bull
|-
|jone kā kole
|Bullock less than two years old that has done no work
|titāppeli mango
|Black and white cow
|-
|jūndekā
|Bullock more than two years old that has done no work
|tolom
|Young cow - heifer
|-
|jūnekkā
|Young bulls
|tūz kel
|bull
|-
|jūnekkā jang
|Quarrel between young bulls
|varzā
|Bullock
|-
|Khāmod
|Ox plough
|xāl dār
|Bovine with bicoloured coat
|-
|lāch kal
|Cow with open horns
|xes xesi go
|A cow that lies down on the ground while working
|-
|lachchi
|Open cow horns that grow in opposite directions
|xetūr
|Alarmed cow
|-
|lase sar gū
|Cow that goes to everyone
|xik chaf
|A cow that refuses to give milk to calves or its owner
|-
|lūş beni
|Bridegroom's gift cow
|zām borde
|Cow missed after giving birth
|-
|māgū
|A cow
|zanā gū
|Cow fighting with its horns
|-
|mango
|Relating to lactating cows
|zar xāl
|Black cow with yellow spots
|-
|mārşan
|Young cow
|zargele
|Yellow cow
|-
|mārū
|Cow with a white forehead
|zemessūni kar
|Cow that leans due to food shortages in the winter
|-
|merem
|Lovely young cow
|zingāl
|Black cow with white legs
|}

== Influences exerted by Mazanderani ==

=== Modern-day of Iran ===
In Iran, there are some popular companies and products, like Rika (boy) or Kija (girl), which take their name from Mazanderani words.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.behshahr.ir|title=شهرداری بهشهر|first=شهرداری|last=بهشهر|website=www.behshahr.ir}}</ref>

=== In non-Iranian languages ===
There are some Mazanderani loanwords in the [[Turkmen language]].<ref>Nasri-Ashrafi, Jahangir-e (ed.). ''Farhang-e vāžegān-e Tabarī'' [A Dictionary of Tabari]. v. 5, p. 5, Tehran: Eḥyā’-ketāb”: 2002/1381 A.P. A comparative glossary containing lexical units from almost all major urban and rural centers of the region of the three provinces of [[Gilan]], [[Mazandaran]], and [[Golestan Province|Golestan]]. Reviewed in ''Iran and the Caucasus'', 2006, 10(2). Volume 4 contains a Persian-Mazanderani index of approximately 190 pp.&nbsp;Volume 5 includes a grammar of the Mazanderani language.</ref>

== Examples ==
The following verses are in an eastern Mazandarani dialect spoken in the Caspian littoral in northern Iran. They were transcribed and translated by [[Maryam Borjian]] and [[Habib Borjian]].<ref name="Borjian2007">{{cite journal |first1=Habib |last1=Borjian |first2=Maryam |last2=Borjian |title=Mysterious Memories of a Woman: Ethno-Linguistic Materials from Rural Mazandaran |journal=Iran and the Caucasus |volume=11 |issue=2 |date=2007 |pages=226–254 |url=https://www.academia.edu/17787724 |doi=10.1163/157338407X265469}}</ref>

{{Verse translation|lang=mzn|bεlεndi níš<sup>tε</sup>mε vεlεnd-e nεfār-ε
bεlbεl xavεr biārdε nо̄bεhār ε
dār-e čel-ču-rε bā<sup>u</sup>r ánde nέnāle
batεrkessέ dεl dā́rmo qam-e yār-ε|I was sitting [on] the heights, on the lofty ''nefār'';
The nightingale brought the news that it is early spring.
Tell the tree branches not to lament so much,
I have a blasted heart for the care of the beloved.}}

{{Verse translation|lang=mzn|bεlεnd-e bālxεnε, bεlεnd-e lamε
vέne sar ništ bío Āl-e Mohammεd
har ki mεn o tέrε bázunε tomεt
vεšúnnε bákuše Darviš Mohammεd|The lofty balcony, the long mat;
On its top had sat the Dynasty of Muhammad.
Whoever lay the blame on you and me,
May Dervish Muhammad kill him (lit. 'them')!}}

== References ==
In dates given below, A.P. denotes the [[Iranian calendar]], the solar calendar (365 days per year) which is official in Iran and Afghanistan.

{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite journal | last1 = Borjian | first1 = Habib | year = 2006 | title = The Oldest Known Texts in New Tabari: The Collection of Aleksander Chodzko | journal = Archiv Orientální | volume = 74 | issue = 2| pages = 153–171 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Borjian |first1=Habib |year=2006 |title=A Mazanderani account of the Babi Incident at Shaikh Tabarsi |journal=Iranian Studies |volume=39 |issue=3 |pages=381–400|doi=10.1080/00210860600808227 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Borjian |first1=Habib |year=2006 |title=Textual sources for the study of Tabari language. I. Old documents |journal=Guyesh-shenâsi |volume=4}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Borjian |first1=Habib |year=2008 |title=Tabarica II: Some Mazanderani Verbs |journal=Iran and the Caucasus |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=73–82|doi=10.1163/157338408X326217 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Borjian |first1=Habib |title=Two Mazanderani Texts from the Nineteenth Century |journal=Studia Iranica |date=2008 |volume=37 |issue=1 |pages=7–50|doi=10.2143/SI.37.1.2032296 }}
* {{cite journal | last1 = Borjian | first1 = Habib | last2 = Borjian | first2 = Maryam | year = 2007 | title = Ethno-Linguistic Materials from Rural Mazandaran: Mysterious Memories of a Woman | journal = Iran and the Caucasus | volume = 11 | issue = 2| pages = 226–254 | doi = 10.1163/157338407X265469 }}
* {{cite journal | last1 = Borjian | first1 = Habib | last2 = Borjian | first2 = Maryam | year = 2008 | title = The Last Galesh Herdsman: Ethno-Linguistic Materials from South Caspian Rainforests | journal = Iranian Studies | volume = 41 | issue = 3| pages = 365–402 | doi=10.1080/00210860801981336| s2cid = 162393586 }}
* {{cite book |last=Le Coq |first=P. |year=1989 |chapter=Les dialects Caspiens et les dialects du nord-ouest de l'Iran |editor-first=Rüdiger |editor-last=Schmitt |title=Compendium linguarum Iranicarum |location=Wiesbaden |publisher=L. Reichert |pages=296–312}}
* {{cite book |last=Nawata |first=Tetsuo |year=1984 |title=Māzandarāni |location=Tokyo |publisher=Institute for the Study of Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa |series=Asian and African Grammatical Manual |volume=17}}
* {{cite journal |last=Shokri |first=Giti |year=1990 |title=Verb Structure in Sāri dialect |journal=Farhang |volume=6 |pages=217–231 |location=Tehran |publisher=Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies}}
* {{cite book |last=Shokri |first=Giti |year=1995 |title=Sārī Dialect |location=Tehran |publisher=Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies}}
* {{cite book |last=Shokri |first=Giti |year=2006 |title=Ramsarī Dialect |location=Tehran |publisher=Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies}}
* {{cite book |last=Yoshie |first=Satoko |year=1996 |title=Sārī Dialect |location=Tokyo |publisher=Institute for the Study of Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa |series=Iranian Studies |volume=10}}

== External links ==
{{InterWiki|code=mzn}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090323041456/http://www.iranianlinguistics.org/index.cgi Society for Iranian Linguistics]. Among other services, archives PDFs of articles from linguistics journals, including those written in Persian.
* [http://www.ihcs.ac.ir/ Institute for Humanities and Cultural Studies], Tehran.
* [http://globalrecordings.net/program/C08101 Audio recordings available for Mazanderani]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070518152850/http://www.tabarestan.ir/ Dictionary of Mazanderani, with translations into Saravi, Baboli, and Amoli dialects]

{{Languages of Iran}}
{{Iranian languages}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Northwestern Iranian languages]]
[[Category:Subject–verb–object languages]]
[[Category:Verb–subject–object languages]]
[[Category:Languages of Iran]]
[[Category:Mazandaran province]]
[[Category:Caspian languages]]
[[Category:Mazanderani language]]