Shabaki is a Northwestern Iranian language belonging to the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian subdivision of the Indo-European languages. The Shabaki language is spoken by the Shabak people in the Mosul region of northern Iraq. Although classified as a distinct Northwestern Iranian language, the language has been influenced by the Arabic, Kurdish, Persian and Turkish languages.
Status
Shabaki is an endangered language. The Shabak people fear the demise of the Shabaki language especially after the occupation of the ISIS terrorist groups to their home in Nineveh Plain, which led to the displacement of the majority of their population and the other groups residing in that area.
Speakers
Despite widespread displacement, the Shabaki speakers remain concentrated in localized clusters, specifically within the villages of Ali Rach, Khazna, Talara, and Yangijain in the Nineveh Governorate. The number of speakers of Shabaki was estimated in 1989 to be between 10,000 and 20,000. Subsequently, the number of native speakers of the language is estimated to be approximately 250,000.
Classification
Glottolog classifies the Shabak language as a Northwestern Iranian language belonging to the Shabaki-Bajelani subgroup of the Gorani group. The language consists of two dialects; Chabak and Sarli. On the other hand, some sources classifies it as a subdialect of the Gorani language alongside with Hewrami, Sarli, and Bajalani. The language exhibits significant grammatical affinities with other languages and dialects of the Gorani group such as Bajelani, Sarli, Hewrami, Kakai.
Comparison
Pronouns
| Shabaki | Hewrami | Southern Kurdish | Sorani Kurdish | Kurmanji Kurdish | Zaza | Persian | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| emin, em | emin, min | mi, min | min | ez, min | ez, min | mən | I, me, mine, my |
| etu | eto, to | tu, tû | to | tu, te | ti, to | to, tu | thou, thee, thine |
| ew, îna | ew | ew, ewe | ew | ew, wî, wê | a, o | û | s/he, his, hers, him, her |
| hima, alama, gişt | ma | îme | ême | em, me | ma | ma | we, our |
| işma | şima | îwe | êwe | hûn, we | şima | şuma | you, your |
| işan | ade | ewan, ewane | ewan | ewan, wan | înu, înan | anha | they, them, their |
Vocabulary
| Shabaki | Hewrami | Southern Kurdish | Sorani Kurdish | Kurmanji Kurdish | Zaza | Persian | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| çam | cem | çem, çew | çaw | çav | çim | çəşm, çişm | eye |
| ziwan | ziwan | ziwan | ziman | ziman | ziwan | zəban | tongue, language |
