| Judeo-Persian | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Israel Iran Afghanistan Uzbekistan Tajikistan Azerbaijan Russia Dagestan |
Native speakers | 60,000 in Israel (2018)[1] |
| Hebrew | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 | jpr |
| ISO 639-3 | jpr |
| Glottolog | jude1257 |
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Judeo-Persian refers to both a group ofJewish dialects spoken by Jews and Judeo-Persian texts (written inHebrew alphabet). As a collective term, Judeo-Persian refers to a number ofJudeo-Iranian languages spoken by Jewish communities throughout the formerly extensivePersian Empire, includingIranian Jews,Mountain Jews,Afghan Jews, andBukharan Jews.[2]
The speakers refer to their language asFārsi. Some non-Jews refer to it as "dzhidi" (also written as "zidi", "judi" or "jidi"), which means "Jewish" in a derogatory sense.[2]
There is an extensive Judeo-Persian poetic religious literature, closely modeled on classical Persian poetry. The most famous poet wasMowlānā Shāhin-i Shirāzi (14th century CE), who composed epic versifications of parts of the Bible, such as theMusā-nāmah (an epic poem recounting the story of Moses); later poets composed lyric poetry in style of Persian mysticism. Much of this literature was collected around the beginning of the twentieth century by the ּּBukharan rabbiShimon Hakham, who founded a printing press in Israel.
The earliest evidence of Judeo-Persian writing dates back to the 8th century CE. These documents written in Hebrew script document the existence of Jewish communities writing in Judeo-Persian across historical Persia. Archaeologists working in the 20th century discovered Judeo-Persian writings in locations as far-spread as southern India, Xinjiang Province, Cairo, and present-day Iran and Afghanistan. They include court documents, trade documents, headstones, stone inscriptions, and works on religious matters.[3]: 22
The most famous Judeo-Persian poet is the 14th century Shahin-i Shirazi who composed two versified Biblical epics: the first based on the Pentateuch and the second centered on the Book of Esther and the Book of Ezra. In his writing, Shahin uses a language typical of his era’sClassical Persian and does not employ the same level of Hebrew words as other Judeo-Persian writers.[3]: 27
Shahin's Pentateuchal epic cycle consists of 10,000 metered couplet (distich) versification of the Books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy written in 1327, and a 8,700 couplet length versification of Genesis composed in 1358. He focuses on narratives from the Pentateuch that are also prominent in Islamic literature such as the fall ofSatan, Joseph (Yusuf) andZulaykha, and Jacob’s mourning of the lost Joseph. Shahin fashions his biblical epics off of Ferdowsi’sShahnameh, the most renowned Persian epic in Persian mythology. This includes styling Moses after heroes from Persian epic heroes, contributing to a glorification of Moses prevalent in Judeo-Persian literature.[3]: 27 Shahin omits certain elements of the Pentateuch such as the legal sections. In a short adaptation of the Book of Job appended to his versification of Genesis, Shahin leaves out the speeches from Job’s friends and God’s response while including the less-central insults from Job’s wife.[3]: 28
Shahin’s Ardashir-namah consists of 9,000 metered couplets that adapt narratives from the Books of Esther, Nehemiah, and Ezra. He also includes non-biblical storylines that parallel the Shahnameh and Nizami’s Khamsa.[3]: 28–29 It recounts the biblical narrative ofArdashir (Xerxes) andEsther; and a love story between Ardashir and a Chinese princess. TheEzra-nameh is shorter and often grouped with theArdashir-nameh.[4]
Emrani was a 15th century Persian poet who like Shahin, wrote Persian in Hebrew script. Born inIsfahan, he moved toKashan in his twenties and lived there until his death. The 10,000-verseFath-nameh adapts the Books of Joshua, Ruth, and Samuel 1 and 2. Like Shahin’s biblical epics, it displays a strong Shahnameh influence. HisHanuka-nameh is a shorter (1,800 verses) versification of the Maccabees’ rebellion against the Greeks. This work, authored in 1524, relies heavily on the apocryphalFirst Book of Maccabees.[3]: 159 Emrani employs more Hebrew vocabulary than Shahin and relies more on narratives from the Bible and rabbinic literature.[4]: 50
Written in 1692 by Aaron ben Mashiah, this versification of theBook of Judges uses the same meter as Emrani’sFath-nameh.[4]: 50
In 1606, Khajah ofBukhara versified narratives from theBook of Daniel, apocrypha, andMidrashim (rabbinic commentaries).[4]: 51
Emrani’sGanj-nameh is a commentary on the Mishnaic ethical tractateAvot. It numbers nearly 5,000 rhyming couplets and includes Sufi terminology.[3]: 184–185 There are many extant manuscripts of this work, indicating its widespread popularity among Persian-speaking Jews.[5]: 53 It was completed in 1536 and was likely Emrani’s final work. It is an ethical and didactic work that deals with broader ethical themes compared to his previous writings in this genre.[5]: 43–45 TheGanj-nameh consists of 88 sections that each elaborate a saying or two from the Abot, following the sequence of the Abot itself. The first five sections make up the introduction and follows the structure of many Persian introductions – praise and supplication of God and a history of the work’s composition. Emrani praisesMoses.[5]: 59 The rest of theGanj-nameh belongs to the counsel genre prominent in Persian literature and combines the epic, midrashic, mystic and didactic techniques present in Emrani’s earlier works.[5]: 60–63
Shimon Hakham, a Bukharan rabbi who later emigrated toJerusalem, edited and published at least 29 works in Judeo-Persian, including a complete edition of Shahin’s Torah commentary. He included alongside this edition his own prose commentary on theBook of Exodus.[3]: 198
Babai b. Lutf was a 16th century Jewish author and historian born inKashan. His 5,000-couplet length Kitab-i Anusi recounts the persecution of Iranian Jews under the reigns of three Safavid shahs:‘Abbas I,Safi I, and‘Abbas II who collectively reigned from 1571 to 1666. It focuses on the forced conversions of Jews during this time.[3]: 223–224
Ibn Lutf’s grandson, Babai b. Farhad, composed a 1,300-couplet chronicle on the persecution faced by Jews in Kashan during theAfghan Invasion of Iran which occurred from 1722 to 1730. Ibn Farhad describes the conversion of Jews in Kashan to Islam and how they were allowed to return to their faith seven months later.[3]: 232
Beginning in the late 19th century, Jerusalem became a center for printing Judeo-Persian literature. Works from many genres were printed, as well as translations of non-Jewish works into Judeo-Persian. Some of the major figures in this movement included Jews from Central Asia such as Shimon Hakham.[2][9] In 1917, a “Society for the Promotion of the Hebrew Language” was established in Tehran alongside a Judeo-Persian and Hebrew printing press. This group also published a Judeo-Persian newspaper,Ha-Ge'ulah. Two other Judeo-Persian newspapers were also published inBukhara andSamarkand.[9]
In the absence of a unified dialect of Persian spoken by Jews, Judeo-Persian refers to local dialects spoken by Jews. It is notable for its preservation of certain incorporation of Hebrew words; however, this is less prominent than in other Jewish languages.[2] Judeo-Median is often used to designate the group of dialects spoke by Jewish communities in Central Iran.[10]: 117 Early Judeo-Persian writings displays various orthographies that sometimes demonstrate pronunciation differences from Persian. It preserves a transitional stage in certain linguistic features. It also exhibits a variety of constructions forezafe and for verbs in passive voice. Judeo-Persian versions of the Bible do not follow Persian syntax, instead glossing the Hebrew word-for-word.[2]
Some of the primary Iranian cities with Jewish dialects areKashan,Isfahan,Yazd,Kerman,Shiraz,Borujerd, andHamadan. Vernaculars spoken by Jews in Persian-speaking Central Asia are often referred to asJudeo-Tajik.Judeo-Tat is spoken in the eastern Caucasus and is considered mutually intelligible with standard Persian today.[10]: 119 Many speakers of these Iranian dialects have left Iran and few native speakers remain. As a result, Judeo-Median languages are considered endangered according to the Endangered Language Alliance.[11]
