Zaza (endonym:Zazakî,Dimlî,Dimilkî,Kirmanckî,Kirdkî, orZonê ma,lit.'Our language')[5][6] is aNorthwestern Iranian language spoken primarily in eastern Turkey by theZazas, who are mostly considered asKurds, and in many cases identify as such.[7][8][9] The language is a part of theZaza–Gorani language group of thenorthwestern group of theIranian branch. Theglossonym Zaza originated as a pejorative.[10] According toEthnologue, Zaza is spoken by around 1.48 million people, and the language is considered threatened due to a declining number of speakers, with many shifting to Turkish.[1] Nevins, however, puts the number of Zaza speakers between two and three million.[11]
Zaza language is classified as amacrolanguage by international linguistic authorities.SIL International classifies Zaza language as amacrolanguage, including the varieties ofSouthern Zaza (diq) andNorthern Zaza (kiu).[12] Other international linguistic authorities, theEthnologue and theGlottolog, also classify the Zaza language as a macrolanguage composed of two distinct languages:Southern Zaza andNorthern Zaza.[13][1]
Linguistically, the classification of Zazaki as either a Kurdish dialect or a distinct language is a topic of debate among scholars.[17] Some, such as Ludwig Paul, do not consider Zazaki andGorani to be Kurdish dialects. According to him, they can only be classified as Kurdish dialects in a political and ethnic context, and it would be more accurate to refer to them as Kurdish languages.[18] The differences between them arise from the Kurdish adoption ofPersian linguistic features due to historical contact.[19] Other scholars contend that the classification of Zazaki as a separate language from Kurdish is based on insufficient data, and a detailed comparison between Zazaki andKurmanji in terms of phonology, morphology, syntax, and lexicon reveals a significant degree of shared features, suggesting that Zazaki and Kurmanji are dialects of the same language.[20]
Furthermore, arguments regarding the classification of both Zazaki and Gorani highlight that the distinction between a dialect and a language is a social construct influenced by factors such as shared identity, history, beliefs, and living conditions, rather than being based solely on linguistic evidence. Therefore, Kurdish can be seen as a socio-cultural umbrella that encompasses both recognized Kurdish dialects (such as Kurmanji,Sorani, andSouthern Kurdish) as well as the Zaza and Gorani languages. The term "Kurdic" is used to refer to this broad grouping.[21][15][22]
German linguistJost Gippert has demonstrated that the Zaza language is very closely related to theParthian language in terms of phonetics, morphology, syntax and lexicon and that it has many words in common with the Parthian language. According to him, the Zaza language may be a residual dialect of theParthian language that has survived to the present day.[23]
Many Zaza speakers resided in conflict-affected regions ofeastern Turkey and have been significantly impacted by both the current and historical political situations. Only a few elderly monolingual Zaza speakers remain, while the younger generation predominantly speaks other languages.Turkish laws enacted from the mid-1920s until 1991 banned Kurdish language, including Zazaki, from being spoken in public, written down, or published. The Turkish state's efforts to enforce the use of Turkish have led many Zaza speakers to leave Turkey and migrate to other countries, primarilyGermany,Sweden,Netherlands and theUnited States, andAustralia.[1][24][25]
Efforts to preserve and revitalize Zazaki are ongoing. ManyKurdish writers in Turkey are fighting to save Zazaki withchildren's books[26] and others withnewspapers,[27] but the language faces an uncertain future.
The decline of Zazaki speakers could also lead theZazas to lose their identity and shift to aTurkish identity. According to a study led byDr. Nadire Güntaş Aldatmaz, an academic atAnkara University, 402 people aged between 15 and 75 fromMamekîye inDersim province, were interviewed. Respondents younger than 18 mostly stated their ethnicity as 'Turk', their mother language as 'Turkish', and their religion as 'Islam', despite having some proficiency in Zazaki.[28]
Writing in Zaza is a recent phenomenon. The first literary work in Zaza isMewlîdu'n-Nebîyyî'l-Qureyşîyyî byEhmedê Xasi in 1899, followed by the workMawlûd byOsman Efendîyo Babij in 1903. As the Kurdish language was banned in Turkey during a large part of the Republican period, no text was published in Zaza until 1963. That year saw the publication of two short texts by the Kurdish newspaperRoja Newe, but the newspaper was banned and no further publication in Zaza took place until 1976, whenperiodicals published a few Zaza texts. Modern Zaza literature appeared for the first time in the journalTîrêj in 1979 but the journal had to close as a result of the1980 coup d'état. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, most Zaza literature was published inGermany,France and especiallySweden until the ban on the Kurdish language was lifted in Turkey in 1991. This meant that newspapers and journals began publishing in Zaza again. The next book to be published in Zaza (afterMawlûd in 1903) was in 1977, and two more books were published in 1981 and 1986. From 1987 to 1990, five books were published in Zaza. The publication of books in Zaza increased after the ban on the Kurdish language was lifted and a total of 43 books were published from 1991 to 2000. As of 2018, at least 332 books have been published in Zaza.[29]
Due to the above-mentioned obstacles, the standardization of Zaza could not have taken place and authors chose to write in their local or regional Zaza variety. In 1996, however, a group of Zaza-speaking authors gathered inStockholm and established a common alphabet andorthographic rules which they published. Some authors nonetheless do not abide by these rules as they do not apply the orthographic rules in their oeuvres.[30]
In 2009, Zaza was classified as a vulnerable language byUNESCO.[31]
Both languages have nominative and oblique cases that differs by masculine -î and feminine -ê
Both languages have forgotten possessive enclitics, while it exists in such other languages as Persian, Sorani, Gorani, Hewrami or Shabaki
Both languages distinguish between aspirated and unaspiratedvoiceless stops
Similar vowel phonemes
Ludwig Paul divides Zaza into three main dialects. In addition, there are transitions and edge accents that have a special position and cannot be fully included in any dialect group.[39]
In terms of grammar, genetics, linguistics and core vocabulary the Zaza language is closely related toOld Azeri,Tati of Iran,Talysh,Sangsari,Semnani,Mazandarani andGilaki languages spoken on the shores of theCaspian Sea and northern Iran.[40][41][42][43][44] The language also has grammatical similarities withthe Parthian language,[45] which is an extinct Northwestern Iranian language. Zaza language, withTalysh,Tati,Semnani,Sangesari,Gilaki and some other central Iranian dialects, formsa belt of Northwestern Iranian languages among Northwestern Iranian languages. This belt is geographically divided by speakers of Persian, Azerbaijani and Kurdish into two parts: Zaza, Talysh and Tati languages in the western part and Semnani, Sangesari, Gilaki (and other Caspian/Central dialects) in the eastern part. The Zaza language, along with Tati, Talysh and some northwestern dialects, has strongly preserved its Northwestern Iranian isogloss roots and is quite distant from Persian and Kurdish. Overall, from Zaza, Tat and Talysh downward to Kurdish and Persian, the western Iranian languages are successively less "archaic".[42] Zaza language, along with Talysh and Tati, is located at the westernmost part of the Northwestern Iranian languages while Persian and Kurdish are positioned at the easternmost part:[41]
Like most other languages of the belt, the Zaza language shows a two-case system in the nouns with an oblique ending generally going back to theOld Iranian language genitive ending *-ahya.[46] LinguistW. B. Henning demonstrated about a 100 years ago that Zaza, Talysh,Tati/Azeri, Semnani and Gilaki, andCaspian dialects derive their present stem from the same old Iranian present participle ending in *-ant-.[47] Zaza, Talyshi,Azeri, Semnani, Gilaki and some other Caspian dialects derive their present stem from the same old Iranian present participle ending in *-ant:[46][40][48]
In contrast to these languages, inKurdish andPersian languages the present tense is formed by adding the prefix می mî- (mi-ravam), -di (di-çim) (I go), as a modal prefix to the present stem.
Morphologically, like most of the languages of the belt, the dialects of the Zaza language show two-case system of nouns. In Zaza language, the oblique ending-ī (that going back to theOld Iranian language genitive ending *-ahya) is only attached to masculines. In Southern Zaza (Çermik-Siverek dialects) there is an ending -e(r) attached to feminine nouns in the oblique case and its origin is the old stem expansion in*-a(r) of relationship terms. Zaza-e(r) actually denoting the oblique case of relationship terms of both genders, probably have started spreading to feminines in general later. Just like Zaza, inTati dialects, the oblique case of relationship terms-r also has spread from relationship terms to other terms. Same with Zaza language, other members of the belt, Talysh, Semnani, Tati also have the same oblique case of relationship terms:[46]
Additionally, mother (nom.) and mother (obl.) are mā -> mār in Zaza, mâ -> mâr in Tati, mā -> moār in Talysh and brother (nom.) and brother (obl.) are bıra -> bırar in Zaza, bera -> berar in Tati and bäre -> bärār inSemnani.[46][49][50]
The grammatical gender forms ofOld Iranian -except for the neuter form- remain largely the same in the Zaza language. The distinction between masculine and feminine forms is present in the entire morphology of the Zaza language, including nouns, adjectives, pronouns, cases and verb conjugations.[58] In the Old Iranian era, the Old Iranian languages likeAvestan,Old Persian featured a grammatical gender system that included masculine, feminine, and neuter.[59] And in Zaza, the feminine suffix of Old Iranian –ā remained as the unstressed suffix –e [-ə] in the northern dialect and as -ı in the southern dialect of Zaza.[58][60]
Along with Zaza, the Semnani and Tati languages also exhibit the same feminine suffix form. For example, the word fordonkey her in Zaza and xar in Semnani and Tati:[61]
her (Zaza), xar (Semnani and Tati)
here (Zaza) xára (Semnani and Tati)
While the words her and xar refer tojack orjackass, a male donkey in Zaza, Semnani and Tati; feminine forms of the words her and xar, respectivey, the word with unstressed suffix –e, here in Zaza and xára in Semnani and Tati refer to ajenny orjennet, a female donkey.
Among all Western Iranian languages, Zaza,Semnani,[62][63][64]Sangsari,[65]Tati dialects,[66][67] Hazārrūdi, Cālī,Tākestāni,Kajali, Khalkhali,Karani, Lerdi, Diz, Sagzābādi,Eštehārdi,Ashtiani, Amorei,Alviri, Abyānei and central Iranian languages like Jowšaqāni, Abuzeydābādi, Fārzāndī, Delījanī and Kurmanji distinguish between masculine and femininegrammatical gender.[68][69][70] In Zaza, each noun belongs to one of those two genders. In order to correctlydecline any noun and anymodifier or other type of word affecting that noun, one must identify whether the noun is feminine or masculine. Most nouns have inherent gender. However, somenominal roots have variable gender, i.e. they may function as either masculine or feminine nouns.[71]
As a unique linguistic feature, among all Northwestern Iranian languages, only in Zaza, Semnani, Sangsari and Tati languages, grammatical gender is marked onverbs.[72][73][50][74][75] And unlike other Northwestern Iranian languages, Zaza and someTati dialects do distinguish gender in second singular person too.[76] In addition to nouns, adjectives and verbs, in Zaza, Semnani and Tati dialects grammatical gender is marked on demonstrative pronouns too. For instance:[77][78][79][80][81]
Theinfinitive ending is formed with-ene in the north dialect and -enı in the south dialect of the Zaza language. The basic stem of the verb is formed by deleting this ending. Thepresent tense is formed by taking the present stem of the verb, adding the present participle ending and conjugating it. Zaza,Semnani,Talysh,Tati/Azeri andGilaki derive their present stem from the same old Iranian present participle ending in *-ant-.[46] For example, the present stem of the verbsşiyaene 'to go'" andvınderdene "to stop":[82][83]
1st
2nd fem.
2nd masc.
3rd fem.
3rd masc.
Zaza
ez şı-n-a(n)
tı şı-n-a(y)
tı şı-n-ê
a şı-n-a
o şı-n-o
English
i go
you (fem.) go
you (masc.) go
she goes
he goes
1st
2nd fem.
2nd masc.
3rd fem.
3rd masc.
Zaza
ez vınd-en-an
tı vınd-en-ay
tı vınd-en-ê
a vınd-en-a
o vınd-en-o
English
i stop
you (fem.) stop
you (masc.) stop
she stops
he stops
Thepresent continuous is used in several instances. Its most common use is to describe something that is happening at the exact moment of speech. Present continuous can also describe an event planned in the future when combined with a time indicator for the future.[84][82] The present continuous in Zaza language is formed by conjugating the copula in accordance with the subject and conjugating the verb in accordance with thepresent tense:[82]
Nouns in Zaza language are unmarked for the singular and marked with the unstressed -i in the plural.[84] For instance, kerg (hen) kergi (hens), verg (wolf) vergi (wolves), merdım (man) merdımi (men), vaş (grass) vaşi (grasses), estor (horse) estori (horses). Just like Zaza, inSemnani, another member of the belt, nouns are marked with the plural suffix -i in the nominative plural.[85][73] For example, trees/horses = dari/estori in Zaza and dåri/asbi in Semnani.[86][73] In addition to mutual nominative plural suffix -i in two languages, both in Zaza and Semnani nouns are marked with the plural suffix -un in the oblique plural.[87][86] For instance:[88]
Among all Western Iranian languages, only in Zaza and closely related languages like Semnani (and its dialects likeSorkhei,Lasgerdi,Biyabunaki) and Tati (and its dialects likeHarzandi,Kilit) listed below, the numberthree is cognate withParthianhry/hrē. Old Iranian *θr further became *hr, in initial position acquired a supporting vowel here.[89][90] In these languages, thev ->b ands ->h consonant change (vist and das in Zaza, Semnani, Tati, Parthian vs.bist and dah in Persian and Kurdish) is also clearly evident. As a unique linguistic feature, only in Zaza and Semnani the numberone takes both masculine and feminine forms. InAvestan, which is an extinctOld Iranian language, numbers took gender specific forms.[91] Cardinal numerals in Zaza and other closely related languages are as follows:[92][93][94]
The cardinal numbers from 10 to 20 and numbers in tens in Zaza language exhibit strong similarities withAvestan, which, together withOld Persian, is one of two directly attested languages of the Old Iranian era andParthian, which is an extinct Northwestern Iranian language of the Middle Iranian era:
The stressed suffix "-ıj" added to nouns of place in Zaza language denotes origin or relationship.[97] Just like Zaza language, inTati andTalysh languages of the belt, suffix ""-ij" and-ıj", respectively, added to nouns to denote origin or relationship.[98] This suffix is thought to be a relic ofDaylami language. The word "dehche" in the Daylami language had the meaning of peasant, someone from village, and the farmer. Its derivation was deh (village) + che (the suffix denoting origin or relationship). The suffix "-che", that is the same as the modern "-ij" inCaspian dialects. "-ij" is a suffix for attributing to a place, such as Yoshij, someone from Yosh.[99][100]
For instance; Soyreg -> Soyreg-ıj- in Zaza,[97] Lankon -> Lankon-ıj- in Talysh,[98] Teron -> Teron-ij in Tati[101] and Yosh -> Yosh-ij- in Caspian dialects[99] (someone from Soyreg, Lankon, Tehran and Yosh respectively) and dew -> dew-ıj- (village -> villager) in Zaza,[97] di -> div-oj- (village -> villager) in Talysh.[98]
Zaza language distinguishes gender for third person pronoun in both the direct and oblique case. The masculine third person pronoun is o, the feminine one is a.[77][102] Among all western Iranian languages, Zaza,Semnani,Sangsari,Tati dialects, Hazārrūdi, Cālī,Tākestāni,Kajali, Khalkhali, Karani, Lerdi, Diz, Sagzābādi, Eštehārdi,Ashtiani, Amorei,Alviri, Abyānei, Jowšaqāni, Abuzeydābādi, Farizandi distinguish gender for third person pronoun:[68][69]
The vowel/e/ may also be realized as[ɛ] when occurring before a consonant./ɨ/ may become lowered to[ɪ] when occurring before a velarized nasal/n/[ŋ], or occurring between a palatal approximant/j/ and a palato-alveolar fricative/ʃ/. Vowels/ɑ/,/ɨ/, or/ə/ become nasalized when occurring before/n/, as[ɑ̃],[ɨ̃], and[ə̃], respectively.
Zaza text in Arabic letters, written in 1891 and printed in 1899
Zaza texts written during theOttoman era were written inArabic letters. The works of this era had religious content. The first Zaza text, written by Sultan Efendi, in 1798, was written in Arabic letters in the Nesih font, which was also used inOttoman Turkish.[111] Following this work, the first Zaza language Mawlid, written by the Ottoman-Zaza cleric, writer and poet Ahmed el-Hassi in 1891–1892, was also written in Arabic letters and published in 1899.[112][113] Another Mawlid in Zaza language, written by another Ottoman-Zaza cleric Osman Esad Efendi between 1903–1906, was also written in Arabic letters.[114] After the Republic, Zazaki works began to be written in Latin letters, abandoning theArabic alphabet. However, today Zazaki does not have a common alphabet used by all Zazas. An alphabet called the Jacabson alphabet was developed with the contributions of the American linguist C. M Jacobson and is used by the Zaza Language Institute in Frankfurt, which works on the standardization of Zaza language.[115] Another alphabet used for the language is theBedirxan alphabet. The Zaza alphabet, prepared by Zülfü Selcan and started to be used at Munzur University as of 2012, is another writing system developed for Zazaki, consisting of 32 letters, 8 of which are vowels and 24 of which are consonants.[116] TheZaza alphabet is an extension of theLatin alphabet used for writing the Zaza language, consisting of 32 letters, six of which (ç, ğ, î, û, ş, and ê) have been modified from their Latin originals for the phonetic requirements of the language.[117]
Zaza literature consists of oral and written texts produced in the Zaza language. Before it began to be written, it was passed on through oral literature types. In this respect, Zaza literature is very rich in terms of oral works. The language has many oral literary products such as deyr (folk song), kilam (song), dêse (hymn), şanıke (fable), hêkati (story), qesê werênan (proverbs and idioms). Written works began to appear during the Ottoman Empire, and the early works had a religious/doctrinal nature. After the Republic, long-term language and cultural bans caused the revival of Zaza literature, which developed in two centers, Turkey and Europe, mainly in Europe. After the loosened bans, Zaza literature developed in Turkey.[118]
The first known written works of Zaza literature were written during the Ottoman period. Written works in the Zaza language produced during the Ottoman period were written in Arabic letters and had a religious nature. The first written work in Zaza during this period was written in the late 1700s. This first written text of the Zaza language was written by İsa Beg bin Ali, nicknamed Sultan Efendi, an Islamic history writer, in 1212 Hijri (1798). The work was written in Arabic letters and in theNaskh script, which is also used inOttoman Turkish. The work consists of two parts III. It includes the Eastern Anatolia region during the reign ofSelim III, the life of Ali (caliph), Alevi doctrine and history, the translation of some parts ofNahj al-balagha into Zaza language, apocalyptic subjects and poetic texts.[119] About a hundred years after this work, another work in the Zaza language, Mevlit (Mewlid-i Nebi), was written by the Ottoman-Zaza cleric, writer and poetAhmed el-Hassi (1867–1951) in 1891–1892. The first Mevlit work in the Zaza language was written in Arabic letters and published in 1899.[120][121] The mawlid, written using theArabic prosody (aruz), resembles the mawlid ofSüleyman Çelebi and the introduction includes the life of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the details of Allah, tawhid, munacaat, ascension, birth, birth and creation, etc. It includes religious topics and consists of 14 chapters and 366 couplets.[120][121] Another written work written during this period is another Mevlit written by Siverek muftiOsman Esad Efendi (1852–1929). The work called Biyişa Pexemberi (Birth of the Prophet) consists of chapters on the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the Islamic religion and was written in Zaza language in Arabic letters in 1901 (1903 according to some sources). The work was published in 1933, after the author's death.[122] Apart from Zaza writers, non-Zaza/Ottoman writers/researchers such as Peter Ivanovich Lerch (1827–1884),[123][124] Robert Gordon Latham (1812–1888) Dr. Humphry Sandwith (1822–1881),[125][126] Wilhelm Strecker (1830–1890), Otto Blau (1828–1879),[127] Friedrich Müller (1864) and Oskar Mann (1867–1917)[128] included Zaza content (story, fairy tales dictionary) in their works in the pre-Republican period.[121]
Post-Republican Zaza literature developed through two branches, Turkey-centered and Europe-centered. During this period, the development of Zaza literature stagnated in Turkey due to long-term language and cultural bans. Zaza migration to European countries in the 1980s and the relatively free environment enabled the revival of Zaza literature in Europe. One of the works in the Zaza language written in post-Republican Turkey are two verse works written in the field of belief and fiqh in the 1940s. Following this work, another Mevlit containing religious subjects and stories was written by Mehamed Eli Hun in 1971. Zaza Divan, a 300-page manuscript consisting of Zaza poems and odes, started to be written by Mehmet Demirbaş in 1975 and completed in 2005, is another literary work in the divan genre written in this period.[129] Mevlids and sirahs of Abdulkadir Arslan (1992–1995),[130] Kamil Pueği (1999), Muhammed Muradan (1999-2000) and Cuma Özusan (2009) are other literary works with religious content.[120] Written Zaza literature is rich in mawlid and religious works, and the first written works of the language are given in these genres.[120] The development of Zaza literature through magazine publishing took place through magazines published by Zazas who immigrated to Europe after 1980 and published exclusively in the Zaza language, magazines that were predominantly in the Zaza language but published multilingually, and magazines that were not in the Zaza language but included works in the Zaza language. Kormışkan, Tija Sodıri, Vate are magazines published entirely in Zaza language. Apart from these, Ayre (1985–1987), Piya (1988–1992) and Raa Zazaistani (1991), which were published as language, culture, literature and history magazines by Ebubekir Pamukçu, the leading name of Zaza nationalism, are important magazines in this period that were predominantly Zaza and published multilingually. Ware, ZazaPress, Pir, Raştiye, Vengê Zazaistani, Zazaki, Zerq, Desmala Sure, Waxt, Çıme are other magazines that are Zazaki-based and multilingual. In addition to these magazines published in European countries, Vatı (1997–1998), which is the first magazine published entirely in Zaza language and published in Turkey, and Miraz (2006) and Veng u Vaj (2008) are other important magazines published in Zaza language in Turkey. Magazines that are mainly published in other languages but also include works in Zaza language are magazines published in Kurdish and Turkish languages. Roja Newé (1963), Riya Azadi (1976), Tirêj (1979) and War (1997) are in the Kurdish language; Ermin (1991), Ateş Hırsızı (1992), Ütopya, Işkın, Munzur (2000), Bezuvar (2009) are magazines in Turkish language that include texts in Zaza language.[131] Today, works in different literary genres such as poetry, stories and novels in Zaza language are published by different publishing houses in Turkey and European countries.[citation needed]
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^Stilo, Donald (2019). "Loss vs. expansion of gender in Tatic languages: Kafteji (Kabatei) and Kelāsi". In Korangy, Alireza; Mahmoodi-Bakhtiari, Behrooz (eds.).Essays on Typology of Iranian Languages. Berlin: De Gruyter. pp. 74–76.ISBN978-3-11-060174-9.
^abHayıg, Roşan; Werner, Brigitte (2012).Zazaca-Türkçe Sözlük ; Türkçe-Zazaca Sözcük Listesi (Çermik – Çüngüş – Siverek – Gerger Bölgeleri) (in Turkish). Istanbul: Tij Yayınları. p. 423.ISBN978-975-8277-43-8.
^سبزعلیپور, جهاندوست (2013). "تمایز جنس مونث و مذکر در گویش تاتی خلخال" [Distiniction of the Feminine and Masculine Gender in the Tāti Dialect of Khalkhāl].نامه فرهنگستان (in Persian). 13 (1): 79.
^امینی, عطیه; مهند, محمد راسخ (2024). "جنس دستوری در زبان آمُره ای" [Grammatical Gender in Amora'i Language].زبانشناسی و گویشهای ایرانی.6 (1): 117.
^abWindfuhr, Gernot L. (1998)."EŠTEHĀRDĪ".Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved9 November 2025.
^abکلباسی, ایران (2005)."ویژگیهاي شاخص گویش سمنانی" [The Main Characteristics of Semnani Dialect](PDF).Language and Linguistics (in Persian).1 (2): 139.
^Arslan, İlyas (2022). "Ezafe (Genitive) in Zaza Language".Anemon Muş Alparslan Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi.10 (1): 410.
^Gippert, Jost (2008). "Zur dialektalen Stellung des Zazaki".Die Sprache.47 (1):90–91.
^abAsatrian, Garnik Serobi (1995)."DIMLĪ".Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved3 November 2025.
^abcdSkjaervo, Prods Oktor (2009). "Middle West Iranian". In Windfuhr, Gernot (ed.).The Iranian Languages. New York: Routledge. p. 211.ISBN978-0-7007-1131-4.
^abcdJackson, Abraham Valentine Williams (1892).An Avesta Grammar in Comparison With Sanskrit. Stuttgart: W. Kohlhammer. pp. 106–108.
^Lecoq, Pierre (1989). "Les Dialectes Caspiens Et Les Dialectes Du Nord-ouest De L'iran". In Schmitt, Rüdiger (ed.).Compendium Linguarum Iranicarum (in French). Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag. 308ISBN3-88226-413-6.
^Paul, Ludwig (2009). "Zazaki". In Windfuhr, Gernot (ed.).The Iranian Languages. New York: Routledge. p. 554.ISBN978-0-7007-1131-4.
^abکارنگ, عبدالعلی (1952).تاتی و هرزنی دو لهجه از زبان باستان آذربایجان [Tati, Harzani, two dialects from the ancient language of Azerbaijan] (in Persian). تبریز: چاپخانهی شفق. p. 84.
^Гасанов, Агамали (1966).О "тайном" Языке Жителей Села Килит Нахичеванской Асср [About The "Secret" Language Of The Residents Of The Village Of Kilit, Nakhchivan Assr] (in Russian). Baku: ИЗДАТЕЛЬСТВО АКАДЕМИИ НАУК АЗЕРБАЙДЖАНСКОЙ ССР. p. 91.
^abcLynn Todd, Terry (2002).A grammar of Dimili also known as Zaza. Stockholm: Iremet Förlag. p. 85.
^abcUmnyashkin, Alexandr; Shodiev, Rustamkhon A. "Word Forming Models of Everyday Talish Vocabulary".Journal Arbitrer.6 (2): 79.
^abمحمدتقی پوراحمد, جکتاجی (1385).گیلان نامه (in Persian) (6th ed.). گیلکان. p. 242.
^Borjian, Habib (2013).Is There Continuity between Persian and Caspian: Linguistic Relationships in the South-Central Alborz. New Haven: American Oriental Society. p. 33.ISBN978-0940490857.
^Taherkhani, Neda; Muhammed, Ourang (2013). "A Study of Derivational Morphemes in Lari and Tati as Two Iranian Endangered Languages: An Analytical-Contrastive Examination with Persian".Journal of American Science.9 (11): 41.
^Lynn Todd, Terry (2002).A grammar of Dimili also known as Zaza. Stockholm: Iremet Förlag. pp.45
^کلباسی, ایران (2005)."ویژگیهای شاخص گویش سمنانی" [The Main Characteristics of Semnani Dialect](PDF).Language and Linguistics.1 (2): 140.
^Wolfgang, Schulze: Northern Talysh. Lincom Europa. 2000. (page 35)
^Varol, Murat (2012),Zazalarda Mevlid ve Siyer Geleneği, vol. 1, II. Uluslararası Zaza Tarihi ve Kültürü Sempozyumu/Bingöl Üniversitesi Yayınları, pp. 93–114
^Keskin, Mesut (2015),Zaza Dili, vol. 1, Bingöl Üniversitesi Yaşayan Diller Enstitüsü Dergisi, pp. 93–114
^Özer, Osman (2016).Mevlid Ahmed-i Hasi. İstanbul: Bingöl Üniversitesi Yayınları.ISBN978-605-65457-0-2.
^Jacobson, C.M. (1993).Rastnustena Zonê Ma -Handbuch für die Rechtschreibung der Zaza-Sprache. Bonn: Verlag für Kultur und Wissenschaft.
^Arslanoğulları, M. (2014). Lerch’in zazaki derlemelerinin çevrimyazımı ve türlerine göre sözcüklerin tahlili (Master's thesis, Bingöl Üniversitesi).
^Lerch, Peter, Forschungen über die Kurden und die Iranischen Nordchaldaer - Band I, St. Petersburg (Петр Лерх, Изслѣдованія об иранских курдах и их предках, сѣверных халдеях: Введеніе и подробное исчисленіе курдских племен) I-II-III, продаеця у Коммисіонеров Императорской академіи наук : И. Глазунова, 1856/57/58
^Robert Gordon Latham, "On a Zaza Vocabulary",Transactions of The Philological Society, London, 1856, ss. 40-42
^Robert Gordon Latham, "On a Zaza Vocabulary",Opuscula: Essays, Chiefly Philological and Ethnographical, Williams & Norgate, London, Edinburg, Leipzig, 1860, s.242
^Blau, Otto (1862),"Nachrichten über kurdische Stämme-III, Mittheilungen über die Dusik-Kurden", Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft, Steiner in Komm, 1862, s.621-627
^O. Mann, Nachlaß in der Staatsbibliothek Berlin (W), Briefe; vgl. auch ebenda, Vortrag vom 4. Juli 1909 und 20. Jan. 1909, p. 11.
^Ahmet Kayıntu,"Molla Mehmet Demirtaş’ın Zazaca Divanı", II. Uluslararası Zaza Tarihi ve Kültürü Sempozyumu, Bingöl Üniversitesi Yayınları, 04-06 Mayıs 2012.
Blau, Joyce (1989). "Gurânî et Zâzâ". In Schmitt, Rüdiger (ed.).Compendium Linguarum Iranicarum. Wiesbaden: Reichert. pp. 336–340.ISBN3-88226-413-6. (About Daylamite origin of Zaza-Guranis)
Gajewski, Jon. (2004)"Zazaki Notes" Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Gippert, Jost (4 May 1996).Die historische Entwicklung der Zaza-Sprache(PDF) (Speech). Mannheim Zaza Book Festival (in German). University of Frankfurt. (not original published speech)
Gippert, Jost (4 May 1996).Zazaca'nın tarihsel gelişimi(PDF) (Speech). Mannheim Zaza Book Festival (in Turkish). Translated by Dursun, Hasan. University of Frankfurt. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 21 June 2006.
Todd, Terry Lynn (1985).A Grammar of Dimili (Also Known as Zaza) (Thesis). University of Michigan.hdl:2027.42/160737.
Malmîsanij, Mehemed (2021). "The Kirmanjki (Zazaki) Dialect of Kurdish Language and the Issues it Faces". In Bozarslan, Hamit; Gunes, Cengiz; Yadirgi, Veli (eds.).The Cambridge History of the Kurds. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 663–684.doi:10.1017/9781108623711.027.ISBN978-1-108-62371-1.S2CID235541104.
Paul, Ludwig (1998)."The Position of Zazaki Among West Iranian languages"(PDF). In Sims-Williams, Nicholas (ed.).Proceedings of the Third European Conference of Iranian Studies held in Cambridge, 11th to 15th September 1995. Vol. I: Old and Middle Iranian Studies. Wiesbaden: Ludwig Reichert. pp. 163–177. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 9 April 2008. Retrieved5 March 2006.
Werner, Eberhard (2020). "Orality and Folklore: Reflections on the Folktale Tradition of the Zaza People". In Alireza Korangy (ed.).Kurdish Art and Identity: Verbal Art, Self-definition and Recent History. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter. pp. 169–190.doi:10.1515/9783110599626-008.
Folktale collections
Hayig, Rosan (2007). Eberhard Werner; Brigitte Werner (eds.).Mahmeşa: Vızêr ra Ewro Istanıkê Zazayan [Mahmesha: Zaza Folktales: Then and Now] (in Zaza, German, and English). Istanbul: Vêjiyaişê Tiji & SIL International.ISBN978-975-8277-36-0.
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