Kumzari ( fa, کومزاری, ar, لغة كمزارية) is a

Southwestern Iranian The Western Iranic languages are a branch of the Iranic languages, attested from the time of Old Persian (6th century BC) and Median language, Median. Languages The traditional Northwestern branch is a convention for non-Southwestern languages, ...

language that is similar to the Persian,

Achomi Achomi ( fa, اچُمی), also known as Larestani and Khodmooni, is a Southwestern Iranian Persian language spoken by people in southern Fars and western Hormozgan and by significant numbers of immigrant groups in Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq, Qatar, ...

and

Luri Luri may refer to: * Luri people or Lurs, an Iranian people * Luri language, Western Iranian language continuum spoken by the Lurs * Luri language (Nigeria), dialect of the Afro-Asiatic language Polci * Luri, Haute-Corse, commune in France * Luri ...

languages. Although vulnerable, it survives today with between 4,000 and 5,000 speakers. It is spoken by Kumzaris on the

Kumzar Kumzār ( ar, كُمْزَار), also written as Kumza, is a village located in Musandam, the northernmost province of Oman. It is the second most northerly inhabited part of the country, and the most northerly inhabited part on its mainland, loc ...

coast of

Musandam Peninsula The Musandam Peninsula ( ar, جَزِيْرَة مُسَنْدَم \ رَأْس مُسَنْدَم, Jazīrat Musandam / Raʾs Musandam), locally known as Ruus Al Jibal ( ar, رُؤُوْس ٱلْجِبَال, ''Ruʾūs al-Jibāl'' Heads of the Mou ...

, northern

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of t ...

. This is the only Iranian language spoken exclusively in the

Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate ...

. Kumzaris can also be found in the towns of

Dibba Dibbā ( ar, دِبَّا) is a coastal area at the northern tip of the eastern Arabian peninsula on the Gulf of Oman. Political administration Dibba is politically divided into three segments: * Dibba Al-Fujairah, ruled by the Emirate of Fu ...

and

Khasab Khasab ( ar, خَصَب, Ḫaṣab) is a city and local capital of the Musandam Governorate which is an exclave of Oman bordering the United Arab Emirates at the tip of the Musandam Peninsula by the Strait of Hormuz. It has been dubbed the "Norw ...

as well as various villages, and on

Larak Island Larak Island (also Lark Island) is an island off the coast of Iran, which has been one of Iran's major oil export points since 1987. The narrowest part of the Strait of Hormuz at distance of lies between the island and the Omani-owned Quoin Is ...

. The speakers are descendants of fishermen who inhabited the coast of the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

and the

Gulf of Oman The Gulf of Oman or Sea of Oman ( ar, خليج عمان ''khalīj ʿumān''; fa, دریای عمان ''daryâ-ye omân''), also known as Gulf of Makran or Sea of Makran ( ar, خلیج مکران ''khalīj makrān''; fa, دریای مکرا� ...

Location

The Kumzari name derives from the historically rich mountainous village of Kumzar. The language has two main groups of speakers, one on each side of the

Strait of Hormuz The Strait of Hormuz ( fa, تنگه هرمز ''Tangeh-ye Hormoz'' ar, مَضيق هُرمُز ''Maḍīq Hurmuz'') is a strait between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. It provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the ...

: by the Shihuh tribe of the

and by the Laraki community of

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. On the Musandam Peninsula, the Kumzar population is concentrated in Oman, in the village of Kumzar and in a quarter of

known as the Harat al-Kumzari. In addition, Kumzari is found at

and the coastal villages of Elphinstone and the Malcolm Inlets. It is the mother tongue of fishermen who are descendants of the

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...

i conqueror of

, Malek bin Faham ( ar, مالك بن فهم). Based on linguistic evidence, the presence of Kumzari in the

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...

region exists prior to the

Muslim conquest The early Muslim conquests or early Islamic conquests ( ar, الْفُتُوحَاتُ الإسْلَامِيَّة, ), also referred to as the Arab conquests, were initiated in the 7th century by Muhammad, the main Islamic prophet. He esta ...

of the region in the 7th Century A.D.

Phonology

Consonants

Kumzari has consonants, and all but three () also exist as geminates

Vowels

Kumzari has a length distinction in its vowels, with five long vowels and three short vowels. Vowels never occur in direct

hiatus Hiatus may refer to: *Hiatus (anatomy), a natural fissure in a structure * Hiatus (stratigraphy), a discontinuity in the age of strata in stratigraphy *''Hiatus'', a genus of picture-winged flies with sole member species '' Hiatus fulvipes'' * Gl ...

; rather, they are separated by either a semivowel such as or /w/, or a glottal stop ().

References

External links

Kumzar's Last StandRare language also under threat in Straits of HormuzTraditional Marriage in Oman: Kumzari Traditional Marriage

External links

* http://www.endangeredlanguages.com/lang/zum
Audio presentation on Kumzari oral traditions
{{Languages of Oman Languages of Oman Languages of Iran Languages of the United Arab Emirates Endangered Indo-European languages Southwestern Iranian languages Musandam Governorate

Location

Phonology

Consonants

Vowels

References

External links

Further reading

External links