The Western Iranian languages or Western Iranic languages are a branch of the

Iranian languages The Iranian languages, also called the Iranic languages, are a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages in the Indo-European language family that are spoken natively by the Iranian peoples, predominantly in the Iranian Plateau. The Iranian langu ...

, attested from the time of

Old Persian Old Persian is one of two directly attested Old Iranian languages (the other being Avestan) and is the ancestor of Middle Persian (the language of the Sasanian Empire). Like other Old Iranian languages, it was known to its native speakers as (I ...

(6th century BC) and

Median The median of a set of numbers is the value separating the higher half from the lower half of a Sample (statistics), data sample, a statistical population, population, or a probability distribution. For a data set, it may be thought of as the “ ...

Languages

The traditional Northwestern branch is a convention for non-Southwestern languages, rather than a genetic group. The languages are as follows:Erik Anonby, Mortaza Taheri-Ardali & Amos Hayes (2019) ''The Atlas of the Languages of Iran (ALI)''. Iranian Studies 52
A Working Classification
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Old Iranian period

* Northwest:

†, etc. * Southwest:

†, etc.

Middle Iranian period

* Northwest: Parthian†, etc. * Southwest:

Middle Persian Middle Persian, also known by its endonym Pārsīk or Pārsīg ( Inscriptional Pahlavi script: , Manichaean script: , Avestan script: ) in its later form, is a Western Middle Iranian language which became the literary language of the Sasania ...

†, etc

Modern period (Neo-Iranian)

* Northwestern Iranian ** Caspian *** Gorgani† *** Daylami† *** Gilaki (incl. Rudbari) *** Mazandarani (incl. Tabari, Shahmirzadi, Ilikaei, katuli) ** Semnani *** Semnani *** Sangisari *** Lasgerdi- Sorkhei (incl. Aftari) ** Adharic (Azaric) *** Old Adhari† **** Tatic ***** Talysh (north-central) ***** Gozarkhani (Alamuti) *****North: Harzandi, Karingani (Kalasuri, Khoynarudi) ***** Kho'ini *****South ****** Alviri-Vidari (Alviri, Vidari) ****** Ashtiani (Amora’i, Kahaki, Tafreshi), Vafsi ****** Razajerdi, Eshtehardi, Takestani (Ramandi, Kharaqani) *****Central ******Khalkhalic: Kajali, Koresh-e Rostam (Karani), Shahrudi (incl. southern Talysh) ****** Maraghei ****** Upper Taromi, Kabatei ** Kurdic (acc. Anonby) *** Kurdish **** Northern Kurdish (Kurmanji) ****

Central Kurdish Central Kurdish, also known as Sorani Kurdish, is a Kurdish language, Kurdish dialect or a language spoken in Iraq, mainly in Iraqi Kurdistan, as well as the provinces of Kurdistan Province, Kurdistan, Kermanshah province, Kermanshah, and West A ...

(Sorani) ****

Southern Kurdish Southern Kurdish () is one of the dialects of the Kurdish language, spoken predominantly in northeastern Iraq and western Iran. The Southern Kurdish-speaking region spans from Khanaqin in Iraq to Dehloran southward and Asadabad eastward in ...

****

Laki Laki () or Lakagígar (, ''Craters of Laki'') is a volcanic fissure in the western part of Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland, not far from the volcanic fissure of Eldgjá and the small village of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. The fissure is proper ...

**** Kurdali *** Zaza–Gorani **** Zazaki **** Gorani (incl. Hawrami, Sarli, Shabaki, Bajalani) ** Balochi *** Western Balochi (Rakhshani) *** Southern Balochi (Makrani) *** Eastern Balochi *** Koroshi ** Khuri (Kavir) *Central Plateau ** Sivandi ** Judeo-Hamadani, Judeo-Borujerdi ** NW = Khunsari (Judeo-Khunsari, Judeo-Khomeini, Vanishani, Mahallati, Vanishani, Judeo-Golpaygani, etc.) ** NE = Kashanic:

Soi In Thailand, a ''soi'' ( ) is a side street that branches off of a major street (''thanon'', ). An alley is called a ''trok'' (). Overview Sois are usually numbered, and are referred to by the name of the major street and the number, as in "S ...

(incl. Abuzaydabadi), Natanzi ** SW =

Gazi A ''ghazi'', or ''gazi'' (, , plural ''ġuzāt'') is an individual who participated in ''ghazw'' (, '' ''), meaning military expeditions or raids against non-Muslims. The latter term was applied in early Islamic literature to expeditions led by ...

(many dialects) ** Southeastern: Zoroastrian Dari (Zoroastrian Yazdi, Judeo-Kermani), Nayini * Southwestern Iranian ** Persian (dialects:

Iranian Persian Iranian Persian (), Western Persian or Western Farsi, natively simply known as Persian (), refers to the Variety (linguistics), varieties of the New Persian, Persian language spoken in Iran and by others in neighboring countries, as well as by ...

Judeo-Persian Judeo-Persian refers to both a group of Jewish dialects spoken by Jews and Judeo-Persian texts (written in Hebrew alphabet). As a collective term, Judeo-Persian refers to a number of Judeo-Iranian languages spoken by Jewish communities throughout ...

Dari Dari (; endonym: ), Dari Persian (, , or , ), or Eastern Persian is the variety of the Persian language spoken in Afghanistan. Dari is the Afghan government's official term for the Persian language;Lazard, G.Darī – The New Persian ...

(incl. Madaglashti), Tajik & Judeo-Bukharic,

Hazaragi Hazaragi (; ) is an eastern Persian dialects, dialect and Persian varieties, variety of the Persian language that is spoken by the Hazara people. Classification Hazaragi is a member of the Iranian languages, Iranian branch of the Indo-Europea ...

, Aimaq, Sistani, Pahlavani Persian†) ** Persid *** Shushtari– Dezfuli *** Luri (incl. Bakhtiari) *** Kuhmareyi (incl. Davani) *** (see also Persid dialects of Khuzestan) ** Bashkardi (Southern Bashkardi) ** Garmsiri (Northern Bashkardi, Bandari, Minabi/Minowi–Hormozi: Hormozgan) ** Kumzari ** Achomi (Larestani) **Caucasian Tat (SW Tat): Tat,

Judeo-Tat Judeo-Tat or Juhuri (, , ) is a Judeo-Persian dialect and the traditional language spoken by the Mountain Jews in the eastern Caucasus Mountains, especially Azerbaijan, parts of Russia and today in Israel. It belongs to the southwestern group ...

** Fars (numerous SW Fars dialects: Heshnizi, Gavbandi, Dashtini, Kangani, Jami, Bardesuni (Bardestani), Khenesiri, Bordekhuni, Dashtiyati (Dashti), Tangesiri (incl. Delvari), Khormuji, Khayizi, Ahrami, Bushehri, Bandar Rig (Fars of Bandar Rig), Genaveyi, Deylami (Liravi)†, Dashtesuni (Dashtestani), Judeo-Shirazi, etc.) There is also a recently described, and as yet unclassified, Batu'i language that is presumably Western Iranian. Extinct Deilami is sometimes classified in the Caspian branch. An Iranian Khalaj language has been claimed, but does not exist; the Khalaj speak a Turkic language. Many of the languages and dialects spoken in Markazi and Isfahan provinces are giving way to Persian in the younger generations.Central dialects
Gernot Windfuhr, Encyclopedia Iranica It is to note that the Caspian languages (incl. Adharic), the central dialects, and the Zaza-Gorani languages are likely descended from a later form of

with varying amounts of Parthian substrata, whereas the

Semnani languages The Semnani languages or Komisenian languages are a group of Northwestern Iranian languages, spoken in Semnan province (only 68,700 native speakers in 2019) of Iran that share many linguistic features and structures with Iranian languages. The ...

were likely descended from Parthian.Pierre Lecoq. 1989. "Les dialectes caspiens et les dialectes du nord-ouest de l'Iran," ''Compendium Linguarum Iranicarum''. Ed. Rüdiger Schmitt. Wiesbaden: Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, p. 297

References

Bibliography

* Pierre Lecoq. 1989. "Les dialectes caspiens et les dialectes du nord-ouest de l'Iran," ''Compendium Linguarum Iranicarum'', ed. Rüdiger Schmitt. Wiesbaden: L. Reichert Verlag, 1989; p. 99.