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'''Khowar''' ({{lang|khw|کهووار}}), also known as '''Chitrali''' ({{lang|khw|چترالي}}) and '''Arniya''', is an ] of the ] branch, spoken by the ] in ] in ], in the ] district of ] (including the ], Phandar ] and Gupis), and in parts of Upper ]. ] have also migrated heavily to Pakistan's major urban centres with ], ], ] and ], having sizeable populations. It is spoken as a second language in the rest of ] and ]. There are believed to be small numbers of Khowar speakers in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkey.
'''Khowar @nisardrosh''' ({{lang|khw|کهووار}}), also known as '''Chitrali''' ({{lang|khw|چترالي}}) and '''Arniya''', is an ] of the ] branch, spoken by the ] in ] in ], in the ] district of ] (including the ], Phandar ] and Gupis), and in parts of Upper ]. ] have also migrated heavily to Pakistan's major urban centres with ], ], ] and ], having sizeable populations. It is spoken as a second language in the rest of ] and ]. There are believed to be small numbers of Khowar speakers in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkey.
The ] ] ] wrote that Chitral is the area of the greatest linguistic diversity in the world. Although Khowar is the predominant language of Chitral, more than ten other languages are spoken here. These include ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ]. Since many of these languages have no written form, letters are usually written in ], Pakistan's national language.
The ] ] ] wrote that Chitral is the area of the greatest linguistic diversity in the world. Although Khowar is the predominant language of Chitral, more than ten other languages are spoken here. These include ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and ]. Since many of these languages have no written form, letters are usually written in ], Pakistan's national language.
Revision as of 13:01, 3 October 2015
"Chitrali language" redirects here. For other Chitrali languages, see Languages of Chitral.
Khowar may also have nasalized vowels and a series of long vowels /aː/, /eː/, /iː/, /oː/, and /uː/. Sources are inconsistent on whether length is phonemic, with one author stating "vowel-length is observed mainly as a substitute one. The vowel-length of phonological value is noted far more rarely." Unlike the neighboring and related Kalasha language, Khowar does not have retroflex vowels.
The phonemic status of /tsʰ/ is unclear in the sources
Tone
Khowar, like many Dardic languages, has either phonemic tone or stress distinctions.
Comparative Vocabulary
The names of the days of the week, in Khowar, are compared with their equivalents in Shina, Sanskrit, and English.
English
Shina
Sanskrit
Khowar
Sunday
Adit
Aditya vara
yak shambey
Monday
Tsunduro
Som vara
du shambey
Tuesday
Ungaroo
Mangala vara
sey shambey
Wednesday
Bodo
Budha vara
char shambey
Thursday
Bressput
Brhashpati vara
panch shambey
Friday
Shooker
Shukra vara
Adina
Saturday
Shimshere
Sanischa vara
shambey
Dialects
Standard Khowar
Swati Khowar (Swat Kohistan)
Lotkuhiwar (Lotkuh Valley)
Gherzikwar (Ghizer Valley)
Gilgiti Khowar (Gilgit-Baltistan), spoken by a few families in Gilgit city.
Writing system
Khowar has been written in the Nasta'liq script since the early twentieth century. Prior to that, the administrative and literary language of the region was Persian and works such as poetry and songs in Khowar were passed down in oral tradition. Today Urdu and English are the official languages and the only major literary usage of Khowar is in both poetry and prose composition. Khowar has also been written in the Roman script since the 1960s.
Bashir, Elena (2001) Spatial Representation in Khowar. Proceedings of the 36th Annual Meeting of the Chicago Linguistic Society. Chicago: Chicago Linguistic Society.
Morgenstierne, Georg (1947) Some Features of Khowar Morphology. Norsk Tidsskrift for Sprogvidenskap, Vol. XIV, Oslo.
Morgenstierne, Georg (1957) Sanskritic Words in Khowar. Felicitation Volume Presented to S.K. Belvalkar. Benares. 84–98
Mohammad Ismail Sloan (1981) Khowar-English Dictionary. Peshawar. ISBN 0-923891-15-3.
Decker, Kendall D. (1992). Languages of Chitral (Sociolinguistic Survey of Northern Pakistan, 5). National Institute of Pakistani Studies, 257 pp. ISBN 969-8023-15-1.
