Skip to main content
Springer Nature Link
Log in

Judeo-Persian Texts from Bukhara

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Save chapter
View saved research
The Handbook of Persian Dialects and Dialectology

  • 181 Accesses

Abstract

This paper presents sample texts from various stages of Persian as used by the Jewish population of Transoxiana, also known as Bukhara in modern history. The intention is to demonstrate continuity and change within Judeo-Persian of Bukhara, known as Judeo-Bukhari in its later stage, and its association with Persian and Tajik. The written samples include classical Judeo-Persian, i.e., formal Persian cast into the Hebrew script, from 17th and 19th centuries, the modified Hebrew script introduced in the 1920s, thereafter the Latin script of the 1930s and the Cyrillic script, also known as Judeo-Tajik. The rest of the texts sample the spoken language among the immigrant Bukhari community in New York City based on extensive fieldwork.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+
from €39.99 /Month
  • Starting from 10 chapters or articles per month
  • Access and download chapters and articles from more than 300k books and 2,500 journals
  • Cancel anytime
View plans

Buy Now

Chapter
EUR 29.95
Price includes VAT (Germany)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
EUR 149.79
Price includes VAT (Germany)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
EUR 192.59
Price includes VAT (Germany)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Free shipping worldwide - view details
Hardcover Book
EUR 192.59
Price includes VAT (Germany)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Free shipping worldwide - view details

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Explore related subjects

Discover the latest articles, books and news in related subjects, suggested using machine learning.

Notes

  1. 1.

    For studies on the letter, see Borjian (2015: 242 f).

  2. 2.

    The history and culture of the Bukhari Jews is studied by Zand (1972, 2006), Tolmas (2006a), Baldauf et al. (2008), and Cooper (2012).

  3. 3.

    Paper (1968: xxv).

  4. 4.

    Zarubin (1928) remains an authoritative reference for the dialect of Samarkand. See also Mahmudov and Berdiev (2005) on varieties of Tajik vernaculars. For written Tajik, see Perry (2005).

  5. 5.

    Tolmas (2006a, b).

  6. 6.

    Cf. Babaev (1991), Rzehak (2008).

  7. 7.

    On the formation of modern Tajik, see Borjian (2006).

  8. 8.

    Cf. Šalamūev (1993: 125).

  9. 9.

    Shaked (2009).

  10. 10.

    Gindin 2007.

  11. 11.

    See Netzer (2011).

  12. 12.

    See Netzer (2012).

  13. 13.

    Netzer (1996: 72–75).

  14. 14.

    Netzer (1973: 303–344).

  15. 15.

    Zand (1972: 144).

  16. 16.

    A possible motivation of the renaming was that rost, also meaning ‘right’, contradicted ‘left’, the political orientation of the Soviet state.

  17. 17.

    Borjian (1992).

  18. 18.

    Cf. Šalamūev (1993: 122–24), Rzehak (2008).

  19. 19.

    Zarubin (1928: 107).

  20. 20.

    This feature is not implemented in all Bukhari texts, e.g., hisob ‘arithmatic’.

  21. 21.

    Rzehak (2008).

  22. 22.

    Tajik Latin <‘>, Cyrillic <ъ>, corresponding to IPA stop [ʔ], was probably absent in Bukhari alphabet. On the Tajik orthography, see Borjian (1998b).

  23. 23.

    Zand (1972).

  24. 24.

    Šalamūev (1993: 127).

  25. 25.

    The only earlier dictionary known to me is the Dictionary of Six Languages, published by Shlomo Bābājān Pinkhasov in 1907.

  26. 26.

    Cf. Kaganovitch (2008).

  27. 27.

    See Rapport 2014.

  28. 28.

    Manuscript: British Library Or. 4743 H680, availavle at https://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Or_4743.

  29. 29.

    See Moreen 1996.

  30. 30.

    In the poem, Darius is also identified as the “king of Iraq” (Text 1b), signifying the fact that ancient province of Media had been known as ʿArāq-i ʿAjam ‘Persian Iraq’ in medieval times. There are also anachronyms about Cyrus and Darius in the poem, for which see Bickerman (1967: 93).

  31. 31.

    Borjian (2014: 259).

  32. 32.

    Dānīāl-nāma, folio 29v. Transliterated into Persian script by Netzer (1973: 264–265).

  33. 33.

    Dānīāl-nāma, folios 44r, 45v. Transliterated into Persian script by Netzer (1973: 284–285); translated into English by Moreen (2000: 148–149).

  34. 34.

    From Šimʿon Ḥakham’s edition published in 1902–1905.

  35. 35.

    British and Foreign Bible Society, Leipzig, 1895.

  36. 36.

    Ḥakham (1902–1905, folio 96b) The English translation is from Paper (1968: xxvi) in his introduction to the edition of Shimʿon Ḥakham’s Mūsā-nāma.

  37. 37.

    nāgāh dāštan should read nigāh dāštan ‘to hold’.

  38. 38.

    The manuscript is provided by Dr. Or Rosenboim, from the City University of London. The excerpt below is included with permission and courtesy of the descendants of Zion Asher. I owe Ibrahim Shafii for assisting me in translation of this text.

  39. 39.

    Russian суд ‘court’.

  40. 40.

    Russian решение ‘decision’.

  41. 41.

    Russian тюрьма ‘jail’.

  42. 42.

    Likely a misspelling for xilāṣ ‘release’.

  43. 43.

    Hebrew ‘sentence’.

  44. 44.

    From Gulkarov (1998: 7).

  45. 45.

    See “The Jewish Community of Samarkand”, at https://dbs.anumuseum.org.il/skn/en/c6/e143595/Place/Samarkand

  46. 46.

    The text reads maḥal zi šarq, with the obscure word zi. The correct reading should be “the Jewish quarter/neighborhood of the east”. It seems the right half of the letter he was eroded.

  47. 47.

    The word taqsim ‘division’ seems to be used as ‘story’ in accordance with the image. However, even ‘story’ fails to fit into the rest of the text. It is possible that the image was revised to a two-story building but not the text in the new edition of the textbook.

  48. 48.

    Kantu̇r ‘table, office’, from Russian контора ‘office’.

  49. 49.

    Tentative reading. It might be (surx) ‘red’, with the middle letter, i.e. resh, added in handwriting later.

  50. 50.

    is obscure.

  51. 51.

    Probably časponi.

  52. 52.

    čilim probably correspond to the elevated seats (taxt) in the front of the image.

  53. 53.

    The word kor ‘work’ seems extraneous.

  54. 54.

    From Almanaxi adaвijoti nafisi jahudihoji mahali, Tashkent: Uzbek SSR State Publications, 1934, p. 16.

  55. 55.

    From Uvaydov (1994: 30).

  56. 56.

    Filemed and edited by Ross Perlin. The video is availavle at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6RLAGj8yA8. This text is a modified version of the one published in Borjian and Perlin (2015).

  57. 57.

    Recorded at Bukharian Community Center, Forest Hills, Queens, New York City, 2012. Filmed and edited by Ross Perlin. Available at Borjian et al. (2012).

  58. 58.

    Russian любой 'any’.

  59. 59.

    Hebrew דִבְרָה ‘commandment, word’.

  60. 60.

    Turkic ‘correct’.

  61. 61.

    Russian современ ‘modern’.

  62. 62.

    Russian приставка ‘prefix’.

  63. 63.

    Russian дословно ‘literary’.

  64. 64.

    Russian вообще ‘generally’.

  65. 65.

    Russian община 'community', corresponding to Tajik ǰamoat.

  66. 66.

    Russian уже ‘already’, еще ‘still, even’.

  67. 67.

    Russian стараться ‘to try, strive’.

  68. 68.

    Russian хорошо ‘well’.

  69. 69.

    Recorded at the Bukharian Community Center, Forest Hills, Queens, New York City, 2012. Filmed and edited by Ross Perlin. The video is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLpJIA54AQI&index=2&list=PLcXFPx-z7B0qOmklUbbRWx9U3PyFSFRBN.

  70. 70.

    Lit. ‘to-place’.

  71. 71.

    Polysemous preposition, meaning ‘to, on about’.

  72. 72.

    The copula is omitted optionally.

  73. 73.

    Video clip at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFGKtRYisus&list=PLcXFPx-z7B0qOmklUbbRWx9U3PyFSFRBN&index=4.

  74. 74.

    Incomplete sentence.

  75. 75.

    [unintelligible words]

  76. 76.

    Video clip at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8fPTSpi7y4&list=PLcXFPx-z7B0qOmklUbbRWx9U3PyFSFRBN&index=6.

  77. 77.

    Which the speaker is holding in his hands.

  78. 78.

    Way means “that” or “stuff”, indicating that the speaker skips the sentence and begins a new one.

  79. 79.

    In Bukhari, quppa means 'donation box'. In modern Tajik, quppa means “peak, summit”.

  80. 80.

    Unintelligible.

Abbreviations

1:

First person

2:

Second person

3:

Third person

clf:

Numerical classifier, counter word

cmpr:

Comparative

cop:

Copula

def:

Definite

dimin:

Diminutive

emph:

Emphatic

epen:

Epenthetic

ez:

Eżāfa

-gi:

-gi, An extension of the past participle

imptv:

Imperative

indef:

Indefinite

inf:

Infinitive

ipfv :

Imperfective

nomi:

Nominalizer

neg:

Negative

pc:

Pronominal clitic

pfv :

Perfective

pl:

Plural

pn:

Proper name

poss:

Possessive

postp:

Postposition

pp:

Past participle

pr :

Present

pref:

Prefix

prev:

Preverb

pst:

Past

ptcp:

Participle

q:

Question particle

quality:

-gi Suffix of quality nouns and adjectives

-ra:

-(r)a, -(r)o, Object marker

ref:

Reflexive

sbj:

Subject

sbjv:

Subjunctive; morpheme bi-

sg :

Singular

voc:

Vocative

References

  • Babaev, K. R. (1991). Kammunikatinoe Poviedenie Evreev Buxary [Communicative attitudes of the Jews of Bukhara]. Sovetskaja Ètnografija, 5, 86–94.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baldauf, I. M., Grammer, I. M., & Loy, T. (Eds.). (2008). Bukharan Jews in the 20th century. Reichert.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bickerman, E. (1967). Four strange books of the Bible. Schocken.

    Google Scholar 

  • Borjian, H. (1992). Tajroba-ye Tājikestān dar Taḡyir-e ḵaṭṭ-e fārsi. Āyanda, 7–12, 306–312.

    Google Scholar 

  • Borjian, H. (1998a). Education xxviii. in Tajikistan. In Encyclopaedia Iranica (vol. VIII, fasc. 3 pp. 241–245).

    Google Scholar 

  • Borjian, H. (1998b). Structure of Tajik orthography (in Persian). Nāma-ye Farhangestān, 4(1), 103–116.

    Google Scholar 

  • Borjian, H. (2006). Formation of the modern Tajik Persian language (in Persian). Irānšenāsi, 18(2), 263–285.

    Google Scholar 

  • Borjian, H. (2014). Kulābi dialect. In Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 11 Sept. 2014 from iranicaonline.org.

  • Borjian, H., & Perlin, R. (2015). Bukhori in New York. In M. De Chiara, & E. Grassi (Eds.), Iranian languages and literatures of Central Asia, 18th–21st centuries. Paris: Association pour l’avancement des études iraniennes.

    Google Scholar 

  • Borjian, H., Perlin, R., & Kaufman, D. (2012). Language use in the Bukharian community (Rabbi Babayev speaks about language use within the Bukharian community in Bukhara, Israel and New York). Recorded in New York City, 11 Nov. 2012. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThvF4ZyiISI&t=4s

  • Cooper, A. E. (2012). Bukharan Jews and the dynamics of global Judaism, Bloomington, Indiana.

    Google Scholar 

  • Catalogue of the endangered languages, at https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7vQLUpU_2qcVEVqNzFKWFA2cUk/view, consulted on 9 Oct 2018.

  • Ethnologue. Languages of the world, at www.ethnologue.com, consulted on 9 April 2014.

  • Gindin, T. E. (2007). The early Judaeo-Persian Tafsīrs of Ezekiel: text, translation, commentary (3 Vols.). Vienna: Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gulkarov, J. (1998). Ètimologicheskiij slovarʹ buxarsko-evreiskogo jazyka s perevodom na russkii, angliiskii i ivrit/Etimologycal [sic] dictionary of Bukharian-Russian-English-Hebrew/Lu̇gati zaboni yahudiëni Buxorī. Tel-Aviv: Berit yotsʾe Bukharah.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ḥakham, S. (1902–1905). Sēfer seraḥ shāhin tōrah (4 Vols.), in 2, Jerusalem: publisher not stated.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hakham, S. (2017). The vowel system of Jewish Bukharan Tajik: With special reference to the Tajik vowel chain shift. Journal of Jewish Languages, 5, 81–103.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaganovitch, A. (2008). The Bukharan Jewish diaspora at the beginning of the 21st century. In I. Baldauf, M. Grammer, & T. Loy (Eds.), Bukharan Jews in the 20th century (pp. 111–116). Reichert Verlag.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kalontarov, Y. I. (2002). Mudrost’ trëx narodov/Pandu hikmati se xalq (zarbulmasal, maqol va aforizmhoi tojikī, ūzbekī, rusī dar muqoisa) (Vol. II). Life Trans Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kimiagarov, A. (2010). Short English-Russian-Bukharian Jewish dictionary/Kratkiij Anglo-Russkiij-Buxarsko-evreijskiij slovarʹ/Luḡati kūtohi zaboni Anglisi-Rusi-Yahudii buxori. International Academy for Development of Technologies (IADT), NY Filial IATE.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mahmudov, M., & Berdiev, B. (1969). Luḡti muxtasari lahǰahoi Buxoro. Dushanbe: Doniš.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moreen, V. B. (1996). The “Iranization” of biblical heroes in Judeo-Persian epics: Shahin’s Ardashīr-nāmah and ʿEzrā-nāmah. Iranian Studies, 29(3–4), 321–338.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moreen, V. B. (2000). In Queen Esther’s garden: An anthology of Judeo-Persian literature. Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Netzer, A. (1972). Daniyal-nama and linguistic features. Israel Oriental Studies, 2, 305–314.

    Google Scholar 

  • Netzer, A. (1973). Montaxab-e ašʿār-e fārsi az ās̱ār-e Yahudiān-e Irān. Farhang-e Irānzamin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Netzer, A. (1996). Literature of the Jews of Iran: a short survey. In A. Netzer (Ed.), Padyāvānd (vol. 1, pp. 5–17). Costa Mesa, CA: Mazda.

    Google Scholar 

  • Netzer, A. (2011). Judeo-Persian communities in Iran ix. Judeo-Persian literature. In Encyclopaedia Iranica (Vol. 15, pp. 139–156). New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Osimī, M. (Ed.). (1976–1986). Èntsiklopediyai sovetii tojik (8 vols.). Dushanbe.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paper, H. H. (1968). Judeo-Persian Bible translations: Some sample texts. In Studies in bibliography and booklore (Vol. 8, pp. 99–113).

    Google Scholar 

  • Perry, J. (2005). A Tajik Persian reference grammar. Leiden: Brill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rapport, E. J. (2014). Greeted with smiles: Bukharian Jewish music and musicians in New York. Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rybakov, I. (2011). Easy Bukharian: Language of the Bukharian Jews (2nd Ed.). Association of the Bukharian Jewish Youth of the USA Achdut-Unity.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rzehak, L. (2008). The linguistic challenge: Bukharan Jews and Soviet language policy. In I. Baldauf, M. Grammer, & T. Loy (Eds.), Bukharan Jews in the 20th century (pp. 37–55). Reichert.

    Google Scholar 

  • Šalamūev, A. (1993). Ahrūnnoma. Tel Aviv: El Hamaʿayan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shaked, S. (2009). Classification of linguistic features in early Judeo-Persian texts. In W. Sundermann, A. Hintze, & F. de Blois (Eds.), Exigisti Monumenta. Festschrift in Honour of Nicholas Sims-Williams (pp. 449–461). Harrassowitz.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tolmas, C. (2006a). Bukharan Jews: History, language, literature, culture. World Bukharian Jewish Congress.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tolmas, C. (2006b). Hebrew-Aramaic elements in Judeo-Tadjik. In C. Tolmas (Ed.), Bukharan Jews, history, language, literature, culture (pp. 170–184). World Bukharian Jewish Congress.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tolmas, C. (2010). Judeo-Tajik for Hebrew and English speakers. Center for the Research and Study of the Jewish Communities in Iran, Bukhara and Afghanistan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Uvaydov, Z. (1994). Folklori Yahudiyoni buxorī (ed. Mordaxay Bačaev). n.p.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zand, M. (1972). The culture of the mountain Jews of the caucasus and the culture of the Jews of Bukhara during the Soviet period. In A. Tartakower, & Z. Kolitz (Eds.), Jewish culture in the Soviet Union: Proceedings of the symposium held by the cultural department of the World Jewish congress (pp. 134–147). World Jewish Congress.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zand, M. (2006). Bukharan Jews. In C. Tolmas (Ed.), Bukharan Jews, history, language, literature, culture (pp. 7–55). World Bukharian Jewish Congress.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zarubin, I. (1928). Očerk razgovornogo jazyka samarkandskix evreev [Essay on the spoken language of the Jews of Samarkand], Iran (Vol. 2, pp. 95–181). Leningrad: Academy of Sciences.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This study is an outcome a teamwork at the Endangered Language Allience in New York City. The Bukhari vedeotapes were filmed and edited by Ross Perlin. Daniel Kaufman and Husniya Khujamyorova made major contributions to the transcription and translation of Bukhari videotapes. Jonathan Koptyev and Imanuel Rybakov of the Bukharan community assisted in elucidating numerous instances of transcription. Ofir Haim and Ibrahim Shafii helped me clarify some words in the Judeo-Bukhari texts. Dr. Or Rosenboim of the City University of London kindly shared the handwritten diary of Samarkandi merchant Zion Asher from the early twentieth century. The Soviet Judeo-Bukhari images were provided by Dr. Vladimir Aulov of Bukharian Times.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA

    Habib Borjian

Authors
  1. Habib Borjian
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Habib Borjian.

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon

    Alireza Korangy

  2. University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

    Behrooz Mahmoodi-Bakhtiari

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2025 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Borjian, H. (2025). Judeo-Persian Texts from Bukhara. In: Korangy, A., Mahmoodi-Bakhtiari, B. (eds) The Handbook of Persian Dialects and Dialectology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-8151-9_1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-8151-9_1

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-99-8150-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-99-8151-9

  • eBook Packages: HistoryHistory (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics