A Basic Course in Tajik
A Basic Course in Tajik
A Basic Course in Tajik
Tajik
(Grammar & Workbook)
RANDALL B. OLSON
Copyright 1994
Olson, Randall B.
Tajik
INTRODUCTION
AN INTRODUCTION TO
THE TAJIK LANGUAGE AND PEOPLE
The Tajiks trace their history to the earliest known inhabitants of Central Asia. These
were the Indo-Iranian people who lived along the Oxus River during the Greco-Bactrian
dynasties of the fourth to the first centuries B.C. The Tajiks diffused themselves over most of
Central Asia, between the Jaxartes River (Syr Darya) and the Oxus River (Amu Darya),
northern and western centuries, during the rule of the Samanids, that the basic ethnolinguistic
features of the Tajiks were formed and established. The Tajiks lost their state with the fall of
the Samanids, though they fought tenaciously for their freedom in the ensuing centuries.
Later the Tajiks lost significant amounts of territorial influence and suffered a decrease in
population as a direct result of the conquest of the Mongol and Turkic tribes.
The term Tajik (from taj meaning crown) was probably first introduced in the seventh
century by the Arabs to differentiate the Persian speakers from the Turkic speakers they
encountered as they fought their way northward and eastward. Physically, the Tajiks are
classified as being of the Mediterranean substock of the Caucasian race (Iranian). Centuries
of misgenation with Turkic-Mongoloid groups have produced Mongoloid characteristics in
the Tajiks, especially as one moves toward areas dominated by the Uzbeks.
In contrast to the Uzbeks, the Tajiks are about half as numerous, having an estimated
population of about four and a half million in Tajikistan, at least 1 million in Uzbekistan, up
to a half a million in the republics of Kazakhstan, Kirgizistan and Turkmenistan. Many of the
Tajiks living in Uzbekistan live in or near the cities of Samarkand and Bukhara, the cities
which historically have been populated and governed by the sedentary Tajiks. In addition to
the Tajiks who live north of the Oxus River, there are also approximately four to five million
Tajiks in Afghanistan, though the numbers of mother-tongue speakers of Persian in
Afghanistan, in all its various dialects, may be two to three million more.
The ethnolinguistic genesis of modern Persian began to take shape between the seventh
and ninth centuries after the Muslim conquest of Iran and Central Asia. The first written
documents in modern Persia, written by the Tajik poets Rudaki and Ferdousi, came from
what is now eastern Afghanistan and a region in Central Asia called the Khorasan. It was also
in Central Asia, in ninth and tenth centuries, that written Classical Persian, which used an
adaptation of the Arabic script, as a powerful literary medium.
Central Asia continued to be the major source of written Classical Persian, especially in the
cultural centers of Samarkand, Bukhara, Balkh, Merv and Herat. Classical Persian, in fact,
became the official language of communication from Iran to India, despite the subsequent
Turkic conquests of those regions, and it continued such up through the nineteenth century.
In the twentieth century, shortly after Tajikistan became a republic in 1929, the Russian
communists began to implement a linguistic policy which sought to undermine what they
perceived to be a threat in their southern flank, i.e., a pan-Islamic resistance movement. As
they had done in the republic of Uzbekistan and the other Turkic republics, the Russians cut
off the Tajiks from their Persian speaking neighbors, i.e., the Afghans and the Iranians by
forcing a Latin based alphabet on the Tajiks in 1930 and then a modified Cyrillic alphabet in
1940. This was done to modernize Tajik, which it did to a certain extent and to expurgate
the language from all the Arabic and Classical Persian archaisms. Reformers based their
modern Tajik on the northern dialect of Tajik, which is spoken in Samarkand, Bukhara and
Khojand. In reality, however, their modernization policy was designed to help the Soviets in
the Russification of the Tajik language and culture. Such a step also greatly enhanced the
pace of which the Russian language could be introduced to the Tajik school children.
Though the Russians succeeded in partly fulfilling their goals, their ultimate goal of
cultural and linguistic assimilation backfired. If anything, the Russians helped to reinforce the
Tajik sense of historical self-identity and to revive a spirit of nationalism that had been
subdued for centuries. The awakened ethnicity of the Tajiks found its opportunity to openly
manifest itself during Gorbachevs program of glasnost. The power of this reawakened force
was felt throughout the republic when in 1989 the Tajik language was declared the state
language of Tajikistan, derailing the plans of those who had sought to make the Russian
language the lingua franca of the Soviet Union. During this time it was also decided that an
educational policy should be put into effect that would re-establish the Perso-Arabic script as
the main written medium of Tajik by the end of this century. This new policy was again
reversed when remnants of the old guard came back into power at the end of 1992. But the
future of which script to use is yet unclear and now that Uzbekistan is in the process of
adapting the Latin script, Tajikistan may follow suit as well.
Despite the entholinguistic differences the Tajiks have with the Uzbeks they do share a
number of cultural similarities. From a socio-religious perspective the majority of the Tajiks,
like the Uzbeks are of the Hannafi Sunni sect of Islam and are still very much influenced by
Islamic traditions. As many as 80 percent of the Tajiks in Tajikistan, according to a recent
Soviet survey, admitted to still adhering to at least some of their traditional religious beliefs
and indicated a desire to see their children raised as Muslims. In spite of the fact that the
Soviet Communist system limited official religion, folk Islam, as it has for centuries,
continues to function at the grass-roots level. Through this system a large number of holy
men and women, Sufi guides, religious instructors, faith healers, and those who combine
magic and Islam together are sought after for spiritual guidance. The existence of holy places
also provides the more religious opportunities for pilgrimage and worship.
Families also instruct their children in the basic tenants of the faith or they may even
hire local non-official religious teachers to do so. Children are often taught the spiritual side
of life from their grandparents and the social side of life from their father and mother. The
natural process of the Tajiks life cycle is also still largely governed by Islamic cultural
principles. Even in Tajikistan the major events of life (birth, circumcision, marriage and
death) are usually marked by some type of religious ceremony. Gorbachevs program of
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glasnost and democratization allowed a new freedom of religion that had not been known in
the region since the days before the communist revolution. This coupled with the influence of
the Islamic revolution in Iran and the moral victory of the mujahideen (Islamic freedom
fighter) in Afghanistan fueled a resurgence of Islamic fundamentalism which set on fire a
militant Islamic movement in Tajikistan, resulting in almost two years of civil war in the
country.
Among the Tajiks there is also a sizable minority of Ismaili Shia, who whole-heartedly
follow their charismatic and opulent leader, the Aga Khan. In general, the Ismailis tend to
spiritualize the rigorous disciplines of the more orthodox Muslim sects, not performing, for
example, such things as the daily ritual prayers. Like Sufis they believe there is a tariq 'path'
that leads them to different levels of spiritual perfection. Though the Aga Khan lives in
France, the Aga Khan has, in fact, been instrumental in promoting educational and medical
reforms among his followers and is highly respected at the international level. Most of the
Ismaili Tajiks are found in central and northeastern Afghanistan and in the Pamir mountain of
Tajikistan. These Tajiks are often considered, both by others and themselves, to be a non-
Tajik ethnic group based on religious grounds.
While one may be tempted to think of the Tajiks as being urban dwellers, a more
correct picture is a sedentary, but mostly rural population, which is often situated in and
around small villages or collective farms. Most Tajiks, in fact, have traditionally been
mountaineer farmers and herdsmen. With centuries of experience behind them, rural Tajiks
are self-reliant and recognized as excellent farmers. Even though Tajikistan and Afghanistan
are countries covered with mountains, the Tajiks have occupied many of the isolated
mountainous valleys and are highly skilled in terraced mountain farming and irrigation
techniques.
Under Russian rule, however, most of the mountain people have been resettled into
cotton-growing valleys on collective state farms. Still, many Tajiks return home to their
villages from their factory jobs when the agricultural season begins and continue to retain a
rural oriented world-view. More traditional Tajiks, for example, prefer arranged marriages
that often involve the groom marrying his paternal uncles daughter or a close cousin. In the
urban areas, of course, there are many love marriages, but accompanied also with a higher
divorce rate.
One important difference between the Tajik and Uzbek culture is the role of women in
society. The Tajik women, in general, in both Afghanistan and Tajikistan, seen to enjoy a
greater degree of freedom, both in the work place and in social situations where men and
women are likely to interact. Even in the village setting, their seclusion is more assumed than
it is actually lived out in practice. In contrast to the Uzbeks, few decisions are made by the
village council without first consulting the women. The kinship structure, though less in tact
than the Uzbek one, nevertheless still dominates the social and political spheres of life.
In Tajikistan, important families from the Khojand (Leninabad) region have until
recently controlled the Tajik government at its highest levels. In the past two years, however,
the people from the Kulyab region have occupied the highest positions of the government.
Much of the recent instability in Tajikistan can be traced to regional power struggles, with the
people of Hisor, Kurghan Tappa and the Badakhshan region losing badly during the civil war.
The present political situation in Tajikistan is perhaps best represented as a complex mosaic
consisting of competing regional forces, political ideologies and a grass root cultural and
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INTRODUCTION
religious revival, all vying for control of the hearts and minds of the Tajik people. The result
has been a tragic loss of life, severe damage to the basic infrastructure of the country, and a
shattered economy.
In the following linguistic analysis of the sounds of Tajik, the Cyrillic letters are listed
first followed by an English transcription of each sound or letter. It is important to master the
Cyrillic letters as soon as possible, since the English transcription will no longer be used after
the sounds have been introduced.
Notes:
1. The above chart classifies Tajik vowels based on three features: tongue position; the
horizontal movement of the tongue towards the front, central, or back position; tongue
height; the vertical movement of the tongue toward a high, mid, or low position; and the
involvement of the lips; whether they are rounded or unrounded.
2. There are six vowels in Tajik, though they are represented by eight Tajik letters: The
vowel /i/ is represented by the Tajik letter / / as well as the letter / /, the latter only
occuring in the final position of a word indicating that the vowel is stressed. Likewise, the
vowel /e/ is represented by the Tajik letter / / as well as the letter / /, the latter usually
occurs in the initial position while the former is used in the medial and final positions.
3. The vowels / /, / /, and / / are subject to wide allophonic variation. These vowels are
considered unstable since they may be either long or short depending on their
surrounding phonological environment, though they are not to be considered as separate
vowels. The vowels / / and / /, in open syllables CV and monosyllablic words CVC, are
relatively long, while in words of two or more syllables they are short vowel sounds. The
vowel / / covers a wide range of sounds depending on the phonological environment. It is
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INTRODUCTION
a short vowel sound in words where it is a word initial syllable or when it is between two
consonants in a polysyllabic word.
4. The mid-central vowel / / is not only unique in that there is no English equivalent to this
sound, pronounced somewhat like the /i/ found in word sir except with rounded lips, but
it is also not found in the other main dialects of Persian.
5. In written Tajik one can also find the vowel / / in Russian loan words. In Russian this is
a high-back unrounded vowel /i/, but in the Tajik language it is pronounced as the /i/
vowel sound.
6. For a quick reference look at the following list of English words, (based on my dialect of
Mid-western American English), and note which of the Tajik vowel sounds are
comparable to similar English vowel sounds. Keep in mind that the vowels in the English
words are only rough approximations to the corresponding Tajik sounds. Tajik vowels are
more pure than English ones, that is, shorter and without the glide sound that follows
English vowels.
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Notes:
1. There are twenty-four consonants in Tajik and for organizational purposes the consonants
sounds in the above chart have been arranged according to their linguistic categories
rather than an alphabetical framework. The main linguistic categories include the manner
of articulation, the place of articulation and whether the sound is voiced or voiceless
(see note 2). The manner of articulation refers to whether the air is stopped or constricted
in some way some point along the vocal tract, while the place of articulation describes the
exact location where this action occurs. The manner and place of each consonant sound
will be described below when the Tajik sounds are introduced in the context of the Tajik
alphabet.
2. As mentioned above the above chart has also organized the consonant sounds on the
basis of whether they are voiced or voiceless. This particular feature is helpful to
understand, as it will allow you to distinguish between two similar, but different sounds,
such as the consonant sound /b/ in the word like bit and the consonant sound /p/ in word
like pit. Such words are called minimal pairs. To better understand what is meant by a
voiceless or voiced sound, place your hand on your throat and pronounce the sound /p/
and then the sound /b/ without a vowel accompanying them. You will notice that your
throat vibrates and makes a buzzing sound when you pronounce the /b/ sound. This is an
example of a voiced sound. When the buzzing is absent, like in the /p/ sound, it is an
example of a voiceless sound.
3. It is debatable if the letter / /, written in words of Arabic origin where was an ain or
hamza sound, is a true consonant sound in Tajik. In Arabic it is a voiced pharyngeal
stop, but it is pronounced as a glottal stop in Tajik. Educated Tajiks pronounce the sound
in careful speech, though many Tajiks do not pronounce it at all during rapid speech.
4. The consonants / / and // are used only in Russian loan words and most Tajik speakers
do not pronounce these sounds with the Russian pronounciation, instead the consonant / /
is pronounced as the /s/ sound and the consonant // is pronounced as the /sh/ sound.
Note the following examples:
Since 1940 the Russian Cyrillic writing system has been used to represent the Tajik
language in the former Soviet Union with the addition of six letters: and The
Tajik alphabet is introduced in the following pages. Along with each Cyrillic Tajik letter a
simple English transcription of each sound is listed and a description of how and where the
sound is produced, as well as its approximate English equivalent, if it has one.
It is recommended that you go through the whole alphabet once, reading the definitions
of each sound, before beginning the sound drills. Though the definitions may seem either too
technical or too basic for some, it should help to establish an overview of the letters and their
corresponding sounds, especially for those who are unfamiliar with the Russian alphabet. For
those who know the Russian it should be pointed out that in addition to the six additional
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sounds not found in the Russian sound system, several other letters used in Russian, notably:
are pronounced according to the Tajik sound system.
Appropriate examples of each sound are given in the context of words in their initial,
medial, and their word final forms. The words given are all used in Tajik, though the
definitions have not been given, since, at this point, it is more important to master the new
sounds rather then the meanings. The words are meant to be repeated after a Tajik language
informant. An English transcription of each word is listed below the Tajik examples as an aid
to learning the new script and as a guide in pronouncing the new sounds. The English
transcriptions should not be used as a crutch to prevent one from learning the Cyrillic script.
Unlike the Arabic script used in Persian, most people are able to master the Cyrillic forms
quite quickly, and this is important to do since the English transcription will not be used in
future lessons. The written, versus the printed script, will also have to be learned and
practiced.
Before beginning the sound drills it is important to understand that stress is predictable
in Tajik, generally falling on the last syllable of the word. There are a few exceptions to this
rule, of course, but this basic principle should be followed in pronouncing new Tajik words
below. Note, for example how the stress shifts when additional suffixes are added to the
following word:
Aa /a/ This vowel sound is similar to the vowel sound in such words as father and
cot. As mentioned earlier, the vowel /a/ covers a wide range of sounds depending on
the phonological environment, moving relatively freely between the front and central
positions of the mouth. It is a short vowel sound in words where it is a word initial
syllable or when it is between two consonants in a polysyllabic word, particularly
between voiceless consonants. Contrast the /a/ in the monosyllabic word /sad/ one
hundred with the same vowel in the word /safed/ white.
Drill:
abr, agar, azob palang, sad, dasht dasta, barra, sada
Drill:
boron, barg, buz bobo, zebo, soyabon ob, shab, khub
/v/ This consonant is similar to the English /v/ sound, though it looks like the
English B symbol.
Drill:
vatan, vafo, voris avval, gavhar davo gov, rav, obdav
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Drill:
garm, gov, gado nargis, agar, angur marg, rang, sag
/d/ This consonant is voiced dental stop. (See chart of Tajik consonants and notes
for an explanation of these terms). It is close, but not quite like the American English
/d/ sound. The American /d/ is made by touching the tip of the tongue against the
upper gums directly behind the teeth, while the Tajik / / is more forward, the tip of
the tongue touching the upper front teeth.
Drill:
dast, dars, dil padar, modar, sado dard, dod, shod
This letter has two functions in Tajik, it symbolizes the vowel /e/ and the consonant-
vowel /ye/.
/e/ This vowel is similar to the vowel in the English word bed. This sound occurs
only after a consonant in the medial and final positions.
Drill: -
- mehrubon, sher, bel se, vase, kase
Drill:
yem, yelim, yevropa oyed, kardayem, megyem sadoye, kalimaye, dunyoye
/yo/ This sound is produced by adding the /y/ consonant glide to the vowel /o/.
(See the description of the /o/ vowel below).
Drill:
yor, yoqut, yozdah giryon, giyoh, diyor daryo, biyo, dunyo
/zh/ This consonant is the same sound that found in such English words as
pleasure, beige and vision.
Drill:
zhanr, zhurnal, zhyuri hazhdah, vizhdon bozh, dizh
Drill:
zard, zamin, zan mazor, vazir, nazar daroz, navoz, parvoz
/i/ This vowel is similar to the vowel sound found in the English words it and bit.
This sound occurs in the initial and medial positions, but is only used in the words
final position to designate a grammatical case that indicates possession. Like the
vowel /a/ this vowel is noticeably shortened in unstressed open syllables. Contrast the
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INTRODUCTION
vowel length in the monosyllabic word /did/ he saw with the word /digr/ other,
where the stress falls on the second syllable.
Drill:
inson, ilhom, in kitob, bino, dina kitobi nav
Drill:
yog, yod, yigit maydon, bayraq, shayton choy, nay, by
Drill:
karam, kosa, kirm maktab, pokiza, takror nok, pok, tark
/l/ This consonant is similar to the English /l/ in such word is little, fly and meal.
Drill:
lab, lola, libos nola, kalon, muallim sol, bel, bol
Drill:
modar, mard, mo amma, amak, umed orom, bom, dam
/n/ This nasal sound is not quite the same as the English /n/ sound, but close. It is
made by pressing the tip of the tongue against the upper front teeth, like the Tajik /d/
sound, while the velum is open, allowing the air to be released through the nose rather
than the mouth. Its typed symbol looks like a capital H in English.
Drill:
nihol, non, nor tarona, khandon, anor vazn, dandon, boron
Oo /o/ This vowel sound is somewhere between the /aw/ sound found in the English
words law and caw (In phonetics it is symbolized as /o/) and the /o/ vowel sound
found in such English words as old and boat. Unlike the English /o/, however, it is
lower, shorter and purer, i.e., no glide sound should follow it. To produce this sound
round your lips as if to make the /o/ vowel, while making the /aw/ sound.
Drill:
odam, osh, odob bom, bodom, kor shumo, bo, davo
/p/ This consonant sound is somewhat like the English /p/ sound, but only lightly
aspirated. It is somewhere between the English /p/ and the Spanish /p/, which is
unaspirated.
Drill:
po, pisar, palang krpa, teppa, oshpaz chap, asp, gap
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/r/ This consonant is made by holding the tip of the tongue near the gums, but in
a relaxed state. To produce a trill the tip of the tongue should flap repeatedly while air
passes over it. It is different than the English /r/ sound, and it can be confusing as
well, since it looks like the symbol used for the English P. If you have trouble
producing this sound, trying saying the phrase batter up as quickly as possible.
Drill:
rasm, rez, rais arra, parda, zard chor, kor, pur
/s/ This consonant is similar to the English sound /s/, though note that the C
symbol in English is more often a /k/ sound.
Drill:
sar, sado, surkh dast, bisyor, raso kas, dars, shakhs
/t/ This consonant is a voiceless dental stop. (See chart of Tajik consonants and
notes for an explanation of these terms.) It is close, but not quite like the American
English /t/ sound. The American /t/ is made by touching the tip of the tongue against
the upper gums directly behind the teeth, while the Tajik / / is more forward, the tip
of the tongue touching the upper front teeth.
Drill:
tok, tund, tez attor, kitob, maktab past, rost, shart
/u/ This vowel is similar to the vowel sound found in English words boot and
true, though somewhat shorter in length, without any glide. Like the vowels /a/ and
/i/, the length of this vowel depends on its phonetic environment. In stressed positions
and unstressed closed positions it is long, but in unstressed open positions it is
noticeably shortened. Contrast, for example, the /u/ vowel sound in the monosyllabic
word /dud/ smoke with the word /junn/ madness, where the stress falls on the
second syllable.
Drill:
ustod, umr, umed dud, buz, murod oru, orzu, du
Drill:
fil, farsh, fors shifo, haft, daftar sof, kaf, alif
/kh/ This is a voiceless consonant made by exhaling while putting the back part of
the tongue against the back part of the mouth towards the velum. For those who speak
or who have studied German, it is somewhat like the German /ch/ sound. If you are
trying to make this sound for the first time it may be helpful to begin by trying to clear
the throat.
Drill:
khirs, khob, khas bakht, dukhtar, shakhs nakh, talkh, malakh
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/s/ In Tajik this consonant is the same as the English /s/ sound. It is only found in
Russian loan words. (In Russian this a /ts/ sound found in such words as hats and
cats, but only Tajiks who have been educated in Russian pronounce it as such.)
Drill:
sirk, sex, sement konsert, leksiya, konstitusiya -
/ch/ This consonant is similar to the /ch/ sound found in words like church and
chair.
Drill:
chor, chashm, chil bacha, duchor, dilchasp murch, luch, soch
/sh/ This consonant is the same sound that is found in such English words as ship,
assure and ash.
Drill:
shab, sharob, shod dasht, chosht, dushvor shash, mosh, mush
/sh/ In Tajik this consonant is pronounced as the /sh/ sound, though in Russian it is
pronounced as /shch/. It is only found in a few Russian loan words in the initial and
final positions.
Drill:
shi, shuka, shyotka - borsh, lesh
// This is a glottal stop in Tajik, i.e., the interruption of the breath stream during
speech by closure of the glottic. Educated Tajiks pronounce the sound in careful
speech, though many Tajiks do not pronounce it at all during rapid speech, especially
at the end of a word. It is only found in the medial or final positions on a word. Word
medially, after a consonant and before a vowel, it is not pronounced, but serves to
indicate a syllable division, e. g., castle, pronounced /qala/; and after a vowel
and before a consonant it lengthens the preceding vowel, e.g., meaning,
pronounced /mano/. (In Russian orthography this sign has no sound value, except
indicate that the vowel which follows it is preceded by a /y/ glide.)
Drill: -
bad, sher, mano man, vase, tama
/i/ In Tajik this vowel is pronounced as the /i/ vowel. It is only found in Russian
loan words in the medial position. (In Russian this is a high-back unrounded vowel
/i/.)
Drill:
vistafka, vozhatiy, lizha
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anymore. (In Russian its function is to indicate that the preceding consonant is soft
and the vowel that follows it has a y-glide.)
Drill: -
bis yor, gir ya, ta sir iyun , royal , tunnel
/e/ This is the vowel sound like the vowel found in the English word bed. This
letter normally only occurs in the initial position, but it also occurs intermedially with
derivatives and compound words. It is the same sound as the Tajik letter /e/. (See the
above explanation.)
Drill:
elak, ezor, elon bo-ehtirom, bo-etibor, simelak
/yu/ This sound is produced by adding the /y/ consonant to the vowel /u/. This
sound does not occur at the end of the word, except as the shortened form of the
conjunction and.
Drill:
yurt, yuz, yurmon humoyun, seyum duyu nim, boboyu bibi
/ya/ This sound is produced by adding the /y/ consonant glide to the vowel /a/.
Drill:
yazdon, yak, yakhdon oyat, siyah, boyad soya, girya, hadya
/gh/ This is a voiced consonant made by exhaling while putting the back part of the
tongue against the back part of the mouth, towards the velum. Though this sound is
not found in English, it is like the sound that is made when gargling with water. For
those who have studied or who speak French it is like the French /R/.
Drill:
ghoz, gham, ghulom naghz, oghoz, qoghoz murgh, bogh, jegh
Drill: - -
barfi, dasti, mohi
/q/ This consonant does not occur in English. The sound is produced by pressing
the back part of the tongue against the uvula, the soft flesh that hangs down in the
very back of the throat. It may be helpful to begin by trying to produce the /k/ sound
as far back in the throat as possible.
Drill:
qalam, qozi, qu aqrab, maqol, raqs bayraq, barq, gharq
who have studied or speak German it is somewhat similar, but lower, to the German
//.
Drill:
, hda, zbek rz, dst, kh gul, justuj, nak
/h/ This is similar to the English sound found in the words his, ahead and
thorough. Some speakers of Tajik do not pronounce this sound in the final position.
Drill:
haft, holo, hushyor bahor, mohi, shhrat dah, moh, nh
/j/ This consonant is similar to the /j/ sound found in such English word as jungle
and jin.
Drill:
joma, jorb, jalol tojik, kujo, majnun kaj, koj, panj
Notes:
1. There are four letters ( ), called in Tajik, that have been derived
from the Russian alphabet. They are described as the softening vowels of Russian, but
in Tajik, these letters consists of the consonant sound /y/ followed by one of four vowels.
Please note the four letters and their corresponding sounds below:
/e/ ye as in yes.
/ / yo as in york.
/ / yu as in yule.
/ / ya as in yard.
2. Only six Tajik symbols and sounds correspond with the English symbols and sounds, i.e.,
A, E, K, M, O, T, please note, however, that the Tajik symbols B, H, P, C, Y, X are
identical to English symbols, but their corresponding sounds are different.
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INTRODUCTION
ka k
el l
em m
en n
o o
pe p
er r
es s
te t
u u
ef g
kha kh
tse s
che ch
sha sh
shcha sh
i I
e e
yu yu
ya ya
ghe gh
i i
qe q
he h
je j
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A Basic Course in Tajik Randall Olson
LESSON ONE
LESSON ONE
1. A Dialog One:Introductions
Notes:
1. Listen to your language helper as he/she repeats the dialog, then try to repeat the pattern
sentence or phrase after him at normal speed. It will also be helpful to tape the dialog.
2. In the dialogs, the letter A will refer to the questions or statements that you the language
learner initiates, in this case Tim. and the letter B will indicate the responses or statements of
the native speaker, who is called Parviz in this dialog. Focus on learning the sentences for
A. Practice the sentences in the dialog with your teacher first and than with at least five other
people today.
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LESSON ONE
3. The vocabulary for the text immediately follows the dialog, but aim to understand the
meaning of the sentence rather than individual words.
5. The phrase in (4.b.) With pleasure. or literally, With soul and heart., is an
example of the flowery language that is used in Tajik. Such type of speech may strike
westerners as being intellectually servile or insincere flattery, but it is considered to be polite
speech in Tajik.
first new
from name
upon you your name
America I came
American peace, greeting
hello, peace healthy, safety
he/she/it is Be healthy!
to, in, with thanks
very, much, many Tajik, the language
with and (used as a suffix)
with pleasure good-bye, blessings
you be good, well
lesson, class happy, nice
heart, soul welcome!
tongue, language why not?
here what
work, do what is
where introduction, to become
vocabulary, dictionary acquainted with
I, my someone
practise you, your
youll excuse me body, soul, dear
you do, will do
I learn, will learn
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LESSON ONE
Notes:
1. The Tajik literary pronouns he/she/it and they are rarely used in spoken Tajik.
The pronoun also differs from the pronoun he/she/it since it refers to human beings.
The more commonly used pronoun may refer to animate as well as inanimate objects.
2. The second person singular pronoun you is most commonly used to refer to children and
young people, or younger familiar members.
4. Similarly, the pronoun, we, may also be used instead of I in appropriate contexts
to communicate an attitude of humility on a part of the speaker. Also to avoid appearing
proud the Tajik pronoun I is often omitted since it is indicated by the verb ending as
well.
5. The pronouns we and you are used in very polite talk or formal speeches.
Subject Noun
I am American.
You are Tajik.
She/he/ is German.
We are Uzbek.
You are Iranian.
They are Russians.
Notes:
1. The Tajik pronoun can be used with a noun or an adjective to from a complete sentence in
spoken Tajik. In the case the verb to be, which will be introduced in 1-E-H, is omitted
(implied). Generally speaking, the short form is not written, except in dialog form. When it is
written it contains a hyphen following the pronoun to indicate the verb to be has been
omitted. Literally speaking, the sentence: is translated: I American.
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LESSON ONE
2. In Tajik the subject of the sentence comes first followed by the complement, the verb always
comes at the end of the sentence. Throughout the course we will be building structure chains,
for example: [S] C V Subject-Complement-Verb. (In the examples above and below
remember the verb is implied.) The complement in sentences can be nouns, modifiers or may
also be a phrase.
Subject Adjective
I am hungry.
You are thirsty.
She/he is attractive.
We are tired.
You are well.
They are sick.
SINGULAR PLURAL
st
1 person I am we are
2nd person you are you are
3rd person he/she/it is they are
Notes:
1. The above dependent forms are shortened forms of the present tense verb to be (see 2-C).
They are dependent in that they must be attached to either nouns or adjectives as suffixes.
They can, however, be used in a sentence without personal pronouns since each of the
different suffixes indicate both number or person. These forms are never stressed. Note the
following examples:
2. The third person singular form he/she/it is is shortened to when the preceding noun
or adjective ends in a vowel, otherwise, it stands alone. For example, becomes
He/she/it is beautiful. and becomes He/she is a
student.
3. The / / vowel in the dependent suffixes I am and - they are usually changes to the
/ / sound when it follows a noun or adjective ending in the vowels For example:
becomes Im a student. and + becomes
Theyre beautiful.
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A Basic Course in Tajik Randall Olson
LESSON ONE
Notes:
1. Although the dependent forms of the to be suffixes are separated by suffix markers in the
above boxes, in written Tajik it is joined to the noun or adjective, e.g., I
am a worker.
2. As mentioned ear lier, besides referring he and she the third person pronoun is also
used to refer to an object it. (The demonstrative pronouns, this and that, will be introduced
in Lesson Two.)
3. The word teacher has a feminine form in Tajik, i.e., Most nouns in
Tajik are genderless, but there are a small number of nouns that have both a feminine and
masculine form, which is the result of the influence of Arabic on Tajik.
Exercise 1. Use the attached personal suffixes and the dependent forms of the present tense
to be verb in each of the following sentences:
For example:
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LESSON ONE
Exercise 2. Use the correct subject pronoun in each of the following sentences:
For example:
1. H Tajik Proverbs (
Tajiks consider proverbs and poetry a very important part of their culture. They often use
quotations to enhance their speech. If you can quote a proverb or poetry at the proper occasion
you will receive a very positive reaction from your audience.
To be memorized:
Application: If a child grows up to be a good child, he will be like a cool garden in the summer
filled with fruit bearing trees, which is the concept of a garden to the Tajik-Persian mind. If a
child turns out to be bad he will always cause pain and embarrassment to the heart of his father.
Read the following text and translate it into English. Then write a simple text of your own.
PRONOUNS
he/she/it they
I you (singular)
we you (plural)
we (polite) you (polite plural)
we (polite) you (polite plural)
they he/she
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LESSON ONE
NOUN
American male teacher
garden, orchard, park female teacher
student German (the people)
brand, scar father
friend Russian (the people)
worker child
proverb Tajik (the people)
text Iranian
exercise, practise Uzbek (the people)
guest
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LESSON TWO
LESSON TWO
2.b. I am a Tajik.
And what about you?
3.a. I am an American.
This is my first time in Dushanbe.
I dont understand Tajik well
I want to learn more Tajik.
Notes:
1. Please note the pronunciation of the word Tajik, found in (2.b.) is perhaps
better transliterated as /tojik/ or /tawjik/ in English, though it is more commonly
written as /tajik/. Also nationalities are not capitalized in Tajik, though the names of
countries are capitalized.
2. The is most often used in official speaking and literary Tajik, although some
dialects use it.
better nationality
I (must) learn I am going
again not, dont (a prefix)
see again I dont know
time stay healthy
Dushanbe the (suffix)
second Tajikistan
I want until
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LESSON TWO
SINGULAR PLURAL
ST
1 person (I am) (we are)
2nd person (you are) (you are)
3rd person / (he/she/it is) (they are)
Notes:
1. The present tense independent forms of the to be verb are not normally used in
daily conversation, but they still are used in literary Tajik and in formal speech. (See
1.E. for the dependent forms of the verb to be.)
2. In Tajik grammar, the above forms are derived from the verb , a special form of
the verb to be, which is only used in the present tense. In modern day Tajik this verb
form has no infinitive, but historically speaking it has been derived from the verb
existence. In spoken Tajik these forms commonly are used to refer to the
existence of something or someone. For example, There is a book.
(lit., A book exists.)
3. the third person singular he/she form of is no longer used in modern Tajik as a
helping verb, instead the attached personal suffix is used. When referring to the
existence of something, however, is still used.
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LESSON TWO
Is she beautiful?
Yes, she is very beautiful.
Notes:
1. The reply or yes is normally used in everyday speech, but one may also hear
the more formal when speaking to those formally educated in the Tajik
language. In literary Tajik, the positive reply is also used.
2. Unlike English, the word order remains the same for questions, questions are marked
by a raising intonation pattern.
SINGULAR PLURAL
1ST person (I am not) (we are not)
2nd person (you are not) (you are not)
3rd person (he/she/it is not) (they are not)
Notes:
1. The verb to be has a separate set of independent negative verb forms for the first,
second and the third person singular and plural to be verb. Unlike the positive to
be verb forms the negative verb forms do not have a set of dependent verb forms.
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A Basic Course in Tajik Randall Olson
LESSON TWO
Notes:
1. The negatives forms of the verb to be may be used with both adjectives and nouns.
2. The prefix without, less is used as a negative prefix maker for nouns and
adjectives. The word ugly and jobless are made up of two
morphemes, though no morpheme breaks are shown in Tajik. The adjective
means beautiful and the noun means work or job.
Is he/she a doctor?
No, he/she is not a doctor.
Is she/he sick?
No, she/he is not sick.
Notes:
1. The negative adverb no is used to both answer a yes-no question and to replace
any of the above forms in shortened replies.
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A Basic Course in Tajik Randall Olson
LESSON TWO
Exercise 1. Translate the following English sentences into Tajik. You may use either
the dependent or independent forms of the to be verb.
2. Are you a doctor? 7. they are students. 12. They are jobless.
3. She is not beautiful. 8. She is not a teacher. 13. Are you German?
Exercise 3. The following are model sentences taken from the dialog. In answer to the
question What is your nationality? substitute the
correct word in the place of the underlined word in the answer:
I am an American.
Exercise 5. Substitute the words written below for the underlined word in the
statement: I want to learn more
Tajik. For example, Uzbek.
I want to learn more Uzbek.
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LESSON TWO
2. J Tajik Proverbs
To be memorized:
Application: Donkeys are used to carry heavy loads of dirt or goods from place
to place in the villages of Tajikistan. If the donkeys saddle bags are crooked they
will most likely spill over on the way. This proverb suggests that it is important to
do things right from the start otherwise one will not achieve his or her desired goal.
Read the following text and translate it into English. Then write a simple text of
your own.
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LESSON TWO
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LESSON THREE
LESSON THREE
Notes:
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A Basic Course in Tajik Randall Olson
LESSON THREE
Notes:
1. The demonstrative pronouns, this, that, these, those, are expressed by the words
and . They usually are used in response to a question like,
What is this? or in Tajik The pronouns precede the nouns they
refer to, and they may be used to refer both things or people.
2. The four demonstrative pronouns reflect the proximity of the object to the
speaker. The demonstrative pronouns this and these refer to
something near the speaker, while the demonstrative pronouns that and
those mark objects more distant from the speaker.
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LESSON THREE
What is it?
It is a table.
It is a pen.
It is a picture.
It is a door.
It is a wall.
It is a window.
It is a light/lamp.
It is a chair.
It is a paper.
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LESSON THREE
Notes:
1. Demonstratives can also be used as adjectives, that is, to modify the noun they
precede. The difference between a demonstrative pronoun and a demonstrative
adjective is perhaps best explained by the following two examples:
3. When plural inanimate nouns are the subject of a sentence he verb stays in the
third person singular form, in this case it is it is. (Note the first two
examples in the above box.) When plural animate nouns are the subject of a
sentence the verb agrees in number/
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LESSON THREE
4. Adjectives keep their singular forms even when the nouns they modify are change
to their plural forms
Notes:
1. To form the comparative degree, one adds the suffix to the
adjective and to form the superlative degree, one adds the suffix
to the adjective.
There are other ways to express the comparative degree, but these forms will be
covered in later lessons.
Exercise 1. Change the following singular nouns into their plural forms. For
example: American becomes or
Americans.
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LESSON THREE
Exercise 2. In the sentences below change the following singular nouns to their
plural forms. For example: This teacher is
young.
2. This picture is beautiful. 6. That man is wise. 10. That light is big.
3. Those chairs are small. 7. These boys are sick. 11. These tables are new.
4. That woman is happy. 8. Those girls are bored. 12. That doctor is old.
3. H Tajik Proverbs (
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A Basic Course in Tajik Randall Olson
LESSON THREE
NOUNS
boy, child table
grandmother plum
grandfather mother, mama (see )
lady deer, antelope
door bird
lesson pen
wall clock, watch, oclock
heart picture, photo, illustration
girl, daughter window
book house, room
work, job, business light, lamp
chair pencil, pen
street, alleyway
ADJECTIVES &ADVERBS
difficult, hard how much, how many
big, large what
easy mischievous, naughty
small, little
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LESSON FOUR
LESSON FOUR
Notes:
1. The preposition in, at, by is optional when used with the prepositions
over, on; in; under; near; beside and
opposite.
2. The question word where is a very colloquial way to asking where something
is located. Not all dialects use it.
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A Basic Course in Tajik Randall Olson
LESSON FOUR
3. One of the challenges in learning Tajik is knowing what words are Russian-loan
words. The word is Russian and is used often in daily speech referring to
store. The symbol r from this point on will refer to any Russian-loan words.
NOUN ADJECTIVE
This is a good book.
She is a beautiful girl.
That is a green tree.
That is a big city.
He is a well-read teacher.
He is a brave man.
He is a smart boy.
* This is green tea. (*See note 7.)
She is a polite girl.
This is warm bread.
Notes:
1. Nouns and adjectives are linked by a suffix attached to the noun, which is called the
in Tajik. Unlike English the adjective follows the noun it modifies in Tajik. It
is good book and not . We will call these -
chains.
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LESSON FOUR
3. The can also link nouns to nouns, and adjectives to adjectives, as well as a
limited number of other syntactical parts. Examples of these will be given in future
lessons.
4. The plural forms of nouns may also be used with the in which case, the
follows the plural form of the noun. For example,
5. Like English, the adjective only has one form for both the singular and the plural and
all genders, for example, green trees is correct, but not
greens trees.
6. In Lesson Three (3.E) demonstrative adjectives were used together with nouns and
adjectives. The nouns and adjectives were not linked by the because a
demonstrative adjective was used to modify the head noun and the adjective was a
part of the predicate. By contrast, in the above box the demonstrative pronouns that
are used constitute the subject of the sentence.
SUBJECT PREDICATE
SUBJECT PREDICATE
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LESSON FOUR
7. The word is a classical Tajik word for the color blue, but in the phrase it
means green tea. Also, note that when a word ending with the semi-vowel / / such as
is connecting with the the / / is dropped.
Notes:
1. The preposition in, at, within, inside may be used by itself, but it is more
commonly used as a compound preposition with adverbs of place. Note the following
examples:
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A Basic Course in Tajik Randall Olson
LESSON FOUR
7. - opposite
8. - under, beneath(syn., )
Notes:
1. The word bed, platform in the above box refers to a raised platform used outdoors
during the summers for eating and drinking.
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LESSON FOUR
Notes:
Note that the word house, room is used as the second part of a compound noun in
several of the above sentences to place of. For example, the word sick is used with
to mean place of the sick or simply hospital.
Exercise 2. Substitute the following pair of words below for the underlined word in the
sentence: Karim is in the hospital. For example:
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LESSON FOUR
4. H Tajik Proverbs
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LESSON FOUR
NOUNS
building fruit
bazaar, market place hotel, guest house/room
roof bread, round flat bread
bank rice dish, pilaf
cat kitchen
matches dining room, kitchen, cafeteria
tree tea cup
fruit tree restaurant
gate face
notebook dog
college, university barber shop, beauty salon
key food
hospital groceries
bed, platform used for sitting green tea
and eating.
library tea
where teapot
who teahouse
school city, town
center, capital truth
the center of the city toilet
gorcery store place, seat
ADJECTIVES
intelligent, clever, wise brave, fearless
polite, refined, civil green, fresh
warm, hot bitter
blue, sky blue, green
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LESSON FOUR
PREPOSITIONS
on top of, on, over beside, next to
in, at, by, within, inside near
in, inside in back, behind
in, inside opposite, in front of
below, under top of, face of
by the side of, near under, beneath, bottom
behind behind
CARDINAL NUMBERS
one eleven
two twelve
three thirteen
four fourteen
five fifteen
six sixteen
seven seventeen
eight eighteen
nine nineteen
ten twenty
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LESSON FIVE
LESSON FIVE
Notes:
1. When the word year, and the time suffix a, are combined with the
appropriate cardinal number, it is used to express that idea of ______years old. For
example, two years old is
2. The possessive adjectives: my; our; your; his/ hers/ its;
their and our are covered in detail in section (5.C).
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LESSON FIVE
SINGULAR PLURAL
1st Person my our
2nd Person your your
3rd Person his/hers/its their
Notes:
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LESSON FIVE
Plural forms: These forms may also be used with the plural forms of nouns. When the
plural suffix / / is used with the non-emphatic forms the vowel / / changes to letter / /.
If the any of the other suffixes, , are used the vowel remains the
same. Note the following examples:
My books My books
My children My children
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LESSON FIVE
Notes:
1. Another way of asking whether or not something belongs to someone is with the
question; Whose book is this?, the answer to which is
This book is mine.
SINGULAR PLURAL
1st Person I we
2nd Person you you
3rd Person he/she/it they
Notes:
1. The above suffixes, called subject/conjugation markers, function as subject pronouns
since both number and person are indicated by each of the different suffixes. The
suffixes are attached to the verb stems of all verbs in the present tense.
2. Since the attached subject markers indicate the subject of the sentence, the subject
pronouns are usually omitted in daily conversation.
SINGULAR PLURAL
st
1 Person (I have) (we have)
2nd Person (you have) (you have)
3rd Person (he/she/it has) (they have)
Notes:
2. In the above paradigm, morpheme boundaries, marked by a hyphen, have been shown
to demonstrate how present tense verb stems are combined with the attached subject
markers. Normally, however, they are written, as one word, e.g., I have.
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LESSON FIVE
Notes:
1. The normal sentence pattern in Tajik is subject-compliment-verb (SCV). As
mentioned earlier, the subject pronouns are optional since the subject is indicated by
the attached suffix markers on the verb.
3. Unlike English, Tajiks employ more specific terms for family members, they
differentiate between a younger and an older brother, a younger and an older sister
and paternal and maternal aunts and uncles.
4. The words older brother and older sister are also used as polite terms of
respect when addressing someone, even when that persons name is known. It is
somewhat comparable to the words Sir or Madame in English. Similarly the words
mother, father, uncle, aunt are also used as terms of
respect.
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LESSON FIVE
Notes:
1. In Tajik and are used with cardinal numbers and
the question word how many as classifiers. They follow the number, but
precede the noun qualified by the number, and they are not usually translated into
English, e.g., two books. In spoken Tajik they are not always used,
especially if the reference is clear.
2. The classifiers (also written as ) and pieces, items are used somewhat
interchangeably, referring to inanimate objects. One difference is that the classifier
is a suffix while the classifier is an independent morpheme.
4. The adverb is used to signal need. It is used with the verb to be, but in
spoken Tajik the verb is more often implied and therefore not used.
5. The above sentences are passive, but it is still possible to add an indirect subject to
the sentence to make it more specific, for example:
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LESSON FIVE
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LESSON FIVE
Exercise 2. Answer the following questions with the numbers given to the right of the
sentence For example:
Exercise 3. Put the following pairs of sentences together to make one sentence each.
For example:
Exercise 4. Substitute the words below for the underlined word in the following
sentence, than answer the question using an appropriate adjective. For
example: What kind of book is it?
It is a good book.
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LESSON FIVE
Read the following text and translate it into English. Then write a simple text of
you own.
individuals)
and)
(he
knows),
5. M Tajik Proverbs
NOUNS
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LESSON FIVE
and old
much, a lot, many how much, how many
today
my my
our our
your your
your your
his/hers/its his/hers/its
their their
to have
-present stem
I (suffix for verbs)
you (suffix for verbs)
he/she/it (suffix for verbs)
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LESSON SIX
LESSON SIX
Notes:
1. and are interchangeable; is closer to evening and to
evening time.
2. In written Tajik the preposition to precedes the question word where, but
in spoken Tajik the preposition commonly follows the noun. In some Tajik dialects
the first two sentences would read as follows:
3. From this point on past tense verbs being introduced will be written in the infinitive
form for the vocabulary sections.
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LESSON SIX
Notes:
1. An intransitive verb is a verb that does not take a direct object to complete its
meaning. Verbs of motion, e.g., to come and to go, are examples of intransitive verbs.
2. The infinitive form of verbs is made from the past tense root (which ends in either
or ), plus the ending .
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LESSON SIX
2. The Formation of the Past Tense for the 1st, 2nd & 3rd Person
I left.
You left.
He/she left.
We left.
You left.
They left.
Notes:
1. Chart two and three show each separate morpheme as they are combined to form the
past tense, though in written Tajik there is no morpheme break.
2. to say, to speak
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LESSON SIX
Notes:
For inanimate plural objects the attached subject marker may either be in the plural or
in the singular. So for the last example, the sentence could also read,
.
4. to be
5. to understand
Now I understood.
Yes, we understood what you said.
6. to come in
Notes:
7. to come
8. to go
We went to an invitation.
Where did you go?
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LESSON SIX
Notes:
10. to sit
Notes:
1. The words and with, by are synonymous, though the latter is used
more in daily speech.
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LESSON SIX
Notes:
1. The word with is most often used as a post position in spoken Tajik, though it
may also be used as a preposition. It has two accepted written forms
2. The word and with, by are all synonymous, but the ambi-
position is the most commonly used in spoken Tajik.
3. In spoken Tajik it is also possible use the attached personal pronouns with the ambi-
position . Note the following examples:
Notes:
1. The numbers two hundred to nine hundred are written as one word.
2. To make a number such as 232, one must use the conjunction . For
example, .
6. H Telling Time
Asking and telling time in Tajik is very easy. In spoken Tajik the time is given in a
simplified form much like we would do in English.
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LESSON SIX
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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LESSON SIX
Read the following text and translate it into English. Then write a text of your own.
6. K Tajik Proverbs
NOUN
early morning
which for home, domestic
short how much
half none, not, nothing
dawn, morning now
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LESSON SIX
INTRANSITIVE VERBS
to go out, to leave to go
past stem past stem
to pass by, to cross to understand
past stem past stem
to say, to tell to get up, to stand up
past stem past stem
to come in to get up from sleep
past stem past stem
to be to sit, to sit down
past stem past stem
to come to sit
past stem past stem
CARDINAL NUMBERS
hundred thousand
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LESSON SEVEN
LESSON SEVEN
Notes:
1. In the above dialog there are two words that have as a suffix an indefinite article
marker / /, i.e., one of (4.a.) and , meaning something (6.b.) More
examples of this will be given later in the lesson.
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LESSON SEVEN
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LESSON SEVEN
1. Transitive verbs are that require an object to make a complete meaningful sentence.
For example, in English we say: I read a book., I ate lunch., I saw him. Without the
object the sentence would not be as meaningful. It is often explained that the object
receives the action of the verb.
I ate.
You ate.
He/she/it ate.
We ate.
You ate.
They ate.
Notes:
1. The verb may mean either to eat or to drink depending on the context, in
general it means to consume something. Note that there is a special word for to
drink, i.e.,
1. to take, to carry
Notes:
1. Review: Transitive verbs are verbs that require an object to complete the meaning of
the sentence.
2. In Tajik the direct object marker the is suffixed to the object of the sentence
when the object is definite. However if the object has not already been mentioned or
is indefinite, the object marker is not used. Contrast the following examples:
3. Usually in spoken Tajik, when a word ends in a consonant sound the suffix is
pronounced as . For example, becomes . When a word ends in
vowel, such as it does in the word house the object marker is either
pronounced as in the southern dialect, e.g., , or it is pronounced as the
diphthong sound in the northern dialect, e.g., .
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4. The concept of direct objects that receive the action of the verb is difficult for some.
It may be helpful to remember that when sentences with and are
before the object, is not used, since the objects are indefinite and the verbs
intransitive. Note the examples:
I came home.
I came from home.
I am at home.
I went as far as home.
5. The second example in note 2. uses the indefinite article /e/. For more information
on its usage see section 7.E.
2. to take
Notes:
1. Note the question word when and its relative position in the sentence, i.e., just
before the verb.
3. to hit
4. to see
5. to give
6. to know
7. to write
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8. to drink
9. to bring
10. to ask
11. to cook
13. to do
I did my work.
You did a lot of work.
14. to send
15. to sell
16. to buy
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19. to know/recognize
20. to wash
Notes:
1. Our sentence structure chain adds a new element: the direct object marker. The chain
now looks like this: [S] + C + + V. Remember that because Tajik verbs always
have endings which designate the person/subject, the subject at the beginning of a
sentence is often implied.
a (certain) girl
a (certain) beautiful girl
a (certain) beautiful village girl
the beautiful village girl
2. It is important to understand that even though the article /e/ is called an indefinite
marker it is used in Tajik to show distinction or emphasis, or to draw attention to one
out of many.
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I saw a garden.
I saw a (certain) garden. (implies it was unusual)
I saw the garden.
I saw that one garden.
I bought a black purse.
I bought (just) a black purse.
I bought the black purse.
3. Notice how the article /e/ can be used in place of other determiners, similar to a, one
and some.
Did you buy something? (lit., a thing)
Did you buy some thing? (lit., some thing)
They left one night. (lit., some night)
They left one night.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
Exercise 2. Translate the following English sentences into Tajik.
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Use the chart below to create questions from the top line, and then answer them
from the information given. For example:
Possible answer: (Feel free to add to the chart
your own options.)
7. H Tajik Proverbs
Application: It is our responsibility to start our work, once we have begun to act, God
will then bless our efforts.
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LESSON EIGHT
Notes:
1. In this chapter we introduce compound verbs. In Tajik the most common verbs used
to produce a compound verb are: to do, to become and to
be.
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Notes:
1. Compound verbs are common in Tajik, and typically consists of a noun, an adjective
or an adverb which is used together with the main verb of the sentence. Whether it is
a noun, adjective or adverb it always immediately precedes the verb it modifies.
Many common actions that are communicated by a single verb in English, consist of two
words in Tajik. Thus the English word to clean is made up of the adjective toza clean,
fresh and the verb to do. Although the verb is the most common
transitive verb used to form compound verbs in Tajik, there are many other combinations,
a few are listed below.
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8. E Interrogative Pronouns-Review
You have already studied the four basic interrogative pronouns in Tajik: who,
what, and how much, and which. Listed below is a review of each, as
well as several compound forms.
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Which teacher?
Which one did you take?
8. F Indefinite Pronouns-Review
Listed below are some of the more common indefinite pronouns, including those in
combination with the modifiers each/every, all, some,
none/any and some:
Notes:
1. The word is used to measure amounts for example: distance, length, weight
and volume.
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8. G Tajik Saying
Application: In some Tajik families you will notice that before serving tea they pour
some into a cup and then add it back to the teapot three times. They say it brings out the
flavor of the tea. This saying is often reduced to three words: Other
dialects have their own expression for this custom.
Exercise 2. More practice with sentence structure using questions and forming
answers. Look at the sentence below and see how the 5 basic questions can be
asked and answered. Then with your teacher develop 5 more sentences and
write out the questions and answers for each.
Sentence:
Question: Answers:
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8. I Reading
See supplements:
8. J Vocabulary
NOUNS
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VERBS
to take
to rest to fast
to learn to take a picture
to take a test to borrow money
to give
to teach to show, demonstrate
to help, to assist to pay
to be useful, to be helpful to answer, to dismiss
to have
to trust, to have confidence in to believe in, have faith in
to like, to love to have information about
to know [something (from to wish, to desire
learning or doing it)], to
remember
to hit, strike
to shout, to yell to water
to speak to call, to cry out
to phone, to ring
to do
to play to talk, to converse
to listen to prepare
to live to clean
to practice, to exercise to forget
to record (tape), to key in
(computers)
to pull
to be in pain, to go to a lot to draw
of trouble
to stretch out to smoke
to undress
to become
to happen to be ready
to become tired to be finished
to become low
to pour
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LESSON NINE
9. A Dialog Nine
1.a. Marlene: Sister, what do Tajik women usually do?
Notes:
1. The word means older sister, but is often used for respect when addressing a
woman a little older than yourself, an alternative would be to call her ,
girlfriend. In some families it is not polite to use first names and so this custom of
using family titles is common. If the woman is your mothers age you would address
her as auntie. If you are a married woman and a Tajik man knows your
husband, he may call you sister-in-law.
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Transitive:
to take, to carry I take.
to take I take.
to hit, strike I hit.
to see I see.
to give I give.
to know I know.
to write I write.
to drink I drink.
to bring I bring.
to ask I ask.
to cook I cook.
to wear, to put on I put on.
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to do I do.
to send I send.
to sell I sell.
to buy I buy.
to read, to study I read.
to eat I eat.
to know someone I know.
to wash I wash.
1. The present stem is different from the past stem, and so must be learned separately.
2. Tajik present-future tense verbs can be used in three ways. For example, the sentence:
can mean either: What do you do?, What are you doing? or
What will you do?, depending on the context of the conversation. More on this later
in the chapter.
3. The present continuous tense in Tajik is made with the verb: . On its own it
means to stand, but in combination with other verbs it implies a present ongoing
action. For example: means: What are you doing (just
now)? This verb form will be introduced later in the book.
2. The Formation of the Present-Future Tense for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Person
Notes:
1. Chart two and three show each separate morpheme as they are combined to form the
Present-Future tense, though in written Tajik there are no morpheme breaks.
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- to come
Notes:
1. A very common way to use the verb to come in the present tense is with
the addition of the infix , which in this environment has no meaning. In this case
the present verb stem / / changes to the letter / /. Note the following paradigm:
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1. I leave my job every day at 4 oclock. 4. Do you run every day with your brother?
2. Usually I walk (by foot) to work. 5. What time does your sister get up in the morning?
3. When will your uncle come from Moscow? 6. Who is sitting over there?
9. G Tajik Proverbs
Sound isnt made with one hand.
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LESSON NINE
NOUNS
news, information television
rest evening meal
breakfast husband
schedule, daily plan evening
sound, voice, noise yard
VERBS
to see off, say goodbye to go to sleep
to sweep to pass by, to cross
to put into order to run
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