The Western Iranian languages or Western Iranic languages are a branch of the Iranian languages, attested from the time of Old Persian (6th century BC) and Median.
The traditional Northwestern branch is a convention for non-Southwestern languages, rather than a genetic group. The languages are as follows:[1][2][3]
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.[1] 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.
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 Median with varying amounts of Parthian substrata,[8] whereas the Semnani languages were likely descended from Parthian.[9]
^ abErik Anonby, Mortaza Taheri-Ardali & Amos Hayes (2019) The Atlas of the Languages of Iran (ALI). Iranian Studies 52. A Working Classification
^Gernot Windfuhr, 2009, "Dialectology and Topics", The Aryanic Languages, Routledge, pp. 12–15.
^Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Northwestern Aryan". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History. Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Southwestern Aryan". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
^Borjian, Habib (2019) Journal of Persianate Studies 2, Median Succumbs to Persian after Three Millennia of Coexistence: Language Shift in the Central Iranian Plateau, p. 70
^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
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.
Attarzadeh, Muhammad; Rouhparvar, Rahimeh (2024). "Linguistic Study of Some Properties and Phonological Processes of Jooshani Dialect of Persian". Dialectologia et Geolinguistica. 32 (1): 99–122. doi:10.1515/dialect-2024-0007.
Kontovas, Nicholas. "Contact and the diversity of noun-noun subordination strategies among Western Iranic languages."