Language/Northern-kurdish/Grammar/Pronouns
Hi Northern Kurdish learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will focus on pronouns in Northern Kurdish. Pronouns are essential parts of speech that replace nouns within sentences. They are particularly useful when we want to avoid repeating the same noun several times or when we want to identify a particular person or thing more effectively.
Don't hesitate to look into these other pages after completing this lesson: Northern Kurdish Grammar: Subordinating Conjunctions, Northern Kurdish Grammar Lesson: Understanding Place Adverbs, Roots of Northern Kurdish & Give your Opinion.
Personal Pronouns[edit | edit source]
Personal pronouns represent people or things that are being talked about. In Northern Kurdish, personal pronouns are organized by their function in sentences as follows:
| Northern Kurdish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Ez | [ɛz] | I/me |
| Tu | [tu] | You (singular) |
| Ew | [æw] | He/him/she/her/it |
| Em | [ɛm] | We (inclusive) |
| Hûn | [huːn] | You (plural) |
| Ew | [æw] | They/them |
Here are some examples:
- Person 1: Ez hatim. (I came.)
- Person 2: Tu lê kirî? (Did you see it?)
- Person 1: Ew ji xwe re xwarin got. (He/she/it said that he/she/it ate for himself/herself/itself.)
- Person 2: Em didin. (We are giving.)
- Person 1: Hûn çima qet nehatine? (Why haven't you come yet?)
- Person 2: Ew çareser in. (They are fine.)
As you can see, personal pronouns can save us a lot of repetitive speech and are always necessary when we want to identify a specific person or thing.
Interrogative Pronouns[edit | edit source]
Interrogative pronouns are used in questions to ask for the identity, origin, or destination of a noun. In Northern Kurdish, we use the following interrogative pronouns:
| Northern Kurdish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Kî | [kiː] | Who |
| Çawa | [tʃæwa] | How |
| Kê | [keː] | Whom/which |
| Ji bo çi? | [d͡ʒi bo tʃiː] | Why? |
| Li ku de? | [li ku de] | Where? |
Here are some examples:
- Person 1: Kî ji te re çi kir? (What did he/she do to you?)
- Person 2: Ez li xwe çaxê didim. (I looked at myself in the mirror.)
- Person 1: Çawa tê? (How are you coming?)
- Person 2: Me bi xwe re tên. (We come by ourselves.)
- Person 1: Kê ji bo min siwar bû? (Who drove me?)
- Person 2: Ji min re Ez siwar bûm. (I drove you.)
- Person 1: Ji bo çi ew xwest? (Why did he/she want that?)
- Person 2: Ji ber ku ew fêm kir ku wusa baş be. (Because he/she thought it would be great.)
- Person 1: Li ku de tu jîyanê derbas dikî? (Where do you live?)
- Person 2: Ez li Ewropayê jîyanê derbas dikim. (I live in Europe.)
As you can see, interrogative pronouns allow us to ask specific questions about the identity, origin or destination of a noun or a person.
Possessive Pronouns[edit | edit source]
Possessive pronouns indicate ownership or possession of a noun. In Northern Kurdish, we use the following possessive pronouns:
| Northern Kurdish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Min | [mɪn] | Mine |
| Te | [te] | Yours (singular) |
| Wî | [wiː] | His/hers/its |
| Me | [me] | Ours (inclusive) |
| Hûn | [huːn] | Yours (plural) |
| Wan | [wan] | Theirs |
Here are some examples:
- Person 1: Kaxezên min têne. (My cups are coming.)
- Person 2: Kaxezên te ne ji bo min in. (Your cups are not for me.)
- Person 1: Wî got ku ev wêne wî ye. (He/she/it said that this picture is his/hers/its.)
- Person 2: Me jiyaneke xwe hevpeyvîn dikin. (We are having a conversation of our own.)
- Person 1: Hûn bicîh dikin ji bo çi? (What are you using yours for?)
- Person 2: Hûn jîyanê xwe dirêj didin. (You are taking care of your own lives.)
- Person 1: Wan ne xwezayî in. (They are not wealthy.)
- Person 2: Wan tiştên xwe û wanên xwe dizanin. (They know their own things and their own people.)
As you can see, possessive pronouns indicate the ownership or possession of a noun or a thing.
Demonstrative Pronouns[edit | edit source]
Demonstrative pronouns are used to indicate or point to specific things or persons. In Northern Kurdish, we use the following demonstrative pronouns:
| Northern Kurdish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Ev | [ɛv] | This (singular) |
| Ew | [æw] | That (singular) |
| Wan | [wan] | Those (plural) |
Here are some examples:
- Person 1: Ev birçî çi ye? (What is this fruit?)
- Person 2: Berfanî ye. (It is a pear.)
- Person 1: Ew kesî li xwe dide? (Who is that person standing alone?)
- Person 2: Wusa ez nizanîbûm. (I don't know who he/she is.)
- Person 1: Wan xwezayî ne. (Those are not wealthy.)
- Person 2: Ez hin şêwazên wana nizanim. (I don't know some of their ways.)
As you can see, demonstrative pronouns allow us to identify specific things or persons either near or far from us.
Reflexive Pronouns[edit | edit source]
Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject and object of a sentence are the same person or thing. In Northern Kurdish, we use the following reflexive pronouns:
| Northern Kurdish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Xwe | [xwe] | Oneself/myself/yourself/himself/herself/itself/themselves |
| Xwî | [xwiː] | Oneself/myself/yourself/himself/herself/itself/themselves (plural) |
Here are some examples:
- Person 1: Ez ji xwe re zirarî dan. (I hurt myself)
- Person 2: Tu rast dikî, tu di xwe de raman didî. (You are right, you have your own ideas.)
- Person 1: Ew li başûr xwe wergirt. (He/she/it recovered in the south.)
- Person 2: Xwîn ji xwe ve bêne kar kirin. (They did the work themselves.)
As you can see, we use reflexive pronouns when the subject and object of the sentence are the same. It emphasizes the presence of the subject in the sentence.
Sources[edit | edit source]
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