Language/Central-kurdish/Grammar/Questions

Central Kurdish Grammar - Questions

Hi Central Kurdish learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will focus on questions in Central Kurdish. As you advance in your language journey, you will find that asking questions is an essential skill for communication. At first, it might be difficult to remember the proper word order and sentence structure, but with practice, you will get the hang of it. So, let's jump right in!

Types of Questions

In Central Kurdish, there are two types of questions: Yes/No questions and Wh-questions.

Yes/No Questions

Yes/No questions are questions that can be answered with a simple yes or no. These types of questions are formed by using the particle هە (he) at the end of the sentence. The particle is added to the end of the verb. For example:

Central Kurdish	Pronunciation	English
تۆ دەرچووی هەوا؟	to derxwî heva?	Did you close the window?
ئایا ئەو جیاوازە کردوە؟	aya ew jiyavaze kirdo?	Did they make the reservation?

Note that in Kurdish, the verb always comes at the end of the sentence.

Wh-Questions

Wh-questions are questions that begin with a question word, such as what, when, where, why, or how. In Central Kurdish, these types of questions are formed by using the same question words and word order as in English. For example:

Central Kurdish	Pronunciation	English
ئەم کتێبە کەسێکیش خۆی لێدەدەیە؟	em kteba keskesh khoy ledededey?	Who gave this book to you?
تۆ کاتێک لە کاریەکەی دەچی؟	to katek la karekey dechi?	When do you go to work?

Creating Questions

When forming a question in Central Kurdish, it's important to remember that the verb always comes at the end of the sentence. Here's an example:

• Statement: ئەو چاوەڕوانە خۆیان پێ‌دەکەینە. (ew chawrawane khoyan pedekainan)

(They wake themselves up in the morning.)

• Question: ئەو چاوەڕوانە خۆیان پێ‌دەکەینە؟ (ew chawrawane khoyan pedekainan?)

(Do they wake themselves up in the morning?)

Note that the only difference between these two sentences is the addition of the هە (he) particle at the end of the sentence.

Word Order

When creating questions in Central Kurdish, it's important to remember the proper word order. Generally, the word order for questions is:

Question word + Auxiliary verb + Subject + Main verb

For example:

Central Kurdish	Pronunciation	English
دەماوێژە کتێبەکە ئەو بینیێت؟	demaje ktebeka ew binyet?	How long have you been reading that book?
چۆنیەتی ئەو کتابەت هەموومان بخوێنی؟	choniate ew ktabet hemoman bkhwanny?	How do you read your books all at once?

Practice

To improve your Central Kurdish grammar, you can also use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions! Here is a dialogue to practice:

• Person 1: ئایا تۆ ئەم گوتەی بەخاڵیە ؟ (aya to em gotey bexaliye?)

(Have you heard this saying before?)

• Person 2: نەخێر. ئەمە ڕاگیراوە بۆ من. (nexer. Em ra gerawe bo mn)

(No, it's new to me.)

• Person 1: بەنووسە چۆن لەوشەی بێژێریت؟ (benose choni lawoshey bezyeryt?)

(Can you spell that word?)

• Person 2: بەلێ، گوێێم. دaلینۆ. (belê, goyem. Daliino.)

(Yes, I can. D-a-l-i-n-o.)

Sources

• Kurdish grammar on Wikipedia
• Central Kurdish on Wikipedia
• Kurdish Questions on Wikipedia