A Linguistic Phenomenon

Like most related Indo-European languages, and similarly to Afroasiatic and Semitic languages, Kurdish has a productive and distinctive means of assigning names to masculine and feminine gender.

When the distinction between masculine and feminine names is discussed, Kurdish varieties are often assumed to preserve this feature only in Kurmanji and Hawrami, because the distinction is especially conspicuous in those two varieties. Yet the phenomenon also exists and has been preserved in other Kurdish varieties.

In other words, these varieties distinguish and identify masculine and feminine forms through determiners and through the attachment of morphemes.

In the regions of Penjwen, Pshdar, Bitwen, Mukriyan, and Balakayati, the pattern is clearly observable: the determiner /ێ/ is attached to a name to identify the feminine gender, as in:

کەژاڵێ، چاوکاڵێ، کیژێ، نازێ، جوانێ، زێنێ، شیرینێ، خاتوونێ، شیلانێ، چنارێ, and so forth.

The name often remains unchanged and is pronounced in its original form, as with /باران، زیلان، نەمام، ئاڤان/. If, however, the feminine name and patronymic denote a third-person singular feminine referent, the suffixal morpheme /ێ/ attaches to the first name in the construction, as in:

بارانێ شوانە.
زیلانێ دادە خەجێ.
نەمامێ کاک سۆران.
ئاڤانێ مامە قالەی.

In predicative or vocative expressions addressed to a woman, that is, a third-person singular feminine referent, the suffixal morpheme /ێ/ is added to the name, as in:

بە بارانێ بڵێن بچێتەوە.
بە ئاڤانێ بڵێن نەڕواتەوە.
زینێ وەخەوەر بێنن.
شیلانێ ئاگاداری ئەم هەواڵە بکەنەوە.
لەگەڵ نەمامێ باسی چیتان کرد؟
بە شیرینێ چیت گوتوە؟

Masculine names are used in two ways. They may occur in their unmodified form, as in:

شوان، پشتیوان، کۆچەر، خەبات، شۆڕش، ڕێناس، ڕەنجە، ژیڤان، سۆران, and so forth.

When a masculine name and its patronymic, referring to a third-person singular masculine individual, are pronounced together, the suffixal morpheme /ی/ always attaches to the name, as in:

موحمەدی ئەوراز.
ئەحمەدخانی هۆزانڤان.
قازی مەحمەدی پێشەوا.
شۆڕشی کاک زانای.

The use of /ی/ for masculine forms and /ێ/ for feminine forms is more conspicuous and consistently observed in villages, where it has retained its authenticity. It should be noted, however, that in the South the use of three-part names, comprising the son’s, father’s, and grandfather’s names, has caused this pattern and method to become less prominent and less influential.

In many other regions, the prefixed morpheme /ە/ is used with masculine forms in predicative and vocative contexts, as in:

کاکە، بابە، خاڵە، مامە، شۆڕشە، خەباتە، ئالانە، ئامانجە، چالاکە, and so forth.

For feminine gender, the suffixal morpheme /ێ/ is used, as in:

دادێ، دایێ، پوورێ، کچێ، بارانێ، زێنێ، شیلانێ, and so forth.

Other linguistic rules also govern this pattern, including locative modifiers, general modifiers, collective-noun morphemes, and proper-noun morphemes, in which feminine /ێ/ and masculine /ی/ function as suffixes, as in:

لە ژوری یەکەم، لە شەقامی شاران، بەکۆلانی گوندان، بەماڵی گەل، لە کۆمپانی ئەمیری, and so forth.

When a place modifier is indefinite, it takes feminine /ێ/: لە ئامەدێ، لە سلێمانێ، لە مەهابادێ، لە قامیشلویێ, and so forth.

In the definite state, it takes the masculine morpheme /ی/:

لە کرماشانی کوردان، دەچم بۆ هەولێری کۆن، دیاربەکری خۆراگر، مەهابادی برەوش، سیولی پەیتەخی کۆریا, and so forth.

In locative, temporal, and manner modifiers relating to objects and places, the morpheme /ی/ attaches to the modifier of place or object, as in:

کچەیابانیەکە، مۆبایلی جاپانی، بڕوانەمەی ئەمریکایی، گەنجی کوردستانی, and so forth.

In verbal and imperative constructions, the morphemes /ی/ and /ێ/ function as predicative and vocative suffixes, as in:

دەچمە کنی، دەچمە شاخی، چوومە گوندێ، هاتمە شاری، بردمە ماڵێ، دامە دەستی, and so forth.

With animals, whenever the derivational morpheme /ما/ attaches to a noun and forms a compound animal name, it indicates the feminine, as in:

ماکەر، ماکان، ماکەو، ماچە، مانگا، مامز، ماڵۆس، ماڵۆزە، ماکەرچین، ماین، ماینە، مانکاو، ماوی, and so forth.