Metathesis

ڕفاندن ـ فڕاندن ـ دامەزراندن ـ دامەرزاندن

We must approach the subject through the scientific frameworks of linguistics and identify when anatomy, the phonetic mechanisms of the speech organs, and natural processes cause it. In linguistics, when examining words within morphological and phonological frameworks, these frameworks allow us to understand what occurs and what causes such phenomena.
The principal phonological processes are:
Assimilation: convergence
Dissimilation: divergence, separation
Elision: deletion, erosion
Metathesis: transposition
Mutation: sound change
Palatalization: softening

These frameworks enable us to understand what causes this phenomenon.
The process responsible falls under metathesis. This is a difficult and intricate subject, but also an active field of linguistics and a phenomenon found in most living, phonetic languages. Known here as “transposition,” it is a phonological and phonetic phenomenon in which one phone exchanges position with another, or several phones shift from their phonemic positions. Only their places change; the word’s meaning does not change. This is an active lexical and morphological process. Within it, a syllabic phenomenon appears through displacement of phones. Consider first its occurrence in phonetic and Indo-European languages. Persian examples include (قفل، قلف), (کفت، کتف), (چخر، چرخ), (سەقف، سەفق), and (کبریت، کربیت). English examples include wasp/waps, brid/bird, aks/ask, tax/task, rp/pr, foliage/foilage, cavalry/calvary. These differ from assimilation, palatalization, dissimilation, erosion, and deletion. For example, the dissimilation and softening of the two nasal phones /m/ and /n/ in بەرانبەر/بەرامبەر and شەنبە/شەمبە, or the assimilation of /ê/ and /î/ in دێر/دیر, شێعر/شیعر, and مێوان/میوان, are distinct from metathesis.
Metathesis falls within sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, and linguistic economy. It also appears in the distinctive condition of dyslexia, where phonetic transpositions arise naturally according to a child’s speech acquisition and sound production. When the child wants to speak, phones may be transposed: قەڵەم, for example, may be pronounced قەمەڵ. At this stage, a natural and temporary metathesis occurs. During a child’s language acquisition, softening, erosion, deletion, and assimilation also appear naturally and later recede as the process is completed.
Kurdish words within the domain of metathesis include:
بەفر ـ بەرف
ڕفاندن ـ فڕاندن
دامەزراندن ـ دامەرزاندن
چوقاندن ـ قوچاندن
هەوراز ـ هەرواز
تەرزە ـ تەزرە
باڕەکڵە ـ باڵەکڕە
جومعە ـ جوعمە
خیز ــ زیخ
قیز ــ زیق: قیزاندن ـ قیژاندن ـ زیقاندن
قۆچیە ـ قۆیچە
دەروێش ـ دەورێش
جگەر ـ جەرگ
ڕوانین ـ نواڕین
شیتو ـ شوتی
تینو ـ تونی
ڕێنمۆیی ـ ڕێنمۆنی
Among older speakers this natural and widespread phenomenon frequently appears gradually, as in:
سەقەت ــ سەتەق
فەقەت ـ فەتەق
ئەبزار ــ ئەرباز
شکوفە ـ فکوشە
مەکتەب ــ مەتکەب
لەعنەت ـ نەعلەت

The same phenomenon occurs in historical phonology. Avestan brwā, meaning Kurdish brō, exhibits the same process in relation to Persian abru/brwa.
Pahlavi and Old Persian suxr becomes New Persian surx, denoting the colour red.
Kurdish bafr, Persian barf, Pahlavi varf, and New Persian barf.
Old Persian carxā, Pahlavi caxr, and New Persian carx.

Sabir Zhakaw

Telegram:

versin6@

Sources:

A Linguistic Inquiry 2, Sabir Zhakaw, University Press
Ali Mohammad Haqshenas, Phonetics, Tehran: Agah
Yadollah Samareh, Persian Phonetics, Tehran University Press
Linguistics. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter.
Hume, E. (2006). “Diachronic aspects of metathesis.” In Encyclopedia of Linguistics, edited by Kate Brown. Elsevier Ltd., 506–509.
Hume, E. (1998). “Metathesis in phonological theory: the case of Leti.” Lingua 104, 147–186.
Stonham, J. (2006). “Metathesis.” In Encyclopedia of Linguistics, edited by Kate Brown. Elsevier Ltd.