Kashmiri.dev

Language

Koshur, the Kashmiri language

Kashmiri, called Koshur by its speakers, is spoken by around 7 million people, mostly in the Kashmir valley. It has a rich poetry tradition and a long, mixed heritage of Sanskrit, Persian, and Central Asian influence. Kashmiri is one of the 22 scheduled languages of India.

Scripts

Perso-Arabic

Official script

The Perso-Arabic script (Nastaʿlīq style) is the official script for Kashmiri today. It is written right to left. Extra letters and marks are added to show sounds that are special to Kashmiri.

Devanagari

Also used

Devanagari is the same script used for Hindi and Marathi. Some Kashmiri writers and scholars use it, especially among Kashmiri Pandits. It is written left to right.

Sharada

Historical

Sharada is the oldest script used for Kashmiri and Sanskrit in Kashmir. It was used from around the 8th century onwards. Today it is rare, but scholars and enthusiasts are working to revive it.

Starter vocabulary

Roman spellings of Kashmiri vary, so treat these as a starting point rather than a fixed standard. We are reviewing the words with native speakers and plan to add native script and audio.

  • aes
    we
  • tse
    you
  • bi
    I
  • su
    he
  • sa
    she
  • moaj
    mother
  • moul
    father
  • boi
    brother
  • beni
    sister
  • kur
    daughter
  • nechuv
    son
  • aabLoanword

    Persian loanword; native word is 'pōny'.

    water
  • batte
    rice / food
  • chaiLoanword

    Loanword.

    tea
  • tsot
    bread
  • gaam
    village
  • shaharLoanword

    Persian/Urdu loanword.

    city
  • gar
    house
  • wan
    shop
  • kitabLoanword

    Arabic loanword.

    book
  • skuul

    'Madrasa' usually means a religious school.

    school
  • ustadLoanword

    Persian loanword.

    teacher
  • shongun
    to sleep
  • khyon
    to eat
  • chyon
    to drink
  • gatshun
    to go
  • yun
    to come
  • wuchhun
    to see
  • khoshLoanword

    Persian loanword.

    happy
  • tur

    Native Kashmiri; 'sheen' means snow, 'shohul' means cool.

    cold
  • garamLoanword

    Persian/Urdu loanword.

    warm
  • rang
    colour

Words are shown in Roman transliteration. Pronunciation may vary by region.

Common phrases

  • Assalamu alaikum

    Loanword

    Arabic; common Muslim greeting.

    Peace be upon you (greeting)

  • Vaaray chivā?

    The native Kashmiri greeting.

    How are you?

  • Bi chhus vaaray

    I am fine

  • Meharbāni

    The native way to say thanks. 'Shukriya' from Urdu is also widely used.

    Please / thank you (literally: your kindness)

  • Tohi kya chhu nāv?

    Kashmiri usually puts the verb second.

    What is your name?

  • Myon nāv chhu ...

    My name is ...

  • Kot chhukh gatshān?

    Where are you going?

  • Yeti walo

    'Walo' is the command form.

    Come here

  • Khuda hafiz

    Loanword

    Persian; commonly used.

    Goodbye

Kashmiri counting: 1 to 50

Learn Koshur numbers from one to fifty, grouped by tens for easy reading.

Open the counting guide

Sources

  • Braj B. Kachru, An Introduction to Spoken Kashmiri (University of Illinois, 1973)
  • Wiktionary: Kashmiri word list