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

Kashmiri has no fully standard Roman spelling, so these are a learning aid. Native script and audio are coming soon. Spellings and forms are being reviewed by native speakers.

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

01
Assalamu alaikum
loanword
Peace be upon you (greeting)
Arabic; common Muslim greeting.
02
Vaaray chivā?
How are you?
The native Kashmiri greeting.
03
Bi chhus vaaray
I am fine
04
Meharbāni
Please / thank you (literally: your kindness)
The native way to say thanks. 'Shukriya' from Urdu is also widely used.
05
Tohi kya chhu nāv?
What is your name?
Kashmiri usually puts the verb second.
06
Myon nāv chhu ...
My name is ...
07
Kot chhukh gatshān?
Where are you going?
08
Yeti walo
Come here
'Walo' is the command form.
09
Khuda hafiz
loanword
Goodbye
Persian; commonly used.

Sources

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