Study Kurmanji Kurdish at Berkeley This Fall

Hûn bi xêr hatin Pola Kurdî ya Destpêker - Welcome to the Beginner Kurdish Course. For the first time, Near Eastern Studies will offer a course designed to introduce complete beginners to Kurmanji Kurdish, the dominant Kurdish variety spoken in Greater Kurdistan and among the Kurdish diaspora, and a language seldom taught in the United States.

The course provides complete beginners of Kurmanji Kurdish with a solid foundation in all four language skills. It introduces basic grammatical forms, essential frequent vocabulary and key aspects of pronunciation. Participants of the course will have opportunities to practices communicating in Kurmanji-Kurdish in class on daily topics such as routines and activities, hobbies and habits and so forth. By the end of this course, participants will be able to sustain basic communicative exchanges on common everyday topics in various social contexts and can then progress on to the Beginners Kurdish 2 class in spring term.

Class will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12:30-2:00 PM in 271 Barrows. Contact Near Eastern Studies with questions regarding the course or registration.