Identity and Foreign Policy in the Middle East
Identity and Foreign Policy in the Middle East

Author: Shibley Telhami

Publisher: Cornell University Press

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 228

ISBN-13: 9780801487453

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Shibley Telhami and Michael Barnett, together with experts on Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, and Syria, explore how the formation and transformation of national and state identities affect the foreign policy behavior of Middle Eastern states.

The Iranian Languages
The Iranian Languages

Author: Gernot Windfuhr

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013-05-13

Total Pages: 962

ISBN-13: 113579703X

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The Iranian languages form the major eastern branch of the Indo-European group of languages, itself part of the larger Indo-Iranian family. Estimated to have between 150 and 200 million native speakers, the Iranian languages constitute one of the world’s major language families. This comprehensive volume offers a detailed overview of the principle languages which make up this group: Old Iranian, Middle Iranian, and New Iranian. The Iranian Languages is divided into fifteen chapters. The introductory chapters by the editor present a general overview and a detailed discussion of the linguistic typology of Iranian. The individual chapters which follow are written by leading experts in the field. These provide the reader with concise, non-technical descriptions of a range of Iranian languages. Each chapter follows the same pattern and sequence of topics, taking the reader through the significant features not only of phonology and morphology but also of syntax; from phrase level to complex sentences and pragmatics. Ample examples on all levels are provided with detailed annotation for the non-specialist reader. In addition, each chapter covers lexis, sociolinguistic and typological issues, and concludes with annotated sample texts. This unique resource is the ideal companion for undergraduate and postgraduate students of linguistics and language. It will also be of interest to researchers or anyone with an interest in historical linguistics, linguistics anthropology and language development. Gernot Windfuhr is Professor of Iranian Studies at the University of Michigan; he has published widely on Persian and Iranian languages and linguistics and related languages, as well as on other aspects of Iranian culture including Persian literature and Pre-Islamic Iranian religions.

Master Couplets of Urdu Poetry
Master Couplets of Urdu Poetry

Author: K. C. Kanda

Publisher: Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd

Published: 2001-07-01

Total Pages: 384

ISBN-13: 9788120723573

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This book offers a representative selection of humorous and satirical Urdu poetry, drawn from the works of seventeen major poets, including the classics like Mohammed Rafi Sauda and Akbar Allahabadi, besides the famous practitioners of this art in the 20th century. The poems are chosen on the basis of their artistic and thematic quality. These are then translated, verse by verse, into English, and transliterated in the Roman script for the benefit of the non-Urdu-knowing reader. This is probably the first book of its kind in Urdu-English translated literature.

The Taste of Words
The Taste of Words

Author: Raza Mir

Publisher: Penguin UK

Published: 2014-06-15

Total Pages: 328

ISBN-13: 935118725X

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Have you ever been enchanted by the spoken cadence of an Urdu couplet but wished you could fully understand its nuances? Have you wanted to engage with a ghazal more deeply but were daunted by its mystifying conventions? Are you confused between a qataa and a rubaai, or a musadda and a marsiya? In Urdu Poetry, Raza Mir offers a fresh, quirky and accessible entry point for neophytes seeking to enhance their enjoyment of this vibrant canon—from the poems of legends like Mir Taqi Mir and Mirza Ghalib to the lyrics of contemporary game changers like Javed Akhtar and Gulzar. Raza Mir’s translation not only draws out the zest and pathos of these timeless verses, but also provides pithy insights and colourful trivia that will enable readers to fully embrace this world.

Towards a Historical Grammar of Balochi
Towards a Historical Grammar of Balochi

Author: Agnes Korn

Publisher: Dr Ludwig Reichert

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 480

ISBN-13:

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The aim of the present work is to contribute to the knowledge of Balochi historical grammar. The main part of the book is a new discussion of the historical phonology of Balochi, the only comprehensive treatment of which existing so far dates from the end of the 19th century. Meanwhile, new material from a wide range of Balochi dialects and varieties has come to light. This makes it possible to distinguish between sound changes affecting the Balochi language as a whole and those that operate only in some variety; the approach to do so systematically is attempted here for the first time. Reassessing previous treatments and comparing important related languages (chiefly New Persian, Parthian and Avestan), the book analyses the development of Old Iranian sounds to the stage of Common Balochi and the changes leading from that stage to the variants spoken today in Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan and some other countries. The results indicate contact with other languages, specifically with Persian, as several Balochi sound changes are not such as we might expect in a North Western Iranian language. Concerning other sound changes, Balochi differs from all attested Middle Iranian languages. The predecessor of contemporary Balochi seems to have been a dialect rather similar to Parthian, but differing from it in a number of details. So the study of Balochi sound changes provides evidence for Middle Iranian dialectal variation. The diversity and intensity of contacts with neighbouring languages is also reflected in the Balochi lexicon of which selected fields are presented and discussed. The layers of loanwords show a continuing influence of Persian from the earliest times to the present day, relationships to Kurdish, Pashto and Brahui, and, particularly in the field of kinship terminology, intense contact with speakers of Modern Indic languages. The book is complemented by a morphological appendix and a comprehensive etymological index. It is intended as a contribution in the fields of New Iranian languages and historical Iranian linguistics.