Assyrian
Language Information
Assyrian (Assyrian Neo-Aramaic) is spoken by Assyrian Christians in northern Iraq, northwestern Iran, northeastern Syria, and southeastern Turkey, and by large diaspora communities in the United States (especially Chicago and California), Sweden, Germany, and Australia.
Modern Assyrian is a Neo-Aramaic language, descended from the Aramaic of the ancient Near East, and it is written in the Syriac (Eastern) script. It has several hundred thousand speakers. It should be distinguished from the language of the ancient Assyrian Empire, which was a dialect of Akkadian, although the modern Assyrians regard themselves as descendants of that empire.
Modern Assyrian is a Neo-Aramaic language, descended from the Aramaic of the ancient Near East, and it is written in the Syriac (Eastern) script. It has several hundred thousand speakers. It should be distinguished from the language of the ancient Assyrian Empire, which was a dialect of Akkadian, although the modern Assyrians regard themselves as descendants of that empire.
- Language Family
- Afro-Asiatic (Hamito-Semitic)
- Subgroup
- Semitic
- Branch
- Aramaic
Assyrian Language Sample
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 1
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic
ܟܠ ܒܪܢܫܐ ܒܪܝܠܗ ܚܐܪܐ ܘܒܪܒܪ ܓܘ ܐܝܩܪܐ ܘܙܕܩܐ. ܘܦܝܫܝܠܗ ܝܗܒܐ ܗܘܢܐ ܘܐܢܝܬ. ܒܘܕ ܕܐܗܐ ܓܫܩܬܝ ܥܠ ܐܚܪܢܐ ܓܪܓ ܗܘܝܐ ܒܚܕ ܪܘܚܐ ܕܐܚܢܘܬܐ.English translation
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
Source: OHCHR translations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights