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<font color="yellow" size=+3>Dari Language</font>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<font color="yellow" face="Arial">By Mr. Taher</font>
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<p align ="justify">The word Dari refers to 
the language that is popularly known as Persian. Dari is also called Farsi or Parsi. 
These different names have been synonymously in use throughout history and refer to 
the same one language. There are two theories regarding the origin of the word Dari. 
One states that the word Dari came from the word <i>Darbar</i> which means court, 
courts of kings. It argues that this language was the very respected and chosen language
for communications at royal courts of kings. Thus it came to be known as
the language of courts or <i>Darbari</i>. Later in time the word
<i>Darbari</i> was shortened and evolved to Dari which still has the same meaning 
as <i>Darbari</i>.
The second theory relates the origin of word Dari to the word <i>Dara</i>
or valley. Many accomplished language researchers, admit that the language
Dari or Farsi itself was born in Khorasan, a mountainous land where people
live in numerous valleys (Dara). Therefore, the name Dari came to refer
to the language spoken by people of the valleys (Dara) or in the valleys.
<br><br>
<p align ="justify">Dari or Farsi is a widely used language in Central Asia. It is the official
language of Iran, Tajikistan and what is known as Afghanistan. Dari/Farsi
is a branch of the Indo-Iranian (Indo-Aryan) languages, a subfamily of
the Indo-European languages. There are three different phases in the development
of Aryan languages: Old, Middle, and Modern. Old Dari/Farsi and the Avestan
language represents the old stage of development and were spoken in ancient
Bactria. The Avestan language is called Avestan because the sacred scriptures
of Zoroastrianism, Avesta, were written in this old form. Avestan died
out long before the advent of Islam and except for scriptural use not much
has remained of it. Old Dari/Farsi, however, survived and there are many
written records of old Dari, in cuneiform called <i>Maikhi</i>, in Khorasan.
Old Dari was spoken until around the third century BC. It was a highly
inflected language.
<br><br>
<p align ="justify">Middle Dari was spoken from 3rd century to 9th and is related to several
other Central Asian tongues such as Sogdian, Chrosmian and also Parthian
languages. Parthian was the language of the Parthian Empire (Arsacid).
Parthian, though left some influences on middle Dari, declined when the
Sassanian power expanded. Middle Dari had a simpler grammar and was written
in multivalent letters. Middle Dari declined after conquest of Arabs in
the 7th century and much of its rich literature was lost or destroyed by
the Arabs. However, a lot of it was also translated into Arabic.
<br><br>
<p align ="justify">Modern Dari began to develop by 9th century. It is a continuation of
the Khorasanian standard language which had considerable Parthian and Middle
Dari elements. It has much simpler grammar than its ancestral forms. After
the conquest of Arabs in 7th century, it is written in arabic script, with
few modifications, and has absorbed a vast Arabic vocabulary.
<br><br>
<p align ="justify">Dari literature is one of the richest in the world and composed of the
body of writings in Modern Dari. After the Arab conquest of 7th century
Islam replaced Zoroastrianism and Arabic became the language of law, religion
and culture in Khorasan. However with the rise of Samanids and political
revival of Khorasan, Dari emerged as a literary medium and became the established
literary form of Dari language. During the period of Samanids a new era
of literary began. The ancient tradition of Khorasan and Islam merged together.
Dari was specially instrumental in freeing Islam from an exclusive Arabic
attachment and universalized Islam thus helping to preserve it.
<br><br>
<p align ="justify">Dari poetry had began sporadically in Khorasan in 9th century. The earliest
main genres are the epic, <i>qasida</i> (Purpose poem), <i>masnavi</i>
(long narrative poem), and <i>ghazal</i> (lyric). By 10th century Dari
had become an important and melodious medium- as the remaining works of
<i>Rudaki</i>, a versatile poet, indicate. He is regarded as the father
of Dari poetry. After <i>Rudaki's</i> death the epic tradition, with its
sources in Avesta and Middle Dari texts, began. The first epic poet was
<i>Marvazi
Samarqandi</i> who composed a <i>Shah Nameh</i> (Book of Kings) in 910.
<i>Daqiqi Balkhi</i> another poet of tenth century wrote a better known
<i>Shah Nameh</i> in 975. However, <i>Firdowsi Tusi</i> composed another
<i>Shah Nameh</i> (1010) which became the very best known epic in Dari
literature.
<br><br>
<p align ="justify"><i>Qasida</i>, another form of poetry, was also first written by <i>Rudaki</i>.
Mostly <i>qasidas</i> are panegyrics, sometime elegiac, didactic and occasionally
they deal with philosophical or biographical literature. The average length
of qasida is between sixty and hundred lines and they are written in couplets.
Qasidas that are more than two hundred lines are also frequently written.
The earliest exponents of this form of poetry <i>Ansuri Balkhi</i>, <i>Asjadi</i>,
and <i>Farrukhi</i> were the greatest poets of their time. Of many panegyrists
in the history of Dari literature, <i>Anvari Balkhi</i> was regarded as
the foremost. In philosophical qasidas <i>Naser-e Khosrow</i> was very
well respected.
<i>Omar Khayyan</i> was another poet of this era who is
considered to be of astonishing originality.
<br><br>
<p align ="justify">During the Samanid era the foundation of Dari prose was also laid. Several
pieces of literature demonstrated the suitability of Dari language for
sacred texts. <i>Bal'ami</i>, one of the <i>vizier</i> (high government
official) of <i>Mansur I Samanid</i>, published a translation of the annals
of Tabari. Also, in the same time, a group of theologian, made a Dari copy
of <i>Tabari's</i> commentary on the Quran. These works and works of similar
nature produced a clear demonstration that Dari was very suitable for religious
works. In fact these works brought to an end the absolute domination of
Arabic language over religious literature. <i>Mansur I Samanid</i> also
commissioned the pharmacopeia of <i>Abu Mansur Muvaffaq</i> of Herat, the
first Dari book on medicine. An extensive technical vocabulary, applicable
to philosophy and science were also coined with the patronage of Samanids.
<br><br>
<p align ="justify">Thirteen and fourteen century were also a period when great poets lived
and it is often called the golden age of Dari poetry. In this period, three
great poet, <i>Moulana Balkhi (Rumi)</i>, <i>Sadi</i> and
<i>Hafiz</i>
lived. They were excellent in a form o poetry called <i>ghazal</i>, a passionate
mystical lyric form that is composed on a single rhyme. <i>Ghazals</i>
were usually consists of five to fifteen couplets and they could be of
variety of meters. The first mystic <i>masnavi</i> is believed to be written
by <i>Hakim Sanai</i> of Ghazna and is known as <i>Hadiqat al-Haqiqa</i>
(The Enclosed Garden of Truth). He was followed by <i>Attar</i> and <i>Rumi</i>.
Rumi's <i>Masnavi-e-Manavi</i> consists of six books that contains 30,000
couplets. Masnavi's basic theme is love and Rumi in this book, is concerned
with problems bearing on the conduct, meaning and purpose of life and the
longing of the human soul for union with God. The <i>Masnavi </i>of <i>Mawlana
of Balkh</i> is considered to be the most profound and the greatest work
of Dari literature, and perhaps of all the Islamic literature. The
<i>Masnav</i>i
is often called <i>Quran-e-Sani</i> meaning the second Quran. Every page
of it moves, absorbs and surprises the reader. Masnavi form of poetry was
also suitable for epic and romantic stories. Of romantic masnavis the <i>Khosrow
-O-Shirin</i> (Khosrow and Shirin) of <i>Nezami</i> is the best known.
<br>&nbsp;
<br>&nbsp;

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<p><br>
<p>Bibliography
<p>"Dari" Encyclopaedia Britannica. 1996.
<p>"Persian." Encarta Encyclopedia. 1996.

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