Barzani-Sandu Jewish Neo-Aramaic

A language of Israel

ISO 639: bjf
Alternate Names: Barzani Jewish Neo-Aramaic, Central Jewish Neo-Aramaic, Lishan Didan, Lishan Dideni
Population: 6 (2017 H. Mutzafi).
Location:: Jerusalem.
Language Status: 8b (Nearly extinct).
Classification: Afro-Asiatic, Semitic, Central, Aramaic, Eastern, Central, Northeastern
Dialects: Barzani dialect cluster (Barzan, Bijil, Shahe), Sandu. Sandu is a Jewish Neo-Aramaic dialect closely related to Barzani, but several isoglosses link it with Lishana Deni [lsd]. Bijil went extinct in 1998, Shahe in 2000, and Sandu in 2008 (2017 H. Mutzafi).
Language Use: Elderly only. Shifted to Hebrew [heb]. Some also speak other Neo-Aramaic languages. Some also use Kurdish [kur].
Language Development: Texts.
Other Comments: Originally spoken in 4 villages near Aqra, Iraq. Also in Nerim village perhaps as a separate dialect (2017 H. Mutzafi).

Location: Jerusalem.