Turoyo
A language of Turkey (Asia)
| Population | 3,000 in Turkey (1994 H. Mutzafi). Population total all countries: 84,000. Ethnic population: 50,000 to 70,000 (1994). |
| Region | Southeast, Mardin Province (originally). Also in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Iraq, Lebanon, Netherlands, Sweden, Syria, United States. |
| Alternate names | Surayt, Süryani, Suryoyo, Syryoyo, Turani |
| Dialects | Midyat, Midin, Kfarze, ’Iwardo, Anhil, Raite. Related to Northeastern Aramaic varieties. Turoyo subdialects exhibit a cleavage between Town Turoyo (Midyat Turoyo), Village Turoyo, and Mixed (Village-Town) Turoyo. The latter is spoken mainly by younger generation outside Tur ’Abdin, the language’s original location, and is gaining ground throughout the Jacobite diaspora in other countries. |
| Classification | Afro-Asiatic, Semitic, Central, Aramaic, Eastern, Central, Northwestern |
| Language use | All also use their national languages or local lingua francas, and some are multilingual. |
| Language development | Bible portions: 1983. |
| Writing system | Latin script. Syriac script. |
| Comments | Known among scholars almost exclusively as ‘Tûrôyo’. ‘Suryoyo’ is a popular name. ‘Western Syriac’ refers to the Classical Western Syriac liturgy and orthography used by Turoyo speakers. Christian (Jacobite). |
Also spoken in:
Syria
| Language name | Turoyo |
| Population | 7,000 in Syria (1994). Ethnic population: 20,000 (1994). |
| Language map |
Jordan and Syria |
| Alternate names | Surayt, Suryoyo, Syryoyo, Turani |
| Language use | Home. Western Syriac [syc] used in church, Arabic in schools and trade. |
| Comments | Religious capital is Damascus; formerly at Tur ’Abdin, Turkey. Christian (Jacobite). |
Ethnologue: Web |
Ethnologue: Print |
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