Practical function of "څ"?

[Pukhtoon]

Does "ځ" have a discernibly different pronunciation from ذ or ز? Is it like the difference between ث and څ ?

Or

Is it a letter, similar to ږ and ښ, that indicates to the reader that they can chose the appropriate pronounciation per their dialect? If so, what would be the different pronunciation options?

I believe ځ was introduced into the formal alphabet in the 1930s along with ڼ so it has not been a part of the written language that long (relatively speaking) so wondering why it was added and for what purpose. Thank you in advance. Manana.

[khushal]

are you writing a book?

[یاسمینه]

I believe ځ was introduced into the formal alphabet in the 1930s along with ڼ so it has not been a part of the written language that long (relatively speaking) so wondering why it was added and for what purpose. Thank you in advance. Manana.

From where did you get this year? Such letters existed in The Pashto - English dictionary published in 1901.

[Pukhtoon]

From where did you get this year? Such letters existed in The Pashto - English dictionary published in 1901.

Maybe it was 1830? In any event, I may be wrong, it may have been there since the beginning - still curious to know whether it indeed is pronounced different or serves another function.

[Pukhtoon]

^^I remember now where I got these dates. There was a discussion about the authenticity of Pata Khazana and someone argued it was fraudulent because it included these two letters while they were only added in 1930 or 1830 therefore seriously bringing into question the claim that it pre-dated any other Pashto work. I never vetted the claim so it may be incorrect.

[یاسمینه]

According to popular Pashtun tradition, Bayazid Ansari invented the Pashto alphabet. This claim may have some grounds since it is announced in the "Khayr al-bayan" immediately after the introductory "bismillah" that God had instructed Bayazid in Pashto ortography and ordered him to use special diacritic marks. Then all letters of the Pashto are given. This statement appears to support the claim that "Khayr al-bayan" may indeed be the first work written in this graphic system or, at least, indicates that at this time the Pashto alphabet still required explanation and even "divine" legitimisation. It leaves Morgenstierne's argument concerning a well-established pre-Rawxani literary tradition more questionable.

Andreyev S., The Beginning of Pashtun Written Culture and the Rawxaniyya Movement in: Melville Ch. (ed.), Proceedings of the Third European Conference of Iranian Studies, Part 2, Mediaeval and Modern Persian Studies, Wiesbaden 1999, p. 215-216.

[Bayazid Ansari 1525 - 1585].

[Badlun]

Does "ځ" have a discernibly different pronunciation from ذ or ز? Is it like the difference between ث and څ ?

Yes "ځ" has different pronunciation from ذ or ز. Its sound is more thinner or finer than the other two. It is articulated by touchibg the tip of the tongue with the central part of the lower jaw. But the main difference is in its use while writing Pashto.

Pure Pashto words with pure Pashto pronunciation like zan(self), zwan(young), zanawar(animals), zangarhey(unique), zango(cradle) etc are all written with this letter while other words derived from other languages with similar sound are written with the other two letters of Arabic. For example zar(money), zameen(land), zargar(goldsmith) etc.


Relatively to a lesser importance it is a letter, similar to ږ and ښ, that indicates to the reader that they can chose the appropriate pronounciation per their dialect. Different pronunciation options are sounds similar to ذ or ز in hard dialect while the sounds in soft dialect may be more like jim. For example zan(self) can be pronounced like jan in some regions. But this is a very rare occurrence.

[Pukhtoon]

Does "ځ" have a discernibly different pronunciation from ذ or ز? Is it like the difference between ث and څ ?

Yes "ځ" has different pronunciation from ذ or ز. Its sound is more thinner or finer than the other two. It is articulated by touchibg the tip of the tongue with the central part of the lower jaw. But the main difference is in its use while writing Pashto.

Pure Pashto words with pure Pashto pronunciation like zan(self), zwan(young), zanawar(animals), zangarhey(unique), zango(cradle) etc are all written with this letter while other words derived from other languages with similar sound are written with the other two letters of Arabic. For example zar(money), zameen(land), zargar(goldsmith) etc.


Relatively to a lesser importance it is a letter, similar to ږ and ښ, that indicates to the reader that they can chose the appropriate pronounciation per their dialect. Different pronunciation options are sounds similar to ذ or ز in hard dialect while the sounds in soft dialect may be more like jim. For example zan(self) can be pronounced like jan in some regions. But this is a very rare occurrence.

Thank you very much - I appreciate the explanation. Manana.

[Pukhtoon]

According to popular Pashtun tradition, Bayazid Ansari invented the Pashto alphabet. This claim may have some grounds since it is announced in the "Khayr al-bayan" immediately after the introductory "bismillah" that God had instructed Bayazid in Pashto ortography and ordered him to use special diacritic marks. Then all letters of the Pashto are given. This statement appears to support the claim that "Khayr al-bayan" may indeed be the first work written in this graphic system or, at least, indicates that at this time the Pashto alphabet still required explanation and even "divine" legitimisation. It leaves Morgenstierne's argument concerning a well-established pre-Rawxani literary tradition more questionable.

Andreyev S., The Beginning of Pashtun Written Culture and the Rawxaniyya Movement in: Melville Ch. (ed.), Proceedings of the Third European Conference of Iranian Studies, Part 2, Mediaeval and Modern Persian Studies, Wiesbaden 1999, p. 215-216.

[Bayazid Ansari 1525 - 1585].

Thank you. This is who I also understand to be the creator of the Pukhto alphabet and written language. Did what he, Pir Roshan (ra), create as the alphabet remain the same until the present day or were there additions or subtractions made in the alphabet since? Manana.

[torkham]

ځ differs in sound. This letter sounds distinctly dz with the tongue lightly pressed against upper incisors and hissing the sound z with a d sound, where as the other two, ذ or ز sound like z without the initial d.

This is how I use it with Kandahar-zabul accent.

[Kushan Prince]

Pashto is impossible to write in the Arabic script.

[HalloIsBack]

Pashto is impossible to write in the Arabic script.

so invent a new script which is perfect for pashto

[M17ArnoBaloch]

Pashto is impossible to write in the Arabic script.

not really brah.

[یاسمینه]

Pashto language is written using modified Arabic script. Some lettrer have been added.
There is a tendency in Pashto, which makes that some Arabic letters disappear from certain words. I think this is due to the phonological changes - some sounds are not pronounced in Pashto, like emphatic consonants or the letter ع . The same with ح - in certain words like صاحب the ح is hardly pronounced, I saw this word written without ح .

Other exapmles: استاد instead of استاذ ,
مانا or معنا ....both are correct.

[Kushan Prince]

so invent a new script which is perfect for pashto

Will do Hun! If I find time on my hands.