398 A Grammar of the Cashmeeree Language. [No. 150. 



The Cashmeeree language (Kaushir Zeo,) is not generally a written 

 one; the character called Sharadd, (after the Goddess of that name,) 

 having been, and being chiefly used to write Sanscrit works. The 

 language is without doubt of Sanscrit origin, but has been consider- 

 ably corrupted by the number of Persian words grafted on it by the 

 Mahommedan conquerors of the province. It differs slightly in almost 

 every pergunna. For instance, a cry in the city is called kreak ; at 

 Islamabad krik ; and in other parts krek. A hill in the city is called 

 labur , and labur in the districts. In the city the bill of a bird is call- 

 ed toent, and in the suburbs tsoents ; also a snake is in the former 

 called sareep, and in the latter sriph. The dialect spoken at Kishte- 

 war is, as might be expected, a mixture of Cashmeeree and Punjabee. 



From the number of vowels and diphthongs, the language it would 

 appear cannot be written correctly, either in the Devanagaree or Arabic 

 character. 



A Cashmeeree in speaking Persian, munches it, as it were with, and 

 hisses it through, his teeth. 



The ou (of our), of the Persian houz, (a cistern,) and the Hindustanee 

 koudee, (a shell,) is changed in the mouth of a Cashmeeree into oa (of 

 oar) and they pronounce them hoaz and koadee. They also change 

 Kabul (the a of car) into koabul. 



They moreover change the Persian and Hindustanee ai, (of aisle,) of 

 paisa, (a copper coin,) which is pronounced as d i into a i or aai, and 

 they drawl out paainsa. In fact, the language is typical of the de- 

 pressed and sneaking nation. 



Natives of Cashmeer, who have acquired a knowledge of the more 

 free and elegant Persian, are almost ashamed of their own puerile na- 

 tive tongue, which quality is imparted to it chiefly I suspect from the 

 frequent occurrence of the consonant ts (of * prints,') known both to the 

 Pushtoo and Mahratthee, and the various dipthong of i. 



