Azeri Language, Shows the Culture of the People of Tabriz
Azeri language is one of the Turkish languages mixed with the Tabrizi dialect. The dialect of Tabriz is a specific and sweet accent that shows the authenticity and culture of the people of Tabriz. Historians and archaeologists consider the Azeri language a continuation of the Medes language. Tabriz is considered one of the most ancient cities in Iran, which has experienced many bitter and sweet events throughout history. The language of the people of Tabriz is Azeri. Tabrizi people study and write in Farsi, but they speak Azeri in their daily routines.
Azerbaijan in Iran includes the provinces of Ardabil, East Azerbaijan, West Azerbaijan, and Zanjan province. The current language of the residents of Azerbaijan province is Azerbaijani Turkish, which people speak in different parts of it with different dialects. Azerbaijan written and official language has been Azeri for most of its historical periods. Most of the writings and works of the people of this region were in Persian and Azeri in different eras.
The mother Tongue of the Tabrizi People
One of the most valuable assets of the people of every city and country is the language they call their mother tongue. Language is a set of conventional signs used along one dimension to convey a message. We classify languages in a group called language families. Each country contains a specific language for itself, and these languages and dialects take on an ethnic flavour in each city. The language of any country is its identity. Therefore, conserving the language with all characteristics, dialects, and accents is preserving the traditions and ancient values of the nation. According to linguists, the Turkish language is an exquisite, pleasant, authentic, and legal language containing thousands of years of roots. All the rules of the language are rhythmic and based on melody. The Turkish language, the common language of the Turkic-speaking nations, ranks fifth in terms of the number of world speakers after Chinese, Indian, English, and Spanish.
History of the Azeri Language
According to what the historians have written in the valuable historical books of the world, we can say that the Azeri language has had a specific place in the civilization of the region since about 7 thousand years ago. In this case, some time ago, a team of American and Iranian archaeologists made valuable discoveries in Teppe Hasanlu (Hasanlu hills) in West Azerbaijan. After conducting extensive research on them, they found out that they date back to 6000 years BC. The language of the people of Azerbaijan changed twice in history. First time about 3500 years ago, before the Medes entered the Iranian plateau, the people of Azerbaijan spoke Guti and Lullubi languages. But, when Persian Medes entered Persia from the north, had changed the language of the people of Iran and Azerbaijan.
The second change in the language of the Azerbaijan people occurred when the Sassanid dynasty fell to the Arabs, after which, as a result of the attacks, migration, and settlement of Turkish-speaking tribes in Persia and present-day Turkey, the language of the people of Azerbaijan changed from Pahlavi to Turkish in a short period. According to the evidence in the history books, until the end of the Sassanid rule, about 1400 years ago, the Azerbaijanis, like other border guards of those empires, were a Persian group. Azerbaijan, Iran, the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Eastern Rome, which is Turkey today, were not Turkish-speaking.
The Changes of the Azeri language Over Time
After the Seljuks and the centuries-long continuous migrations of Turkic tribes from Central Asia and Khorasan to present-day Iran and Turkey, Iran’s Azerbaijan, Turkey, and the eastern part of the Caucasus, which is today the Republic of Azerbaijan, became a Turkic language. Before the arrival of the Turkish language in the region, their spoken language was one of the branches of the Medes language. The Medes language of the Azerbaijan people was called Tati during the period of Turkic rule by the Turkish clans who came to the region.
Today, the Tati language has remained in the provinces of Qazvin, Zanjan, Markazi, and Ardabil. The changes in spoken language from Tati to Azeri started during the rule of the Seljuks. And during the Turkmen reign and the beginning of the Safavid era, most cities and villages learned this language. The Azerbaijani Turkish language is from the Oghuz branch of the Turkic languages of the Altai language group. The origin of Turkish languages was the steppes of southern Siberia, and its main speakers are of Turkish descent.
The Influence of the Mongols in the Language
Some say that the Mongols brought the Turkish language to Persia, which is baseless, and that the Ilkhanate were Mongols and not Turks. The Mongolian language is one of the neighbours of the Turkish language in Central Asia, but these two languages are different. The migration of Turkic-speaking tribes to Persia and Asia Minor started around 1000 AD, and the Mongol attacks began almost 200 years later in 1206 and lasted till 1324 AD. It means when the Mongols came to Persia, Anatolia and Mesopotamia, the Turkish language had taken root in this region for 200-300 years. It took more than 500 years for the Turks to migrate and settle, and when the Mongols attacked, their number was much less than the Turks, so their language did not become Mongolian, and they could not introduce their language to the Turks of Azerbaijan.