Kurmanji Grammar Series 14 — Prepositions and Postpositions (Daçek). Expanded English explanations and Kurmanji examples, including prepositions, paired constructions, oblique case, exercises and answers. Download the five-page PDF lesson.
Learning objectives — Armancên fêrbûnê
Learn simple prepositions, relational expressions, paired constructions, time and direction phrases, and oblique complements. English prepositions do not always map one-to-one onto Kurmanji.
1. What are adpositions? — Daçek çi ne?
A preposition precedes its complement (ji min — from me). A following element is found in ji min re (to/for me); paired constructions include di malê de (in the house). Multiword expressions such as li ser maseyê are often taught as compound prepositional expressions. Terminology varies.
2. Core prepositions — Daçekên pêşîn
| Kurmanji | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ji | from; of; than | Ez ji malê têm. — I come from home. |
| bi | with; by; using | Ez bi otobêsê diçim. — I go by bus. |
| li | at; in; on | Ew li malê ye. — He/she is at home. |
| bo | for; to (regional) | Ev pirtûk bo te ye. — This book is for you. |
| berî | before | Berî dersê ez dixwînim. — I study before class. |
| piştî | after | Piştî dersê ez diçim malê. — I go home after class. |
| bê | without | Ez bê te naçim. — I will not go without you. |
| heta / heya | until; as far as | Ez heta sibê dimînim. — I stay until tomorrow. |
| wek / weke | like; as | Ew wek mamosteyekî diaxive. — He speaks like a teacher. |
| ji bo | for; for the purpose of | Ev ji bo te ye. — This is for you. |
3. A note on classification
Berî and piştî precede their complements in these examples; they are not postpositions. Re follows the complement in ji min re. Not every two-word expression is a circumposition.
4. Place: common multiword expressions
| Kurmanji pattern | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| li ser … | on; on top of | Pirtûk li ser maseyê ye. — The book is on the table. |
| li bin … | under; beneath | Pisîk li bin maseyê ye. — The cat is under the table. |
| li ber … | in front of; near | Ew li ber derî ye. — He/she is in front of the door. |
| li paş … | behind | Ew li paş malê ye. — He/she is behind the house. |
| li nav … | inside; among | Ew li nav odeyê ye. — He/she is inside the room. |
| li kêleka … | beside; next to | Kursî li kêleka maseyê ye. — The chair is beside the table. |
| li nêzî … | near | Dibistan li nêzî malê ye. — The school is near the house. |
| li dûrî … | far from | Ew li dûrî bajarê me ye. — It is far from our city. |
| li hember … | opposite; facing | Dikan li hember dibistanê ye. — The shop is opposite the school. |
| li dora … | around | Zarok li dora maseyê ne. — The children are around the table. |
| li rex … | beside; alongside | Ew li rex min e. — He/she is beside me. |
5. Paired and postpositional patterns
| Pattern | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ji … re | to; for (recipient) | Min ji te re nivîsand. — I wrote to you. |
| di … de | in; within; during | Ew di malê de ye. — He/she is in the house. |
| di … re | through; along | Ew di rê de dimeşe. — He/she walks along the road (regional/contextual construction). |
| ji … ve | from; since | Ji duh ve baran dibare. — It has been raining since yesterday. |
| bi … re | with; together with | Ez bi te re têm. — I am coming with you. |
| ji … heta … | from … until … | Ji duşemê heta înê. — From Monday to Friday. |
6. Oblique case
Many adpositions take oblique complements. Pronouns: ez → min, tu → te, ew → wî (masculine singular) or wê (feminine singular), em → me, hûn → we, ew → wan (plural). Thus ji min, bi te, ji wî, ji wê, ji wan. Noun inflection varies by gender, number and case.
7. English → Kurmanji quick reference
| English | Kurmanji |
|---|---|
| from home | ji malê |
| with me | bi min re |
| without me | bê min |
| for you | ji bo te / bo te |
| to you | ji te re |
| on the table | li ser maseyê |
| under the table | li bin maseyê |
| in the house | di malê de |
| near the house | li nêzî malê |
| behind the house | li paş malê |
| before class | berî dersê |
| after class | piştî dersê |
| until tomorrow | heta sibê |
| since yesterday | ji duh ve |
| like a teacher | wek mamosteyekî |
| from Monday to Friday | ji duşemê heta înê |
8. Direction versus location
Ew li malê ye. — He/she is at home. Ez diçim malê. — I am going home. The latter does not mechanically add li for English “to.” Motion constructions require attention to the verb and noun form.
9. Time relations
Berî dersê — before class; piştî dersê — after class; di havînê de — in summer; heta sibê — until tomorrow; ji duh ve — since yesterday.
10. Place and movement in context
Pirtûk li ser maseyê ye. — The book is on the table. Pisîk li bin maseyê ye. — The cat is under the table. Kursî li kêleka maseyê ye. — The chair is beside the table.
11. Pronouns and recipients
Compare ji min — from me; bi min re — with me; ji min re — to/for me. The paired constructions express distinct relations; do not omit re.
12. Regional and semantic variation
Kurmanji varies by region. Bo and ji bo, the range of li, and some spatial expressions differ in usage. English “with” may refer to accompaniment (bi … re) or instrument (bi).
13. Mini dialogue — Axaftin
A: Pirtûk li ku ye? — Where is the book? B: Pirtûk li ser maseyê ye. — The book is on the table. A: Pisîk li ku ye? — Where is the cat? B: Pisîk li bin maseyê ye. — The cat is under the table. A: Tu bi kê re diçî? — Who are you going with? B: Ez bi hevalê xwe re diçim. — I am going with my friend.
14. Frequent mistakes — Çewtiyên gelemperî
Do not translate English “in/on/to/with” word for word. Use oblique pronouns after ji and many other adpositions (ji min, not ji ez). Keep following elements in ji … re and bi … re. Do not classify berî and piştî as postpositions when they precede the complement.
15. Exercises — Rahênan
A. Translate: ji min; bi min re; bê te; ji te re. B. Translate: on the table; under the table; near the house; behind the house. C. Fill: Pirtûk li ___ maseyê ye. (on). D. Choose: ji ez / ji min. E. Translate: I go by bus. F. Explain bi versus bi … re. G. Translate: from Monday to Friday; after class; since yesterday. H. Identify the following element in ji min re and di malê de. I. Why does Ez diçim malê not literally translate English “to home”? J. Write a sentence with li hember or li kêleka.
16. Answer key — Bersiv
A. from me; with me; without you; to/for you. B. li ser maseyê; li bin maseyê; li nêzî malê; li paş malê. C. ser. D. ji min. E. Ez bi otobêsê diçim. F. bi may mark an instrument; bi … re often marks accompaniment. G. ji duşemê heta înê; piştî dersê; ji duh ve. H. re; de. I. Direction can be encoded by the verb and noun form. J. Dikan li hember dibistanê ye.
17. References and editorial note — Çavkanî
For further study: W. M. Thackston, Kurmanji Kurdish: A Reference Grammar (2006); descriptive work by Geoffrey Haig and Ergin Öpengin. This is an expanded introductory synthesis, not an exhaustive verified lexicon. Some examples require native-speaking editorial review across dialects.
18. Next lesson — Dersa pêş
Lesson 15 — Conjunctions (Girêdek): and, but, because, if, when and clause linking.
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