The Tats (
Tati: ''Irünə Tâtün'', ) are an
Iranian people living in northern
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
, especially in
Qazvin province.
The Tats of Iran are mainly
Muslim
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
and number about 300,000.
["Azari, the Old Iranian Language of Azerbaijan," Encyclopaedia Iranica, op. cit., Vol. III/2, 1987 by E. Yarshater. External link]
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Etymology
Starting from the Middle Ages, the term '' Tat (ethnonym), Tati'' was used not only for the Caucasus but also for northwestern Iran, where it was extended to almost all of the local Iranian languages except Persian and Kurdish.
Language
The Tats of Iran use the Tati language, a group of northwestern Iranian dialects which are closely related to the Talysh language
Talysh (, , ) is a Northwestern Iranian languages, Northwestern Iranian language spoken in the northern regions of the Iranian provinces of Gilan Province, Gilan and Ardabil Province, Ardabil and the southern regions of the Republic of Azerbaij ...
. Persian and Azerbaijani are also spoken.
Currently, the term ''Tati'' and ''Tati language'' is used to refer to a particular group of north-western Iranian dialects (Chali, Danesfani, Hiaraji, Hoznini, Esfarvarini, Takestani, Sagzabadi, Ebrahimabadi, Eshtehardi, Hoini, Kajali, Shahroudi, Harzani) in Iranian Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan or Azarbaijan (, , ), also known as Iranian Azerbaijan, is a historical region in northwestern Iran that borders Iraq and Turkey to the west and Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the Azerbaijani exclave of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republ ...
, as well as south of it in the provinces of Qazvin
Qazvin (; ; ) is a city in the Central District (Qazvin County), Central District of Qazvin County, Qazvin province, Qazvin province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the largest city in the provi ...
and Zanjan. These dialects have a certain affinity to the Talysh language
Talysh (, , ) is a Northwestern Iranian languages, Northwestern Iranian language spoken in the northern regions of the Iranian provinces of Gilan Province, Gilan and Ardabil Province, Ardabil and the southern regions of the Republic of Azerbaij ...
, Mazanderani language and may be descendants of the extinct Old Azari language.تات
Notable Tats
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Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Iranian footballer who plays for
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
and
Feyenoord
Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Netherlands, Dutch professional association football, football club based in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football league system, Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the ...
See also
*
Tat people (Caucasus)
*
Tati language (Iran)
*
Tat language (Caucasus)
Tat, also known as Caucasian Persian, Tat/Tati Persian,Gernot Windfuhr, "Persian Grammar: history and state of its study", Walter de Gruyter, 1979. pg 4:""Tat- Persian spoken in the East Caucasus"" or Caucasian Tat, is a Southwestern Iranian la ...
*
History of Tat people
References
External links
*
Sample of the Gozarkhani language
{{Ethnic groups in Iran
Iranian ethnic groups
Ethnic groups in Iran
Qazvin province