Zoroastrian Dari (), also known as the Bahdinan dialect () and often simply known as Dari, is a Northwestern Iranian language, and specifically a variety of the Central Plateau languages. Nowadays, it is used as a first language by an estimated 8,000 to 15,000 Zoroastrians in and around the cities of Yazd and Kerman in central Iran, and by the Irani community in India.
Dari is also known as Behdināni or pejoratively as Gabri (sometimes Gavrŭni or Gabrōni). Dari has numerous dialects.
Genealogy
Genealogically, Zoroastrian Dari is a member of the Northwestern Iranian language subfamily, which includes several other closely related languages, for instance, Kurdish, and Balochi. These Northwestern Iranian languages are a branch of the larger Western Iranian language group, which is, in turn, a subgroup of the Iranian language family.
Name
The language known as Zoroastrian Dari is also referred to as 'Behdinâni' ("language of the people of good religion") or pejorative name, 'Gabri' ("language of the infidels"), derived from 'Kafir' ("infidels", referring to the non-Muslims).