Overall, Persian varieties are divided into a Western group mainly in Iran and an Eastern group in Afghanistan and Central Asia, with transitional varieties. The northwestern outpost of Persian is Caucasian Tat Persian spoken in an Azeri Turkic, Caucasian and Armenian environment, with three varieties: (a) M uslim and (b) Jewish (Juhuri) in Azerbaijan and Dagestan, and (c) Christian Armeno-Tat in Armenia. (1) Persian sociolinguistic registers include: (a) Modern Standard Persian, the written norm in Iran (Farsi) and Afghanistan (Dari), evolved during the last few centuries: (b) Colloquial Persian, specifically the normalized form of Colloquial Tehrani Persian, used for most polite spoken communication, which increasingly shows reflexes in the standard language; (c) Xodemuni 'our own', « xod-eman-i), i.e. familiar speech, the non-normalized local variant such as in Tehran. (2) Regional and local varieties in the urban centers throughout Iran in non-Persian dialect and language areas. (3) Khorasan Persian varieties, representing a major distinct regional subgroup and stretching from east of Tehran to the Afghan border. Tehran to the Afghan border. Varieties straddling the Iran-Afghan border: (I) closely related Kohistani in Iran and Afghan Farsiwani, and (2) Sistani on both sides of the border. See Kieffer 1983, inc!. map and detailed table. (I) Afghan Persian, officially called Dari, mostly close to literary Persian. (2) Kaboli (Kaboli), increasingly become the standard Afghan vernacular. Large regional Persian varieties include: (3) Herati (Herati) near the Iranian border. (4) Ayamaqi (Aymaqi) near Herat (in pockets also in Iranian Khorasan). (5) Hazaragi (Hazaragi), stretching northeast through the Afghan center, some in Iran. (6) Afghan Tajik in the NE, including Afghan Badakhashani, the latter with the outpost Madaglashti near Peshawar in Pakistan. Note that the terms "Tajik" as well as "Dari" are sometimes erroneously used collectively for all Afghan varieties.
Russian Assault on Persia's Territorial Integrity: Tsarist Expansionism
