Lisaan ud-Da'wat or Lisaan o Da'wat il Bohra or Lisan ud-Dawat (, da'wat ni zabaan; abbreviated LDB) is the language of the Dawoodi Bohras and Alavi Bohras, Isma'ili Shi'a offshoots of the Muslim community primarily from Gujarat, who follow the Taiyebi doctrines and theology."Taiyebi" refers to the 21st Imam at-Taiyeb purportedly and ostensibly from the progeny of Lady Fatimah, the daughter of Prophet Mohammmad. After the seclusion of at-Taiyeb, the doctrines that emerged and propagated by his missionaries in Yemen is followed by Bohra communities of Gujarat The language is based on a Neo-Indo-Aryan language, Gujarati, but incorporates a heavy amount of Arabic, Urdu, and Persian vocabulary and is written in the Arabic script naskh style. Originally a ritual language, since the period of the missionaries (دعاۃ) in Ahmedabad around 1005 AH/1597 AD it has also been propagated as the vernacular language for members of the Bohra communities, but the version used by their religious leader-SaiyednaIt is a honorific word used for the missionary of Bohra communities around the world since the succession of the missionaries in Yemen from 532 AH/1138 AD and his assembly members or clergy still differs slightly from the Gujarati spoken by their community members. The reason is that the religious sermons is highly loaded and peppered with the inputs and sentences of Arabic language having direct references with ancient sectarian Bohra literature linked with Egyptian and Yemeni phase of Da'wah.It is a rightly guided spiritual mission after the demise of Muhammad in 11 AH/633 AD The earliest Bohras were Indian, and they spoke Gujarati. With the continuous effort of the Taiyebi leadership (of Yemen and their representatives in India) to promote Qur'anic and Islamic learning within the community, the language of these texts has, over time, percolated Lisaan ul-Da'wat, with Arabic (and Persian) words replacing part of the Gujarati lexicon.
Some key works in Lisan al-Dawat are the translations of the Arabic literary masterpieces of Isma'ili literature written during the reign of the Fatimids in Persia and Egypt (225-525 AH/840-1131 AD) and also the Taiyebi literature written in Yemen by 24 different missionaries (pl. du'aat) between 532 and 974 AH/1137-1566 AD, with summaries and admonitions in poetic form too. The Da'i-missionary (working under the guidance of Imam) was also expected to be sufficiently familiar with the teachings of different religions as well as various Islamic traditions, whilst knowing the local language and customs of the province in which he was to operate. This is the reason that the Bohra leadership of Ahmedabad phase (946-1070 AH/1540-1660) made notable efforts to amalgamate Yemeni Arabic lexicon with the local language. The influx of the Persian words during this time is due to the Mughals ruling the major parts of Gujarat. During the course of time this unique language became an identity for Bohras. Arabic tradition of religious writings continued in India and some works composed recently in Lisan al-Dawat is highly Arabicized as they are either translations or adaptations of earlier works and intended for popular use.
Many in the community look upon their language Lisan al-Dawat as a bridge to keep united irrespective of their region, occupation and education. Also it serves as a unique tool to distinguish themselves from other Gujarati communities who rather speak the same Gujarati but devoid of Arabic accent and vocabulary. In more recent times (i.e. since the beginning of 14th century AH), some of these works have appeared in a form of Arabicized Gujarati written in Arabic script, the official language of the Bohra Da'wah, so as to reach a wider public. In South Asia, the official language of the Sulaymani Bohras is Urdu, the language commonly used by the majority of the Muslims of India and Pakistan. They also deliver their sermons in Urdu.
Alphabet Vowel diacritics Though not normally written and only implied, like Urdu, Lisan ud-Dawat also has diacritics taken from the Arabic language to express short vowels.
+ Diacritics used in Lisan ud-DawatSymbolNameUsageIPANotesKhari Zabara[ə]Used in Arabic loanwords such as ‘’ (‘Jesus’)Zabara[ə]Zabar Tanwīn-an[ən]Used for Arabic loanwords such as ‘’ (‘Immediately’)Maddahā[ɑː]Used only for Alif Maddah ( + = ), not written as a separate diacritic Zeri[ɪ]Written underneath a letterZer Tanwīnin[ɪn]Rarely used for Arabic loanwords, written underneath a letterPeshu[u]Hamza-Used on vowels to indicate a diphthong between two vowels, examples such as: ‘’, ‘’, ‘‘, and , not written as a separate diacriticTashdīdGeminite[.]Doubles a consonant, goes above the letter being doubled - = kk
Consonants
No.NameIPAFinal glyphMedial glyphInitial glyphIsolated glyphGujarati 1 alif અ, આ 2 bē બ 3 pē પ 4 tē ત 5 ṭē ટ 6 s̱ē સ થ઼ 7 jīm જ 8 cē ચ 9 baṛī ḥē હ 10 k͟hē ખ઼ 11 dāl દ 12 ḍāl ડ 13 ẕāl ઝ઼ ધ઼ 14 rē ર 15 ṛē દ઼ 16 zē ઝ઼ 17 zhē _ 18 sīn સ 19 shīn શ 20 ṣvād સ 21 ẓvād ઝ઼ 22 t̤oē ત 23 z̤oē ઝ઼ 24 ain અ,આ,ઇ,ઈ,ઉ,ઊ,ઍ,ઐ,ઓ,ઔ 25 g͟hain ગ઼ 26 fē ફ઼ 27 qāf ક઼ 28 kāf ક 29 gāf ગ 30 lām લ 31Rarely used in literature, except when a distinction between the pronunciation of the non-retroflex character is needed ḷām ળ 32 mīm મ 33 nūn ન 34 ṇūṇ ણ 35 nūn ġunnah ં 36 vāo ઊ, ઓ 37 choṭī hēgol hē હ 38 do-cashmī hē or varied / - 39 hamzah , - 40choṭī yēઈ, ઍ 41baṛī yē ઍ, ઐ
No Lisan ud Dawat words begin with , or . The digraphs of aspirated consonants are as follows. In addition, , form ligatures with : () and () and unlike Urdu Lisan ud-Dawat word which have t at last is always written with ۃ , not ت. For example the Urdu word - دعوت. The Lisan ud-Dawat word - دعوۃ.
Aspirated Consonants No. Digraph Transcription IPA Example1 bh 2 ph 3 th 4 ṭh 5 jh 6 ch 7 dh 8 ḍh 9 rh 10 ṛh 11 kh 12 gh 13 lh 14 mh 15 nh 16 wh 17 yh
Vowels
RomanizationFinalMiddleInitiala (અ)N/Aā (આ)ـَا، ـَی، ـَہi (ઇ)N/Aī (ઈ)ē (ઍ)ai (ઐ)u (ઉ)N/Aū (ઊ)o (ઓ)au (ઔ) (vadī ye) is only found in the final position, when writing the sounds e (ઍ) or æ (ઐ), and in initial and medial positions, it takes the form of .
Alavi Bohras (Lisaan ud-Da'wat il-'Alaviyah (LDA)-لسان الدعوۃ العلویۃ)
Origin The Alavi Bohra community are Muslims who believe in Shi'a Isma'ili Taiyebi doctrines, beliefs and tenets. The 18th Faatemi Imaam Maulaana al-Mustansir Billah (478 AH/1094 AD), from the Aal-progeny of Muhammad al-Mustafaa, held the seat of the Fatimid Empire in Egypt and acted as the sole authority of the Shi'a Isma'ili branch of Islam. In his era, Maulaai Ahmad (مولائي احمد) along with his accomplices Maulaai Abdullah and Maulaai Nuruddin, on Mustansir Billah's decree, arrived at the coast of Gujarat (Khambhat) along with a group of traders. His responsibility was to spread Shi'i Islam in the guise of doing trade. At that time, Sidhraj JaysinghA the ruler of Gujarat State who secretly accepted Isma'ili Faith on the hands of Maulaai Ahmad and was buried privately where only his close associates knew his place of burial was ruling in Patan-Sidhpur, and a small Isma'ili community was already residing in Gujarat who were well-versed with local customs and language. They helped the clergy in every possible way to dispense the word of Imam among those Brahmins who showed sincere interest in Isma'ili doctrine. Historical accounts points that early Taiyebi preachers-maulaai had to travel far and wide on the commands of their Da'i to such a remote place where they found the native language as a big hindrance to their religious agenda. So, they first learned and mastered the local language and it proved as a best tool of communication.
At the end of the fifth century AH, many such representatives of Faatemi Imaam were also present in Yemen. Every Isma'ili preacher who came to India after MaulaaiIt is the term used in Da'wah Hierarchy where a person acts as per the orders of Da'i Ahmad, either from Egypt or from Yemen, had Arabic as his mother tongue and it happened to be the official language of the Fatimids. With the help of Gujarati speaking Isma'ili traders they gradually learnt the local native language to propagate their religion. It also happened that, in order to learn more about their religious teachings, many people from Gujarat migrated to Yemen to get religious teachings directly from the Da'i (the representative of the Imam of Egypt). This took place in the 10th century AH/16th century AD. This is where the basic Yemeni Arabic language of Taiyebis first got combined with the local Gujarati language, giving birth to a new form of language which got more correlative, complex and comprehensive over time. Scholarly exchanges took place, mainly consisting of Indians visiting Yemen for instruction and guidance. The predominant language for the literary output of this period remained Arabic, although at a later stage the use of Gujarati in Arabic script became common. This form of language got the name Lisaan ud-Da'wat (Lisan al-Dawah) or Lughat ud-Da'wat (لغۃ الدعوۃ).
Language contact of Arabic, Sanskrit, and Gujarati with Persian and Urdu A genealogical classification of languages is a classification according to their development from common ancestors. A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ancestor, called the proto language of that family. Let's see the tree diagrams of the two major language families which will help us to establish the relation among the languages. The first is Proto Indo-European Language and the other is Proto Hemito-Semitic/Afro-Asiatic language families.
During the mid-16th century, Mughals invaded India through the Gulf of Khambhat (Cambay), since Khambhat was then the biggest port of India. Mughals came from Persia (Iran) and spoke Persian (Farsi). This was the period when Bohra missionaries practiced and preached their faith openly and the local people felt their presence in Ahmedabad. Thus, with their acumen of doing trade and business, their social and commercial activities in and around Ahmedabad got momentum. Their language too progressed and it became the blend of Arabic, Urdu, Gujarati and Persian now known as a Bohra Gujarati Zabaan. Also, Persian art and culture with some Gujarati Hindu traditions got amalgamated with Indian Bohra art and culture.
With the invasion of the Mughals arose a need for trade and commerce. New trade routes were opened between India and Persia. Along this route, Turkic people also started trade and commerce. They spoke a Persio-Arabic language. The amalgamation of their language with the contemporary language of India gave rise to a new language, a link language called Urdu, due to the mingling of Persian and Hindavi (aam boli). Thus it is a Pidgin language and a part of the Proto Indo-European language family. During this era, in 1030 AH/1621 AD, there was a major schism of succession of religious authority (da'i) in Ahmedabad among the Bohras. A separation occurred and a small group of Bohras believed in the Da'iship (leadership) of the 29th Da'i al-Mutlaq Saiyedna Ali Saheb, the grandson of the 28th Da'i Saiyedna Shaikh Aadam saheb. They were called as "Alavi" from now onward after their first da'i "Ali" after the schism. Thus, Alavi Bohras maintained their own separate identity from other Bohra groups of Gujarat and Yemen, but the basic language pattern of all the Bohra communities remained unchanged, unlike the Sulaymani Bohras who chose to embrace Urdu as their community language.