Sorry for bumping an ancient thread but I find the topic interesting and hope the discussion can be continued.
This paper discusses the central plateau dialects:
https://www.academia.edu/8074684/_Media ... n_Plateau_The author contends that the original vernaculars of the major cities of Central Iran, including Esfahan, Tehran, Yazd and Kashan were once part of this group, and that the major shift to New Persian happened during and after Safavid rule and Shi'ite conversion. He thinks it's likely these dialects were descendents of Median.
The remnants of these Median dialects are still around but they're basically moribund. The Jewish and Zoroastrian communities of the major cities also preserve the original Median dialects of those cities.
This poetry is an example of the old Median dialect of Esfahan:
yā xar mirū yā xar xuδāy.
يا خر ميميرد يا صاحب خر
ey sid (?), tā key gū bixāyi? nē mard-ī pīr hi?
ای نادان، تا کی گه بخایی؟ [مگر] نه مردِ پیری؟
*par(v)āna sūta mabāδ!
پروانه سوخته مباد!
ti/tu biši u ūn bī mayāδ.
تو بروی و او دیگر نیاید
va dih-ī xirāb xarāj nahū.
به دهِ خراب خراج نیست
The situation in the southern provinces is similar, New Persian has replaced the local continuations of Middle Persian in the major cities.
Here's some poetry in the old Shirazi vernacular:
ɣonča sahar maɣaš nake češ a soy-e to toš nadī
غنچه سحر مگر نکرد چشم به سوي تو [و] تورا نديد
tefl-en-o xvašdel-en bešel ɣar vasoy-e xo mē xanat
طفل است و خوش دل است بِهِلَش اگر براي خود مي خندد
The Judeo-Shirazi dialect is probably a continuation of this dialect.
In the perside (south western) dialects these constructions are conserved in the remaining MP dialects spoken in the Kazerun-Fasaa-Shiraz triangle, in Kerman (based on what I've been told) and in Northern Fars dialects like davaani and also in Laari. In Laari as in Northen Ispahani dialects, the agent is always introduced via enclitics, e.g.
I would add: the Bandari dialects, the dialects north around Fareghan, and the Minab area. These are all Perside dialects which have split-ergativity like MP.
Here's some verb conjugations in my own dialect of Larestani:
cheda = raftan "to go"
chedom = raftam
chedesh = rafti
chu = raft
chedem = raftim
chedi = raftid
chedet = raftand
Foe transitive verbs, as said, the agent is introduced via pronominal enclitic, while the verb remains in 3rd singular:
besta = andâxtan
(from MP wistan "to shoot")ombest = andâxtam
otbest = andâxti
oshbest = andâxt
mobest = andâxtim
tobest = andâxtid
shobest = andâxtand
We also preserve the use of istâdan as an auxiliary for the perfect tense, and to form passives, like Middle Persian, also retained by the Fars dialects:
MP:
šud ēstam = I have gone
šud ēstēd = he has gone
nibišt estēd = it is (stands) written
šud ēstād ham = I had gone
šud ēstād = he had gone
nibišt ēstād = it was (stood) written
Larestani:
chedestom = I have gone
chede* = he has gone
naveshte* = it is (stands) written
chedestodom = I had gone
chedestod = he had gone
naveshtestod = it was (stood) written
*the final -st is deleted in 3rd singular
We also have a peculiar way of constructing the present continuous, which has a form like "be in doing". It is also used by Bandari and nearby languages like Bashkardi.
In Lari dialect:
a-chedâ-em = "in-going-I am" = dâram miravam
achedâesh = dâri miravi
achedoy = dârad miravad
achedâam = dârim miravim
achedâi = dârid miravid
achedâen = dârand miravand
There's also a passive past participle in -essa e.g. deressa (paare shode, az daridan), boressa (boride shodeh) etc.
This is from the Middle Iranian passive stem formation -īhist, we have it too in Larestani, eg:
lez-ehest = spilt (intransitive)
chasp-ehest = got stuck [to something]
berz-ehest = roasted (intransitive)
Also kaf- is Parthian for Persian oft- (fall) and is used in all central dialects
kaftan "to fall" was also present in Middle Persian, and is used in Larestani and Bandari which are Perside.
Another interesting feature is the way the agent clitic attaches to pronouns in past transitive constructions. To illustrate, here are some prepositions:
a = to, at (directional complement which often attaches before other prepositions)
az = from
a-se = for
"Ali gave the book to Hasan"
The above sentence in Larestani, if structured in a more Persian way, would be:
Ali ketâb a Hasan
oshda
But, the way we usually form it is by attaching the agent clitic (
sh) to the preposition (
a), and so we get:
Ali ketâb
sh-a Hasan da
"I bought the house from him"
xuna az on
omxeli => xuna
m-az xeli
"He bought me a car"
mâshin
m-ase
oshxeli => mâshin
sh-ase xeled
om