Sorani Kurdish is written in a modified Perso-Arabic script with right-to-left text direction, creating technical challenges that most translation vendors are not equipped to handle, from bidirectional text rendering in digital formats to Arabic-script OCR that fails on Sorani-specific characters.
5 active or scoped services: 5 active · 0 scoped · 0 review-only
Related project languages: Dari, Kurdish Kurmanji
Service coverage for Kurdish (Sorani)
Service line
Planning status
Dialect scope
Start path
Turnaround note
Translation and review
Active coverage
Sulaymaniyah, Erbil
Brief review
Confirmed on brief
AI data annotation
Active coverage
Standard
Brief review
Confirmed on brief
Audio transcription
Active coverage
Sulaymaniyah
Brief review
Confirmed on brief
Subtitling
Active coverage
Standard
Brief review
Confirmed on brief
Dubbing
Active coverage
Sulaymaniyah
Brief review
Confirmed on brief
The project brief confirms the service, review team and schedule.
Kurdish (Sorani) translation in practice
For Kurdish (Sorani) work, we confirm the language variety, writing direction, key terms, and reviewer against your audience and files before work starts.
Kurdish (Sorani) translation depends on audience, script, and review fit
Sorani Kurdish belongs to the Western Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian language family. Approximately 8 million people speak it, concentrated in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and the Kurdistan Province of Iran. It has co-official status in Iraq alongside Arabic and is the primary language of instruction in Iraqi Kurdistan's schools. Sorani uses a 33-letter modified Perso-Arabic alphabet distinct from both standard Arabic and the Latin-based script used by Kurmanji Kurdish. No major commercial machine translation engine produces reliable Sorani output, and Arabic-script NLP tools routinely misclassify Sorani text as Arabic or Farsi.
We confirm the language variety, subject matter, review approach and timing for Kurdish (Sorani) during project scoping. We check the proposed linguists for the variety and domain the work needs.
Sorani Kurdish is written in a modified Perso-Arabic script with 33 letters, distinct from Kurmanji Kurdish which uses the Latin alphabet, despite the two being varieties of the same language
Spoken by approximately 8 million people primarily in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and the Kurdistan Province of Iran
Sorani is the co-official language of Iraq alongside Arabic and the medium of instruction in schools across the Kurdistan Region of Iraq
A security-sensitive program requires Sorani Kurdish
with Arabic-script handling, dialect-matched linguists, and security-scoped workflows for sensitive content originating from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq
A healthcare or humanitarian organization needs patient-facing materials in Sorani
and the current vendor cannot produce RTL Arabic-script output that renders correctly across digital and print formats
An AI data project requires Sorani Kurdish annotation or transcription
and existing vendors lack linguists who can distinguish Sorani from Arabic, Farsi, or Kurmanji Kurdish in mixed-language datasets
A multilingual program includes Sorani alongside Arabic or Farsi
and the vendor treats all three as interchangeable Perso-Arabic script languages, ignoring the distinct Sorani alphabet and orthography
How MoniSa QA works for Kurdish (Sorani) translation
All Sorani Kurdish work follows MoniSa's 3-layer review model: translator (domain-matched, Sorani script native with RTL expertise), editor (bilingual accuracy and terminology adherence), proofreader or community validator (cultural and contextual review). Same standards applied regardless of language resource scarcity.
Step 1
Scope and match
Dialect region, domain, and RTL rendering requirements mapped before linguist assignment. For Sorani, scoping includes a script-compatibility audit, target platform rendering is tested for Sorani-specific characters before production begins.
Step 2
Produce and review the work
Dialect-matched Sorani linguists produce work in validated Perso-Arabic script. The review layer includes bidirectional text validation: mixed Sorani-Latin content (common in technical documents) is checked for correct directionality switches.
Step 3
Deliver the files and review notes
Batch delivery with QA reports covering linguistic accuracy, RTL rendering integrity, and character-set validation. Output tested against target display environments to confirm Sorani script renders without fallback characters.
Backup path
Backup reviewer fit, availability and timing are confirmed in the project brief before commitment.
Reviewer path
Rare-language deliverables are held to the same quality metrics as high-resource languages. No quality discount, no reduced review layers.
Sourcing status after scope
Sourcing path and review depth are confirmed in the project brief.
Do I need Kurdish (Sorani) interpreting or Kurdish (Sorani) translation?
For a live conversation, include the working language pair, setting, date and duration. Interpreting is booked separately from written translation. Written translation is quoted as content; live interpreting is booked by session time.
Confirm the required variety: Sulaymaniyah Sorani, Erbil Sorani, Mukri (Iranian Kurdistan). The proposed interpreter needs the relevant subject knowledge and session qualifications. Availability and any backup arrangements are confirmed before booking.
Can you support Kurdish (Sorani) translation requests?
Yes. Sorani linguists on our verified network are trained to identify and segment Sorani text from Arabic and Farsi in mixed-script environments. Language identification is validated during the scoping phase for annotation and transcription projects.
How do you handle Sorani Arabic script in digital formats?
All Sorani deliverables undergo RTL rendering validation, bidirectional text checks for mixed Sorani-Latin content, and Sorani-specific character rendering tests. We verify output against target platforms before delivery to prevent fallback character issues common with Sorani's non-standard Arabic characters.
What is the sourcing timeline for Sorani Kurdish linguists?
Turnaround is confirmed in the project brief. For ongoing programs, linguist pools are established during onboarding to enable faster assignment on subsequent batches.
Do you cover both Sulaymaniyah and Erbil Sorani?
Both regional variants are covered through our verified network. Linguists are matched to the specific regional variant your audience requires. Mukri (Iranian Kurdistan) Sorani is available through extended sourcing.
Do I need Kurdish (Sorani) interpreting or Kurdish (Sorani) translation?
Kurdish (Sorani) translation produces written content and is scoped by file, volume and review needs. Kurdish (Sorani) interpreting supports a live conversation and is booked by date, duration and setting. If the assignment includes both documents and a live session, list both in the brief so each can be quoted separately.
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Include your language pairs, content type, volume, deadline and review requirements.
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