Central Neo-Aramaic

A large number of speakers of these languages have moved to al-Jazira in Syria, particularly the towns of Qamishli and al Hasakah.

Most immediately, they have grown out of Eastern Aramaic colloquial varieties that were spoken in the Tur Abdin region and the surrounding plains for a thousand years.

However, they have been influenced by Classical Syriac, which itself was the variety of Eastern Aramaic spoken farther west, in the Osroenian city of Edessa.

That development was interrupted by the breakout of the First World War (1914–1918) and the atrocities committed during Seyfo (genocide) against various Aramaic-speaking communities, including those in the Tur Abdin region.

Those events had a long-lasting impact on future development of Turoyo-speaking communities, affecting all spheres of their life, including culture, language and literature.