This historic dictionary was the first French-Kurdish dictionary ever published. Compiled by Auguste Jaba (August Kosciesza-Zaba), a Polish diplomat in the Russian service in the Middle East, this lexical enterprise initiated an interest in the under-studied language of the Kurds. Entries are written in the modified Arabic script for Kurdish, and are provided with a pronunciation key and translation into French. Historians of the languages of Iraq and Kurdistan will find having this dictionary essential to the unfolding growth of knowledge about this region.

August Kosciesza-Zaba (1801-1894) was a Polish orientalist and diplomat. He was educated in Eastern languages in St. Petersburgh and worked as a consul. He researched the Kurds and published his works on them in French.