This guide adapts rules and examples from Microsoft’s 44-page Azerbaijani Localization Style Guide (Latin script variant, originally written for software/UI localization). The underlying linguistic rules apply universally — to legal contracts, medical documents, marketing copy, and any Azerbaijani translation work. Restructured and reformatted as a general Azerbaijani translator reference by ChatsControl.

Azerbaijani Translation Style Guide — Voice, Word Choice & Common Pitfalls (Legal, Medical, Marketing, IT)¶

TL;DR¶

• Azerbaijani is agglutinative — case marking by suffixes replaces English prepositions; never use buradan/bura for prepositional “from/to”, use case suffixes directly (fayllara migrate not bura migrate).
• Possessive pronouns are usually omitted — the affix encodes possession (kompüterim = my computer); over-using kişinin/sənin makes text heavy.
• No gendered pronouns in Azerbaijani — use plural noun forms (insanlar, fərdlər, tələbələr) for generalizations; avoid kişi sözü → use etibarlı insan sözü.
• Articles don’t exist — omit a/an/the in translation; bir for indefinite article is not always correct; definite articles inflect related words with proper suffixes.
• Trademarked product names take case suffixes with a hyphen (Microsoft-un məhsulları, not Microsoftun məhsulları), never as a contraction.

Register and tone for modern Azerbaijani translation¶

Three principles define the modern Azerbaijani register:

• Warm and relaxed — Natural language. Less formal, grounded in honest conversations.
• Crisp and clear — Written for scanning first, reading second.
• Ready to lend a hand — Anticipates what the reader needs.

Why this matters: Formal Sovietic register damages outcomes across spheres. Marketing copy in formal register loses conversion. Patient-facing medical materials in formal register reduce compliance. Software UI in formal register creates friction. Consumer-facing legal documents in plain Azerbaijani improve user understanding.

Word choice¶

Sample voice usage¶

Addressing the user¶

Explanatory text¶

Promoting a feature¶

How-to guidelines¶

Inclusive language¶

General guidelines¶

• Comply with local language laws.
• Use plain language.
• Be mindful of politically disputed cities/countries/regions.
• Represent diverse perspectives.
• Don’t generalize or stereotype.
• Don’t use profane or derogatory terms.

Avoid gender bias¶

Avoid compounds containing gender-specific terms (kişi, qadın).

For generalizations, use plural noun forms (insanlar, fərdlər, tələbələr).

Note: Azerbaijani does not have gendered pronouns — no specific guidelines needed for them.

Accessibility¶

Focus on people, not disabilities. Don’t use words that imply pity (dilxor olan, əzab çəkən). Don’t mention disability unless relevant.

Keep paragraphs short. Aim for one verb per sentence. Spell out və (and), üstəgəl (plus), haqqında (about). Screen readers misread &, +, ~.

Language-specific standards¶

Abbreviations¶

Try not to abbreviate words to less than three letters. End abbreviations with a consonant and a period (except scientific symbols or measurement units). For affixes after the abbreviation: put period and then add the suffix.

Acronyms¶

Acronyms written with capital letters. Some acronyms (Laser) become common nouns.

Localized acronyms¶

Unlocalized acronyms¶

If an acronym must remain in English throughout, the first time it occurs, write it in English followed by parentheses containing the full form and its Azerbaijani equivalence.

Adjectives¶

Localized directly with appropriate terminology. No limitations.

Possessive adjectives¶

Possessive adjectives are usually omitted (your keyboard, your software) — only affixes are needed, as in “my computer”. The personal pronoun is implicit in the verbal form.

Articles¶

There are no articles in Azerbaijani. Usually omit in target translation. However, render carefully considering context. Don’t translate definite and indefinite articles always the same way. Using “bir” for indefinite articles is not always right. Definite articles inflect related words with proper suffixes.

Unlocalized feature names¶

Microsoft product names and non-translated feature names are treated as proper nouns:

Localized feature names¶

Translated feature names are used with a definite or indefinite-like article via context.

Capitalization¶

In English headings, all nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, and subordinate conjunctions are capitalized. Do not apply the same principle to Azerbaijani — follow normal Azerbaijani capitalization. Same rule for software strings.

Many more nouns and verbs are capitalized in English than in Azerbaijani. Don’t mimic source capitalization.

Capitalized in Azerbaijani:

• First letter of Menu, Commands (File, Insert)
• First letter of the first word in phrases consisting of several words (İdarə paneli)
• First letter of sentence, indentation, title
• First letter of abbreviated names of months, days (Yan, İyn, B.e, Tel.)
• Names of Microsoft products that cannot be translated stay as original

Compounds¶

Avoid overly long or complex compounds. Main types: two nouns without affixation; two verbs with different infixes; simple adjective stem + noun stem; two common nouns + participle; repetition of two nouns with hyphen; numeral + numeral.

Conjunctions¶

Use of conjunctions helps convey conversational tone. Avoid slashes — substitute with conjunction “və”.

Genitive¶

Additions to a product or component name are either added with a hyphen or use a periphrastic construction. Attaching a genitive “s” to trademarked product names is not feasible (could be interpreted as modification).

Localizing colloquialism, idioms, and metaphors¶

• Don’t substitute Azerbaijani colloquialism unless it’s a perfect natural fit.
• Translate the intended meaning if it’s essential.
• If colloquialism can be omitted without affecting meaning, omit it.

Modifiers¶

Add information to another element. Can be adjective, adverb, phrase, or clause.

Nouns¶

Azerbaijani is agglutinative — case suffixes mark grammatical role. English common case translates to different cases depending on noun position/meaning. Genitive case is translated as is.

Plural formation¶

Plurality suffix is added after the noun root. Noun does not agree with numbers — does not accept plurality suffix with numbers.

Prepositions¶

Prepositions don’t exist in Azerbaijani as a separate part of speech — case marking on nouns is used. Don’t add demonstrative pronouns (bura/buradan) to compensate.

Pronouns¶

Don’t use separate pronouns to indicate possession — only add affixes. Omit possessive pronouns (your keyboard, your software) unless needed as in “My computer”. Personal pronoun is implicit in verbal form. Don’t ignore the affixes; don’t overuse them.

Punctuation¶

Azerbaijani uses a Latin-based character set. Include a space after punctuation marks (commas, periods).

Comma¶

Use lowercase after comma, unless the word needs capitalization.

Use comma after “məsələn” (for example). Don’t repeat “or” between homogeneous parts — use comma, then “or” only between the last two. When “məsələn” comes in the middle, put comma before and after. Don’t use comma before “etc.” (və s.) — put period after.

Colon¶

Single space after colon. No space before colon.

Dashes and hyphens¶

Hyphen — divides words between syllables, links compound parts, connects parts of inverted/imperative verb forms. No spaces before or after; not a substitute for dash. Also for additions to product/component names.

En dash — as minus sign, usually with spaces. Space omitted only for negative numbers.

Em dash — emphasizes isolated element or introduces non-essential element.

Ellipses (suspension points)¶

Indicates omission, pause, unfinished thought, or end of sentence. Ellipsis character (…). Remove all spaces before the ellipsis sign.

Period¶

Period in all complete sentences. Capitalize the following word unless period is in abbreviation. When abbreviation ends sentence, only one period. No period in titles or headings.

Quotation marks¶

Quotation marks for original source or speech. Several kinds: chevrons («»), curly (“…”), straight (“…”), simple (‘…’). Use straight quotation marks preferably. Don’t use angle brackets <> instead of quotation marks.

Parentheses¶

No space between parentheses and text inside.

Sentence fragments¶

Help convey conversational tone.

Subjunctive¶

Expresses unreal or problematic actions. Translated as certain form of the verb.

Symbols (ampersand)¶

Always translate “&” as “and” (və) when referring to running text. Don’t keep “&” in target unless it is part of a tag, placeholder, shortcut, or other code.

Verbs¶

Be consistent in verb translation in error messages. Always translate “to be” even if omitted in source; be consistent.

Localization considerations¶

Applications, products, and features¶

Application/product names often trademarked; rarely translated. Feature names occasionally trademarked.

Product names with well-localizable parts are usually localized. The preposition “for” is always translated in product names unless the whole product name (including “for”) is trademarked.

Example: “Windows Hello for Business” → “Biznes üçün Windows Hello”.

Version numbers¶

Trademarks¶

Trademarked names and Microsoft Corporation shouldn’t be localized unless local laws require translation.

Software considerations¶

Arrow keys¶

Arrow keys move input focus among controls within a group. Right arrow next, left arrow previous. Home, End, Up, Down have expected behavior. Users cannot navigate out of a control group with arrow keys.

Error messages¶

Standard phrases¶

Error messages containing placeholders¶

Examples: - “Checking Web %1!d! of %2!d!” → “Checking Web <number> of <number>” - “INI file "%1!-.200s!" section” → “INI file "<string>" section”

Keys¶

Key names don’t translate; appear in normal text.

Keyboard shortcuts¶

The ampersand designates keyboard shortcuts. Special characters (I, l, t, r, f — slim characters) — not allowed as shortcuts in Azerbaijani.

FAQ¶

How do I handle prepositions in Azerbaijani?¶

Azerbaijani has no prepositions as a separate part of speech — uses syntactic case marking on nouns. Don’t add bura/buradan (here/from here) to compensate for missing prepositions. “Migrate to” → fayllara miqrasiya edin (not bura miqrasiya edin); “click on” → klikləyin; “welcome to” → …xoş gəlmisiniz; “connect to” → qoşulun.

How should I handle possessive pronouns?¶

Usually omit them. Azerbaijani is agglutinative — possessive suffixes attach to the noun directly: “my computer” = kompüterim (not mənim kompüterim); “your keyboard” = klaviaturanız (not sizin klaviaturanız). Don’t ignore the affixes, but don’t overuse them either. “Windows cannot start your system” → Windows sisteminizi başlada bilmir (the -izi suffix encodes “your”).

How is gender handled in Azerbaijani translation?¶

Azerbaijani has no gendered pronouns at all. For generalizations, use plural noun forms (insanlar, fərdlər, tələbələr). Avoid masculine-default expressions: kişi sözü (man’s word) → etibarlı insan sözü (reliable person’s word); kişi kimi yaşamaq (to live as a man) → mərd insan kimi yaşamaq (to live as a brave person).

How do articles work in Azerbaijani?¶

Articles don’t exist — omit a/an/the in target translation. “Bir” is not a universal indefinite article — using it always is wrong. Definite reference is rendered through inflection with proper suffixes. Microsoft product names stay article-free (Windows Autopilot, Windows Analytics); localized feature names are integrated through context (Kiçildikdə Tapşırıq Menecerini gizlədin).

How do I handle compounds and product names with case marking?¶

Use hyphen between trademarked product names and case suffixes: Microsoft-un məhsulları (not Microsoftun məhsulları, which would be a contraction). Compound types: noun+noun (no affix), verb+verb (with infix), adjective stem+noun stem, common nouns+participle, noun-noun repetition with hyphen, numeral+numeral. Example: “Multi window” = Çoxpəncərəli (not Çoxsaylı pəncərə).

What punctuation rules differ from English?¶

Comma — lowercase follows except for proper nouns. Use comma after məsələn (for example). No comma before “etc.” (və s.) — use period after it. Colon — no space before, single space after. Hyphen joins compounds with no surrounding spaces. Em dash for parenthetical emphasis. Use straight quotation marks; don’t use angle brackets <> instead of quotes. Period in all complete sentences, no period in titles/headings.

How are key names rendered?¶

Most key names kept in English (Alt, Backspace, Ctrl/Control, Delete, End, Enter, Esc/Escape, Home, Insert, Tab, Shift, Print Screen). Arrow keys, Spacebar, Windows key, and Menu key are translated: Aşağı ox (Down Arrow), Sola ox (Left Arrow), Sağ ox (Right Arrow), Yuxarı ox (Up Arrow), Boşluq düyməsi (Spacebar), Windows düyməsi (Windows key), Menyu düyməsi (Menu Key).

Sources¶

• Microsoft Localization Style Guides hub
• Microsoft Language Portal
• Microsoft Trademarks list