diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index f1321e7..a120ccd 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -44,6 +44,10 @@
       "import": "./dist/emitter.mjs",
       "require": "./dist/emitter.cjs"
     },
+    "./parse": {
+      "import": "./dist/parse.mjs",
+      "require": "./dist/parse.cjs"
+    },
     "./runtime": {
       "import": "./dist/runtime.mjs",
       "require": "./dist/runtime.cjs"
diff --git a/src/parse.ts b/src/parse.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3de4b33
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/parse.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+// Wraps the vendored parser's own parse() as public library surface. Consumers that need to run cddl.js's own generation pipeline themselves (parse a .cddl file, then emitModule() the result) -- rather than shelling out to src/cli.ts -- need this to get a parsed AST at all; emitModule alone only accepts one, it doesn't produce one. Typed unknown at this boundary, not the vendored parser's own Assignment[] type, matching emitModule/mergeRules's existing unknown-typed input -- the vendored AST shape is an implementation detail, not part of cddl.js's own public contract.
+import { parse as vendorParse } from "../vendor/cddl/dist/index.js";
+
+export function parse(filePath: string): unknown {
+  return vendorParse(filePath);
+}
diff --git a/tsconfig.json b/tsconfig.json
index da80642..4ee6f4f 100644
--- a/tsconfig.json
+++ b/tsconfig.json
@@ -12,5 +12,5 @@
     "skipLibCheck": true,
     "types": ["node"]
   },
-  "include": ["src/emitter.ts", "src/runtime.ts"]
+  "include": ["src/emitter.ts", "src/runtime.ts", "src/parse.ts"]
 }
diff --git a/tsdown.config.ts b/tsdown.config.ts
index fe31364..56e3540 100644
--- a/tsdown.config.ts
+++ b/tsdown.config.ts
@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
 import { defineConfig } from "tsdown";
 
-// src/emitter.ts (emitModule/mergeRules) and src/runtime.ts (cborDecodesAs) are the library's public surface, built directly as separate entries rather than through a re-exporting index.ts -- the project's barrel-policy lint rule requires importing straight from the module that owns each export. Each is built dual ESM/CJS with declarations so it resolves correctly under every module system; attw verifies that claim directly rather than trusting it. src/cli.ts (a script, not library surface) and vendor/cddl (compiled separately, via its own tsc step -- see package.json's _vendor:build) are deliberately not part of this build.
+// src/emitter.ts (emitModule/mergeRules), src/runtime.ts (cborDecodesAs), and src/parse.ts (parse, re-exported from the vendored parser) are the library's public surface, built directly as separate entries rather than through a re-exporting index.ts -- the project's barrel-policy lint rule requires importing straight from the module that owns each export. Each is built dual ESM/CJS with declarations so it resolves correctly under every module system; attw verifies that claim directly rather than trusting it. src/cli.ts (a script, not library surface) is deliberately not part of this build; vendor/cddl is compiled separately via its own tsc step (see package.json's _vendor:build), which src/parse.ts's own bundling depends on.
 export default defineConfig({
-  entry: ["src/emitter.ts", "src/runtime.ts"],
+  entry: ["src/emitter.ts", "src/runtime.ts", "src/parse.ts"],
   format: ["esm", "cjs"],
   dts: true,
   exports: true,
diff --git a/turbo.json b/turbo.json
index a27d34e..e8efd0c 100644
--- a/turbo.json
+++ b/turbo.json
@@ -8,7 +8,8 @@
       "outputs": ["vendor/cddl/dist/**"]
     },
     "_build": {
-      "inputs": ["src/index.ts", "src/emitter.ts", "src/runtime.ts", "tsdown.config.ts", "tsconfig.json"],
+      "dependsOn": ["_vendor:build"],
+      "inputs": ["src/emitter.ts", "src/runtime.ts", "src/parse.ts", "tsdown.config.ts", "tsconfig.json"],
       "outputs": ["dist/**"]
     },
     "_generate": {