Proto-Iranian
Encyclopedia
Proto-Iranian, is the reconstructed
proto-language
of the Iranian languages
branch of Indo-European language family, and as such, the ancestor of the Iranian languages
such as Persian
, Sogdian
, Zazaki
, Mazandarani
, Kurdish
and others. Its speakers, the hypothetical Proto-Iranians, are assumed to have lived in the early 2nd millennium BC
, and are usually connected with the Proto-Indo-Iranians and early Andronovo archaeological horizon.
Proto-Iranian was a Satem language descended from the Proto-Indo-Iranian language, which in turn came from the Proto-Indo-European language
. It was likely removed less than a millennium from the Avestan language, and less than two millennia from PIE.
Linguistic reconstruction
Linguistic reconstruction is the practice of establishing the features of the unattested ancestor of one or more given languages. There are two kinds of reconstruction. Internal reconstruction uses irregularities in a single language to make inferences about an earlier stage of that language...
proto-language
Proto-language
A proto-language in the tree model of historical linguistics is the common ancestor of the languages that form a language family. Occasionally, the German term Ursprache is used instead.Often the proto-language is not known directly...
of the Iranian languages
Iranian languages
The Iranian languages form a subfamily of the Indo-Iranian languages which in turn is a subgroup of Indo-European language family. They have been and are spoken by Iranian peoples....
branch of Indo-European language family, and as such, the ancestor of the Iranian languages
Iranian languages
The Iranian languages form a subfamily of the Indo-Iranian languages which in turn is a subgroup of Indo-European language family. They have been and are spoken by Iranian peoples....
such as Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, Sogdian
Sogdian language
The Sogdian language is a Middle Iranian language that was spoken in Sogdiana , located in modern day Uzbekistan and Tajikistan ....
, Zazaki
Zazaki
Zazaki is an Indo-European language spoken primarily in eastern Turkey. According to Ethnologue, the language is a part of the northwestern group of the Iranian section of the Indo-European family. Zazaki shares many features, structures, and vocabulary with Gorani, Talyshi and other Caspian...
, Mazandarani
Mazandarani language
Mazandarani or Tabari is an Iranian language of the Northwestern branch, spoken mainly in Iran's Mazandaran, Gilan and Golestan provinces...
, Kurdish
Kurdish language
Kurdish is a dialect continuum spoken by the Kurds in western Asia. It is part of the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian group of Indo-European languages....
and others. Its speakers, the hypothetical Proto-Iranians, are assumed to have lived in the early 2nd millennium BC
2nd millennium BC
The 2nd millennium BC marks the transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age.Its first half is dominated by the Middle Kingdom of Egypt and Babylonia. The alphabet develops. Indo-Iranian migration onto the Iranian plateau and onto the Indian subcontinent propagates the use of the chariot...
, and are usually connected with the Proto-Indo-Iranians and early Andronovo archaeological horizon.
Proto-Iranian was a Satem language descended from the Proto-Indo-Iranian language, which in turn came from the Proto-Indo-European language
Proto-Indo-European language
The Proto-Indo-European language is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European languages, spoken by the Proto-Indo-Europeans...
. It was likely removed less than a millennium from the Avestan language, and less than two millennia from PIE.
Proto-Indo-European and Indo-Iranian Phonological Correspondences
| PIE Proto-Indo-European language The Proto-Indo-European language is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Indo-European languages, spoken by the Proto-Indo-Europeans... |
Av Avestan language Avestan is an East Iranian language known only from its use as the language of Zoroastrian scripture, i.e. the Avesta, from which it derives its name... |
PIE | Av | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| *p | → | p | *ph?ater "father" | pitar- "father" |
| *bʱ | → | b | *bʱréhater "brother" | bratar- "brother |
| *t | → | t | *tuhxóm "thou" | tv?m "thou" |
| *d | → | d | *doru "wood" | dar- "wood" |
| *dʱ | → | d | *dʱohxneha- "grain" | dana- "grain" |
| *kʲ | → | s | *dékʲm? "ten" | dasa "ten" |
| *gʲ | → | z | *gʲónu "knee" | zanu- "knee" |
| *gʱʲ | → | z | *gʱʲimós "cold" | z?maka- "winterstorm" |
| *k | → | x ~ c | *kruharós "bloody" | xrura- "bloody" |
| *g | → | g ~ z | *haéuges- "strength" | aojah "strength" |
| *gʱ | → | g ~ z | *dl?hxgʱós "long" | dar?ga- "long" |
| *kʷ | → | k ~ c | *kʷós "who" | ko "who" |
| *gʷ | → | g ~ j | *gʷou- "cow" | gau- "cow" |
| Proto-Indo-Iranian | Avestan Avestan language Avestan is an East Iranian language known only from its use as the language of Zoroastrian scripture, i.e. the Avesta, from which it derives its name... |
Old Persian | Vedic Sanskrit Vedic Sanskrit Vedic Sanskrit is an old Indo-Aryan language. It is an archaic form of Sanskrit, an early descendant of Proto-Indo-Iranian. It is closely related to Avestan, the oldest preserved Iranian language... |
|---|---|---|---|
| *açva ("horse") | aspa | asa (native word) | asva Asva Asva is a village in Laimjala Parish, Saare County, on the eastern part of Saaremaa Island, Estonia.... |
| *bʱag- | baγa | baj- (baji; "tribute") | bhag- (bhaga Bhaga Sanskrit is a term for "lord, patron", but also for "wealth, prosperity". The cognate term in Avestan and Old Persian is , of uncertain meaning but used in a sense in which "lord, patron" might also apply. A Slavic cognate is "god"... ) |
| *bʱratr- ("brother") | brātar | bratar | bhratŗ |
| *bʱumi ("earth", "land") | bumi | bhumi Bhumi Bhumi can mean:* Bhūmi, Hindu goddess of the earth**also, earth as a classical element in Hindu tradition* Bhumi , the ten stages a Bodhisattva advances through in the path to become a Buddha... |
|
| *martya ("mortal, "man") | mašiia | martya | martya |
| *masa ("moon") | māh- | maha | masa |
| *vasara ("early") | vahara ("spring") | vasara ("morning") | |
| *arta ("truth") | aša Asa -People:* Aṣa , Paris-born Nigerian singer-songwriter* Asa of Judah , son of Abijam, King of Judah* Asa Dotzler , Mozilla contributor and blogger*Asa Kasher , Israeli philosopher and linguist-Places:... |
arta | ŗta Rta In the Vedic religion, Ṛta is the principle of natural order which regulates and coordinates the operation of the universe and everything within it. In the hymns of the Vedas, Ṛta is described as that which is ultimately responsible for the proper functioning of the natural, moral and sacrificial... |
| *draugʱ- ("falsehood") | druj | draug- | druh- |
| *sauma "pressed (juice)" | haoma Haoma Haoma is the Avestan language name of a plant and its divinity, both of which play a role in Zoroastrian doctrine and in later Persian culture and mythology. The Middle Persian form of the name is hōm, which continues to be the name in Modern Persian and other living Iranian languages.Sacred haoma... |
soma Soma Soma , or Haoma , from Proto-Indo-Iranian *sauma-, was a ritual drink of importance among the early Indo-Iranians, and the subsequent Vedic and greater Persian cultures. It is frequently mentioned in the Rigveda, whose Soma Mandala contains 114 hymns, many praising its energizing qualities... |