քաղաք

Armenian

Etymology

From Old Armenian քաղաք (kʻałakʻ).

Pronunciation

• (Eastern Armenian, standard) IPA^(key):
• (Western Armenian, standard) IPA^(key):

• Audio (Eastern Armenian)

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Noun

քաղաք • (kʻaġakʻ)

1. city, town

Declension

Old Armenian

Etymology

Probably an Iranian borrowing. Compare Middle Persian (klʾk /⁠*kalāk⁠/, “name of a fortress in Khorasan (in Bundahishn)”), Mazanderani کلا (-kalā, “suffix forming names of inhabited places”), Persian کلات (kalât), کلاته (kalâte, “fortress, castle; market town”), Northern Kurdish kelek, Central Kurdish کەڵەک (kellek, “pile of stones, dry stone wall”), Northern Luri کٱل (kal, “castle, house, hill”). Bailey explains the Iranian words from Proto-Iranian *kata- which forms names for any "covered place": Avestan 𐬐𐬀𐬙𐬀 (kata, “habitation”), Persian کده (kade, “house”), Wakhi kut (“roof”), Pashto کلی (këlay, “village”) etc. with further cognates in Proto-Slavic *kotьcь (“cottage, pigsty”), Gothic 𐌷𐌴𐌸𐌾𐍉 (hēþjō, “chamber”), Sanskrit चतति (cátati, “to hide oneself”). He assumes a dialectal *t → l sound change in Western Iranian languages, as in Pashto. Klingenschmitt offers an alternative derivation of the Iranian terms from Proto-Indo-European *kelH- (“hill”), with the same semantic development as in Proto-Germanic *burgz (“fortification”) from *bʰerǵʰ- (“high”). Note also Hulaulá kalaki (“living room”).

Alternatively, the Armenian and Iranian may be independently borrowed from Semitic, namely from Akkadian 𒌷𒆗𒄷 (^URUkal-ḫu /⁠Kalḫu⁠/), 𒌷𒆗𒄭 (^URUkal-ḫi /⁠Kalḫi⁠/), 𒌷𒆗𒄩 (^URUkal-ḫa)/𒌷𒆕𒄩 (^URUkàl-ḫa /⁠Kalḫa⁠/), less frequently written 𒌷𒅗𒈛 (^URUka-làḫ), the ancient city capital of Assyria on the Tigris, called Calah in the Bible. The city name is rendered as Ancient Greek Χαλαχ (Khalakh) in the Septuagint. Another possibility is Akkadian 𒇥 (TUL₂ /⁠kalakku⁠/, “excavation, trench; pit; underground store, silo, cellar”), a loanword from Sumerian 𒇥 (kalak, “excavation, trench, store-cellar”).

It is often assumed Arabic قَلْعَة (qalʕa, “fortress, fort, castle”) is somehow connected. Further often connected with Classical Syriac ܟܪܟܐ (karəḵā, “walled city or town, fortress; enclosure”), Hebrew כרך (kəraḵ, “large city”).

Unconvincing native Proto-Indo-European etymologies have also been proposed.

Noun

քաղաք • (kʻałakʻ)

1. city, town
   • 5th century, Bible, Genesis 4.17:

     Եմուտ Կային առ կին իւր, եւ յղացաւ եւ ծնաւ զԵնոք։ Եւ շինէր քաղաք, եւ դնէր անուն քաղաքին յանուն որդւոյ իւրոյ Ենոքայ։

     Emut Kayin aṙ kin iwr, ew yłacʻaw ew cnaw zEnokʻ. Ew šinēr kʻałakʻ, ew dnēr anun kʻałakʻin yanun ordwoy iwroy Enokʻay.

     • Translation by Brenton Septuagint Translation

       And Cain knew his wife, and having conceived she bore Enoch; and he built a city; and he named the city after the name of his son, Enoch.

   • 5th century, Bible, Deuteronomy 3.5:

     ա՟մ քաղաքք ամուրք բարձրապարիսպք դրամբք եւ դռնափակօք․ թող ցքաղաքսն փերեզացոց բազում յոյժ

     a.m kʻałakʻkʻ amurkʻ barjraparispkʻ drambkʻ ew dṙnapʻakōkʻ; tʻoł cʻkʻałakʻsn pʻerezacʻocʻ bazum yoyž

     • Translation by Brenton Septuagint Translation

       all strong cities, lofty walls, gates and bars; besides the very many cities of the Pherezites

   • 5th century, Bible, Job 24.12:

     Որք ի քաղաքաց եւ ի տանց իւրեանց զընկեցան, անձինք տղայոց մեծամեծս հեծեծեցին․ եւ նա այնմ այցելութիւն ընդէ՞ր ոչ առնիցէ։

     Orkʻ i kʻałakʻacʻ ew i tancʻ iwreancʻ zənkecʻan, anjinkʻ tłayocʻ mecamecs hecececʻin; ew na aynm aycʻelutʻiwn əndē^?r očʻ aṙnicʻē.

     • Translation by Claude E. Cox

       Those who cast them out of the cities and their own houses, though the souls of the young groaned very loudly—and he, why does he not pay a visit to that one?

   • 5th century, Bible, Daniel 3.28:

     եւ իրաւունս ճշմարտութեան արարեր ըստ ամենայնի զոր արարեր մեզ եւ քաղաքի սրբոյ հարցն մերոյ Երուսաղէմի, զի ճշմարտութեամբ եւ յիրաւի ածեր զայս ամենայն վասն մեղաց մերոց

     ew irawuns čšmartutʻean ararer əst amenayni zor ararer mez ew kʻałakʻi srboy harcʻn meroy Erusałēmi, zi čšmartutʻeamb ew yirawi acer zays amenayn vasn mełacʻ merocʻ

     • Translation by Brenton Septuagint Translation

       In all the things that thou hast brought upon us, and upon the holy city of our fathers, even Jerusalem, thou hast executed true judgment: for according to truth and judgment didst thou bring all these things upon us because of our sins.

Declension

Derived terms

Descendants

• Armenian: քաղաք (kʻaġakʻ)
• → Aghwan: 𐕣𐔰𐔾𐔰𐕣 (kalak)
• → Old Georgian: ქალაქი (kalaki)
  • Georgian: ქალაქი (kalaki)
    • → Abkhaz: ақалақь (akalakʲ)
    • → Bats: ქალიქა (kalika), ქალაჲქა (kalayka)
    • → Ossetian: калак (kalak)
    • → Mingrelian: ქალაქი (kalaki)
    • → Svan: ქალა̈ქ (kaläk)

References

Further reading

• Awetikʻean, G., Siwrmēlean, X., Awgerean, M. (1836–1837) “քաղաք”, in Nor baṙgirkʻ haykazean lezui [New Dictionary of the Armenian Language] (in Old Armenian), Venice: S. Lazarus Armenian Academy
• Clackson, James (1994) The linguistic relationship between Armenian and Greek (Publications of the Philological Society; 30), Oxford, Cambridge: Blackwell, page 39
• Dervischjan, P. Seraphin (1877) Armeniaca I: Das Altarmenische (in German), Vienna: Mekhitarist Press, page 70
• Hübschmann, Heinrich (1897) Armenische Grammatik. 1. Theil: Armenische Etymologie (in German), Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel, page 318
• J̌ahukyan, Geworg (1987) Hayocʻ lezvi patmutʻyun; naxagrayin žamanakašrǰan [History of the Armenian language: The Pre-Literary Period]‎ (in Armenian), Yerevan: Academy Press, page 465
• Lagarde, Paul de (1854) Zur Urgeschichte der Armenier: ein philologischer Versuch (in German), Berlin: W. Hertz, page 908
• Martirosyan, Hrach (2010) Etymological Dictionary of the Armenian Inherited Lexicon (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 8), Leiden and Boston: Brill, page 655
• Müller, Friedrich (1863) “Beiträge zur Lautlehre der armenischen Sprache”, in Sitzungsberichte der Kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Philosophisch-Historische Classe (in German), volume 41, page 13
• Petrosean, Matatʻeay (1879) “քաղաք”, in Nor Baṙagirkʻ Hay-Angliarēn [New Dictionary Armenian–English], Venice: S. Lazarus Armenian Academy
• Scheftelowitz, J. (1905) “Zur altarmenischen lautgeschichte”, in Beiträge zur kunde der indogermanischen Sprachen (in German), volume 29, page 67
• Schmitt, Rüdiger (2007) Grammatik des Klassisch-Armenischen mit sprachvergleichenden Erläuterungen (Innsbrucker Beiträge zur Sprachwissenschaft) (in German), 2nd edition, Innsbruck: Institut für Sprachwissenschaft der Universität Innsbruck, page 170