This is a Swadesh list of words in Old Persian, compared with definitions in English.
American linguist Morris Swadesh believed that languages changed at measurable rates and that these could be determined even for languages without written precursors. Using vocabulary lists, he sought to understand not only change over time but also the relationships of extant languages. To be able to compare languages from different cultures, he based his lists on meanings he presumed would be available in as many cultures as possible. He then used the fraction of agreeing cognates between any two related languages to compute their divergence time by some (still debated) algorithms. Starting in 1950 with 165 meanings, his list grew to 215 in 1952, which was so expansive that many languages lacked native vocabulary for some terms. Subsequently, it was reduced to 207, and reduced much further to 100 meanings in 1955. A reformulated list was published posthumously in 1971.
| โ | English | Old Persian ๐ ๐ผ๐น (a-r-y) edit (46) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | I (1sg) | ๐ ๐ญ๐ถ (a-d-m /โ adamโ /) |
| 2 | you (2sg) | ๐ฌ๐บ๐ถ (tu-v-m /โ tuvamโ /) |
| 3 | he, she, it (3sg) | ๐๐ข๐บ (h-u-v /โ hauvโ /) |
| 4 | we (1pl) | |
| 5 | you (2pl) | |
| 6 | they (3pl) | |
| 7 | this | ๐ก๐น๐ถ (i-y-m /โ iyamโ /), ๐ ๐ก๐ซ (a-i-t /โ aitaโ /) |
| 8 | that | |
| 9 | here | ๐ก๐ญ๐ (i-d-a /โ idฤโ /) |
| 10 | there | ๐ ๐บ๐ญ๐ (a-v-d-a /โ avadฤโ /) |
| 11 | who | ๐๐น๐ (h-y-a) |
| 12 | what | ๐๐น๐ (h-y-a) |
| 13 | where | |
| 14 | when | |
| 15 | how | |
| 16 | not | ๐ด๐ก๐น (n-i-y /โ naiyโ /) |
| 17 | all | |
| 18 | many | ๐ฑ๐ฝ๐ข๐บ (p-ru-u-v) |
| 19 | some | |
| 20 | few | |
| 21 | other | ๐ ๐ด๐ก๐น (a-n-i-y /โ aniyaโ /) |
| 22 | one | ๐ ๐ก๐บ (a-i-v /โ aivaโ /) |
| 23 | two | |
| 24 | three | |
| 25 | four | |
| 26 | five | |
| 27 | big | ๐บ๐๐ผ๐ฃ (v-z-r-k /โ vazแบกrkaโ /) |
| 28 | long | ๐ญ๐ผ๐ฅ (d-r-g /โ dargaโ /), ๐ญ๐ผ๐ฅ๐ถ (d-r-g-m /โ dargamโ /) |
| 29 | wide | |
| 30 | thick | |
| 31 | heavy | |
| 32 | small | |
| 33 | short | |
| 34 | narrow | |
| 35 | thin | |
| 36 | woman | |
| 37 | man (adult male) | ๐ถ๐ผ๐ซ๐ก๐น (m-r-t-i-y /โ martiyaสฐโ /), ๐๐ด (z-n /โ zanaโ /) |
| 38 | man (human being) | ๐ถ๐ผ๐ซ๐ก๐น (m-r-t-i-y /โ martiyaสฐโ /) |
| 39 | child | |
| 40 | wife | |
| 41 | husband | |
| 42 | mother | ๐ถ๐ ๐ซ๐ (m-a-t-a /โ mฤtฤโ /) |
| 43 | father | ๐ฑ๐ก๐ซ๐ (p-i-t-a /โ pitฤโ /) |
| 44 | animal | |
| 45 | fish | |
| 46 | bird | |
| 47 | dog | |
| 48 | louse | |
| 49 | snake | |
| 50 | worm | |
| 51 | tree | |
| 52 | forest | |
| 53 | stick | |
| 54 | fruit | |
| 55 | seed | |
| 56 | leaf | |
| 57 | root | |
| 58 | bark (of a tree) | |
| 59 | flower | |
| 60 | grass | |
| 61 | rope | |
| 62 | skin | |
| 63 | meat | |
| 64 | blood | |
| 65 | bone | |
| 66 | fat (noun) | |
| 67 | egg | |
| 68 | horn | |
| 69 | tail | |
| 70 | feather | |
| 71 | hair | |
| 72 | head | |
| 73 | ear | |
| 74 | eye | ๐จ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ด (c-ลก-a-m-n /โ caลกman-โ /) |
| 75 | nose | ๐ด๐ ๐๐ถ (n-a-h-m /โ nฤhamโ /) |
| 76 | mouth | |
| 77 | tooth | |
| 78 | tongue (organ) | ๐๐๐ ๐ด๐ถ (h-z-a-n-m /โ hazฤnam, hizฤnamโ /) (acc. sg.) |
| 79 | fingernail | |
| 80 | foot | ๐ฑ๐ ๐ญ (p-a-d /โ pฤdaสฐโ /) |
| 81 | leg | |
| 82 | knee | |
| 83 | hand | ๐ญ๐ฟ๐ซ (d-s-t /โ dastaโ /) |
| 84 | wing | |
| 85 | belly | |
| 86 | guts | |
| 87 | neck | |
| 88 | back | |
| 89 | breast | |
| 90 | heart | |
| 91 | liver | |
| 92 | to drink | |
| 93 | to eat | |
| 94 | to bite | |
| 95 | to suck | |
| 96 | to spit | |
| 97 | to vomit | |
| 98 | to blow | |
| 99 | to breathe | |
| 100 | to laugh | |
| 101 | to see | |
| 102 | to hear | |
| 103 | to know | |
| 104 | to think | |
| 105 | to smell | |
| 106 | to fear | ๐ซ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ซ๐ก๐น (t-r-s-t-i-y /โ tแบกrsatiyโ /) |
| 107 | to sleep | |
| 108 | to live | ๐ช๐ก๐บ๐ซ๐ก๐น (ji-i-v-t-i-y /โ jฤซvatiyโ /) |
| 109 | to die | |
| 110 | to kill | |
| 111 | to fight | |
| 112 | to hunt | |
| 113 | to hit | |
| 114 | to cut | |
| 115 | to split | |
| 116 | to stab | |
| 117 | to scratch | |
| 118 | to dig | |
| 119 | to swim | |
| 120 | to fly | |
| 121 | to walk | |
| 122 | to come | |
| 123 | to lie (as in a bed) | |
| 124 | to sit | |
| 125 | to stand | |
| 126 | to turn (intransitive) | |
| 127 | to fall | |
| 128 | to give | ๐ญ๐ญ๐ ๐ฌ๐ข๐บ (d-d-a-tu-u-v) (3rd sg. pres. imp. of โdฤ) |
| 129 | to hold | ๐ญ๐ ๐ผ๐น๐ซ๐ก๐น (d-a-r-y-t-i-y /โ dฤrayatiyโ /) |
| 130 | to squeeze | |
| 131 | to rub | |
| 132 | to wash | |
| 133 | to wipe | |
| 134 | to pull | |
| 135 | to push | |
| 136 | to throw | |
| 137 | to tie | |
| 138 | to sew | |
| 139 | to count | |
| 140 | to say | ๐ฐ๐ ๐ซ๐ก๐น (ฮธ-a-t-i-y /โ ฮธฤtiyโ /) |
| 141 | to sing | |
| 142 | to play | |
| 143 | to float | |
| 144 | to flow | |
| 145 | to freeze | |
| 146 | to swell | |
| 147 | sun | ๐ข๐บ๐ผ (u-v-r /โ สฐuvarโ /) |
| 148 | moon | ๐ถ๐ ๐ (m-a-h /โ mฤhโ /) |
| 149 | star | |
| 150 | water | ๐ ๐ฑ๐ก๐น๐ (a-p-i-y-a /โ apiyฤโ /) (loc. sg.) |
| 151 | rain | |
| 152 | river | |
| 153 | lake | |
| 154 | sea | ๐ญ๐ผ๐น (d-r-y /โ drayaโ /) |
| 155 | salt | |
| 156 | stone | ๐ ๐ฐ๐ฅ (a-ฮธ-g /โ aฮธaโฟgaสฐโ /), ๐ ๐ฟ๐ด (a-s-n /โ asanโ /) |
| 157 | sand | |
| 158 | dust | |
| 159 | earth | ๐ (BU /โ bลซmiลกโ /) |
| 160 | cloud | |
| 161 | fog | |
| 162 | sky | ๐ ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ด (a-s-m-n /โ asmanโ /) |
| 163 | wind | |
| 164 | snow | |
| 165 | ice | |
| 166 | smoke | |
| 167 | fire | ๐ ๐ซ๐ผ (a-t-r /โ ฤtarโ /) |
| 168 | ash | |
| 169 | to burn | |
| 170 | road | |
| 171 | mountain | ๐ฃ๐ข๐ณ (k-u-f /โ kaufaสฐโ /) |
| 172 | red | |
| 173 | green | |
| 174 | yellow | |
| 175 | white | |
| 176 | black | |
| 177 | night | ๐ง๐๐ฑ (x-ลก-p /โ xลกapaโ /) |
| 178 | day | ๐ผ๐ข๐จ๐ (r-u-c-h /โ raucahโ /) |
| 179 | year | ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ญ (ฮธ-r-d /โ ฮธardaโ /) |
| 180 | warm | |
| 181 | cold | |
| 182 | full | |
| 183 | new | |
| 184 | old | |
| 185 | good | |
| 186 | bad | |
| 187 | rotten | |
| 188 | dirty | |
| 189 | straight | |
| 190 | round | |
| 191 | sharp (as a knife) | |
| 192 | dull (as a knife) | |
| 193 | smooth | |
| 194 | wet | |
| 195 | dry | |
| 196 | correct | ๐๐๐ก๐น๐ถ (h-ลก-i-y-m /โ haลกiyamโ /) (acc. sg.) |
| 197 | near | |
| 198 | far | |
| 199 | right | |
| 200 | left | |
| 201 | at | |
| 202 | in | ๐ ๐ซ๐ผ (a-t-r /โ aโฟtarโ /) |
| 203 | with | ๐๐ญ๐ (h-d-a /โ hadฤโ /) |
| 204 | and | ๐ข๐ซ๐ (u-t-a /โ utฤโ /), -๐จ๐ (-c-a /โ -cฤโ โ /) |
| 205 | if | |
| 206 | because | ๐น๐ฐ๐ (y-ฮธ-a /โ yaฮธฤโ /) |
| 207 | name | ๐ด๐ ๐ถ (n-a-m /โ nฤmaโ /) (usually after masculine), ๐ด๐ ๐ถ๐ (n-a-m-a /โ nฤmฤโ /) (usually after feminine ) |