اختر

See also: أختر

Gawar-Bati

Etymology

Borrowed from Pashto اَخْتَر (əxtər), from Classical Persian اَخْتَر (axtar), from Middle Persian 𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾhtl /⁠axtar⁠/), an ancient backformation from 𐭠𐭯𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾpʾhtl /⁠abāxtar⁠/, “planet”), due to a mistaken folk etymology that the first element ab- was a negative suffix, since Zoroastrianism considers the planets to be nefarious "un-stars" due to their astronomically odd behavior.

Noun

اختر (axtar) m or f

1. (Islam) Eid
2. celebration, holiday

Old Anatolian Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian اَخْتَر (axtar), from Middle Persian 𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾhtl /⁠axtar⁠/), an ancient backformation from 𐭠𐭯𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾpʾhtl /⁠abāxtar⁠/, “planet”), due to a mistaken folk etymology that the first element ab- was a negative suffix, since Zoroastrianism considers the planets to be nefarious "un-stars" due to their astronomically odd behavior.

Noun

اختر • (eḫter) (plural اختر‌ها (eḫterhā))

1. (astronomy) synonym of یلدوز (yılduz, “star”)

Derived terms

• اختر غفران (eḫter-i ġüfrān, “a title of Mohammad”)

Descendants

• Azerbaijani: əxtər
• Ottoman Turkish: اَخْتَر (ahter)
  • Turkish: ahter

Ottoman Turkish

Etymology

Inherited from Old Anatolian Turkish اَخْتَر (eḫter), from Classical Persian اَخْتَر (axtar, “star”), from Middle Persian 𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾhtl /⁠axtar⁠/), an ancient backformation from 𐭠𐭯𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾpʾhtl /⁠abāxtar⁠/, “planet”), due to a mistaken folk etymology that the first element ab- was a negative suffix, since Zoroastrianism considers the planets to be nefarious "un-stars" due to their astronomically odd behavior.

Noun

اختر • (ahter) (plural اختر‌ها (ahterha))

1. (astronomy) star, a luminous celestial body made up of plasma

   Synonyms: ستاره (sitare), نجم (necm), یلدز (yıldız)

2. (figuratively) one's star, fortune, luck, chance, destiny

   Synonym: ستاره (sitare)

Derived terms

• اخترسوخته (ahter-suhte, “unfortunate”)
• اخترشمر (ahter-şümer, “astrologer”)
• اخترشناس (ahter-şinas, “astrologer”)
• اختركو (ahter-gû, “astrologer”)
• بد اختر (bed ahter, “ill-fortuned”)
• نیك اختر (nik ahter, “lucky”)

Descendants

• Turkish: ahter

Further reading

click to expand

• Çağbayır, Yaşar (2007), “ahter”, in Ötüken Türkçe Sözlük (in Turkish), volume 1, Istanbul: Ötüken Neşriyat, page 158
• Kélékian, Diran (1911), “اختر”, in Dictionnaire turc-français‎^[1] (in French), Constantinople: Mihran, page 59
• Meninski, Franciszek à Mesgnien (1687), “Stella”, in Complementum thesauri linguarum orientalium, seu onomasticum latino-turcico-arabico-persicum, simul idem index verborum lexici turcico-arabico-persici, quod latinâ, germanicâ, aliarumque linguarum adjectâ nomenclatione nuper in lucem editum‎^[2], Vienna, column 1595
• Meninski, Franciszek à Mesgnien (1680), “اختر”, in Thesaurus linguarum orientalium, Turcicae, Arabicae, Persicae, praecipuas earum opes à Turcis peculiariter usurpatas continens, nimirum Lexicon Turkico-Arabico-Persicum‎^[3], Vienna, column 90
• Redhouse, James W. (1890), “اختر”, in A Turkish and English Lexicon‎^[4], Constantinople: A. H. Boyajian, page 42

Persian

Etymology

Inherited from Middle Persian 𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾhtl /⁠axtar⁠/), an ancient backformation from 𐭠𐭯𐭠𐭧𐭲𐭫 (ʾpʾhtl /⁠abāxtar⁠/, “planet”), due to a mistaken folk etymology that the first element ab- was a negative suffix, since Zoroastrianism considers the planets to be nefarious "un-stars" due to their astronomically odd behavior.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /ʔax.ˈtar/

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔäx.t̪ʰäɾ]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔäx.t̪ʰäɾ]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [ʔäx.t̪ʰäɾ]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [ʔäx.t̪ʰäɾ]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔæx.t̪ʰæɹ]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔäχ.t̪ʰäɾ]

• Rhymes: -ar

Readings
Classical reading?	axtar
Dari reading?	axtar
Iranian reading?	axtar
Tajik reading?	axtar

• Audio (Iran):

  (file)

Noun

اختر • (axtar) (plural اَخْتَر‌ها, Tajik spelling ахтар)

1. (astronomy or literary) star

   Synonyms: (usual word) سِتارِه (sitāra), کُوْکَب (kawkab)

   • c. 1390, Shams-ud-Dīn Muḥammad Ḥāfiẓ, “Ghazal 12”, in دیوان حافظ [The Divān of Ḥāfiẓ]‎^[5]:

     ای شهنشاه بلند اختر، خدا را همتی
     تا ببوسم همچو اختر خاک ایوان شما

     ay šahinšāh-i buland axtar, xudā rā himmatē
     tā bibōsam hamčū axtar xāk-i ēwān-i šumā

     O King of Kings of soaring fortune [the Beloved], for God's sake just a little grace,
     So that I might kiss―as do the stars―the dust of your porch.

     (Classical Persian transliteration)

2. (literary, figurative) fortune; luck

   Synonym: بَخْت (baxt)

   اختر نیک (literary) ― axtar-e nik ― good fortune

   • c. 1390, Shams-ud-Dīn Muḥammad Ḥāfiẓ, “Ghazal 12”, in دیوان حافظ [The Divān of Ḥāfiẓ]‎^[6]:

     ای شهنشاه بلند اختر، خدا را همتی
     تا ببوسم همچو اختر خاک ایوان شما

     ay šahinšāh-i buland axtar, xudā rā himmatē
     tā bibōsam hamčū axtar xāk-i ēwān-i šumā

     O King of Kings of soaring fortune [the Beloved], for God's sake just a little grace,
     So that I might kiss―as do the stars―the dust of your porch.

     (Classical Persian transliteration)

3. (poetic, figurative) teardrop

   Synonyms: اشک (ašk), سرشک (sirišk), ارس (ars), ستاره (sitāra)

   • c. 1911, Mohammad Hossein Âğuli Torki-ye Shirâzi, دیوان ترکی شیرازی‎^[7]:

     باز این منم که از غم روی چو ماه تو
     شب تا به صبح، دیدهٔ من پر ز اختر است

     bâz in man-am ke az ġam-e ru-ye ču mâh-e to
     šab tâ be sobh, dide-ye man por ze axtar ast

     It is me again whose eyes, out of love-sorrow for your moon-like face,
     Are full of starry tears from nightfall to dawn.

Related terms

• ابرنواختر (abar-now-axtar, “supernova”)
• اختر شمردن (axtar šomordan, “to stay up all night”, literally “to count stars”)
• اخترشناس (axtaršenâs, “astronomer”)
• اخترمار (axtarmâr, “astronomer”)
• اختری (axtari, “stellar”)
• بد اختر (bad axtar, “ill-fortuned”, literally “bad-star”)
• بلند اختر (boland axtar, “lucky; fortunate”, literally “high-star”)
• نواختر (now-axtar, “nova”)

Descendants

• → English: Akhtar, Akhter, Aktar, Akter
• → Bengali: আক্তার (aktar)
• → Hindustani:

  Hindi: अख़्तर (axtar), अख्तर (akhtar) — nuqtaless

  Urdu: اَخْتَر (axtar)

• → Old Anatolian Turkish: اَخْتَر (eḫter)
  • Azerbaijani: əxtər
  • Ottoman Turkish: اَخْتَر (ahter)
    • Turkish: ahter
• → Pashto: اَخْتَر (əxtər)
  • → Gawar-Bati: اختر (axtar)
• → Punjabi:

  Gurmukhi script: ਅਖ਼ਤਰ (axatar), ਅਖਤਰ (akhatar) (nuqtaless)

  Shahmukhi script: اَخْتَر (axtar)

Proper noun

اختر • (axtar) (Tajik spelling Ахтар)

1. a unisex given name, Akhtar
2. a surname, Akhtar

Urdu

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian اَخْتَر (axtar).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /əx.t̪əɾ/

Noun

اَخْتَر • (axtar) m (Hindi spelling अख़्तर)

1. star

   Synonyms: تارا (tārā), سِتارَہ (sitāra)

Proper noun

اَخْتَر • (axtar) m or f by sense (Hindi spelling अख़्तर)

1. a unisex given name, Akhtar, from Persian
2. a surname, Akhtar, from Persian

Further reading

• McGregor, Ronald Stuart (1993), “اختر”, in The Oxford Hindi-English Dictionary, London: Oxford University Press
• Dāsa, Śyāmasundara (1965–1975), “اختر”, in Hindī Śabdasāgara [lit. “Sea of Hindi words”] (in Hindi), Kashi [Varanasi]: Nagari Pracarini Sabha
• “اختر”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2026.
• Qureshi, Bashir Ahmad (1971), “اختر”, in Kitabistan's 20th Century Standard Dictionary, Lahore: Kitabistan Pub. Co.