ازل

Persian

Etymology

Borrowed from Arabic أَزَل (ʔazal), from Middle Persian 𐭫𐭠𐭮 (ʾsl /⁠asar⁠/, “endless”), from 𐭠 (ʾ- /⁠a-⁠/, “un-, without”) + ‎𐭫‎𐭮 (sl /⁠sar⁠/, “head; beginning; end”, whence modern سر (sar)).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /ʔa.ˈzal/

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔä.zál]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔä.zál]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [ʔä.zál]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [ʔä.zál̥]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔæ.zǽl̥]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [ʔä.zál]

• Rhymes: -al

Readings
Classical reading?	azal
Dari reading?	azal
Iranian reading?	azal
Tajik reading?	azal

Noun

ازل • (azal) (Tajik spelling азал)

1. (Islam, Sufism) pre-eternity, eternity without beginning; the era before God created space and time

   Antonym: ابد (abad, “post-eternity, eternity without end”)

   • c. 1390, Shams-ud-Dīn Muḥammad Ḥāfiẓ, “Ghazal 152”, in دیوان حافظ [The Divān of Ḥāfiẓ]‎^[1]:

     در ازل پرتوِ حسنت ز تجلی دم زد
     عشق پیدا شد و آتش به همه عالم زد

     dar azal partaw-i husn-at zi tajalli dam zad
     išq paydā šud u ātiš ba hama ālam zad

     In pre-eternity, your beauty's ray let out a breath from epiphany;
     Love emerged and set fire to the entire world.

     (Classical Persian transliteration)

Descendants

• → Hindustani:

  Hindi: अज़ल (azal)

  Urdu: ازل (azal)

• → Punjabi:

  Gurmukhi script: ਅਜ਼ਲ (azal)

  Shahmukhi script: ازل (azal)

Further reading

• Hayyim, Sulayman (1934), “ازل”, in New Persian–English dictionary, Teheran: Librairie-imprimerie Béroukhim
• Dehkhoda, Ali-Akbar (1931–), “ازل”, in Dehkhoda Dictionary Institute, editors, Dehkhoda Dictionary (in Persian), Tehran: University of Tehran Press.

Urdu

Etymology

Derived from Arabic أَزَل (ʔazal).

Noun

ازل • (azal) m (Hindi spelling अज़ल)

1. eternity

Ushojo

Noun

ازل (azal) f

1. luck, fate