خیابان

Persian

Alternative forms

• خیابون (xiyâbun) (colloquial Tehrani)

• خیاوان (xiyāwān / xiyâvân)

Etymology

Unknown, with little consensus among proposals. Most likely is from earlier Classical Persian خدابان (xudābān) ~ Early New Persian خذابان (xuḏābān), a locality in medieval Herat which was famous for its wide avenues.

Some analyze as خی (xī / xi, “waterskin”) + آب (āb / âb, “water”) + ـان (-ān / -ân). Compare خیاو (xiyāw / xiyâv, “where water ejects, former name of a city in Iran”). Others suggest a Mongolian origin.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /xi.jaː.ˈbaːn/

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [xi.jɑː.bɑ́ːn]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [xi.jɑː.bɑ́ːn]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [xi.jɑː.bɑ́ːn]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [xi.jɔː.bɔ́ːn]

 

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [xi.jɒː.bɒ́ːn]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [xi.jɒː.bɒ́ːn]
  • (Tehrani) IPA^(key): [xi.jɒː.búːn]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [χi.jɔ.bɔ́n]

Readings
Classical reading?	xiyābān
Dari reading?	xiyābān
Iranian reading?	xiyâbân
Tajik reading?	xiyobon

• Audio (Iran):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑːn, (Tehrani) -uːn

Noun

خیابان • (xiyābān / xiyâbân) (plural خیابان‌ها (xiyābān-hā / xiyâbân-hâ), Tajik spelling хиёбон)

1. street

   Synonyms: (dated) شارع (šāri' / šâre'), راه (rāh / râh)

2. road

   Synonyms: جاده (jādda / jâdde), راه (rāh / râh)

3. avenue

   Synonyms: معبر (ma'bar), گذرگاه (guzargāh / gozargâh)

4. (original sense, obsolete) flowerbed, parterre

   Synonym: گلزار (gulzār / golzâr)

Derived terms

• خیابان ذرع کردن (xiyābān zar' kardan / xiyâbân zar' kardan, “to roam”, literally “to measure street”)
• خیابان گز کردن (xiyābān gaz kardan / xiyâbân gaz kardan, “to roam, to measure street(s)”)
• خیابان‌بندی (xiyābān-bandī / xiyâbân-bandi, “forming a street (i.e. tress), the form of street(s)”)
• خیابان‌سازی (xiyābān-sāzī / xiyâbân-sâzi, “making street(s)”)
• خیابان‌پیما (xiyābān-paymā / xiyâbân-peymâ, “street roamer”)
• خیابان‌گرد (xiyābān-gard / xiyâbân-gard, “street roamer”)
• خیابان‌گردی (xiyābān-gardī / xiyâbân-gardi, “street roaming”)

Descendants

• → Georgian: ხეივანი (xeivani)
• → Urdu: خِیابان (xiyābān)

Proper noun

خیابان • (xiyābān / xiyâbân) (Tajik spelling Хиёбон)

1. (historical, otherwise obsolete) Khiyaban, Khodaban; a locality in medieval Herat.

Alternative forms

• خدابان (xudābān / xodâbân), خذابان (xuzābān / xozâbân), خیادوان (xiyādwān / xiyâdvân)

Further reading

• Dehkhoda, Ali-Akbar (1931–), “خیابان”, in Dehkhoda Dictionary Institute, editors, Dehkhoda Dictionary (in Persian), Tehran: University of Tehran Press.
• Hayyim, Sulayman (1934), “خیابان”, in New Persian–English dictionary, Teheran: Librairie-imprimerie Béroukhim
• Steingass, Francis Joseph (1892), “خیابان”, in A Comprehensive Persian–English dictionary, London: Routledge & K. Paul

Urdu

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian خیابان (xiyābān).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /xɪ.jɑː.bɑːn/
• Rhymes: -ɑːn
• Hyphenation: خِ‧یا‧بان

Noun

خِیابان • (xiyābān) m (Hindi spelling ख़ियाबान)

1. avenue, a broad road, a wide street
2. (a path between) a parterre, flower garden.

   Synonyms: چَمَن (caman), گُلِسْتان (gulistān)

Declension

Declension of خیابان

	singular	plural
direct	خیابان (xiyābān)	خیابان (xiyābān)
oblique	خیابان (xiyābān)	خیابانوں (xiyābānõ)
vocative	خیابان (xiyābān)	خیابانو (xiyābāno)

Further reading

• “خیابان”, in اُردُو لُغَت (urdū luġat) (in Urdu), Ministry of Education: Government of Pakistan, 2017.
• “خیابان”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2025.
• Qureshi, Bashir Ahmad (1971), “خيابان”, in Kitabistan's 20th Century Standard Dictionary‎, Lahore: Kitabistan Pub. Co.
• Platts, John T. (1884), “خيابان”, in A dictionary of Urdu, classical Hindi, and English, London: W. H. Allen & Co.