سپاه

Persian

Alternative forms

• اسپاه‎ (espâh), اسپه‎ (espah), سپه‎ (sepah)

Etymology

From Middle Persian spʾh / 𐭮𐭯𐭠𐭧‎ (spāh), from Proto-Indo-Iranian *ćwáHdʰaH, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱwéh₁-dʰ-o-h₁ (dual), from *ḱweh₁-, *ḱewh₁- (“to swell, be great”). Possible cognate with Avestan 𐬯𐬏𐬌𐬛𐬌𐬌𐬁𐬌‎ (sūidiiāi, “to swell, increase”, inf.), Bactrian σοδο (sodo /sūdo/, “plenty”), Middle Persian [script needed] (swd /sūd/), [script needed] (swwd /sūd/, “profit, advantage”), Sanskrit शवस् (śavas, “strength, superiority”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /sipɑːh/

• (Dari Persian) IPA^(key): /sɪpɑːh/

• (Iranian Persian) IPA^(key): /sepɒːh/

• (Tajik) IPA^(key): /sipɔh/

Noun

سپاه • (sepâh) (plural سپاه‌ها‎ (sepâh-hâ))

1. army

   Synonym: لشکر‎ (laškar)

Derived terms

• سپاهی‎ (sepâhi)

 

Descendants

• → Urdu: سپاه‌‎ (sipāh)

References

• Steingass, Francis Joseph (1892), “سپاه”, in A Comprehensive Persian–English dictionary, London: Routledge & K. Paul
• Perixanjan, A. G. (1993) Материалы к этимологическому словарю древнеармянского языка. Часть I [Materials for the Etymological Dictionary of the Old Armenian Language. Part 1]‎^[1] (in Russian), Yerevan: Academy Press, page 18