گل

See also: كل, کل, کُل, and گُل

Bakhtiari

Alternative forms

• یل (yel), ل (el)

Etymology

Cognate with Southern Kurdish گل (gil), Southwestern Fars گل, Persian گله.

Suffix

گل (gel)

1. A suffix forming the plural of an animate noun.

   کرگل مین هونه بین

   korgel meīne howne bīn

   The boys were in the house

Khalaj

Noun

گُل (gul) (definite accusative گُلوُ, plural گُللار)

1. Arabic spelling of gul (“flower”)

Declension

Declension of گل

	singular	plural
nominative	گل	گللار
genitive	گلؽݧ	گللارؽݧ
dative	گلقا	گللارقا
definite accusative	گلؽ	گللارؽ
locative	گلچا	گللارچا
ablative	گلدا	گللاردا
instrumental	گللا	گللارلا
equative	گلواره	گللارواره

Laki

Noun

گل (gil)

1. flower

Mazanderani

Etymology 1

Cognate with Classical Persian گرزه (garza, “rat”).

Noun

گل (gal)

1. mouse

Etymology 2

From Persian گل (gol). Displaced native Old Mazanderani ول (*vel).

Noun

گل (gël)

1. flower

Persian

FWOTD – 4 August 2019

Etymology 1

گل

Inherited from Late Middle Persian gwl (gul, “rose, flower”), from Old Persian *vr̥dah, ultimately inherited from Proto-Iranian *wardah, *wr̥dah.

Pronunciation

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

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡʊl]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡʊl]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [ɡʊl]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [ɡul̥]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡ̥ol̥]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡul]

• Rhymes: -ul

Readings
Classical reading?	gul
Dari reading?	gul
Iranian reading?	gol
Tajik reading?	gul

Noun

گل • (gul / gol) (plural گل‌ها (gul-hā / gol-hâ), Tajik spelling гул)

1. flower
2. (archaic, literary) rose

   Synonyms: گل سرخ (gol-e sorx), رز (roz)

   • 940-1020, فردوسی [firdawsī], شهنامه [šahnāma]:

     زن شیر از آن نامه شهریار
     چو رخشنده گل شد به وقت بهار

     zan-i šēr az ān nāma-yi šahryār
     čū raxšanda-gul šud ba waqt-i bahār

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

     (Classical Persian transliteration)

   • 1325-1389, حافظ [hāfiz], دیوان حافظ [dēwān-i hāfiz]:

     صبحدم مرغ چمن با گل نوخاسته گفت
     ناز کم کن که در این باغ بسی چون تو شکفت

     subhdam murġ-i čaman bā gul-i nawxāsta guft
     nāz kam kun ki dar īn bāġ basē čūn tū šukuft

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

     (Classical Persian transliteration)

3. the core of a watermelon (the sweetest part)
4. (slang) cannabis, marijuana

   Synonym: بنگ (bang)

Derived terms

• ترگل (targol)
• نارگل (nârgol)
• نازگل (nâzgol)
• گل سرخ (gol-e sorx)
• گل و بلبل (gol-o-bolbol)
• گلاب (golâb)
• گلبرگ (golbarg)
• گلدان (goldân)
• گلزار (golzâr)
• گلستان (golestân)
• گلشن (golšan)
• گلپر (golpar)
• گلچه (golče)
• گلگون (gol-gun)
• گل‌کاری (gol-kâri)
• گل‌کلم (gol-kalam)
• گل‌گلی (gol-goli)

Descendants

Descendants

• → Arabic: جُلّ (jull)
• → Bashkir: гөл (göl)
• → Bengali: গুল (gul)
• → Chagatai: گل (gül)
  • Uyghur: گۈل (gül)
  • Uzbek: gul
• → Gilaki: گل (gul)
• → Gujarati: ગુલ (gul)
• → Hindustani:

  Hindi: गुल (gul)

  Urdu: گُل (gul)

• → Ishkashimi: [script needed] (gul)
• → Kashmiri: गुल (gul)
• → Kazakh: гүл (gül)
• → Khalaj: gul
• → Kyrgyz: гүл (gül)
• → Mandaic: ࡂࡅࡋ (gul)
• → Northern Kurdish: gul
• → Old Anatolian Turkish: كل (gül)
  • Azerbaijani: gül
  • Gagauz: gül
  • Ottoman Turkish: گل (gül)
    • Turkish: gül
    • → Armenian: կիւլ (kiwl), գյուլ (gyul)
    • → Laz: გჲული (gyuli), ჯული (culi) — Okordule
    • → Macedonian: ѓул (ǵul)
    • → Romanian: ghiul
    • → Serbo-Croatian: ђул / đul
    • → Albanian: gjylë
• → Parachi: ګل (gul)
• → Pashto: ګل (gul)
• → Punjabi:

  Gurmukhi script: ਗੁਲ (gul)

  Shahmukhi script: گُل (gul)

• → Sanglechi: gɛl
• → Sarikoli: gəl
• → Shahmirzadi: [script needed] (gel)
• → Shughni: гул (gul)
• → Sindhi:

  Devanagari script: गुलु (gulu)

  Arabic script: گُلُ (gulu)

• → Turkmen: gül
• → Wakhi: gul, gыl
• → Yazghulami: г̊ол (g̊ol)
• → Yidgha: گل (gul)

Etymology 2

Inherited from Middle Persian TYNA / gl (gil).

Pronunciation

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

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡɪl]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡɪl]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [ɡɪl]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [ɡil̥]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡʲel̥]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡil]

• Rhymes: -il

Readings
Classical reading?	gil
Dari reading?	gil
Iranian reading?	gel
Tajik reading?	gil

Noun

گل • (gil / gel) (plural گل‌ها (gil-hā / gel-hâ), Tajik spelling гил)

1. clay
2. silt
3. mud
4. lair

Derived terms

• کاه‌گل (kâh-gel)
• کاه‌گلی (kâh-geli)
• گل لگد کردن (gel lagad kardan)
• گل و لای (gel-o-lây)
• گلی (geli)
• گل‌آلود (gel-âlud)
• گل‌مالی (gel-mâli)

Descendants

Descendants

• Tajik: гил (gil)
• → Armenian: (dialectal) գիլ (gil)
• → Azerbaijani: gil
• → Gujarati: ગિલ (gil)
• → Hindustani:

  Hindi: गिल (gil)

  Urdu: گِل (gil)

• → Ottoman Turkish: كیل (gil, kil)
  • Turkish: kil
• → Punjabi:

  Gurmukhi script: ਗਿਲ (gil)

  Shahmukhi script: گِل (gil)

References

• MacKenzie, D. N. (1971), “gil”, in A concise Pahlavi dictionary, London, New York, Toronto: Oxford University Press, page 36

Etymology 3

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰeh₂-der.

Proto-Germanic *gailō

Proto-West Germanic *gailu

Old English *gāl

Middle English gol

English goalbor.

Persian گل

Borrowed from English goal.

Pronunciation

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡ̥ol̥]

Readings
Iranian reading?	gol

Noun

Dari	گول
Iranian Persian	گل
Tajik	гол

گل • (gol) (plural گل‌ها (gol-hâ))

1. (chiefly Iran, sports, soccer) goal

Derived terms

• پرگل (por-gol)
• گل خوردن (gol xordan)
• گل زدن (gol zadan)
• گل کوچیک (gol kučik)
• گل‌زن (gol-zan)
• گل‌نزن (gol-nazan)

Etymology 4

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

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

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡʊl]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡʊl]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [ɡʊl]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [ɡul̥]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡ̥ol̥]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [ɡul]

• Rhymes: -ul

Readings
Classical reading?	gul
Dari reading?	gul
Iranian reading?	gol
Tajik reading?	gul

Noun

گل • (gul)

1. (Classical Persian or dialectal, of a candle or lamp) embers, snuff

Adjective

گل • (gul)

1. (colloquial Dari, referring to technology) off, disabled

Derived terms

• گل کردن (gul kardan, “to turn off”)

Etymology 5

Borrowed from French Gaule.

Proper noun

گل • (gol)

1. (Iran) synonym of گالیا (gâliyâ)

Punjabi

Etymology 1

Inherited from Ashokan Prakrit 𑀕𑀮𑀳𑀸 (galahā) (Kalsi), from Sanskrit गर्हा (garhā).

Noun

گَلّ • (gall) f (Gurmukhi spelling ਗੱਲ)

1. topic; matter (of a conversation)

   Synonym: بات (bāt)

2. saying; quote (ie. the recollection of something said, as opposed to a renowned or popular saying)

Declension

Declension of گل

	singular	plural
direct	گَلّ (gall)	گَلّاں (gallāṉ)
oblique	گَلّ (gall)	گَلّاں (gallāṉ)
vocative	گَلّے (galle)	گَلّو (gallo)
ablative	گَلّوں (galloṉ)	—
locative	گَلّی (gallī)	گَلِّیں (galliīṉ)
instrumental	گَلّے (galle)	گَلِّیں (galliīṉ)

Etymology 2

Inherited from Prakrit 𑀕𑀺𑀮𑁆𑀮 (gilla).

Proper noun

گِلّ • (gill) m or f (Gurmukhi spelling ਗਿੱਲ)

1. a Punjabi surname, Gill

Further reading

More information

• Iqbal, Salah ud-Din (2002), “گل”, in vaḍḍī panjābī lughat (in Punjabi), Lahore: عزیز پبلشرز [ʻazīz pabliśarz]
• “ਗਿੱਲ”, in Punjabi-English Dictionary, Patiala: Punjabi University, 2026
• “ਗੱਲ”, in Punjabi-English Dictionary, Patiala: Punjabi University, 2026
• Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985), “*grilla”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 235
• Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985), “garhā”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 218

Sindhi

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian گل (gul).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ɡʊlʊ]

Noun

گُلُ • (gulu) m (Devanagari गुलु)

1. flower

   Synonym: ڦُلُ (phulu)

2. tree
3. plant

References

• Khānu, Balocu (1960–1988), “گُلُ”, in Jāmiʻ Sindhī lughāta (in Sindhi), Hyderabad, Sindh: Sindhī Adabī Borḍ, page 1579
• Parmanand, Mewaram (1910), “گلُ”, in Sindhi-English Dictionary, Hyderabad, Sindh: The Sind Juvenile Co-operative Society, page 468
• Stack, George (1849), “गुलु”, in A dictionary, English and Sindhi, American Mission Press, page 56
• Sindhi Language Authority (2026), “گل”, in Online Sindhi Dictionaries‎^[1]

Urdu

Etymology 1

From Sanskrit गल (gala).

Noun

گل • (gal) m (Hindi spelling गल)

1. throat
2. neck
3. hook

Etymology 2

From Sanskrit गल् (gal).

Noun

گل • (gal) m (Hindi spelling गल)

1. speech
2. word
3. saying
4. affair

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Classical Persian گل (gil).

Noun

گل • (gil) f (Hindi spelling गिल)

1. earth, mud, silt, clay
2. bole

Etymology 4

Etymology tree

Proto-Iranian *wardah

Old Persian *vr̥dah

Middle Persian gwl (gul)

Classical Persian گُل (gul)bor.

Urdu گل

Borrowed from Classical Persian گُل (gul).

Noun

گُل • (gul) m (Hindi spelling गुल)

1. flower

   باغوں میں گُل کِھلے ہَیں۔

   bāġõ mẽ gul khile ha͠i.

   Flowers have bloomed in the gardens.

2. rose

   گُلِ گُلْزار ― gul-i gulzār ― Rose from the flowerbed

Declension

Declension of گل

	singular	plural
direct	گل (gul)	گل (gul)
oblique	گل (gul)	گلوں (gulõ)
vocative	گل (gul)	گلو (gulo)

Derived terms

• گلبدن (gulbadan, “having a rosy body”)
• گلدان (guldān, “flowerpot; vase”)
• گلدستہ (guldastā, “bouquet”)
• گلگون (gulgūn, “rose-colored; pink”)

References

• Platts, John T. (1884), “گل”, in A dictionary of Urdu, classical Hindi, and English, London: W. H. Allen & Co.