Nourai Ali. An Etymological Dictionary of Persian, English and other Indo-European Languages

Book on Demand Ltd., 2014. — 884 pages. — ISBN10: 5519051828 / ISBN13: 978-5519051828.Единственный в своем роде этимологический словарь персидского языка. Содержит уникальные графические диаграммы, показывающие связи персидской лексики со словарным составам многих языков, в том числе и не индо-европейских. Словарь написан на английском языке, но содержит вступление и избранные статьи на персидском.The Main Features of this Dictionary:1) Over 1600 common roots for 4700 Persian and 3300 English words.
2) Over 9400 cognates in more than fifty other languages.
3) Non Indo-European roots are also included.
4) Graphic charts showing word relations.
5) Word index for each recorded language.
6) Documentation of word relations.Persian belongs to the family of Indo-European languages which also includes English, French, German and many other languages. It is quite evident that in tracing any Persian word to its origins, its cognates in other Indo-European languages must be considered. In this dictionary, English cognates are regularly referred to along with some other Indo-European equivalents. Since the Persian and English languages have borrowed many words from Semitic, Turkish and other languages that do not belong to the IndoEuropean group, these words are also analyzed and presented in this dictionary.Altogether, over 1,600 roots and 17,400 derived words are presented in this dictionary. About half of the entries are from Persian and other Iranian languages. These words can be divided into the following approximate language groups:Persian 4,700 words.
Other Iranian Languages (Avestan, Old Persian, Pahlavi, Sogdian, etc.) 4,300 words.
English 3,300 words.
Greek & Latin 1,500 words.
Indo-European roots 1,400 words.
Arabic, Hebrew & other Semitic languages 800 words.
French, German, Italian & Spanish 400 words.
Sanskrit & Indian (Hindustani) 400 words.
Other languages 700 words.If we look at all languages collectively, and with a truly open mind, we see that there is little difference between what is considered as a foreign word and what is believed to be a native word. The difference is mainly in the time of entry into a language. Some words have entered a language sooner in history and are, therefore, better rooted and more widely accepted than others. All languages have exchanged words throughout their history. A pure language is nothing more than a myth.Throughout its long history and for various social, cultural and political reasons, the Persian language has enriched itself by exchanging words with many other languages while maintaining its original identity. Besides having a direct lineage, many Indo-European words have reached Persian through other languages. Many of the borrowed words have been so Persianized and have penetrated so deeply throughout the literature and poetical heritage that it is almost impossible to separate them from the Persian language. Considering the beauty and the depth of the spiritual thoughts expressed in the poems of Molavî, Hâfez, Sa`dî and other poets who have used so many Persianized Arabic words, it is futile to even think about abandoning these words. Omitting these Persianized words is like erasing a significant part of the Persian heritage and identity. This assimilation of foreign words, of course, is not a unique feature of the Persian language. Imagine omitting all the Greek and Latin words from English, or other European languages: the result would be impractical and severely restricted languages.