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{{Short description|Old Iranian language}}
[[Image:Behistun DB1 1-15.jpg|thumb|330px|Sketch of the first column of the [[Behistun Inscription]]]]
{{about||the racehorse|Old Persian (horse)|the Unicode block|Old Persian (Unicode block)}}
'''Old Persian''' is the oldest attested [[Persid]] language. It is classified in the group of [[Western Iranian]] languages, subgroup of [[Indo-Iranian]] and [[Indo-European]] languages.
{{Infobox language
| name = Old Persian
| nativename = {{lang|peo|𐎠𐎼𐎹}} {{transliteration|peo|italic=no|Ariya}}
| region = [[History of Iran#Classical antiquity|Ancient Iran]]
| era = Evolved into [[Middle Persian]] by {{c.|300}} BCE
| familycolor = Indo-European
| fam2 = [[Indo-Iranian languages|Indo-Iranian]]
| fam3 = [[Iranian languages|Iranian]]
| fam4 = [[Western Iranian languages|Western]]
| fam5 = [[Southwestern Iranian languages|Southwestern]]
| script = [[Old Persian cuneiform]]
| iso2 = peo
| iso3 = peo
| linglist = peo
| notice = IPA
| glotto = oldp1254
| glottorefname = Old Persian (ca. 600–400 B.C.)
}}
'''Old Persian''' is one of two directly attested [[Old Iranian languages]] (the other being [[Avestan language|Avestan]]) and is the ancestor of [[Middle Persian]] (the language of the [[Sasanian Empire]]). Like other Old Iranian languages, it was known to its native speakers as {{transliteration|peo|ariya}} (Iranian).<ref name="Gershevitch"><sup>''cf.''</sup> {{Cite book|title=Handbuch der Orientalistik, Literatur I|last=Gershevitch|first=Ilya|publisher=Brill|year=1968|location=Leiden|pages=1–31|chapter=Old Iranian Literature}}, p. 2.</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Gnoli|first=Gherardo|title=Encyclopædia Iranica|publisher=Routledge & Kegan Paul|year=2006|volume=13|location=New York|chapter=Iranian Identity ii. Pre-Islamic Period|quote=... in the Old Persian version, whose language was called "Iranian" or ''ariya''.|author-link=Gherardo Gnoli|chapter-url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/iranian-identity-ii-pre-islamic-period}}</ref> Old Persian is close to both [[Avestan]] and the language of the [[Rig Veda]], the oldest form of the [[Sanskrit]] language. All three languages are highly inflected.


Old Persian appears primarily in the inscriptions, [[clay tablet]]s and [[seal (device)|seal]]s of the [[Achaemenid dynasty|Achaemenid]] era ({{circa|600 BCE}} to 300&nbsp;BCE). Examples of Old Persian have been found in what is now [[Iran]], [[Romania]] ([[Gherla]]),{{sfn|Kuhrt|2013|page=197}}{{sfn|Frye|1984|page=103}}{{sfn|Schmitt|2000|page=53}} [[Armenia]], [[Bahrain]], [[Iraq]], [[Turkey]] and [[Egypt]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.avesta.org/op/op.htm |title=Old Persian Texts |work=Avesta – Zoroastrian Archives}}</ref><ref>Kent, R. G. (1950) "Old Persian: Grammar Texts Lexicon", p. 6. American Oriental Society.</ref> with the most important attestation by far being the contents of the [[Behistun Inscription]] (dated to 525 BCE).
This language was used in the inscriptions of the [[Achaemenid dynasty|Achaemenid]] kings. Old Persian texts (including inscriptions, tablets and seals) have been found in [[Iran]], [[Turkey]] and [[Egypt]]. It evolved into the Middle Persian language ([[Pahlavi]]) of [[Sassanid]] Iran, and eventually into modern [[Persian language]].

2007 research into the vast [[Persepolis Fortification Archive]] at the Oriental Institute at the [[University of Chicago]] unearthed Old Persian tablets, which suggest Old Persian was a written language in use for practical recording and not only for royal display.<ref>{{cite web |title=Everyday text shows that Old Persian was probably more commonly used than previously thought |date=June 15, 2007 |publisher=University of Chicago News Office (archived) |url=http://www-news.uchicago.edu/releases/07/070615.oldpersian.shtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016070202/http://www-news.uchicago.edu/releases/07/070615.oldpersian.shtml |archive-date=2017-10-16 }}</ref>

==Origin and overview==
As a [[written language]], Old Persian is attested in royal [[Achaemenid Empire|Achaemenid]] inscriptions. It is an [[Iranian languages|Iranian language]] and as such a member of the [[Indo-Iranian languages|Indo-Iranian]] branch of the [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European language family]]. The oldest known text written in Old Persian is from the [[Behistun Inscription]]s.{{sfn|Schmitt|2008|pp=80–81}} Old Persian is one of the oldest Indo-European languages which are attested in original texts.{{sfn|Skjærvø|2006|loc=vi(2). Documentation. Old Persian.}}

The oldest date of use of Old Persian as a spoken language is not precisely known. According to certain historical assumptions about the early history and origin of ancient Persians in [[Fars Province|Southwestern Iran]] (where Achaemenids hailed from), Old Persian was originally spoken by a tribe called {{transliteration|mis|Parsuwash}}, who arrived in the [[Iranian plateau|Iranian Plateau]] early in the 1st millennium BCE and finally migrated down into the area of present-day [[Fars province|Fārs province]]. Their language, Old Persian, became the official language of the Achaemenid kings.{{sfn|Skjærvø|2006|loc=vi(2). Documentation. Old Persian.}} [[Assyria|Assyrian]] records, which in fact appear to provide the earliest evidence for ancient Iranian (Persian and Median) presence on the Iranian Plateau, give a good chronology but only an approximate geographical indication of what seem to be ancient Persians. In these records of the 9th century BCE, {{transliteration|mis|Parsuwash}} (along with {{transliteration|mis|Matai}}, presumably Medians) are first mentioned in the area of [[Lake Urmia]] in the records of [[Shalmaneser III]].{{sfn|Skjærvø|2006|loc=vi(1). Earliest Evidence}} The exact identity of the Parsuwash is not known for certain, but from a [[Linguistics|linguistic]] viewpoint the word matches Old Persian {{transliteration|peo|pārsa}} itself coming directly from the older word {{transliteration|peo|*pārćwa}}.{{sfn|Skjærvø|2006|loc=vi(1). Earliest Evidence}} Also, as Old Persian contains many words from another extinct Iranian language, [[Median language|Median]], according to [[Prods Oktor Skjaervo|P. O. Skjærvø]] it is probable that Old Persian had already been spoken before the formation of the Achaemenid Empire and was spoken during most of the first half of the first millennium BCE.{{sfn|Skjærvø|2006|loc=vi(2). Documentation. Old Persian.}}

==Classification==
{{Main|Iranian languages#Proto-Iranian and Old Iranian_languages|l1=Old Iranian languages}}
Old Persian belongs to the [[Iranian languages|Iranian language family]], a branch of the [[Indo-Iranian language]] family, itself within the large family of [[Indo-European languages]]. The common [[Proto-Indo-Iranians|ancestors of Indo-Iranians]] came from [[Central Asia]] sometime in the first half of the [[2nd millennium BC|2nd millennium BCE]]. The extinct and unattested [[Median language]] is another Old Iranian language related to Old Persian; both are classified as [[Western Iranian languages]], and many Median names appear in Old Persian texts.{{sfn|Schmitt|2008|p=76}} The group of Old Iranian languages was presumably large; however, knowledge of it is restricted mainly to Old Persian, [[Avestan]], and Median. The first two are the only languages in that group to have left written original texts, while Median is known mostly from [[loanword]]s in Old Persian.{{sfn|Skjærvø|2006}}

==Language evolution==
By the 4th century BCE, the late [[Achaemenid period]], the inscriptions of [[Artaxerxes II]] and [[Artaxerxes III]] differ enough from the language of Darius' inscriptions to be called a "pre-Middle Persian," or "post-Old Persian."{{sfn|Skjærvø|2005}} Old Persian subsequently evolved into [[Middle Persian]], which is in turn the ancestor of [[New Persian]].

Professor [[Gilbert Lazard]], a famous [[Iranian studies|Iranologist]] and the author of the book ''Persian Grammar'', states:<ref>{{cite book |author=Lazard, Gilbert |year=1975 |chapter=The Rise of the New Persian Language |editor=Frye, R. N. |title=The Cambridge History of Iran |volume=4 |pages=595–632 |place=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press}}</ref>
<blockquote>The language known as New Persian, which usually is called at this period (early Islamic times) by the name of Parsi-Dari, can be classified linguistically as a continuation of Middle Persian, the official religious and literary language of Sassanian Iran, itself a continuation of Old Persian, the language of the Achaemenids. Unlike the other languages and dialects, ancient and modern, of the Iranian group such as [[Avestan]], [[Parthia]]n, [[Soghdian]], [[Kurdish people|Kurdish]], [[Pashto language|Pashto]], etc., Old, [[Middle Persian|Middle]] and [[Persian language|New Persian]] represent one and the same language at three states of its history. It had its origin in [[Fars Province|Fars]] and is differentiated by dialectical features, still easily recognizable from the dialect prevailing in north-western and eastern Iran.</blockquote>

[[Middle Persian]], also sometimes called Pahlavi, is a direct continuation of Old Persian and was used as the written official language of the country.<ref name="Ulrich">{{cite book |author1=Ulrich Ammon |author2=Norbert Dittmar |author3=Klaus J. Mattheier |author4=Peter Trudgill |series=Sociolinguistics |volume=3 |title=An International Handbook of the Science of Language and Society |publisher=Walter de Gruyter |year=2006 |edition=2nd |page=1912 |quote=Middle Persian, also called Pahlavi is a direct continuation of old Persian, and was used as the written official language of the country." "However, after the Moslem conquest and the collapse of the Sassanids, Arabic became the dominant language of the country and Pahlavi lost its importance, and was gradually replaced by Dari, a variety of Middle Persian, with considerable loan elements from Arabic and Parthian.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Bo Utas |chapter=Semitic on Iranian |title=Linguistic convergence and areal diffusion: case studies from Iranian, Semitic and Turkic |editor1=Éva Ágnes Csató |editor2=Bo Isaksson |editor3=Carina Jahani |publisher=Routledge |year=2005 |page=71 |quote=As already mentioned, it is not likely that the scribes of Sassanian chanceries had any idea about the Old Persian cuneiform writing and the language couched in it. Still, the Middle Persian language that appeared in the third century AD may be seen as a continuation of Old Persian}}</ref> Comparison of the evolution at each stage of the language shows great simplification in grammar and syntax. However, [[Modern Persian|New Persian]] is a direct descendant of Middle and Old Persian.{{sfn|Skjærvø|2006}}

==Substrates==
Old Persian "presumably"{{sfn|Skjærvø|2005}} has a [[Median language]] [[Substrata (linguistics)|substrate]]. The Median element is readily identifiable because it did not share in the developments that were peculiar to Old Persian. Median forms "are found only in personal or geographical names [...] and some are typically from religious vocabulary and so could in principle also be influenced by [[Avestan]]." "Sometimes, both Median and Old Persian forms are found, which gave Old Persian a somewhat confusing and inconsistent look: 'horse,' for instance, is [attested in Old Persian as] both {{transliteration|peo|asa}} (OPers.) and {{transliteration|peo|aspa}} (Med.)."{{sfn|Skjærvø|2005}}


==Script==
==Script==
{{Main|Old Persian cuneiform}}
Old Persian was written from left to right in a kind of [[Cuneiform script]]. Old Persian cuneiform contains 36 signs which represent [[consonant]]s, [[vowel]]s, or sequences of single consonants plus vowels, a set of three numbers (1, 10, 100), one word divider, and eight [[ideogram]]s. It is essentially alphabetic in nature.
[[File:BehistunInscriptiondetail.jpg|250px|thumb|right|Close-up of the [[Behistun inscription]]]]
[[File:Persépolis. Inscription.jpg|thumb|right|250px|An Old Persian inscription in [[Persepolis]]]]
Old Persian texts were written from left to right in the syllabic Old Persian cuneiform script and had 36 phonetic characters and 8 [[logograms]]. The usage of logograms is not obligatory.{{sfn|Schmitt|2008|p=78}} The script was surprisingly<ref>{{harvnb|Schmitt|2008|p=78}} Excerpt: "It remains unclear why the [[Persian people#Ancient|Persians]] did not take over the [[Mesopotamia#Language and writing|Mesopotamian system]] in earlier times, as the Elamites and other peoples
of the Near East had, and, for that matter, why the Persians did not adopt the Aramaic consonantal script.."</ref> not a result of evolution of the script used in the nearby civilisation of [[Mesopotamia]].{{sfn|Schmitt|2008|p=77}} Despite the fact that Old Persian was written in [[cuneiform]] script, the script was not a direct continuation of Mesopotamian tradition and in fact, according to Schmitt, was a "deliberate creation of the sixth century BCE".{{sfn|Schmitt|2008|p=77}}


The origin of the Old Persian cuneiform script and the identification of the date and process of introduction are a matter of debate among Iranian scholars with no general agreement having been reached. The factors making the consensus difficult are, among others, the difficult passage [[Behistun Inscription|DB]] (IV lines 88–92) from [[Darius the Great]] who speaks of a new "form of writing" being made by himself which is said to be "in [[Iranian Languages|Aryan]]":
While the letters may look like [[Sumer]]o-[[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] [[Cuneiform script|cuneiform]], only one, ''L'', derives from that script. (''L'' didn't occur in native Old Persian words, but was found in Akkadian borrowings.) Scholars today mostly agree that the Old Persian script was invented by about [[525 BC]] to provide monumental inscriptions for the [[Achaemenid]] king [[Darius I|Darius&nbsp;I]].


{{quote|King Darius says: By the grace of Ahuramazda this is the inscription which I have made. Besides, it was in Aryan ("{{transliteration|peo|italic=no|ariyâ}}") script, and it was composed on clay tablets and on parchment. Besides, a sculptured figure of myself I made.|[[Behistun Inscription]] (IV lines 88–92)<ref>{{cite book |title=Behistun T 42 – Livius |url=https://www.livius.org/sources/content/behistun-persian-text/behistun-t-42/}}</ref>}}
Although based on a logo-syllabic prototype, the system is essentially alphabetic in character. 13 out of 22 consonants are invariant, regardless of the following vowel (that is, they are alphabetic), while only 6 have a distinct form for each consonant-vowel combination (that is, they are syllablic), and among these, only ''d'' and ''m'' occur in three forms for all three vowels. (''k, g, j, v'' only occur before two of the vowels, and so only have two forms.) In addition, 3 consonants, ''t, n, r'', are partially syllabic, having the same form before ''a'' and ''i'', and a distinct form only before ''u''. For instance, =< could be ''na'' or ''ni'', whereas <<= is specifically ''nu''. Ambiguous syllables such as =< ''na/ni'' must be followed by a vowel for clarification, but in practice even unambiguous syllables such as <<= ''nu'', or fully syllabic ''ma, mi, mu'', are followed by explicit vowels.


Also, the analysis of certain Old Persian inscriptions are "supposed or claimed" to predate Darius the Great. Although it is true that the oldest attested Old Persian inscriptions are found on the Behistun monument from Darius, the creation of this "new type of writing" seems, according to Schmitt, "to have begun already under [[Cyrus the Great]]".{{sfn|Schmitt|2008|pp=80–81}}
The effect is not unlike the English {{IPA|[d&#658;]}} sound, which is typically written ''g'' before ''i'' or ''e'', but ''j'' before other vowels (''gem, jam''), or the Castillian Spanish {{IPA|[&#952;]}} sound, which is written ''c'' before ''i'' or ''e'' and ''z'' before other vowels (''cinco, zapato''). It is more accurate to say that some of the Old Persian consonants are written by different letters depending on the following vowel, rather than classifying the script as syllabic. This situation had its origin in the [[Assyrian]] cuneiform syllabary, where several syllabic distinctions had been lost and were often clarified with explicit vowels. However, in the case of Assyrian, the vowel was not always used, and was never used where not needed, so the system remained (logo-)syllabic.


The script shows a few changes in the shape of characters during the period it was used. This can be seen as a standardization of the heights of wedges, which in the beginning (i.e. in [[Behistun inscription|DB]]) took only half the height of a line.{{sfn|Schmitt|2008|p=79}}
For a while it was speculated that the alphabet could have had its origin in such a system, with a leveling of consonant signs a millennium earlier producing something like the [[Ugaritic alphabet]], but today it is generally accepted that the Semitic alphabet arose from Egyptian [[hieroglyph]]s, where vowel notation was not important. (See [[Middle Bronze Age alphabets]].)


==Phonology==
The Old Persian script is encoded in Plane 1 ([[Basic Multilingual Plane]]) of [[Unicode]] 4.1, occupying code points 103A0–103DF.
The following phonemes are expressed in the Old Persian script:


{|class=wikitable style=text-align:center
==Further information==
|+ Vowels
*[http://www.cais-soas.com/articles/language&litreature_articles.htm Ancient Iranian Languages & Literature: The Circle of Ancient Iranian Studies (CAIS)]
!
!colspan=2| Front
!colspan=2| Back
|-
! Close
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|i}} || style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA|iː}}
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|u}} || style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA|uː}}
|-
! Open
|style=border-width:0|
|style=border-width:0|{{IPA link|a}}
|style=border-width:0|{{IPA|aː}}
|style=border-width:0|
|}


{|class=wikitable style=text-align:center
==References==
|+ Consonants
*[http://www.cais-soas.com/CAIS/Languages/aryan/aryan_language.htm Aryan (Old Persian) Language]
!
!colspan=2|[[Labial consonant|Labial]]
!colspan=2|[[Dental consonant|Dental]]/<br>[[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
!colspan=2|[[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
!colspan=2|[[Velar consonant|Velar]]
!colspan=2|[[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
![[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
|style=border-right-width:0| || style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|m}}
|style=border-right-width:0| || style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|n}}
|colspan=2|
|colspan=2|
|colspan=2|
|-
![[Plosive consonant|Plosive]]
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|p}}||style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|b}}
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|t}}||style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|d}}
|colspan=2|
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|k}}||style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|ɡ}}
|colspan=2|
|-
![[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|f}}||style=border-left-width:0|
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|θ}}||style=border-left-width:0|
|colspan=2|
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|x}}||style=border-left-width:0|
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|h}}||style=border-left-width:0|
|-
![[Affricate consonant|Affricate]]
|colspan=2|
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|t͡s}}||style=border-left-width:0|
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|t͡ʃ}}||style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|d͡ʒ}}
|colspan=2|
|colspan=2|
|-
![[Sibilant consonant|Sibilant]]
|colspan=2|
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|s}}||style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|z}}
|style=border-right-width:0|{{IPA link|ʃ}}||style=border-left-width:0|
|colspan=2|
|colspan=2|
|-
![[Rhotic consonant|Rhotic]]
|colspan=2|
|style=border-right-width:0| ||style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|r}}
|colspan=2|
|colspan=2|
|colspan=2|
|-
![[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
|colspan=2|
|style=border-right-width:0| ||style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|l}}
|style=border-right-width:0| ||style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|j}}
|style=border-right-width:0| ||style=border-left-width:0|{{IPA link|w}}
|colspan=2|
|}
Notes: [[Lycian language|Lycian]] {{lang|xlc|𐊋𐊆𐊈𐊈𐊀𐊓𐊕𐊑𐊏𐊀}} {{transliteration|xlc|Kizzaprñna}} ~ {{lang|xlc|𐊈𐊆𐊖𐊀𐊓𐊕𐊑𐊏𐊀}} {{transliteration|xlc|Zisaprñna}} for (genuine) Old Persian {{transliteration|peo|*Ciçafarnā}} (besides the [[Median language|Median]] form {{transl|peo|*Ciθrafarnah}}) = [[Tissaphernes]] suggests {{IPA|/t͡s/}} as the pronunciation of {{transliteration|peo|ç}} (compare [https://web.archive.org/web/20121117015833/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/cirafarnah-elamite-zi-ut-ra-bar-na-assyrian-si-dir-pa-ar-na-ni-gk] and Kloekhorst 2008, p.&nbsp;125 in [https://www.academia.edu/345130/Studies_in_Lycian_and_Carian_phonology_and_morphology] for this example, who, however, mistakenly writes {{transliteration|peo|Çiçafarnā}}, which contradicts the etymology [<nowiki/>[[Proto-Indo-Iranian language|PIIr.]] {{transliteration|peo|*Čitra-swarnas-}}] and the Middle Persian form {{transl|pal|Čehrfar}} [{{transl|peo|ç}} gives Middle Persian {{transl|pal|s}}]).{{or|date=August 2023}}

The [[phoneme]] {{IPA|/l/}} does not occur in native Iranian vocabulary, only in borrowings from [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] (a new {{IPA|/l/}} develops in Middle Persian from Old Persian {{IPA|/rd/}} and the change of {{IPA|/rθ/}} to {{IPA|/hl/}}). The phoneme {{IPA|/r/}} can also form a syllable peak; both the way Persian names with syllabic {{IPA|/r/}} (such as [[Bardiya|Brdiya]]) are rendered in [[Elamite language|Elamite]] and its further development in Middle Persian suggest that before the syllabic {{IPA|/r/}}, an [[Epenthesis|epenthetic]] vowel {{IPA|[i]}} had developed already in the Old Persian period, which later became {{IPA|[u]}} after labials. For example, Old Persian {{transliteration|peo|Vᵃ-rᵃ-kᵃ-a-nᵃ}} {{IPA|/wr̩kaːna/}} is rendered in Elamite as {{transliteration|elx|Mirkānu-}},<ref>{{cite book |title=Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie |series=Volume 8: Meek – Mythologie |year=1997 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter |location=Berlin and New York |isbn=978-3-11-014809-1 |page=221 |contribution-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O1yFrzi-MgYC&q=vrkana+elamite&pg=PA221 |editor1-last=Ebeling |editor1-first=Erich |editor2-last=Meissner |editor2-first=Bruno |editor3-last=Edzard |editor3-first=Dietz Otto |access-date=15 August 2013 |contribution=Mirkānu |last=Stolper |first=M. W.}}</ref> rendering transcriptions such as {{transl|peo|V(a)rakāna}}, {{transl|peo|Varkāna}} or even {{transl|peo|Vurkāna}} questionable and making {{transl|peo|Vrkāna}} or {{transl|peo|Virkāna}} much more realistic (and equally for {{transl|peo|vrka-}} "wolf", {{transl|peo|Brdiya}} and other Old Persian words and names with syllabic {{IPA|/r/}}).

While {{transl|peo|v}} usually became {{IPA|/v/}} in Middle Persian, it became {{IPA|/b/}} word-initially in New Persian, except before {{IPA|[u]}} (including the epenthetic vowel mentioned above), where it became {{IPA|/ɡ/}}. This suggests that it was really pronounced as {{IPA|[w]}}.

==Grammar==
===Grammatical numbers===
Old Persian has 3 types of grammatical number: singular, dual and plural.

===Grammatical genders===
Old Persian has three [[Grammatical gender|grammatical genders]]: masculine, feminine and neuter. In contrast, [[Modern Persian]] (as well as [[Middle Persian]]) is a [[genderless language]].

===Nouns===
Old Persian stems:
* a-stems ({{transl|peo|italic=no|-a, -am, -ā}})
* i-stems ({{transl|peo|italic=no|-iš, iy}})
* u- (and au-) stems ({{transl|peo|italic=no|-uš, -uv}})
* consonantal stems ({{transl|peo|italic=no|n, r, h}})

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!rowspan="2"|
!colspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-a}}
!colspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-am}}
!colspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}}
|-style="font-size:small"
! [[Singular number|Singular]] !! [[Dual (grammatical number)|Dual]] !! [[Plural number|Plural]]
! Singular !! Dual !! Plural
! Singular !! Dual !! Plural
|-
! [[Nominative case|Nominative]]
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-a}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā, -āha}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-am}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}}
|-
! [[Vocative case|Vocative]]
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}}
|-
! [[Accusative case|Accusative]]
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-am}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ām}}
|-
! [[Instrumental case|Instrumental]]/<br>[[Ablative case|Ablative]]
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aibiyā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aibiš}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aibiyā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aibiš}} ||rowspan="4"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-āyā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ābiyā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ābiš}}
|-
! [[Dative case|Dative]]
|rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ahyā, -ahya}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ahyā, -ahya}}
|-
! [[Genitive case|Genitive]]
|rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-āyā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ānām}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-āyā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ānām}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-āyā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ānām}}
|-
! [[Locative case|Locative]]
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aiy}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aišuvā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aiy}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aišuvā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-āšuvā}}
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!rowspan="2"|
!colspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-iš}}
!colspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-iy}}
!colspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-uš}}
!colspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-uv}}
|-style="font-size:small"
! Singular !! Dual !! Plural
! Singular !! Dual !! Plural
! Singular !! Dual !! Plural
! Singular !! Dual !! Plural
|-
! Nominative
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-iš}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-īy}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-iya}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-iy}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-in}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-īn}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-uš}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūv}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-uva}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-uv}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-un}} ||rowspan="3"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūn}}
|-
! Vocative
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-i}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-u}}
|-
! Accusative
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-im}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-iš}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-um}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūn}}
|-
! Instrumental/<br>Ablative
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-auš}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ībiyā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ībiš}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-auš}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ībiyā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ībiš}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-auv}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūbiyā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūbiš}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-auv}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūbiyā}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūbiš}}
|-
! Dative
|rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aiš}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-aiš}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-auš}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-auš}}
|-
! Genitive
|rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-īyā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-īnām}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-īyā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-īnām}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūvā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūnām}} ||rowspan="2"| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūvā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ūnām}}
|-
! Locative
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-auv}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-išuvā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-auv}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-išuvā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-āvā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ušuvā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-āvā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ušuvā}}
|}

Adjectives are declined in a similar way.

===Verbs===
'''Voices'''<br />
Active, Middle (them. pres. {{transl|peo|-aiy-}}, {{transl|peo|-ataiy-}}), Passive ({{transl|peo|-ya-}}).

Mostly the forms of first and third persons are attested. The only preserved [[Dual (grammatical number)|Dual]] form is {{transl|peo|ajīva'''tam'''}} 'both lived'.

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Present Active
|-
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |
! Athematic
! [[Thematic vowel|Thematic]]
|-
! 'be' !! 'bring'
|-
! rowspan="2" | Sg.
! 1.pers.
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|aʰ'''miy'''}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|bar'''āmiy'''}}
|-
! 3.pers.
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|as'''tiy'''}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|bar'''atiy'''}}
|-
! rowspan="2" | Pl.
! 1.pers.
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|aʰ'''mahiy'''}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|bar'''āmahiy'''}}
|-
! 3.pers.
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|h'''atiy'''}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|bar'''atiy'''}}
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Imperfect Active
|-
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |
! Athematic
! Thematic
|-
! 'do, make' !! 'be, become'
|-
! rowspan="2" | Sg.
! 1.pers.
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|'''a'''kunav'''am'''}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|'''a'''bav'''am'''}}
|-
! 3.pers.
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|'''a'''kunau'''š'''}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|'''a'''bav'''a'''}}
|-
! rowspan="2" | Pl.
! 1.pers.
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|'''a'''ku'''mā'''}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|'''a'''bav'''āmā'''}}
|-
! 3.pers.
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|'''a'''kunav'''a'''}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|'''a'''bav'''a'''}}
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ [[Present participle]]
|-
! Active
! Middle
|-
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-nt-}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|-amna-}}
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ [[Past participle]]
|-
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-ta-}}
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ [[Infinitive]]
|-
| {{transl|peo|italic=no|-tanaiy}}
|}

==Lexicon==

{| class="wikitable"
![[Proto-Iranian language|Proto-Iranian]] || Old Persian || Middle Persian || Modern Persian || meaning
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*Háhurah mazdáH}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|Auramazdā}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎠𐎢𐎼𐎶𐏀𐎭𐎠}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|Ohrmazd}} {{lang|pal|italic=no|𐭠𐭥𐭧𐭥𐭬𐭦𐭣}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|Hormazd}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|هرمزد}} || [[Ahura Mazda]] (supreme God)
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*Hácwah}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|asa}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎠𐎿}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|asp}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|asb}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|اسب}} / {{transl|fa|italic=no|asp}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|اسپ}} || horse
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*káHmah}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|kāma}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎣𐎠𐎶}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|kām}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|kâm}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|کام}} || desire
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*daywáh}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|[[daiva]]}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎭𐎡𐎺}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|dēw}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|div}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|دیو}} || devil
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*jráyah}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|drayah}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎭𐎼𐎹}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|drayā}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|daryâ}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|دریا}} || sea
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*jástah}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|dasta}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎭𐎿𐎫}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|dast}} {{lang|pal|italic=no|𐭩𐭣𐭤}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|dast}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|دست}} || hand
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*bāǰíš}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|bājiš}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎲𐎠𐎩𐎡𐏁}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|bāj}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|bâj}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|باج}} / {{transl|fa|italic=no|bâž}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|باژ}} || toll
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*bráHtā}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|brātā}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎲𐎼𐎠𐎫𐎠}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|brād(ar)}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|barâdar}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|برادر}} || brother
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*búHmiš}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|būmiš}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐏏}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|būm}} {{lang|pal|italic=no|𐭡𐭥𐭬}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|bum}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|بوم}} || region, land
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*mártyah}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|martya}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎶𐎼𐎫𐎡𐎹}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|mard}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|mard}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|مرد}} || man
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*mā́Hah}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|māha}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎶𐎠𐏃}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|māh}} {{lang|pal|italic=no|𐭡𐭩𐭥𐭧}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|mâh}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|ماه}} || moon, month
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*wáhr̥}} || derivative {{transl|peo|italic=no|vāhara}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎺𐎠𐏃𐎼}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|wahār}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|bahâr}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|بهار}} || spring
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*stuHnáH}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|stūnā}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎿𐎬𐎢𐎴𐎠}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|stūn}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|sotun}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|ستون}} || stand (column)
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*čyaHtáh}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|šiyāta}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐏁𐎡𐎹𐎠𐎫}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|šād}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|šâd}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|شاد}} || happy
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*Hr̥tám}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|[[asha|artam]]}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎠𐎼𐎫𐎶}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|ard}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|ord}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|ارد}} || order, truth
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*dráwgah}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|[[Asha|drauga]]}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎭𐎼𐎢𐎥}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|drōw}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|doruğ}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|دروغ}} || lie
|-
| {{lang|ira-x-proto|italic=no|*cwáHdaH}} || {{transl|peo|italic=no|spāda}} ({{lang|peo|italic=no|𐎿𐎱𐎠𐎭}}) || {{transl|pal|italic=no|spah}} {{lang|pal|italic=no|𐭮𐭯𐭠𐭧}} || {{transl|fa|italic=no|sepâh}} {{lang|fa|italic=no|سپاه}} || army
|-
|}


==See also==
==See also==
{{Portal|Asia}}
*[[Persian language]]
*[[Avestan language]]
* [[:Category:Old Persian language]]
*[[Behistun Inscription]]
*[[Middle Persian]]
*[[New Persian]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|24em}}

==Bibliography==
{{Refbegin|colwidth=30em}}
* {{citation|last=Brandenstein|first=Wilhelm|title=Handbuch des Altpersischen|location=Wiesbaden|publisher=O. Harrassowitz|year=1964}}
* {{citation|last=Hinz|first=Walther|title=Altpersischer Wortschatz|location=Nendeln, Liechtenstein|publisher=Kraus<!-- Reprint -->|year=1966}}
* {{cite book | last = Frye | first = Richard Nelson | title = Handbuch der Altertumswissenschaft: Alter Orient-Griechische Geschichte-Römische Geschichte. Band III,7: The History of Ancient Iran | publisher = C.H.Beck | year = 1984 | isbn = 978-3406093975 | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/historyofancient0000frye }}
* {{citation|last=Kent|first=Roland G.|title=Old Persian: Grammar, Texts, Lexicon|location=New Haven|publisher=American Oriental Society|year=1953}}
* {{cite book | last = Kuhrt | first = A. | title = The Persian Empire: A Corpus of Sources from the Achaemenid Period | publisher = Routledge | year = 2013 | isbn = 978-1136016943 }}
* {{citation|chapter=Iranian languages|title=Encyclopedia Iranica|volume=7|year=1996|publisher=Mazda|location=Costa Mesa|last=Sims-Williams|first=Nicholas}}: <!-- pages= -->238-245
* {{citation|last=Schmitt|first=Rüdiger|chapter=Altpersisch|editor=R. Schmitt|title=Compendium linguarum Iranicarum|publisher=Reichert|location=Wiesbaden|year=1989}}: <!-- pages=-->56–85
* {{cite book | last = Schmitt | first = Rüdiger | title = The Old Persian Inscriptions of Naqsh-i Rustam and Persepolis | publisher = Corpus Inscriptionum Iranicarum by School of Oriental and African Studies | year = 2000 | isbn = 978-0728603141 }}
* {{citation|last=Schmitt|first=R.|year=2008|chapter=Old Persian|title=The Ancient Languages of Asia and the Americas|editor=Roger D. Woodard|edition=illustrated|publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0521684941|pages=76–100}}
* {{citation|last=Skjærvø|first=Prods Oktor|year=2005|title=An Introduction to Old Persian|edition=2nd |location=Cambridge|publisher=Harvard|url=http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~iranian/OldPersian/opcomplete.pdf}}
* {{citation|last=Skjærvø|first=Prods Oktor|contribution=Iran, vi. Iranian languages and scripts |contribution-url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/iran-vi-iranian-languages-and-scripts |title=Encyclopaedia Iranica|year=2006 |volume=13|title-link=Encyclopaedia Iranica}}
* {{citation|last=Tolman|first=Herbert Cushing|title=Ancient Persian Lexicon and the Texts of the Achaemenidan Inscriptions Transliterated and Translated with Special Reference to Their Recent Re-examination |location=New York/Cincinnati|publisher=American Book Company|year=1908}}
{{Refend}}


==External links==
==Further reading==
{{Refbegin|colwidth=30em}}
*[http://www.cais-soas.com/CAIS/Languages/iranian_languages.htm Iranian Languages Group]
* {{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZKIfAAAAMAAJ|title=Historical grammar of the ancient Persian language|author=Edwin Lee Johnson|year=1917|publisher=American book company|series=Volume 8 of Vanderbilt oriental series|access-date=2011-07-06}}
*[http://www.zyworld.com/Assyrian/Decipherment%20of%20the%20Cuneiform.htm Decipherment of Persian Cuneiform]
* {{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xu3VOxbgDNsC|title=Historical grammar of the ancient Persian language|author=Edwin Lee Johnson|year=1917|publisher=American book company|series=Volume 8 of Vanderbilt oriental series|access-date=2011-07-06}}
*[http://dsuper.net/~elehoczk/history.htm Old-Persian Cuneiform Inscription]
* {{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lQsVAAAAYAAJ|title=Grammar of the Old Persian language: with the inscriptions of the Achaemenian kings and vocabulary|author=Herbert Cushing Tolman|year=1892 |publisher=Ginn |access-date=2011-07-06}}
*[http://www.livius.org/arl-arz/aryans/alphabet.html The Ancient Persian Alphabet]
* {{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IisOAAAAIAAJ|title=A guide to the Old Persian inscriptions|author=Herbert Cushing Tolman|year=1893|publisher=American book company|access-date=2011-07-06}}
* {{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JiVgAAAAMAAJ|title=Cuneiform supplement (autographed) to the author's Ancient Persian lexicon and texts: with brief historical synopsis of the language|author=Edwin Lee Johnson |editor=Herbert Cushing Tolman|year=1910|publisher=American Book Co.|series=Volume 7 of Vanderbilt oriental series|access-date=2011-07-06}}
* {{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-iRgAAAAMAAJ|title=Ancient Persian lexicon and the texts of the Achaemenidan inscriptions transliterated and translated with special reference to their recent re-examination, by Herbert Cushing Tolman ..|author=Herbert Cushing Tolman|year=1908|publisher=American Book Company|series=Volume 6 of Vanderbilt oriental series|access-date=2011-07-06}}
* {{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dPlfAAAAMAAJ|title=Ancient Persian lexicon and the texts of the Achaemenidan inscriptions transliterated and translated with special reference to their recent re-examination, by Herbert Cushing Tolman ..|author=Herbert Cushing Tolman|year=1908|publisher=American Book Company|series=Volume 6 of Vanderbilt oriental series|access-date=2011-07-06}}
<!-- -->
* {{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_AYVAAAAYAAJ|title=The Behistan inscription of King Darius: translation and critical notes to the Persian text with special reference to recent re-examinations of the rock |author=Darius I (King of Persia)|editor=Translated by Herbert Cushing Tolman|year=1908 |publisher=Vanderbilt University|edition=reprint|series=Volume 1, Issue 1 of Vanderbilt University studies ATLA monograph preservation program Volume 3384 of Harvard College Library preservation microfilm program |isbn=9780790531892|access-date=2011-07-06}}
* {{Citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T7JFAQAAIAAJ|title=The Behistan inscription of King Darius: translation and critical notes to the Persian text with special reference to recent re-examinations of the rock |author=Darius I (King of Persia)|editor=Herbert Cushing Tolman|year=1908|publisher=Vanderbilt university|series=Volume 1, Issue 1 of Vanderbilt University studies|access-date=2011-07-06}}
<!-- -->
* {{cite web |last1=Harvey|first1=Scott L.|last2=Slocum|first2=Jonathan |title=Series Introduction |work=Old Iranian Online|publisher=The University of Texas at Austin Linguistics Research Center |url=https://lrc.la.utexas.edu/eieol/aveol}}
* {{citation|chapter=Cases in Iranian languages and dialects|year=1995|title=Encyclopedia Iranica|volume=5|pages=25–37|location=Costa Mesa|publisher=Mazda|last=Windfuhr|first=Gernot L.|chapter-url=http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v5f1/v5f1a008.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071104230552/http://www.iranica.com/newsite/articles/v5f1/v5f1a008.html|archive-date=2007-11-04}}
* {{cite journal |title=From the Persepolis Fortification Archive Project, 1: An Old Persian Administrative Tablet from the Persepolis Fortification |year=2007|journal=Arta|volume=1 |last1=Stolper |first1=Matthew W. |last2=Tavernier |first2=Jan}}
* {{cite web |title=An Old Persian text in the Persepolis Fortification Archive |date=June 18, 2007 |others=Posted by Chuck Jones |url=http://persepolistablets.blogspot.com/2007/06/old-persian-text-in-persepolis.html |work=Persepolis Fortification Archive Project}}
* {{Citation |last=Asatrian |first=Garnik| title= Etymological Dictionary of Persian| series= [[Indo-European Etymological Dictionary|Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series, 12]] |publisher= [[Brill Publishers|Brill Academic Publishers]] |year=2010 |isbn= 978-90-04-18341-4| url=<!--broken or incorrect link: http://www.brill.nl/default.aspx?partid=227&pid=24857-->}}
{{Refend}}
{{Achaemenid Empire}}
{{Persian language}}
{{Iranian languages}}
{{Ancient Mesopotamia}}
{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Old Persian Language}}
[[Category:Iranian languages]]
[[Category:Persian language]]
[[Category:Old Persian language| ]]
[[Category:Ancient languages|Persian language, Old]]
[[Category:History of the Persian language]]
[[Category:Languages attested from the 6th century BC]]
[[de:Altpersische Sprache]]
[[Category:Languages of ancient Anatolia|Persian]]
[[Category:Cuneiform]]

Latest revision as of 21:23, 7 October 2024

For the racehorse, see Old Persian (horse). For the Unicode block, see Old Persian (Unicode block).
Old Persian
𐎠𐎼𐎹 Ariya
RegionAncient Iran
EraEvolved into Middle Persian by c. 300 BCE
Old Persian cuneiform
Language codes
ISO 639-2peo
ISO 639-3peo
peo
Glottologoldp1254
This article contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA.

Old Persian is one of two directly attested Old Iranian languages (the other being Avestan) and is the ancestor of Middle Persian (the language of the Sasanian Empire). Like other Old Iranian languages, it was known to its native speakers as ariya (Iranian).[1][2] Old Persian is close to both Avestan and the language of the Rig Veda, the oldest form of the Sanskrit language. All three languages are highly inflected.

Old Persian appears primarily in the inscriptions, clay tablets and seals of the Achaemenid era (c. 600 BCE to 300 BCE). Examples of Old Persian have been found in what is now Iran, Romania (Gherla),[3][4][5] Armenia, Bahrain, Iraq, Turkey and Egypt,[6][7] with the most important attestation by far being the contents of the Behistun Inscription (dated to 525 BCE).

2007 research into the vast Persepolis Fortification Archive at the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago unearthed Old Persian tablets, which suggest Old Persian was a written language in use for practical recording and not only for royal display.[8]

Origin and overview

[edit]

As a written language, Old Persian is attested in royal Achaemenid inscriptions. It is an Iranian language and as such a member of the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European language family. The oldest known text written in Old Persian is from the Behistun Inscriptions.[9] Old Persian is one of the oldest Indo-European languages which are attested in original texts.[10]

The oldest date of use of Old Persian as a spoken language is not precisely known. According to certain historical assumptions about the early history and origin of ancient Persians in Southwestern Iran (where Achaemenids hailed from), Old Persian was originally spoken by a tribe called Parsuwash, who arrived in the Iranian Plateau early in the 1st millennium BCE and finally migrated down into the area of present-day Fārs province. Their language, Old Persian, became the official language of the Achaemenid kings.[10] Assyrian records, which in fact appear to provide the earliest evidence for ancient Iranian (Persian and Median) presence on the Iranian Plateau, give a good chronology but only an approximate geographical indication of what seem to be ancient Persians. In these records of the 9th century BCE, Parsuwash (along with Matai, presumably Medians) are first mentioned in the area of Lake Urmia in the records of Shalmaneser III.[11] The exact identity of the Parsuwash is not known for certain, but from a linguistic viewpoint the word matches Old Persian pārsa itself coming directly from the older word *pārćwa.[11] Also, as Old Persian contains many words from another extinct Iranian language, Median, according to P. O. Skjærvø it is probable that Old Persian had already been spoken before the formation of the Achaemenid Empire and was spoken during most of the first half of the first millennium BCE.[10]

Classification

[edit]
Main article: Old Iranian languages

Old Persian belongs to the Iranian language family, a branch of the Indo-Iranian language family, itself within the large family of Indo-European languages. The common ancestors of Indo-Iranians came from Central Asia sometime in the first half of the 2nd millennium BCE. The extinct and unattested Median language is another Old Iranian language related to Old Persian; both are classified as Western Iranian languages, and many Median names appear in Old Persian texts.[12] The group of Old Iranian languages was presumably large; however, knowledge of it is restricted mainly to Old Persian, Avestan, and Median. The first two are the only languages in that group to have left written original texts, while Median is known mostly from loanwords in Old Persian.[13]

Language evolution

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By the 4th century BCE, the late Achaemenid period, the inscriptions of Artaxerxes II and Artaxerxes III differ enough from the language of Darius' inscriptions to be called a "pre-Middle Persian," or "post-Old Persian."[14] Old Persian subsequently evolved into Middle Persian, which is in turn the ancestor of New Persian.

Professor Gilbert Lazard, a famous Iranologist and the author of the book Persian Grammar, states:[15]

The language known as New Persian, which usually is called at this period (early Islamic times) by the name of Parsi-Dari, can be classified linguistically as a continuation of Middle Persian, the official religious and literary language of Sassanian Iran, itself a continuation of Old Persian, the language of the Achaemenids. Unlike the other languages and dialects, ancient and modern, of the Iranian group such as Avestan, Parthian, Soghdian, Kurdish, Pashto, etc., Old, Middle and New Persian represent one and the same language at three states of its history. It had its origin in Fars and is differentiated by dialectical features, still easily recognizable from the dialect prevailing in north-western and eastern Iran.

Middle Persian, also sometimes called Pahlavi, is a direct continuation of Old Persian and was used as the written official language of the country.[16][17] Comparison of the evolution at each stage of the language shows great simplification in grammar and syntax. However, New Persian is a direct descendant of Middle and Old Persian.[13]

Substrates

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Old Persian "presumably"[14] has a Median language substrate. The Median element is readily identifiable because it did not share in the developments that were peculiar to Old Persian. Median forms "are found only in personal or geographical names [...] and some are typically from religious vocabulary and so could in principle also be influenced by Avestan." "Sometimes, both Median and Old Persian forms are found, which gave Old Persian a somewhat confusing and inconsistent look: 'horse,' for instance, is [attested in Old Persian as] both asa (OPers.) and aspa (Med.)."[14]

Script

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Main article: Old Persian cuneiform
Close-up of the Behistun inscription
An Old Persian inscription in Persepolis

Old Persian texts were written from left to right in the syllabic Old Persian cuneiform script and had 36 phonetic characters and 8 logograms. The usage of logograms is not obligatory.[18] The script was surprisingly[19] not a result of evolution of the script used in the nearby civilisation of Mesopotamia.[20] Despite the fact that Old Persian was written in cuneiform script, the script was not a direct continuation of Mesopotamian tradition and in fact, according to Schmitt, was a "deliberate creation of the sixth century BCE".[20]

The origin of the Old Persian cuneiform script and the identification of the date and process of introduction are a matter of debate among Iranian scholars with no general agreement having been reached. The factors making the consensus difficult are, among others, the difficult passage DB (IV lines 88–92) from Darius the Great who speaks of a new "form of writing" being made by himself which is said to be "in Aryan":

King Darius says: By the grace of Ahuramazda this is the inscription which I have made. Besides, it was in Aryan ("ariyâ") script, and it was composed on clay tablets and on parchment. Besides, a sculptured figure of myself I made.

— Behistun Inscription (IV lines 88–92)[21]

Also, the analysis of certain Old Persian inscriptions are "supposed or claimed" to predate Darius the Great. Although it is true that the oldest attested Old Persian inscriptions are found on the Behistun monument from Darius, the creation of this "new type of writing" seems, according to Schmitt, "to have begun already under Cyrus the Great".[9]

The script shows a few changes in the shape of characters during the period it was used. This can be seen as a standardization of the heights of wedges, which in the beginning (i.e. in DB) took only half the height of a line.[22]

Phonology

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The following phonemes are expressed in the Old Persian script:

Vowels
Front Back
Close i iː u uː
Open a aː
Consonants
Labial Dental/
Alveolar 		Palatal Velar Glottal
Nasal m n
Plosive p b t d k ɡ
Fricative f θ x h
Affricate t͡s t͡ʃ d͡ʒ
Sibilant s z ʃ
Rhotic r
Approximant l j w

Notes: Lycian 𐊋𐊆𐊈𐊈𐊀𐊓𐊕𐊑𐊏𐊀 Kizzaprñna ~ 𐊈𐊆𐊖𐊀𐊓𐊕𐊑𐊏𐊀 Zisaprñna for (genuine) Old Persian *Ciçafarnā (besides the Median form *Ciθrafarnah) = Tissaphernes suggests /t͡s/ as the pronunciation of ç (compare [1] and Kloekhorst 2008, p. 125 in [2] for this example, who, however, mistakenly writes Çiçafarnā, which contradicts the etymology [PIIr. *Čitra-swarnas-] and the Middle Persian form Čehrfar [ç gives Middle Persian s]).[original research?]

The phoneme /l/ does not occur in native Iranian vocabulary, only in borrowings from Akkadian (a new /l/ develops in Middle Persian from Old Persian /rd/ and the change of /rθ/ to /hl/). The phoneme /r/ can also form a syllable peak; both the way Persian names with syllabic /r/ (such as Brdiya) are rendered in Elamite and its further development in Middle Persian suggest that before the syllabic /r/, an epenthetic vowel [i] had developed already in the Old Persian period, which later became [u] after labials. For example, Old Persian Vᵃ-rᵃ-kᵃ-a-nᵃ /wr̩kaːna/ is rendered in Elamite as Mirkānu-,[23] rendering transcriptions such as V(a)rakāna, Varkāna or even Vurkāna questionable and making Vrkāna or Virkāna much more realistic (and equally for vrka- "wolf", Brdiya and other Old Persian words and names with syllabic /r/).

While v usually became /v/ in Middle Persian, it became /b/ word-initially in New Persian, except before [u] (including the epenthetic vowel mentioned above), where it became /ɡ/. This suggests that it was really pronounced as [w].

Grammar

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Grammatical numbers

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Old Persian has 3 types of grammatical number: singular, dual and plural.

Grammatical genders

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Old Persian has three grammatical genders: masculine, feminine and neuter. In contrast, Modern Persian (as well as Middle Persian) is a genderless language.

Nouns

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Old Persian stems:

  • a-stems (-a, -am, -ā)
  • i-stems (-iš, iy)
  • u- (and au-) stems (-uš, -uv)
  • consonantal stems (n, r, h)
-a -am -ā
Singular Dual Plural Singular Dual Plural Singular Dual Plural
Nominative -a -ā -ā, -āha -am -ā -ā -ā -ā -ā
Vocative -ā -ā
Accusative -am -ām
Instrumental/
Ablative 		-ā -aibiyā -aibiš -ā -aibiyā -aibiš -āyā -ābiyā -ābiš
Dative -ahyā, -ahya -ahyā, -ahya
Genitive -āyā -ānām -āyā -ānām -āyā -ānām
Locative -aiy -aišuvā -aiy -aišuvā -āšuvā
-iš -iy -uš -uv
Singular Dual Plural Singular Dual Plural Singular Dual Plural Singular Dual Plural
Nominative -iš -īy -iya -iy -in -īn -uš -ūv -uva -uv -un -ūn
Vocative -i -u
Accusative -im -iš -um -ūn
Instrumental/
Ablative 		-auš -ībiyā -ībiš -auš -ībiyā -ībiš -auv -ūbiyā -ūbiš -auv -ūbiyā -ūbiš
Dative -aiš -aiš -auš -auš
Genitive -īyā -īnām -īyā -īnām -ūvā -ūnām -ūvā -ūnām
Locative -auv -išuvā -auv -išuvā -āvā -ušuvā -āvā -ušuvā

Adjectives are declined in a similar way.

Verbs

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Voices
Active, Middle (them. pres. -aiy-, -ataiy-), Passive (-ya-).

Mostly the forms of first and third persons are attested. The only preserved Dual form is ajīvatam 'both lived'.

Present Active
Athematic Thematic
'be' 'bring'
Sg. 1.pers. aʰmiy barāmiy
3.pers. astiy baratiy
Pl. 1.pers. aʰmahiy barāmahiy
3.pers. hatiy baratiy
Imperfect Active
Athematic Thematic
'do, make' 'be, become'
Sg. 1.pers. akunavam abavam
3.pers. akunauš abava
Pl. 1.pers. akumā abavāmā
3.pers. akunava abava
Present participle
Active Middle
-nt- -amna-
Past participle
-ta-
Infinitive
-tanaiy

Lexicon

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Proto-Iranian Old Persian Middle Persian Modern Persian meaning
*Háhurah mazdáH Auramazdā (𐎠𐎢𐎼𐎶𐏀𐎭𐎠) Ohrmazd 𐭠𐭥𐭧𐭥𐭬𐭦𐭣 Hormazd هرمزد Ahura Mazda (supreme God)
*Hácwah asa (𐎠𐎿) asp asb اسب / asp اسپ horse
*káHmah kāma (𐎣𐎠𐎶) kām kâm کام desire
*daywáh daiva (𐎭𐎡𐎺) dēw div دیو devil
*jráyah drayah (𐎭𐎼𐎹) drayā daryâ دریا sea
*jástah dasta (𐎭𐎿𐎫) dast 𐭩𐭣𐭤 dast دست hand
*bāǰíš bājiš (𐎲𐎠𐎩𐎡𐏁) bāj bâj باج / bâž باژ toll
*bráHtā brātā (𐎲𐎼𐎠𐎫𐎠) brād(ar) barâdar برادر brother
*búHmiš būmiš (𐏏) būm 𐭡𐭥𐭬 bum بوم region, land
*mártyah martya (𐎶𐎼𐎫𐎡𐎹) mard mard مرد man
*mā́Hah māha (𐎶𐎠𐏃) māh 𐭡𐭩𐭥𐭧 mâh ماه moon, month
*wáhr̥ derivative vāhara (𐎺𐎠𐏃𐎼) wahār bahâr بهار spring
*stuHnáH stūnā (𐎿𐎬𐎢𐎴𐎠) stūn sotun ستون stand (column)
*čyaHtáh šiyāta (𐏁𐎡𐎹𐎠𐎫) šād šâd شاد happy
*Hr̥tám artam (𐎠𐎼𐎫𐎶) ard ord ارد order, truth
*dráwgah drauga (𐎭𐎼𐎢𐎥) drōw doruğ دروغ lie
*cwáHdaH spāda (𐎿𐎱𐎠𐎭) spah 𐭮𐭯𐭠𐭧 sepâh سپاه army

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ cf. Gershevitch, Ilya (1968). "Old Iranian Literature". Handbuch der Orientalistik, Literatur I. Leiden: Brill. pp. 1–31., p. 2.
  2. ^ Gnoli, Gherardo (2006). "Iranian Identity ii. Pre-Islamic Period". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. 13. New York: Routledge & Kegan Paul. ... in the Old Persian version, whose language was called "Iranian" or ariya.
  3. ^ Kuhrt 2013, p. 197.
  4. ^ Frye 1984, p. 103.
  5. ^ Schmitt 2000, p. 53.
  6. ^ "Old Persian Texts". Avesta – Zoroastrian Archives.
  7. ^ Kent, R. G. (1950) "Old Persian: Grammar Texts Lexicon", p. 6. American Oriental Society.
  8. ^ "Everyday text shows that Old Persian was probably more commonly used than previously thought". University of Chicago News Office (archived). June 15, 2007. Archived from the original on 2017-10-16.
  9. ^ a b Schmitt 2008, pp. 80–81.
  10. ^ a b c Skjærvø 2006, vi(2). Documentation. Old Persian..
  11. ^ a b Skjærvø 2006, vi(1). Earliest Evidence.
  12. ^ Schmitt 2008, p. 76.
  13. ^ a b Skjærvø 2006.
  14. ^ a b c Skjærvø 2005.
  15. ^ Lazard, Gilbert (1975). "The Rise of the New Persian Language". In Frye, R. N. (ed.). The Cambridge History of Iran. Vol. 4. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 595–632.
  16. ^ Ulrich Ammon; Norbert Dittmar; Klaus J. Mattheier; Peter Trudgill (2006). An International Handbook of the Science of Language and Society. Sociolinguistics. Vol. 3 (2nd ed.). Walter de Gruyter. p. 1912. Middle Persian, also called Pahlavi is a direct continuation of old Persian, and was used as the written official language of the country." "However, after the Moslem conquest and the collapse of the Sassanids, Arabic became the dominant language of the country and Pahlavi lost its importance, and was gradually replaced by Dari, a variety of Middle Persian, with considerable loan elements from Arabic and Parthian.
  17. ^ Bo Utas (2005). "Semitic on Iranian". In Éva Ágnes Csató; Bo Isaksson; Carina Jahani (eds.). Linguistic convergence and areal diffusion: case studies from Iranian, Semitic and Turkic. Routledge. p. 71. As already mentioned, it is not likely that the scribes of Sassanian chanceries had any idea about the Old Persian cuneiform writing and the language couched in it. Still, the Middle Persian language that appeared in the third century AD may be seen as a continuation of Old Persian
  18. ^ Schmitt 2008, p. 78.
  19. ^ Schmitt 2008, p. 78 Excerpt: "It remains unclear why the Persians did not take over the Mesopotamian system in earlier times, as the Elamites and other peoples of the Near East had, and, for that matter, why the Persians did not adopt the Aramaic consonantal script.."
  20. ^ a b Schmitt 2008, p. 77.
  21. ^ Behistun T 42 – Livius.
  22. ^ Schmitt 2008, p. 79.
  23. ^ Stolper, M. W. (1997). "Mirkānu". In Ebeling, Erich; Meissner, Bruno; Edzard, Dietz Otto (eds.). Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie. Volume 8: Meek – Mythologie. Berlin and New York: Walter de Gruyter. p. 221. ISBN 978-3-11-014809-1. Retrieved 15 August 2013.

Bibliography

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  • Brandenstein, Wilhelm (1964), Handbuch des Altpersischen, Wiesbaden: O. Harrassowitz
  • Hinz, Walther (1966), Altpersischer Wortschatz, Nendeln, Liechtenstein: Kraus
  • Frye, Richard Nelson (1984). Handbuch der Altertumswissenschaft: Alter Orient-Griechische Geschichte-Römische Geschichte. Band III,7: The History of Ancient Iran. C.H.Beck. ISBN 978-3406093975.
  • Kent, Roland G. (1953), Old Persian: Grammar, Texts, Lexicon, New Haven: American Oriental Society
  • Kuhrt, A. (2013). The Persian Empire: A Corpus of Sources from the Achaemenid Period. Routledge. ISBN 978-1136016943.
  • Sims-Williams, Nicholas (1996), "Iranian languages", Encyclopedia Iranica, vol. 7, Costa Mesa: Mazda: 238-245
  • Schmitt, Rüdiger (1989), "Altpersisch", in R. Schmitt (ed.), Compendium linguarum Iranicarum, Wiesbaden: Reichert: 56–85
  • Schmitt, Rüdiger (2000). The Old Persian Inscriptions of Naqsh-i Rustam and Persepolis. Corpus Inscriptionum Iranicarum by School of Oriental and African Studies. ISBN 978-0728603141.
  • Schmitt, R. (2008), "Old Persian", in Roger D. Woodard (ed.), The Ancient Languages of Asia and the Americas (illustrated ed.), Cambridge University Press, pp. 76–100, ISBN 978-0521684941
  • Skjærvø, Prods Oktor (2005), An Introduction to Old Persian (PDF) (2nd ed.), Cambridge: Harvard
  • Skjærvø, Prods Oktor (2006), "Iran, vi. Iranian languages and scripts", Encyclopaedia Iranica, vol. 13
  • Tolman, Herbert Cushing (1908), Ancient Persian Lexicon and the Texts of the Achaemenidan Inscriptions Transliterated and Translated with Special Reference to Their Recent Re-examination, New York/Cincinnati: American Book Company

Further reading

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