ʾsplys

ʾsplys

Middle Persian

Etymology

From SWSYA / ʾsp̄ (asp, “horse”) +‎ lyc- (rēz-, “to flow, pour; *to run”).[1] For the sense development of the latter compare Middle Persian tʾhtn' (tāxtan, “to cause to run, flow; to chase; to pour”), Armenian վազել (vazel, “to flow; to run”).[1] Alternatively, the second component is the cognate of Avestan 𐬎𐬭𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬉𐬯𐬋‎ (uruuaēsō, “turning point”), from Proto-Indo-European *wróyḱos, from *wreyḱ-.[2][3] The second component is found separately in the Aramaic borrowing בית ריסא (/byt rysˀ/, “race track”).[4][5]

Noun

ʾsplys • (asprēs)[6]

1. racecourse

Descendants

(Taking Middle Persian as representative of all Middle Iranian)

• Classical Persian: اسپریس‎ (asprēs)
• → Old Armenian: ասպարէզ (asparēz), ասպարէս (asparēs)
  • Armenian: ասպարեզ (asparez)
  • →? Old Georgian: ასპარეზი (asṗarezi) (or directly from Middle Persian)
    • Georgian: ასპარეზი (asṗarezi)
• → Classical Syriac: ܐܣܦܪܝܣܐ‎ (ʾespərēsāʾ)

References

1. Ačaṙean, Hračʿeay (1971), “ասպարէզ”, in Hayerēn armatakan baṙaran [Armenian Etymological Dictionary] (in Armenian), volume I, 2nd edition, a reprint of the original 1926–1935 seven-volume edition, Yerevan: University Press, page 273b
2. Gippert, Jost (1993) Iranica Armeno-Iberica: Studien zu den iranischen Lehnwörtern im Armenischen und Georgischen (Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften. Philosophisch-historische Klasse. Sitzungsberichte; 606. Veröffentlichungen der Kommission für Iranistik; 26)‎ (in German), volume I, Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, pages 20–23
3. Olsen, Birgit Anette (1999) The noun in Biblical Armenian: origin and word-formation: with special emphasis on the Indo-European heritage (Trends in linguistics. Studies and monographs; 119), Berlin, New York: Mouton de Gruyter, page 867
4. Telegdi, S. (1935), “Essai sur la phonétique des emprunts iraniens en araméen Talmudique”, in Journal asiatique‎ (in French), volume 226, page 255 of 177–256
5. “byt**rys”, in The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon Project, Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College, 1986–
6. MacKenzie, D. N. (1971) A concise Pahlavi dictionary, London, New York, Toronto: Oxford University Press, page 12

Further reading

• Horn, Paul (1893) Grundriss der neupersischen Etymologie (in German), Strasbourg: K.J. Trübner, page 29
• Hübschmann, Heinrich (1897) Armenische Grammatik. 1. Theil: Armenische Etymologie (in German), Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel, page 109
• Schmitt, Rüdiger (1987), “Armenia and Iran IV. Iranian influences in Armenian 1. General”, in Ehsan Yarshater, editor, Encyclopædia Iranica‎, volume 2, London and New York: Routledge & Kegan Paul, page 451b of 445–459
• Thea Chkeidze (2001), “GEORGIA v. LINGUISTIC CONTACTS WITH IRANIAN LANGUAGES”, in Encyclopædia Iranica, online edition‎, New York
• Claudia A. Ciancaglini (2006), “SYRIAC LANGUAGE i. IRANIAN LOANWORDS IN SYRIAC”, in Encyclopædia Iranica, online edition‎, New York