ارغوان

ارغوان

Persian

Alternative forms

• (from Arabic) ارجوان‎ (arjavân, orjovân)

Etymology

From Middle Persian [Book Pahlavi needed] (ʾlgwkʾn' /argawān/, “purple”), ultimately from Akkadian 𒋠𒍝𒆳𒋛𒀀 (argawannu, “red purple”), probably via Aramaic, cf. Classical Syriac ܐܪܓܘܢܐ‎ (ʾargəwānā). A Wanderwort in the Middle East: Biblical Hebrew אַרְגְּוָן‎ (ʾargɔmɔn, “purple”), Arabic أَرْجُوَان‎ (ʾarjuwān, “purple; redbud; amethyst”).

Pronunciation

Dari	ارغوان
Iranian Persian
Tajik	арғувон, арғавон (arġuvon, arġavon)

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /aɾɣawɑːn/, /aɾɣuwɑːn/

• (Dari Persian) IPA^(key): /aɾɣawɑːn/, /aɾɣʊwɑːn/

• (Iranian Persian) IPA^(key): /æɾɢævɒːn/, /æɾɢovɒːn/

• (Tajik) IPA^(key): /aɾɣavɔn/, /aɾɣuvɔn/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

Judas tree

ارغوان • (arğavân or arğovân)

1. purple color; dark magenta color
2. Judas tree (Cercis siliquastrum) or its flower
   • c. 1390, Shams-ud-Dīn Muḥammad Ḥāfiẓ, “Ghazal 14”, in دیوان حافظ [The Divān of Ḥāfiẓ]‎:

     ‏می‌نماید عکسِ مِی، در رنگِ رویِ مه وشت
     همچو برگِ ارغوان بر صفحهٔ نسرین، غریب‎

     mē-namāyad aks-i may, dar rang-e rōy-i mah waš-at
     hamčō barg-i arğawān bar safha-yi nasrīn, ğarīb

     The wine's reflection shows in the color of your moon-like face
     Like a Judas tree petal on the face of a wild rose: how strange!

     (Classical Persian transliteration)

Derived terms

• ارغوانی‎ (arğavâni, “purple”)

 

Descendants

• → Georgian: არღავანი (arɣavani)
• → Gujarati: અરગવાની (aragvānī)
• → Hindustani: arghavān

  Hindi: अर्घवान

  Urdu: ارغوان‎

• Kurdish:
  • → Northern Kurdish: erxewan (“purple; Judas tree”)
  • → Central Kurdish: ئەرخەوان‎ (erxewan, “purple; Judas tree”)
• → Middle Armenian: եղրեւանի (ełrewani, “lilac”)
  • Armenian: եղրեւանի (ełrewani)
• → Ottoman Turkish: ارغوان‎ (ergavân, erguvân)
  • Turkish: erguvan
  • → Albanian: jargavan
  • → Hungarian: orgovány
  • → Romanian: iergovan, iorgovan
  • → Serbo-Croatian: jȍrgovān / јо̏ргова̄н (“lilac”)
  • → Slovak: orgován (“lilac”)
• → Pashto: ارغوان‎ (arğawān, “red-purple; a plant”)

Proper noun

ارغوان • (arğavân)

1. a female given name, Arghavan or Arghawan, from Middle Persian

References

• Dehkhoda, Ali-Akbar (1931–), “ارغوان”, in Dehkhoda Dictionary Institute, editors, Dehkhoda Dictionary (in Persian), Tehran: University of Tehran Press
• MacKenzie, D. N. (1971), “argawān”, in A concise Pahlavi dictionary, London, New York, Toronto: Oxford University Press
• Black, Jeremy; George, Andrew; Postgate, Nicholas (2000), “aragamannu”, in A Concise Dictionary of Akkadian, 2nd corrected edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz Verlag
• Itamar Singer, "Purple-Dyers in Lazpa", Tel Aviv University