حالا

حالا

Arabic

Etymology

Adverbial accusative of حَال‎ (ḥāl, “condition, state, situation”), from حَالَ‎ (ḥāla, “to change”), from ح و ل‎ (ḥ-w-l).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ħaː.lan/

Adverb

حَالًا • (ḥālan)

1. presently, immediately, at once, right away, without delay
2. now, actually, at present

Descendants

• → Persian: حالا‎
  • → Armenian: հըլը (hələ)
  • → Azerbaijani: hələ
  • → Ottoman Turkish: حالا‎
    • Turkish: hâlâ

See also

• حَالًا بَالًا‎ (ḥālan bālan)

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Persian

Etymology

From Arabic حَالًا‎ (ḥālan).

The pronunciation with final -ā is considered a spelling pronunciation by the Encyclopaedia Iranica.[1] This is, however, an unusual case as the tanwin ending is generally preserved and has even become productive in Persian. Alternatively, حالا (hâlâ) might represent an early borrowing with the Arabic pausal pronunciation.

Pronunciation

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

• (Dari): IPA^(key): /hɒːlɒː/

• (Iranian Persian): IPA^(key): /hɒːlɒː/
• (Tajik): IPA^(key): /hɔːlɔː/

• Audio

  (file)

Adverb

حالا • (hâlâ)

Dari	حالا
Iranian Persian
Tajik	ҳозир (hozir)

1. now, presently

   Synonyms: اکنون‎ (aknun, more literary), الان‎ (alân)

   ‏حالا تو را می‌بینم.‎‎ (more literary) ― hâlâ to-râ mi-binam. ― I see you now.

   ‏حالا می‌بینمت.‎‎ (more colloquial) ― hâlâ mi-binam-et. ― I see you now.

   • 2018, “سفر از افغانستان به ایران برای سرقت آیفون”, in newspaper.hamshahrionline.ir‎, Hamshahri:

     ‏آن دختر حالا کجاست؟ − انداختمش بیرون. نمی‌دانم کجا رفته.‎‎

     ân doxtar hâlâ kojâ-st? — andâxtam-eš birun. ne-mi-dânam kojâ rafte.

     Where is that girl now? — I threw her outside. I do not know where she has gone.

Usage notes

• Compared to فعلا‎ (fe'lan), which has a stronger connotation of a duration of time including the present and stretching into the future, حالا (hâlâ) has a stronger connotation of a moment in the present.

Derived terms

• حالاها‎ (hâlâ-hâ, “these days”)

Descendants

• → Armenian: հըլը (hələ)
• → Azerbaijani: hələ
• → Ottoman Turkish: حالا‎
  • Turkish: hâlâ

References

1. John R. Perry (2011), “ARABIC LANGUAGE v. Arabic Elements in Persian”, in Encyclopaedia Iranica‎