English
shah
Shah comes from Persian شاه ‘king’, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *kšáyati ‘he rules, he has power over’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tek- ‘to take by the hand’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tek-‘to take by the hand’root as named
- Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*kšáyati‘he rules, he has power over’reconstructed
- Proto-Iranianprehistoric (reconstructed)*xšáyatireconstructed
- Old Persianc. 600–300 BCEXŠ /xšāyaθiya/transliteratedoriginal script XŠ /xšāyaθiya/, a transliteration‘king’
- Middle Persianc. 300 BCE–900 CE𐭬𐭫𐭪𐭠šāh‘king’
- Persianc. 900–presentشاهšâh‘king’
- Englishearliest quotation 2011shah
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*tek-‘to take by the hand’root as named
- Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*kšáyati‘he rules, he has power over’reconstructed
- Proto-Iranianprehistoric (reconstructed)*xšáyatireconstructed
- Old Persianc. 600–300 BCEXŠ /xšāyaθiya/transliteratedoriginal script XŠ /xšāyaθiya/, a transliteration‘king’
- Middle Persianc. 300 BCE–900 CE𐭬𐭫𐭪𐭠šāh‘king’
- Persianc. 900–presentشاهšâh‘king’
- Englishearliest quotation 2011shah
Earliest quotation: 2011, 1977 December 31, Jimmy Carter: “We had a cordial welcome in Tehran from the…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *tek- ‘to take by the hand’
through Middle Persian 𐭬𐭫𐭪𐭠 ‘king’
through Persian شاه ‘king’
Another origin of shah
- Ukrainianmodernшаг‘a half-kopeck coin’
- Englishtodayshah
Today it means
noun A king of Persia or Iran.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *tek- / shah