Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Urdu” come from?

Urdu comes from Persian اردو, which derives from Proto-Turkic ordu, originally meaning a military camp or encampment.

Urdu (English): Modern Standard Urdu, an Indo-Aryan language with...

Definitions

  1. Modern Standard Urdu, an Indo-Aryan language with...

Ancestry of “Urdu”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Urduاردوof or pertaining to the Urdu language; army, army...
2Serbo-Croatiantrkrun, running
3Proto-Slavictъrkъrun, sprint
4Proto-Indo-Europeantŕ̥kʷ-os—
5Proto-Indo-Europeanterkʷ-to turn, spin
Every word from Proto-Indo-European terkʷ- →