Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “dervish” come from?

Dervish comes from Turkish derviş, from Persian درویش, from Middle Persian dlgwš, from Proto-Iranian drigu-.

dervish (English): A member of the Dervish fraternity of Sufism,...

Definitions

  1. A member of the Dervish fraternity of Sufism,...

Ancestry of “dervish”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Turkishdervişdervish
2Ottoman TurkishدرویشDervish, Sufi
3Classical Persianدرویش—
4Persianدریوش—
5Persianدرغوش—
6Middle Persiandlgwšpoor, needy; one who lives in holy indigence
7Proto-Iraniandrigu-—

Words derived from “dervish”

  • dervis
  • dervisek
Every word from Proto-Iranian drigu- →