Where does “چیست” come from?
چیست (Persian) comes from Persian است, from Middle Persian 𐭠𐭩𐭲𐭩, from Old Persian 𐎠𐎿𐎫𐎡𐎹, from Proto-Indo-Iranian Hásti, from Sanskrit हस्तिन्, from Sanskrit हस्त, from Proto-Indo-Aryan źʰástas, from Proto-Indo-Iranian ȷ́ʰástas — hand; take, give in exchange.
Ancestry of “چیست”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Persian | است | third-person singular present of بودن; bone |
| 2 | Middle Persian | 𐭠𐭩𐭲𐭩 | is; exists |
| 3 | Old Persian | 𐎠𐎿𐎫𐎡𐎹 | to be, exist; to be |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-Iranian | Hásti | to be |
| 5 | Sanskrit | हस्तिन् | an elephant |
| 6 | Sanskrit | हस्त | the hand; an elephant's trunk; the forearm |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-Aryan | źʰástas | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-Iranian | ȷ́ʰástas | hand |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵʰés-to- | hand |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵʰes- | hand; take, give in exchange |