Etymology Explorer › Serbo-Croatian

Where does “спахија” come from?

спахија (Serbo-Croatian) comes from Ottoman Turkish سپاهی, from Persian سپاهی, from Persian سپاه, from Proto-Iranian *cwáHdah, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *ćwáHdʰaH, from Proto-Indo-European ḱwéh₁-dʰ-o-h₁.

спахија (Serbo-Croatian): spahi; an affluent Islamic head of household in...

Definitions

  1. spahi; an affluent Islamic head of household in...

Ancestry of “спахија”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Ottoman Turkishسپاهی—
2Persianسپاهیsoldier; cavalryman; sepoy
3Persianسپاهarmy
4Proto-Iranian*cwáHdah—
5Proto-Indo-Iranian*ćwáHdʰaH—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanḱwéh₁-dʰ-o-h₁—
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱwéh₁-dʰ-o-h₁ →