ʾhlmn'

Middle Persian

FWOTD – 2 August 2014

Alternative forms

• ʾhlymn' (/⁠Ahreman⁠/) — Book Pahlavi
• 𐭠𐭧𐭫𐭬𐭭𐭩 (ʾḥlmny /⁠Ahreman⁠/) — Inscriptional Pahlavi
• 𐫀𐫍𐫡𐫖𐫗 (ʾhrmn /⁠Ahreman⁠/) — Manichaean
• 𐬁𐬵𐬭𐬆𐬨𐬀𐬥 (Āhrəman) — Pazend

Etymology

From Avestan 𐬀𐬢𐬭𐬀⸱𐬨𐬀𐬌𐬥𐬌𐬌𐬎 (aŋra.maⁱniiu, “Angra Mainyu”), compound of 𐬀𐬢𐬭𐬀 (aŋra, “destruction, destructive”) and 𐬨𐬀𐬌𐬥𐬌𐬌𐬎 (maⁱniiu, “spirit, mind, essence, emanation etc.”). Compare Old Armenian Արհմն (Arhmn) and Ancient Greek Ἀρειμανιος (Areimanios, “Arimanius”), Iranian borrowings.

Proper noun

ʾhlmn' in Book Pahlavi, written upside down.

ʾhlmn' • (/Ahreman/)

1. (Book Pahlavi, Zoroastrianism) Ahriman, Angra Mainyu, the Evil Spirit
   • Bundahišn, codex DH 1970: 1

     ʾhlmn' BYN tʾlykyh PWN AHLdʾnšnyh Wztʾlkʾmkyh zwplpʾdk YHWWNt'

     Ahreman andar tārīgīh pad pas-dānišnīh ud-zadār-kāmagīh zufr-pāyag būd.

     Ahrimen was in darkness in backward knowledge and desire to destroy in the depth.

Usage notes

In Book Pahlavi, the word is traditionally always written upside down.

Antonyms

• ʾwhrmẕd (/⁠Ohrmazd⁠/)

Descendants

• Persian: اهریمن (ahriman)

References

• MacKenzie, D. N. (1971) “Ahreman”, in A concise Pahlavi dictionary, London, New York, Toronto: Oxford University Press, page 7