ـی

Northern Kurdish

Suffix

ـی (-î)

Arabic spelling of -î

Ottoman Turkish

Etymology 1

Suffix

ـی • (-ı, -i, -u, -ü)

3rd-person possessive suffix
قیامت كونی
kıyamet günü
judgement day

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Classical Persian (-yi).

Particle

ی • (-yi, -yı)

Form of the ezafe particle ـِ for words ending in the vowels ـا (-â) and ـو (-u, -o).
― Sahra-yı Kebir ― the Sahara (literally, “the great desert”)

Usage notes

It is never joining.

Descendants

Turkish: -yi, -yı

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Classical Persian (-ī).

Suffix

ـی • (-i)

Forms adjectives (often nominalizable ones) from nouns.

Derived terms

Descendants

Turkish: -i

Etymology 4

Borrowed from Classical Persian (-ī).

Suffix

ـی • (-i)

Forms abstract nouns, including names of professions or offices, from adjectives, occupational nouns, or titles.

Derived terms

Ottoman Turkish terms suffixed with ـی (abstract noun)

معماری

Descendants

Turkish: -i

Persian

Etymology 1

From Middle Persian 𐭸 (1 /⁠ē(w)⁠/), from Old Persian 𐎠𐎡𐎺 (a-i-v /⁠aiva⁠/), Proto-Iranian *Háywah, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *Háywas, from Proto-Indo-European *óywos. Compare Ancient Greek οἶος (oîos), and Avestan 𐬀𐬉𐬎𐬎𐬀 (aēuua).

Alternative forms

ای (-i) (used for words ending in (-e) (non-joining))
ـیی (-yi) (used for words ending in (â) and (u, o))

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [.(j)eː]

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [.(j)eː]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [.(j)eː]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [.(j)eː]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [.(j)iː]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [.(j)e]

Readings
Classical reading^?
Dari reading^?
Iranian reading^?
Tajik reading^?

Suffix


Iranian Persian	ـی
Dari	ـی
Tajik	-е

ـی • (-ē / -i)

a, one; marks a noun phrase as indefinite or non-specific, especially in the literary language
Synonym: (colloquial) یه (ye)

― sag-i ― a dog
marks a noun phrase attributed by a subordinate clause as restrictive
sâxtemân-i ke 'ali dar ân zendegi mi-konad bozorg ast.
The building where Ali lives is big.

Contrast with:

ân sâxtemân ke 'ali dar ân zendegi mi-konad bozorg ast.
That building, where Ali lives, is big.

Usage notes

This suffix is attached as a suffix to a noun in a sentence and acts as the indefinite object marker. Nouns ending in (-e) will add the non-joining (-i), and nouns ending in the long vowels (-â) and (-u) will use the form (-i):

― xâne-i ― a house

― kadu-i ― a pumpkin

― xâne-hâ-i ― houses

The stress remains on the root of the word, e.g. (xoršídi, “a sun / the sun which”).

Etymology 2

From Middle Persian Y (ī), from Proto-Iranian *Hyáh, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *Hyás, from Proto-Indo-European *yós (relative pronoun).

Alternative forms

ـٔ (-ye) (used for words ending in (-e), forming (-e-ye))
ـای (-i) (misspelling, Dari)

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [.ji]

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [.jɪ]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [.jɪ]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [.ji]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [.je]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [.ji]

Readings
Classical reading^?
Dari reading^?
Iranian reading^?
Tajik reading^?

Particle


Iranian Persian	ی
Dari	ی
Tajik	-и

ی • (-yi / -ye)

Form of the ezafe particle ـِ for words ending in the vowels ـا (-â), ـو (-u, -o), and ـه (-e).
― âmrikâ-ye jonubi ― South America

― xâne-ye bozorg ― the big house

Usage notes

It is never joining, and the stress remains on the root of the word to which it is attached.

After the vowel ـه (-e), ـٔ may be used instead, forming (-e-ye):

― xâne-ye bozorg ― the big house

Descendants

→ Azerbaijani: -yi-
→ Hindustani:
- Hindi: -ए- (-e-)
- Urdu: ـئے (-e)
→ Ottoman Turkish: ـی (-yi, -yı)
- Turkish: -yi, -yı

Etymology 3

From Middle Persian -yk' / 𐭩𐭪𐭩 (yky /⁠-īg⁠/), itself from Old Persian -𐎡𐎣 (-ikah) (see there for further origin). Cognates include Northern Kurdish -î, Sanskrit -कस (-kasa), Proto-Slavic *-ъkъ, Latin -icus, Old English -iġ, English -y. There is no evidence to support a relation with the Arabic ـِيّ (-iyy) which however does merge with this suffix exclusively in some Arabic loanwords. See (-e) for another instance where the 'g' phoneme is removed from the end of the Middle Persian suffix in its New Persian form. For a few examples in which the final 'g' phoneme in the Middle Persian -yk' / 𐭩𐭪𐭩 (yky /⁠-īg⁠/) suffix was not lost during the transition from Middle to New Persian, and instead transformed to a 'k' phoneme, refer to تاریک (târik, “dark”), باریک (bârik, “thin, narrow, delicate”), تازیک (tâzik, “Arab”) and نزدیک (nazdik, “near”).

Alternative forms

ای (-i) (used for words ending in (-e) (non-joining))
ـیی (-yi) (used for words ending in (â) and (u, o))

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [.(j)iː]

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [.(j)iː]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [.(j)iː]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [.(j)i]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [.(j)iː]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [.(j)i]

Readings
Classical reading^?
Dari reading^?
Iranian reading^?
Tajik reading^?

Suffix


Iranian Persian	ـی
Dari	ـی
Tajik	-ӣ

ـی • (-ī / -i)

Forms adjectives (often nominalizable ones) from nouns.
1. of or pertaining to
  ‎ (xoršid, “sun”) + ‎ → ‎ (xoršidi, “solar”, adjective)
  
  ‎ (peste, “pistachio”) + ‎ → ‎ (peste-i, “containing pistachio (adjective); pistachio green (adjective); pistachio green (noun)”)
2. from or belonging to
  ‎ (pârs, “Pars / Fars”) + ‎ → ‎ (pârsi, “Persian”, adjective, noun)
  
  ‎ (tehrân, “Tehran”) + ‎ → ‎ (tehrâni, “Tehrani”, adjective, noun)
  
  ‎ (âsiyâ, “Asia”) + ‎ → ‎ (âsiyâyi, “Asian”, adjective, noun)
3. able to, capable of being, deserved to be, determined to, and/or destined to
  ‎ (xordan, “to eat”) + ‎ → ‎ (xordani, “edible (adjective); something edible (noun)”)
  
  ‎ (raftan, “to go”) + ‎ → ‎ (raftani, “destined to leave”)
4. surnames (derived from previous senses)
  ‎ (soleymân) + ‎ → ‎ (soleymâni)
  
  ‎ (rezâ) + ‎ → ‎ (rezâyi)
  
  ‎ (xâmene) + ‎ → ‎ (xâmene-i)

Usage notes

is the form attached to words ending in consonants. Nouns ending in (-e) will usually add the non-joining (-i) to form their corresponding adjectives. Nouns ending in the long vowels (-â) and (-u) will use the form (-yi) to form their corresponding adjectives.

This suffix and its alternative forms take the stress, e.g. (xoršidí, “solar”).

Most Persian surnames end in this suffix.

Derived terms

Descendants

→ Ottoman Turkish: ـی (-i)
- Turkish: -i

References

MacKenzie, D. N. (1986). A Concise Pahlavi Dictionary. OUP. p. 45.

Etymology 4

From Middle Persian 𐭩𐭧 (yḥ /⁠-īh⁠/).

Alternative forms

ـگی (-egi) (used for words ending in (-e))
ـیی (-yi) (used for words ending in (â) and (u, o))

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [.ʔiː]

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [.ʔiː]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [.ʔiː]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [.ʔi]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [.ʔiː]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [.ʔi]

Readings
Classical reading^?
Dari reading^?
Iranian reading^?
Tajik reading^?

Suffix


Iranian Persian	ـی
Dari	ـی
Tajik	-ӣ

ـی • (-ī / -i)

Forms abstract nouns, including names of professions or offices, from adjectives, occupational nouns, or titles.
1. forms abstract nouns, from adjectives
  ‎ (bozorg, “big”) + ‎ → ‎ (bozorgi, “bigness”)
  
  ‎ (širin, “sweet”) + ‎ → ‎ (širini, “sweetness”)
  
  ‎ (yegâne, “unique”) + ‎ → ‎ (yegânegi, “uniqueness”)
2. forms the name of a profession, and the place where it is practiced, from an occupational noun
  ‎ (xayyât, “tailor”) + ‎ → ‎ (xayyâti, “tailoring; tailor shop”)
  
  ‎ (nevisande, “writer, author”) + ‎ → ‎ (nevisandegi, “writing, authorship”)
3. forms the name of an office, from a title
  ‎ (xân, “khan”) + ‎ → ‎ (xâni, “khanship”)
  
  ‎ (xalife, “caliph”) + ‎ → ‎ (xalifegi, “caliphship”)

Usage notes

is the form attached to words ending in consonants. Adjectives ending in the short vowel (-e) will use the form (-egī) for their derived nouns. Adjectives ending in the long vowels (-â) and (-u) will use the form (-yi) for their derived nouns.

This suffix and its alternative forms take the stress.

Derived terms

Persian terms suffixed with ـی (abstract noun)

Descendants

→ Azerbaijani: -i
→ Chagatai: ـی
- Uzbek: -i
→ Hindustani: -ī
Hindi: -ई (-ī)

Urdu: ـی (-ī)
→ Ottoman Turkish: ـی (-i)
- Turkish: -i

Urdu

Etymology 1

Inherited from Sauraseni Prakrit -𑀇𑀅 (-ia), from Sanskrit -इक (-ika, diminutive suffix) or Sanskrit -ईय (-īya, adjectival suffix). Later influenced by Persian (-i).

Suffix

ـی • (-ī) (Hindi spelling -ई)

relating to, forms adjectives from nouns
‎جوکِھم (jokhim, “risk”) + ‎ـِی (-ī) → ‎جوکِھمِی (jokhimī, “risky”)

‎پِسْتَہ (pista, “pistachio”) + ‎ـِی (-ī) → ‎پِسْتَئِی (pistaī, “having the color of [shelled] pistachios”)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from the nominative singular form of Sanskrit -इन् (-in, doer, possessor).

Suffix

ـی • (ī) m (Hindi spelling -ई)

doer, possessor
‎ساتھ (sāth, “company, support”) + ‎ـی (-ī) → ‎ساتھی (sāthī, “companion, partner”)

‎روگ (rog, “sickness, disease”) + ‎ـی (-ī) → ‎روگی (rogī, “sick person, patient”)