# 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 كونیkıyamet günüjudgement day

### Etymology 2

Borrowed from Classical Persian ی (-yi).

#### Particle

ی • (-yi, -yı)
* Form of the ezafe particle ـِ for words ending in the vowels ـا (-â) and ـو (-u, -o).
    صحرا‌ی کبیر ― 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 ـِی (-ī).

#### Suffix

ـی • (-i)
* Forms adjectives (often nominalizable ones) from nouns.

##### Descendants

* Turkish: -i

### Etymology 4

Borrowed from Classical Persian ـِی (-ī).

#### Suffix

ـی • (-i)
* Forms abstract nouns, including names of professions or offices, from adjectives, occupational nouns, or titles.

##### 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 ـه (-e) (non-joining))
* ـیی (-yi) (used for words ending in ا (â) and و (u, o))

#### Pronunciation

* (Classical Persian) IPA: [.(j)eː]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [.(j)eː]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [.(j)eː]
** (Kabuli) IPA: [.(j)eː]
** (Hazaragi) IPA: [.(j)eː]
* (Iran, formal) IPA: [.(j)iː]
* (Tajik, formal) IPA: [.(j)e]

#### Suffix

ـی • (-ē / -i)
* a, one; marks a noun phrase as indefinite or non-specific, especially in the literary language
    Synonym: (colloquial) یه (ye)
    سگی ― sag-i ― a dog
* marks a noun phrase attributed by a subordinate clause as restrictive
    ساختمانی که علی در آن زندگی می‌کند بزرگ است.sâxtemân-i ke 'ali dar ân zendegi mi-konad bozorg ast.The building where Ali lives is big.
    Contrast with:
    آن ساختمان که علی در آن زندگی می‌کند بزرگ است.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 ـه (-e) will add the non-joining ای (-i), and nouns ending in the long vowels ـا (-â) and ـو (-u) will use the form ـیی (-i):
    خانه‌ای ― xâne-i ― a house
    کدویی ― kadu-i ― a pumpkin
    خانه‌هایی ― xâne-hâ-i ― houses
The stress remains on the root of the word, e.g. خورشیدی (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 ـه (-e), forming ـهٔ (-e-ye))
* ـای (-i) (misspelling, Dari)

#### Pronunciation

* (Classical Persian) IPA: [.ji]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [.jɪ]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [.jɪ]
** (Kabuli) IPA: [.jɪ]
** (Hazaragi) IPA: [.ji]
* (Iran, formal) IPA: [.je]
* (Tajik, formal) IPA: [.ji]

#### Particle

ی • (-yi / -ye)
* Form of the ezafe particle ـِ for words ending in the vowels ـا (-â), ـو (-u, -o), and ـه (-e).
    آمریکای جنوبی ― âmrikâ-ye jonubi ― South America
    خانه‌ی بزرگ ― 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 ـهٔ (-e-ye):
    خانهٔ بزرگ ― 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 ـه (-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 Middle Persian -yk' / 𐭩𐭪𐭩 (yky /⁠-īg⁠/) was transformed to a 'k' phoneme instead of being lost during the transition from Middle to New Persian, 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 ـه (-e) (non-joining))
* ـیی (-yi) (used for words ending in ا (â) and و (u, o))

#### Pronunciation

* (Classical Persian) IPA: [.(j)iː]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [.(j)iː]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [.(j)iː]
** (Kabuli) IPA: [.(j)iː]
** (Hazaragi) IPA: [.(j)i]
* (Iran, formal) IPA: [.(j)iː]
* (Tajik, formal) IPA: [.(j)i]

#### Suffix

ـی • (-ī / -i)
* Forms adjectives (often nominalizable ones) from nouns.
** of or pertaining to
    ‎خورشید (xoršid, “sun”) + ‎ـی → ‎خورشیدی (xoršidi, “solar”, adjective)
    ‎پسته (peste, “pistachio”) + ‎ای → ‎پسته‌ای (peste-i, “containing pistachio (adjective); pistachio green (adjective); pistachio green (noun)”)
** from or belonging to
    ‎پارس (pârs, “Pars / Fars”) + ‎ـی → ‎پارسی (pârsi, “Persian”, adjective, noun)
    ‎تهران (tehrân, “Tehran”) + ‎ـی → ‎تهرانی (tehrâni, “Tehrani”, adjective, noun)
    ‎آسیا (âsiyâ, “Asia”) + ‎ـیی → ‎آسیایی (âsiyâyi, “Asian”, adjective, noun)
** able to, capable of being, deserved to be, determined to, and/or destined to
    ‎خوردن (xordan, “to eat”) + ‎ـی → ‎خوردنی (xordani, “edible (adjective); something edible (noun)”)
    ‎رفتن (raftan, “to go”) + ‎ـی → ‎رفتنی (raftani, “destined to leave”)
** surnames (derived from previous senses)
    ‎سلیمان (soleymân) + ‎ـی → ‎سلیمانی (soleymâni)
    ‎رضا (rezâ) + ‎ـیی → ‎رضایی (rezâyi)
    ‎خامنه (xâmene) + ‎ای → ‎خامنه‌ای (xâmene-i)

##### Usage notes

ـی is the form attached to words ending in consonants. Nouns ending in ـه (-e) will usually add the non-joining ای (-i) to form their corresponding adjectives. Nouns ending in the long vowels ـا (-â) and ـو (-u) will use the form ـیی (-yi) to form their corresponding adjectives.
This suffix and its alternative forms take the stress, e.g. خورشیدی (xoršidí, “solar”).
Most Persian surnames end in this suffix.

##### 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 ـه (-e))
* ـیی (-yi) (used for words ending in ا (â) and و (u, o))

#### Pronunciation

* (Classical Persian) IPA: [.ʔiː]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [.ʔiː]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [.ʔiː]
** (Kabuli) IPA: [.ʔiː]
** (Hazaragi) IPA: [.ʔi]
* (Iran, formal) IPA: [.ʔiː]
* (Tajik, formal) IPA: [.ʔi]

#### Suffix

ـی • (-ī / -i)
* Forms abstract nouns, including names of professions or offices, from adjectives, occupational nouns, or titles.
** forms abstract nouns, from adjectives
    ‎بزرگ (bozorg, “big”) + ‎ـی → ‎بزرگی (bozorgi, “bigness”)
    ‎شیرین (širin, “sweet”) + ‎ـی → ‎شیرینی (širini, “sweetness”)
    ‎یگانه (yegâne, “unique”) + ‎ـگی → ‎یگانگی (yegânegi, “uniqueness”)
** forms the name of a profession, and the place where it is practiced, from an occupational noun
    ‎خیاط (xayyât, “tailor”) + ‎ـی → ‎خیاطی (xayyâti, “tailoring; tailor shop”)
    ‎نویسنده (nevisande, “writer, author”) + ‎ـگی → ‎نویسندگی (nevisandegi, “writing, authorship”)
** forms the name of an office, from a title
    ‎خان (xân, “khan”) + ‎ـی → ‎خانی (xâni, “khanship”)
    ‎خلیفه (xalife, “caliph”) + ‎ـگی → ‎خلیفگی (xalifegi, “caliphship”)

##### Usage notes

ـی is the form attached to words ending in consonants. Adjectives ending in the short vowel ـه (-e) will use the form ـگی (-egī) for their derived nouns. Adjectives ending in the long vowels ـا (-â) and ـو (-u) will use the form ـیی (-yi) for their derived nouns.
This suffix and its alternative forms take the stress.

##### 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 ـی (-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”)

### Etymology 3

Borrowed from Classical Persian ـی (-ī), from Middle Persian 𐭩𐭧 (yḥ /⁠-īh⁠/).

#### Suffix

ـی • (-ī) f (Hindi spelling -ई)
* forms abstract nouns from adjectives or common nouns
    ‎روشن (rauśan, “bright”) + ‎ـی (-ī) → ‎روشنی (rauśnī, “brightness”)