# نامه
## Persian
### Etymology

From Middle Persian [Book Pahlavi needed] (MGLTA) / [Book Pahlavi needed] (nʾmk' /⁠nāmag⁠/, “book, letter, any written text”), equivalent to nām (“name”) (itself from Proto-Iranian *Hnā́ma (“name”)) + -ak (derivative suffix), originally a "name-list" or catalogue of products made for economic or bureaucratic purposes, this being the most common use of writing in early Iranian languages. By surface analysis, نام (nām / nâm, “name”) +‎ ـه (-a / -e), but rarely analyzed or understood as such. Compare Old Armenian նամակ (namak, “letter, writing”), an Iranian borrowing.

### Pronunciation

* (Classical Persian) IPA: [nɑː.ˈma]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [nɑː.mǽ]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [nɑː.mǽ]
** (Kabuli) IPA: [nɑː.mǽ]
** (Hazaragi) IPA: [nɔː.mǽ]
* (Iran, formal) IPA: [nɒː.mé]
* (Tajik, formal) IPA: [nɔ.mǽ]
* Audio (Iran):(file)

### Noun

نامه • (nāma / nâme) (plural نامه‌ها (nāma / nâme-hâ))
* letter (written or printed communication)
* (archaic, or in compounds) book; anything written
    Synonym: کتاب (kitāb / ketâb)

#### Derived terms

* اعتبارنامه (i'tibārnāma / e'tebârnâme, “letter of credit”)
* اعتراض‌نامه (i'tirāz-nāma / e'terâz-nâme, “letter of protest”)
* امان‌نامه (imān-nāma / emân-nâme)
* تقدیرنامه (taqdīrnāma / tağdirnâme, “letter of commendation”)
* رزم‌نامه (razm-nāma / razm-nâme, Mughal translation of the Mahabharata, literally “book of war”)
* روزنامه (rōznāma / ruznâme, “newspaper”)
* زندگی‌نامه (zindagī-nāma / zendegi-nâme, “biography”, literally “book of life”)
* سالنامه (sālnāma / sâlnâme)
* سفرنامه (safarnāma / safarnâme, “travelogue”)
* شاهنامه (šāhnāma / šâhnâme, “the Shahnameh”, literally “book of kings”)
* شجره‌نامه (šajara-nāma / šajare-nâme, “genealogy”)
* طلاق‌نامه (talāq-nāma / talâğ-nâme, “decree of divorce”)
* فیلمنامه (fīlmnāma / filmnâme, “screenplay”)
* لغت‌نامه (luğat-nāma / loğat-nâme, “dictionary”)
* ماهنامه (māhnāma / mâhnâme)
* معرفی‌نامه (mu'arrifī-nāma / mo'arrefi-nâme, “letter of recommendation”)
* نامه‌بر (nāma-bar / nâme-bar, “letter carrier”)
* نامه‌رسان (nāma-rasān / nâme-rasân, “letter carrier”)
* نامه‌نویس (nāma-nawīs / nâme-navis)
* هبه‌نامه (hiba-nāma / hebe-nâme, “deed of gift”)
* هفته‌نامه (hafta-nāma / hafte-nâme)
* وصیت‌نامه (wasiyyat-nāma / vasiyyat-nâme, “will”)
* وکالتنامه (wikālatnāma / vekâlatnâme, “power of attorney; proxy”)
* پایان‌نامه (pāyān-nāma / pâyân-nâme)
* گاهنامه (gāhnāma / gâhnâme)
* گواهی‌نامه (gawāhī-nāma / gavâhi-nâme, “credential”)
* گیرنده‌نامه (gayranda-nāma / geyrande-nâme, “addressee”)

#### Descendants

* → Azerbaijani: namə / نامه
* → Bengali: -নামা (-nama)
* → Gujarati: નામું (nāmũ), નામા (nāmā)
* → Hindustani:
    Hindi: नामा (nāmā)
    Urdu: نامہ (nāma)
* → Kurdish:
    Central Kurdish: نامە (name)
    Northern Kurdish: name
* → Ottoman Turkish: نامه (nâme)
** Turkish: name
** → Crimean Tatar: name
* → Punjabi:
    Gurmukhi script: ਨਾਮਾ (nāmā)
    Shahmukhi script: نامہ (nāma)
* → Uzbek: noma

### References

* ↑ Edelʹman, D. I. (2015) Etimologičeskij slovarʹ iranskix jazykov [Etymological Dictionary of Iranian Languages] (in Russian), volume 5, Moscow: Vostochnaya Literatura, page 539
* ↑ Lurje, Pavel B. (2022) “Considerations on the Etymology of Persian nāmeh”, in The Reward of the Righteous: Festschrift in Honour of Almut Hintze, pages 297—306

### Further reading

* MacKenzie, D. N. (1971) “nāmag”, in A concise Pahlavi dictionary, London, New York, Toronto: Oxford University Press, page 57
* Ačaṙean, Hračʻeay (1977) “նամակ”, in Hayerēn armatakan baṙaran [Armenian Etymological Dictionary] (in Armenian), 2nd edition, a reprint of the original 1926–1935 seven-volume edition, volume III, Yerevan: University Press, page 425b
* “nmq”, in The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon Project, Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College, 1986–