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Glite Dictionary
Gathic

Gathic

9.9
An ancient Iranian language used in the oldest Zoroastrian hymns
  • noun
  • Specialized
: gático
  • The Gathic hymns are considered the oldest part of the Avesta.

Examples

  • The Gathic hymns are considered the oldest part of the Avesta.

  • The ancient texts were written in Gathic.

  • Few people today can read the original Gathic texts without specialized training.

  • Scholars have studied the Gathic language to better understand the origins of Zoroastrianism.

  • Many scholars study Gathic to understand Zoroastrianism.

  • Scholars have studied the Gathic language to better understand the origins of Zoroastrianism.

  • Few people today can read the original Gathic texts without specialized training.

Synonyms

Zend
vsGathic
1 9.9

An ancient Iranian language used in Zoroastrian religious books

is limited to the core sacred hymns rather than scripture and commentaries
Gathic language
vsGathic
  • Specialized
9.9

An ancient Iranian language people used to write the Gathas, Zoroastrian sacred songs

is the same language but given as a descriptive term rather than a formal name
Avestan language
vsGathic
  • Specialized
9.9

Ancient Iranian language used to write the holy books of Zoroastrianism

is narrower and appears only in the most sacred hymns
Avestan
vsGathic
  • Specialized
9.9

An ancient Iranian language used for the Zoroastrian sacred texts

is focused on a small set of sacred hymns not the whole corpus
Zend language
vsGathic
9.9

An old Iranian language used in Zoroastrian religious texts

is focused on the sacred hymns instead of broader religious writings

Compounds

Gathic language
  • Specialized
9.9

An ancient Iranian language people used to write the Gathas, Zoroastrian sacred songs

Surface Forms

Gathic singular
Gathics plural

Morphology

Gathic = Gatha (semi-transparent) = gatha + ic

Formation is a straightforward noun + -ic derivation meaning 'pertaining to the Gathas'; the morphological relation is regular even though the base is specialized.

Etymology

The word Gathic comes from the old Avestan word Gāθā, which means 'hymn' or 'song'. So Gathic simply means the language 'of the Gathas', the ancient hymns of Zoroastrian scripture.