An Etymological Note on YAv. mūra-: Is it Really “Idiot, Stupid, Foolish”?
Author(s)
Date Issued
2022
Type
article
Volume
26
Issue
1
Start Page
67
End Page
78
Journal
Abstract
The present contribution is a first step of an ongoing investigation on the conceptualisation of “stupidity, foolishness, madness” in Iranian, as a selected case-study for an assessment of the controversial role played by phonosemantic/ideophonic paradigms in lexical production and areal diffusion of cognate words. The discussion will challenge the commonly- accepted interpretation of the Young Avestan term mūra- as prototypically referring to mental/cognitive impairment, based on a review of the attempts at etymological reconstruction and a closer scrutiny of disregarded evidence from Middle and New Iranian.