The Origins of Middle Persian Zamān and Related Words: A Controversial Etymological History.

Middle Persian zamān is one of the most important terms in the Iranian cultural and religious lexicon. Its origin, however, remains yet controversial, although, the scholarly debate on this lexeme has opened different perspectives with alternative solutions, particularly with regard to its ultimate roots-Semitic or Indo-Iranian. The present study is a thorough examination of all the aspects of the issue with new interpretation of the extant data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]