What it means
آلرژی (âlerzhi) means “allergy,” that is, an overreaction of the body’s immune system to a normally harmless substance. The word is a direct borrowing from French “allergie,” which itself came from German “Allergie,” coined in 1906 from Greek “allos” (other) and “ergon” (reaction). Persian adopted it through French, the dominant scientific language of the Qajar and early Pahlavi eras. The word حساسیت (hassâsiyat) is a near synonym and is sometimes used interchangeably, though حساسیت has a broader sense that includes emotional sensitivity.
How to use it
- آلرژی به گردو دارم. (âlerzhi be gerdu dâram.) “I have an allergy to walnuts.”
- آلرژیام این فصل بدتر شده. (âlerzhi-am in fasl badtar shode.) “My allergy has gotten worse this season.”
- دکتر گفت آلرژیِ فصلیه. (doktor goft âlerzhi-ye fasli-ye.) “The doctor said it is seasonal allergy.”
- قرص آلرژی داری؟ (qors-e âlerzhi dâri?) “Do you have an allergy pill?”
Cultural note
In Iran, seasonal allergies are very common in spring, particularly in cities like Tehran and Isfahan where pollen levels rise sharply in April and May. Pharmacies stock over-the-counter antihistamines and Iranians often refer to spring allergies informally as “حساسیت بهاری” (hassâsiyat-e bahâri, spring sensitivity). Food allergies, while increasingly recognized, are still less commonly diagnosed than in Western clinical settings, and the word آلرژی itself signals a modern, medically influenced concept that entered daily speech relatively recently.