دختر

What it means

دختر (dokhtar) means “girl” or “daughter.” Native Persian word, parallel to پسر in usage and in the family-relationship system.

How to use it

• دختر من ده ساله است (dokhtar-e man dah sâle ast) “My daughter is ten years old”
• دختر زیبایی است (dokhtar-e zibâyi ast) “She is a beautiful girl”
• دو دختر و یک پسر دارم (do dokhtar-o yek pesar dâram) “I have two daughters and one son”

Common pairings

• دخترعمو (dokhtar-amu) “paternal cousin (female)”
• دخترعمه (dokhtar-amme) “cousin via paternal aunt (female)”
• دخترخاله (dokhtar-khâle) “cousin via maternal aunt (female)”
• دختردایی (dokhtar-dâyi) “cousin via maternal uncle (female)”
• دخترها (dokhtar-hâ) “girls” (plural)

Etymology

دختر comes from Proto-Indo-European *dʰugh₂tér, the same root that gave English “daughter,” German “Tochter,” Sanskrit “duhitṛ,” and Greek “thugatēr.” Persian preserves this Indo-European inheritance directly.

References

• Dehkhoda
• Vajehyab