What it means
نقشه (naqshe) is borrowed from Arabic نقش (naqsh), meaning an engraving, drawing, or decorative design. In Persian it has broadened to cover two main senses: a physical map (a city map, a tourist map, a floor plan) and a figurative plan or scheme (as in “I have a plan”). Both senses are active in everyday speech, so نقشه کشیدن (naqshe keshidan) can mean either “to draw a map” or “to plot a scheme.” A close, more formal synonym for the cartographic sense is اطلس (atlâs, atlas).
How to use it
- نقشهی شهر داری؟ (naqsheye shahr dâri?) “Do you have a city map?”
- بذار نقشهرو نگاه کنیم. (bozâr naqshero negâh konim.) “Let’s look at the map.”
- یه نقشه داریم برای فردا. (ye naqshe dârim barâye fardâ.) “We have a plan for tomorrow.”
- مسیر رو رو نقشه نشونم بده. (masiro ru naqshe neshoonam bede.) “Show me the route on the map.”
Cultural note
Before smartphones became widespread in Iran, paper نقشههای شهری (city maps) were sold at newsstands and were essential for navigating large cities like Tehran and Isfahan. Today most travelers rely on apps such as Neshan (نشان) or Balad (بلد), which are Iranian mapping services built for local roads and traffic. Even so, نقشه remains the everyday word for map in digital contexts: Iranians say “نقشه رو باز کن” (open the map) when referring to a navigation app.