جفت
joft means pair, the Persian counter word for things that come in twos: shoes, socks, gloves, oxen. Not the same as the number two.
Glossary
پسته ای
pestehi means pistachio-green, the soft pale green of the nut Iranians grow better than anyone. The color of national pride on a plate.
ارغوانی
arghavani means crimson or deep red-purple, named after the arghavan tree whose blossoms color Iranian hills in spring. A literary, classical color.
لیمویی
limoyi means lemon-yellow, the bright pale yellow of a lemon peel. Built from limoo (lemon) plus the productive -i color suffix.
کرم
kerem means cream, the pale beige-yellow color, a direct English loanword used in clothing, paint, and home design.
خاکستری
khakestari means gray, literally “ash-colored” from khakestar (ash). The Persian color system names colors after the things that have them.
صورتی
surati means pink, literally “face-colored” from surat (face). The etymology gives away the original meaning: the rosy color of a cheek.
نقره ای
noghreyi means silver, both the color and the material. Built from noghre (silver) plus the productive -i color suffix.
طلایی
talayi means gold or golden, a color and a material. Iranian color names love the -i suffix, and talayi shows the pattern at full strength.
فیروزه ای
firuzehi is the Persian word for turquoise, both the gemstone and the color, tied to the world-famous Nishapur mines and centuries of Persian craft.