What it means
سیمکشی (sim-keshi) refers to electrical wiring: the network of wires installed inside walls, ceilings, and conduits that carries power through a building. The word is a compound of two roots. سیم (sim) means wire, and it reached Persian through Middle Persian from Ancient Greek ἄσημον (ásēmon), a word that meant uncoined or unstamped metal in general. کشی (keshi) comes from کشیدن (kashidan), the native Persian verb meaning to pull or to draw, so the literal sense is wire-pulling, the act of running wires through a structure. A related term you will hear is برقکشی (bargh-keshi), which stresses the electrical side, though in everyday speech the two are used almost interchangeably.
How to use it
- سیمکشی خونه خیلی قدیمیه، باید عوضش کنیم. (sim-keshi-ye khoone kheyli qadimiye, bayad avazesh konim.) “The house wiring is very old, we need to replace it.”
- استاد برق اومد سیمکشی رو چک کرد. (ostad bargh umad sim-keshi ro chek kard.) “The electrician came and checked the wiring.”
- هزینه سیمکشی مجدد خیلی بالاست. (hazine-ye sim-keshi-ye mojaddad kheyli balast.) “The cost of rewiring is very high.”
- قبل از دیوارکشی، سیمکشی رو تموم کن. (qabl az divar-keshi, sim-keshi ro tamum kon.) “Before you plaster the walls, finish the wiring.”
Cultural note
In Iran, electrical wiring in older residential buildings, particularly those built before the 1979 revolution, often uses aluminum conductors rather than copper, which are now considered substandard and a fire risk. When Iranians renovate a home, rewiring (sim-keshi-ye mojaddad) is one of the first tasks a skilled tradesperson, called an ostad bargh, is called in to assess. Getting permits and inspections for new sim-keshi through the municipality (shahrdari) is standard practice in urban construction.