What it means
تقسیم (taqsim) covers two related meanings in Persian: the mathematical operation of division, and the broader sense of distributing or sharing something out among people. It is borrowed from Arabic, built on the root q-s-m meaning to divide or portion, the same root that gives قسمت (qesmat, fate or share) and قسم (qasam, an oath sworn by invoking God’s portion). In arithmetic تقسیم is the formal term for division, while in speech you will also hear تقسیم کردن (taqsim kardan) meaning to divide up or hand out. A close synonym in the sharing sense is پخش کردن (pakhsh kardan, to distribute).
How to use it
- تقسیم دوازده بر سه میشه چهار. (Taqsim-e davâzdah bar se mishe chahâr.) “Twelve divided by three is four.”
- کیک رو بین بچهها تقسیم کردیم. (Keyk ro beyn-e bache-hâ taqsim kardim.) “We divided the cake among the children.”
- وظایف رو تقسیم کنیم بهتره. (Vazâyef ro taqsim konim behtare.) “It’s better if we divide up the tasks.”
- توی ریاضی تقسیم از ضرب سختتره. (Tu-ye riyâzi taqsim az zarb sakhtar-e.) “In math, division is harder than multiplication.”
Cultural note
Beyond the classroom, تقسیم carries real legal and social weight in Iranian life. Inheritance law in Iran, governed by Islamic jurisprudence, specifies detailed rules for تقسیم ارث (taqsim-e ers, division of the estate) among heirs, and disputes over property division are a common subject in Iranian courts and family mediation. In everyday conversation تقسیم کردن is used naturally whenever something is shared, from splitting a restaurant bill to dividing up household chores, making it one of the most versatile Arabic loanwords in modern Persian.