What it means
یتیم (yatim) means orphan. The word is borrowed directly from Arabic يَتِيم, which in classical Arabic refers specifically to a child who has lost their father (the primary provider), though in Persian usage it has broadened to mean any child who has lost one or both parents. It is used in everyday speech, legal documents, literature, and religious texts. A child who has lost their mother specifically is sometimes called بیمادر (bi-mâdar) in Persian, but یتیم is the default single word for orphan in most contexts. The plural یتیمان (yatimân) or یتیمها (yatim-hâ) appears in news, charities, and poetry.
How to use it
- اون بچه بعد از تصادف یتیم شد. (un bache ba’d az tasâdof yatim shod.) “That child became an orphan after the accident.”
- یه موسسه خیریه از یتیمها نگهداری میکنه. (ye mo’assese-ye kheyriye az yatim-hâ negahdâri mi-kone.) “A charity organization takes care of orphans.”
- کمک به یتیمان ثواب داره. (komak be yatimân savâb dâre.) “Helping orphans is a virtuous act.”
- این بچه یتیمه، پدر و مادرشو از دست داده. (in bache yatim-e, pedar o mâdar-eshu az dast dâde.) “This child is an orphan, he lost his father and mother.”
Cultural note
In both Iranian Islamic tradition and Persian literary culture, caring for یتیمان is considered a highly meritorious duty. The Prophet Muhammad was himself an orphan, a fact that gives the term particular religious resonance, and charitable giving specifically for orphans (حق یتیم, haqq-e yatim) is a recurring theme in religious guidance. In classical Persian poetry, the orphan appears as a symbol of vulnerability and divine mercy. Today, many Iranian charities and NGOs use یتیم prominently in their names and appeals, and the word carries none of the stigma it might have in other cultural contexts: being یتیم describes a circumstance, not a social failing.