English
selictar
Selictar comes from Arabic سِلَاح ‘weapon’, from Persian ـدار ‘bearer’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- ‘to hold’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰer-1‘to hold’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*dʰāráyati1‘to hold, carry’reconstructed
- Proto-Iranianprehistoric (reconstructed)*dāráyati1‘to bear, hold’reconstructed
- Old Persianc. 600–300 BCEOld Persian form1transliteratedoriginal script Old Persian form, a transliteration; the original signs are in Wiktionary‘to hold, have’
- Persianc. 900–presentداشتن2dâštan‘to have’
- Persianc. 900–presentـدار3-dâr‘bearer’present stem of داشتن
- Arabicc. 500–presentسِلَاح3silāḥ‘weapon’
- Ottoman Turkishc. 1300–1928سلاحدار3silahdarliterally ‘weapon-bearer’
- Englishtodayselictar3
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Persian داشتن
- 2 Wiktionary, Persian ـدار
- 3 Wiktionary, English selictar
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰer-Wiktionary, Persian داشتن‘to hold’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*dʰāráyatiWiktionary, Persian داشتن‘to hold, carry’reconstructed
- Proto-Iranianprehistoric (reconstructed)*dāráyatiWiktionary, Persian داشتن‘to bear, hold’reconstructed
- Old Persianc. 600–300 BCEOld Persian formWiktionary, Persian داشتنtransliteratedoriginal script Old Persian form, a transliteration; the original signs are in Wiktionary‘to hold, have’
- Persianc. 900–presentداشتنWiktionary, Persian ـدارdâštan‘to have’
- Persianc. 900–presentـدارWiktionary, English selictar-dâr‘bearer’present stem of داشتن
- Arabicc. 500–presentسِلَاحWiktionary, English selictarsilāḥ‘weapon’
- Ottoman Turkishc. 1300–1928سلاحدارWiktionary, English selictarsilahdarliterally ‘weapon-bearer’
- EnglishtodayselictarWiktionary, English selictar
The story
Corrupt from Ottoman Turkish سلاحدار (silahdar, literally “weapon-bearer”), the first part being the Arabic سِلَاح (silāḥ, “weapon”) and the second the Persian ـدار (-dâr, “bearer”) suffix.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- ‘to hold’
drug, dark, firm, dry, drama, throne, drain, dare, drone, feasible, formidable, refrain, drastic, darn, dazed, dharma, dor, dern, 41 more
Today it means
noun The swordbearer of a Turkish chief; a member of a Turkish cavalry corps.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “selictar”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Persian داشتن, Persian ـدار. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- / selictar