Indian Antiquary Vol 10

Author(s): Jas Burgess
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 45

FEBRUARY, 1881.] SASANIAN INSCRIPTION OF NAQSH-I RUSTAM.
33
sor, Narsihi (A.D. 283-300), may have or adjectival suflix, as in modern Persian. been mentioned in the missing portion of line Neither can it be merely a sign indicating the 35 or 36, and that the actual date of the end of the word, for in that case it would be inscription was about A.D. 290.
used after all words, and not be confined to a Owing to its mutilated state this inscription few of them ; moreover, in this inscription the is of little value as a historical document.
words are separated by blank spaces. Like that of Naqsh-i Rajab it is written in With regard to the verbs, the suffix of the the first person, and professes apparently to be past participle in Iranian verbs (which is also dictated by the divine Allharmazd himself; this
used for the preterit) is-ii, as has been noticed is clear enough in the first half of the inscription, above; and no other forms of Iranian verbs occur and the occurrence of the word afam,' and by in this inscription. The Semitic verbs not only me,' in lines 40, 43, and 47, shows that the use occur in their crude forms, which appear to be of the first person continued in the latter half.
used for both the past participle and preterit, The chief value of the inscription is philo- but also take the suffixes - (or-é), -t, and -il. logical. Even in its present mutilated state it The effect of these suffixes is rather doubtful, supplies one hundred distinct Sasanian words,
thought and -d may perhapa form the third of which forty-five have not been found in
persons singular and plural of the present tense, other inscriptions, though all but fourteen are
respectively, as has been assumed in the transknown to exist in Pahlavi MSS. Allowing for
lation, although it is by no means certain that certain peculiarities in orthography, and for they are not used indifferently; and it is possible the existence of about one strange word in that the suffix -1 (or -) may give a conditional seven, its language is practically the same as meaning to the preterit, but this requires conthat of the MSS. still preserved by the Parsis. firmation.
One peculiarity of Sasanian orthography is The Semitic verbs which occur in this inthe existence of a final i in several Iranian scription furnish many corrections of the tradiwords, which disappears in MS. Pahlavi, as in tional pronunciation of the Huzvârish verbs used Aúhormazdi, aúedésá, gási, kámkári, and sipási, in Pahlavi MSS., most of which have been in the abstract suffix -ihi of afzádiki and gúnú- anticipated by European Orientalists on etymokthi (which has become -i in modern Persian), logical grounds. Thus, we find debrún, 'conand in the comparative suffix -tari of kamkari- veyed,' for the traditional dedrón and gabron ; tari and vehtari. In some cases the Sasanian hurtimin, 'ended,'foratimin; mekhitun,
astruck,' final has become an optional final o in MS. for máitón; sheditun, cast,' for shakítón; Pahlavi, as in átéri, hamgúnaki, húkamaki, vabilan, did,' for vádon ;vakhdan, 'took,' for kartakí, rádi, shatari, and suti, in the past vágón; vazlún, went,' for vazrûn; yansebin, participial suffix -ti of gufti, karti, nipishti, and seized, for jósgôn and jósbón; yehamtún, zati, and likewise in the Semitic word aiti. arrived,' for jámtón; yehevún, was,' for jánin; But many Iranian words have no final i in yekavêm ún, remained,' for jaknimôn; and yetiSasanian (even though some of them have bun, sat,' for jatibon. Two of the Semitic freqnently a final o in MS. Pahlavi) such as verbs, havitun, was,' and vamdún, "arose,' are aêharpat, Airán, Anirán, Artakhshatar, avagún, not known to occur in Pahlavi MSS. bagdát, bakht, chigún, farmán, gehún, ham, Several other corrections of the traditional magópat, Magôstan, mino, rúban, Varahrán, pronunciation of Huzvârish words are also vartir, and sivak; also all plurals, such as supplied by the Semitic words in this inscripátúrán, kartakán, malkán, mátadán, vdspo. tion. Thus, we find afam, and by me,' for the harakan, yazdán, and zatakán; and the pro- traditional avam; bará, except, but,' for bana ; nominal suffixes, as in afam, afash, zakam and bên, within,' for dayen ; hand, this,' for and ; zim. In no case is this final i an izáfat, orval, 'to,' for var; valman, that,' for varman; relative particle, which is always either under. zenman, 'this,' for gôman; and zivák, place,' stood in Sasanian inscriptions, or expressed by for jinak. The meaning of the last word is not the Semitic relative zi; nor is it an abstract absolutely certain, as zívak must mean living,
35 The Sassnian inscriptions confirm the practice of the ending in -etan, when the t is not radical. Pahlavi MSS. written in Persia, by using a short vowel, 30 The letters must first have been joined and written instead of a long one, in the last syllable of Huzvarish verbs like di, and then mistaken for 4.