aryan
part of speech
adjective (Aryan); noun (an Aryan, Aryans)
meaning for a pupil
1) (history) Aryan was an old name for the ancient people who spoke early Indo-Iranian languages in Iran and northern India; «arya» meant «noble» in Sanskrit. tree →
2) (history, Nazi) The Nazis in Germany misused «Aryan» to mean a made-up «master race» of white, often blond, people; this idea was false and cruel and was used to justify the Holocaust. tree →
3) (a name) Aryan (also spelled Aarya or Arian) is also a boy's name in India and elsewhere. tree →
sense in the lessons
Used in history lessons on ancient India and Iran and on Nazi Germany and the Second World War; it teaches how racist ideas are false and dangerous. Scientists today say «Indo-European» or «Indo-Iranian» for the languages.
examples
- The Nazis falsely claimed that «Aryans» were better than other people. tree →
- There is no such thing as a master race. tree →
- The name Iran comes from an old word linked to «Aryan». tree →
- In ancient Sanskrit, «arya» meant «noble». tree →
- Hitler's ideas about an «Aryan race» led to terrible crimes. tree →
- My classmate's name is Aryan. tree →
note
Written with a capital A. Pronounced AIR-ee-un. Because of its Nazi misuse, the word is avoided in science today; there is no «Aryan race». As a name in India it is common and respectful.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «aryan» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.