Breakdown of مردم ایران قومیتهای متفاوتی دارند.
ایرانirân
Iran
داشتنdâshtan
to have
مردمmardom
people
متفاوتmotefâvet
different
قومیتqowmiyyat
ethnicity
Questions & Answers about مردم ایران قومیتهای متفاوتی دارند.
How does the suffix یت change the meaning of the root word in قومیت?
The root is the Arabic word قوم (qowm), which means a "people," "tribe," or "nation" (a physical group of people). Adding the abstract suffix یت (-iyyat) turns it into the abstract concept of "ethnicity." This is a very common way to create formal abstract nouns in Persian.
Since this is an Arabic-derived abstract noun, could I use the Arabic plural suffix ـات (-at) instead of ـها?
For this specific word, no. While a few words ending in یت do take the Arabic plural (like موفقیت becoming موفقیتها or rarely موفقیات), قومیتها is the only standard way to say "ethnicities." The native Persian plural suffix ـها is highly productive and is the safest, most natural choice for these derived abstract nouns.
Why is the indefinite suffix ی attached to the adjective متفاوتی instead of the noun?
In Persian, when a noun is described by an adjective using the ezafe (the connecting vowel), the indefinite suffix ی (meaning "a" or "some") attaches to the very end of the noun phrase. It skips the noun itself and attaches to the end of the modifier: قومیتهای متفاوت + ی.
The word مردم (people) doesn't have a plural suffix. Why does the verb دارند take a plural ending?
مردم is a collective noun. Even though it is singular in form, it refers to a group of humans, so it almost always takes a plural verb in modern Persian. This is exactly like how "people" takes a plural verb in English.
Learn مردم ایران قومیتهای متفاوتی دارند and more in Farsi
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free