Etymology
The term derives from Middle Iranian xvatay, xwadag meaning "lord", "ruler", "master" (written as Parthian kwdy, Middle Persian kwdy, Sogdian kwdy, etc.). It is the Middle Iranian reflex of Avestan xva-dhata- "self-defined; autocrat", an epithet of Ahura Mazda. The Pashto term Xwdāi (خدای) is a New Iranian cognate.
Prosaic usage is found for example in the Sassanid title katak-xvatay to denote the head of a clan or extended household, or in the title of the 6th century Khwaday Namag "Book of lords", from which the tales of Kayanian kings as found in the Shahnameh ("Book of kings") derive.
Read more about this topic: Khuda
Famous quotes containing the word etymology:
“The universal principle of etymology in all languages: words are carried over from bodies and from the properties of bodies to express the things of the mind and spirit. The order of ideas must follow the order of things.”
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