Etymology

divan

D2I1V4A1N1

Today it means: A Muslim council of state, specifically that of viziers of the Ottoman Empire that discussed and recommended new laws and law changes to a higher authority (the sultan). Full definition →

Ottoman Turkish دیوان ← Classical Persian دیوان ← Middle Persian d(p)ywʾn'
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The story

  1. Sumerian · derived from𒁾
  2. Middle Persian · derived fromd(p)ywʾn'“archive, collected writings”
  3. Classical Persian · derived fromدیوان
  4. Ottoman Turkish · derived fromدیوان
  5. English todaydivan

Borrowed from French, from Ottoman Turkish دیوان (divan), from Classical Persian دیوان (dēwān), from Middle Persian d(p)ywʾn' (dēwān, “archive, collected writings”), from Sumerian 𒁾 (dub). Compare mattress, from Arabic (both of Middle Eastern origin, due to the local custom of lying on padding on floor being foreign to Europeans). Doublet of dewan, douane, and diwaniya.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.