Etymology

parasang

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Today it means: A historical Iranian unit of itinerant distance used throughout the Western Mediterranean and the Middle East in antiquity, originally the distance travelled in one hour, and generally assumed to be equivalent to about six kilometres. Full definition →

First used 16th c.Latin parasanga ← Ancient Greek παρασάγγης ← Old Persian *frasanhvah
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The story

  1. Old Persian · derived from*frasanhvah
  2. Ancient Greek · derived fromπαρασάγγης
  3. Latin · derived fromparasanga
  4. English todayparasang

From Latin parasanga, from Ancient Greek παρασάγγης (parasángēs), from unattested Old Persian *frasanhvah (indigenously attested only in Middle Iranian onwards); compare Middle Persian [script needed] (frasang /⁠plsng⁠/, “frasang (4 Roman miles)”) (whence Persian فرسنگ (farsang)). Doublet of farsang and farsakh.

First known use, by meaning

  • from 16th c. A historical Iranian unit of itinerant distance used throughout the Western Mediterranean and the Middle East in antiquity, originally the distance travelled in one hour, and generally assumed to be equivalent to about six kilometres.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.