Meanings
- 5th-century Iranian social reformer and religious activist.
Origin
Ultimately from Middle Persian mzdk, of uncertain pronunciation (and thus of uncertain etymology). Arabic reports and translations (9th-century onwards, e.g. al-Muqaffa) have mazdak. Sources in New Persian first appear two centuries later, and have mizdak, muzdak in addition to mazdak. Conventional European language spelling is informed by Theodor Nöldeke's late 19th-century studies of the primary sources.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Mazdak. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Mazdak
“Mazdak.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Mazdak. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Mazdak,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Mazdak.
Source: Mazdak on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.