Aryan

/ˈɛɹi.ən//ˈɛəɹi.ən/

Aryan noun: a person of Caucasian (white / Northern European) ethnicity; A white non-Jew, in the broadest sense, or more narrowly defined as people of Germanic descent.

Noun

Aryan (plural Aryans)

(informal, Nazism or white supremacy) A person of Caucasian (white / Northern European) ethnicity; A white non-Jew, in the broadest sense, or more narrowly defined as people of Germanic descent.
- This short sketch of the changes that take place among those races that are only the depositories of a culture also furnishes a picture of the development and the activity and the disappearance of those who are the true founders of culture on this earth, namely the Aryans themselves.1925–26, Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf, translation from German to English by James Murphy, 1939
- One transmission advantage may have been that espousing Aryan-supremacist and overtly Nazi ideology could have been a roundabout way of announcing, […]2001, Robert J. Sternberg, James C. Kaufman, The Evolution of Intelligence, page 300
(US, broadly, euphemistic, informal) A Caucasian racist, often one who is an Aryan in the first sense.
- Cal tried to think of words that would convey Wolfgang Stahl to the ears and hands of a woman who’d never seen him and never, until now, had to imagine him.
  […]
  ‘Why not . . . why not think of your chap as a type? Tell me what type you’d sort of put him into.’
  ‘Sort of?’
  ‘You know . . ....2004, John Lawton, Bluffing Mr. Churchill
(broadly, dated) An Indo-European, a Proto-Indo-European.
- We have seen that when the Goths first entered Roman territory they were driven on by a vast migration of the Asiatic Huns. These wild and hideous tribes then […] appeared upon the Rhine, and in enormous numbers penetrated Gaul. No people had yet understood them, none had even checked their career....1905, Rossiter Johnson, LL.D., chief editor, The Great Events by Famous Historians, volume IV
(dated) A subdivision of the Caucasian racial and linguistic grouping, when that grouping is defined as consisting of Aryans, Semites, and Hamites.
- [The] Caucasian race includes two sub-races, — the Xantho-chroic and Melanochroic of Huxley. The seat of this race is Europe, northern Africa, and southwestern Asia, its linguistic division being into Aryans, Semites, and Hamites.1892, Charles Morris, The Aryan Race: Its Origins and Its Achievements
- The surest principle of classification is based on language, but the results must be tested by a study of the physical characteristics of the various races. According to this method of classification, the races of the world may be divided as follows: Aryan, Semitic, Hamitic, Turanian, Negroid. The...1900, Frank Moore Colby, Outlines of General History
(dated, historical) Synonym of Indo-Iranian (“member of any peoples speaking an Indo-Iranian language.”)

Synonyms:

Indo-Iranian
1. (broadly, dated, historical) An Indo-Aryan.
  - The theories of advocates of an autochthonous origin of the Indo-Aryans (always called "Aryans") range from (1) a mild version, insisting on the origin of the Ṛgvedic Indo-Aryans in the Panjab, the "autochthonous" or indigenous school…2001, Michael Witzel, Autochthonous Aryans?

Adjective

Aryan (comparative more Aryan, superlative most Aryan)

Pertaining, in racial theories, to the (alleged) Aryan master race.
- Look at the ravages from which our people are suffering daily as a result of being contaminated with Jewish blood. Bear in mind the fact that this poisonous contamination can be eliminated from the national body only after centuries, or perhaps never. Think further of how the process of racial...1925–26, Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf, translation from German to English by James Murphy, 1939
Antonyms:

non-Aryan
(informal) Pertaining to the Caucasian ethnicity.
- Neo-Nazis use Nordic religions to fashion a more noble Aryan past and a modern Pan-Aryan community. Symbols from and references to ancient spirituality pepper neo-Nazi literature.2003, Kathleen M. Blee, Inside Organized Racism: Women in the Hate Movement, page 172
(US, euphemistic, informal) Pertaining to Caucasian racists or their organisations, theories, etc.
- Imagine our outrage if the foreign press depicted Aryan groups as representing mainstream Christianity.2006, Margaret Kleffner Nydell, Understanding Arabs: A Guide for Modern Times, Intercultural Press,, →ISBN, page 106
(dated) Of or pertaining to Indo-European peoples, cultures and languages.
- Who were these Teutons? Rome knew them only vaguely as wild tribes dwelling in the gloom of the great forest wilderness. In reality they were but the vanguard of vast races of human beings who through ages had been slowly populating all Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. Beyond the Teutons were...1905, Rossiter Johnson, LL.D., chief editor, The Great Events by Famous Historians, volume IV
(dated) Of or pertaining to Indo-Iranian peoples, cultures, and languages.
- 1872-79: John Beames, A Comparative Grammar of the Modern Aryan Languages of India: to wit, Hindi, Panjabi, Sindhi, Gujarati, Marathi, Oriya and Bangall
  [W]ith all due deference to the opinions of scholars, it may be urged that much of this elaborate development arose in an age when the speech of...
- She was very graceful with a very Aryan face, Ringa observed, and the red and white silk sari she was wearing blended exquisitely with her small daintiness.1957, Tom [i.e., Thomas] T[heodore] Chamales, Never So Few, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →LCCN, page 69

Proper noun

Aryan

(dated) Synonym of Indo-Iranian.

Synonyms:

Indo-Iranian
A male given name of Indian usage.
(ahistorical or Nazism) Synonym of Indo-European.

Synonyms:

Indo-European

Aryan meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

Aryan in Hindi

an Indo-Iranian: आर्य ārya
a member of the supposed Aryan race: आर्य ārya
an Indo-European: आर्य ārya
in ethnography, a subdivision of the Caucasian race: आर्य ārya

Aryan in Tamil

a member of the supposed Aryan race: ஆரியன் āriyaṉ, ஆரியர் āriyar
pertaining to the (alleged) Aryan master race: ஆரிய āriya
of or pertaining to Indo-European or Aryan peoples, culture, and languages: ஆரிய āriya

Aryan in Marathi

an Indo-Iranian: आर्य ārya
pertaining to the (alleged) Aryan master race: आर्यन āryan
used primarily by neo-Nazis: pertaining to the Caucasian race: आर्यन āryan
euphemistic: pertaining to Caucasian racists: आर्यन āryan

Aryan in Urdu

Aryan, Indo-Iranian, the eastern branch of the Indo-European peoples: آریہ ārya

More languagesFewer languages

Aryan in Bengali: আর্য arjo
Aryan in Kannada: ಆರ್ಯ ārya
Aryan in Punjabi: ਆਰੀਆ ārīā
Aryan in Gujarati: આર્ય ārya
Aryan in Sanskrit: आर्य ā́rya
Aryan in Tagalog: Aryo
Aryan in Arabic: آرِيّ ʔāriyy, آرِيَّة ʔāriyya
Aryan in Persian: آریایی, آریان âryân
Aryan in Thai: อารย aa-rá-yá-
Aryan in Myanmar: အာရိယန် ari.yan

Examples of Aryan in a sentence

The point is not that southern Republicans are edging toward Aryan-supremacist views but that the rhetoric of their campaigns and some of their political […]2002, David R. Goldfield, Still Fighting the Civil War: The American South and Southern History, page 263:
According to this method of classification, the races of the world may be divided as follows: Aryan, Semitic, Hamitic, Turanian, Negroid.1900, Frank Moore Colby, Outlines of General History:

Synonyms of Aryan

Antonyms

non-Aryan

Forms of Aryan

Noun
plural	Aryans
alternative form	Arian
Adjective
comparative	more Aryan
superlative	most Aryan

Origin of Aryan

Originally from Sanskrit आर्य (ā́rya, “noble; noble one”) and + -n. The Sanskrit word is an autonym originally from Proto-Indo-Iranian *áryas (see there for more). Borrowed into English in the 19th century, at first as a term for the Indo-Iranian languages, and later partly extended to the Indo-European languages and peoples following a theory by Friedrich Schlegel that connected the Indo-Iranian words arya/ā́rya with German Ehre (“honor”) and some older Germanic names, thus assuming that it was the original Indo-European autonym meaning "the honorable people". The original meaning of the Indo-Iranian autonym and its possible Indo-European origin/cognates are disputed (see the Wikipedia article for further details). The same Proto-Indo-Iranian root is the ultimate source of the country name Iran. Also the doublet of Arya.

Words formed from Aryan

Phrases with Aryan

honorary Aryan

Words that rhyme with Aryan

48 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about Aryan

What does Aryan mean?: Aryan means a person of Caucasian (white / Northern European) ethnicity; A white non-Jew, in the broadest sense, or more narrowly defined as people of Germanic descent.
What is Aryan in Hindi?: Aryan in Hindi is आर्य (ārya). See Aryan meaning in Hindi.
How do you use Aryan in a sentence?: The point is not that southern Republicans are edging toward Aryan-supremacist views but that the rhetoric of their campaigns and some of their political […]
What part of speech is Aryan?: Aryan can be a noun, an adjective or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce Aryan?: Aryan is pronounced /ˈɛəɹi.ən/ (UK).
What is the plural of Aryan?: The plural of Aryan is Aryans.

Words near Aryan in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: Aryan (page history and authors); آریہ (Urdu) (page history and authors); ಆರ್ಯ (Kannada) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Aryan.wav.

Cite this entry: “Aryan.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/aryan. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.