Ossetian
/ɒˈsɛti.ən/noun
Relating to Ossetia, its people, or the Ossetic language.
Did you know?The Ossetians are widely regarded as descendants of the Alans, an Iranian-speaking people whose name survives in the region’s history, so the word preserves a very old ethnic memory rather than a mystical hidden code.
Etymological Timeline
Modern English
English
Ossetian
“Relating to the Ossetians or their language.”
19th Century
Russian/English
Osetin / Ossetian
“A name applied to the people of the central Caucasus region known as Ossetia.”
Middle Ages
Georgian/Byzantine sources
Osi / Osseti
“Names used for the people living in the central Caucasus.”
Late Antiquity
Greek/Latin
Alans
“An Iranian-speaking nomadic people of the steppe and Caucasus.”
Proto-Iranian
Iranian
*arya- / related Iranian ethnonyms
“Ancient Iranian ethnic and linguistic ancestry behind the Alanic/Ossetian historical lineage.”