Which religious words are shared by Sanskrit and Avestan?

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Sanskrit and Avestan, both belonging to the Indo-Iranian subgroup of the Indo-European language family, share several significant religious terms that reflect their common heritage. These shared terms include:1

  • Worship and Sacrifice: Sanskrit yajña- (rite of worship, sacrificial rite) corresponds to Avestan yasna- (worship, act of worship, sacrifice).1
  • Ritual Officiants: Sanskrit hotṛ- corresponds to Avestan zaotar-, both referring to a specific ritual officiant.1
  • Ritual Substances: Sanskrit soma- and Avestan haoma- both refer to a ritually important juice pressed from a plant.1
  • Divinities: The name of the divinity Sanskrit mitra- corresponds to Avestan miθra- (Mithra).1

Additionally, speakers of both language groups used comparable terms to refer to themselves as a people: Sanskrit ārya-, Avestan airiia-, and Old Persian ariya-, all meaning "Aryan".1