Questions tagged [sanskrit]

For questions about Sanskrit, the Ancient Classical language of Northern India.

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In Sanskrit a living language according to this definition?

Opinions differ on whether Sanskrit is a living language. If we define a living language as one in which new coinages become widespread among its users (and not just its learners), is it living? For ...
tell's user avatar
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7 votes
2 answers
696 views

Why is Devanagari currently used for Sanskrit?

Sanskrit was originally an oral language. It began to be written in the Brahmi script and then over time, most of the Brahmi-derived scripts, Gupta, Siddham, Nagari, Devanagari, Purvi Nagari etc. were ...
Ishan Kashyap Hazarika's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
39 views

removing visarg in sanskrit sandhi

I have understood this example of visarg sandhi. पुनः + रमते = पुना रमते As per this page: https://knowledgegallery.in/visarg-sandhi-in-sanskrit/ ‘रो रि’। यदि विसर्ग (:) से पहले स्वर हो और उसके (वि...
shantanuo's user avatar
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1 answer
100 views

Oxford/Cambridge Sanskrit Book

A few years ago I came across a book on Sanskrit (not a dictionary, not a grammar book, not a book on Sanskrit literature( that belonged to the "Classical Language Series" from either Oxford ...
Para Parasolian's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
118 views

Origin of ratchasap/ราชาศัพท์ phenomenon in Thai and/or Tai-kadai languages

I am attempting to trace the origin of "rachasap" (Thai: ราชาศัพท์; Lao: ລາດຊະຊັບ). What is "rachasap"? Rachasap is an entire body of words that are used with deity, royalty, or ...
Biblasia's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
143 views

What happened to Aham and its derivatives in Marathi?

The Sanskrit first person pronoun अहम् (Romanized: Aham) can be found in Maharashtri Prakrit as 𑀅𑀳𑀁 (ahaṃ), 𑀅𑀳𑀅𑀁 (ahaaṃ), 𑀳𑀁 (haṃ). It is even present in some languages derivative of ...
Mr Jangoon's user avatar
-2 votes
1 answer
73 views

How to deal with modern Indian people's first names and surnames when declining in Sanskrit?

I have a question about how to deal with people's names when using Sanskrit in a modern context. Let's say I want to say "Ãnanda is in the forest", I can say वन आनन्दः. Ignoring any possible ...
elbord77's user avatar
  • 159
5 votes
1 answer
701 views

What did the injunctive mood of Sanskrit do?

I have read that Vedic Sanskrit had five grammatical moods a verb could take; indicative, optative, imperative, subjunctive, and injunctive; four of them I understand the function of through other ...
noah johnson's user avatar
-3 votes
1 answer
195 views

Is Sanskrit the origin of every language [duplicate]

I tried to search everywhere but i couldn't find anything about my question. So i wanna ask in this site because i think this site can help me. The thing i wanna ask is Is Sanskrit the origin of all ...
Profriend's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
337 views

Reason for visarga turning to [o] in sandhi

Is there a reason for the visarga (अः, or अस्/अर्) changing to an [o] (ओ) sound before voiced consonants or अ in Sanskrit as a part of external sandhi? For example, as an example from ...
elbord77's user avatar
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-1 votes
1 answer
165 views

Where does the word 'Aranyam' (Sanskrit) derive from?

Aranyam basically means a forest / jungle. Where does the word 'Aranyam' (Sanskrit) derive from? Background I searched online but couldn't find any references for the word except a Hungarian word ...
Sriharsha C's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
119 views

Possible Sanskrit word "pas" as declension case [closed]

I would like to ask if it is possible that the word pas, which I think could be a Sanskrit word, is a declined case of an existing word (e.g. the nominative or vocative case). If not, could it be a ...
user3764418's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
271 views

Why does Proto-Indo-Aryan *ẓ seem to have different outcomes despite sharing the same phonological context?

It is well known that Proto-Indo-Aryan *s had an allophone *z in voiced contexts. Due to some phonetic changes (i.e. RUKI law and the shift *śt > ṣṭ), they both could undergo retroflexion, thus ...
Tochtli's user avatar
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0 votes
2 answers
175 views

what does devanagari "RTSNY" (a conjunct consonent) look like? and what frequently used words (if any) does it occur in?

I was researching different writing systems when I came across a fact about Devanagari. the conjunct consonants of the script are fascinating yet confusing; evidently some of them may combine up to 5 ...
noah johnson's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
109 views

What commonly used words, if any, does devanagari "म्क्ब्श" (mkbsha) actually occur in?

I was researching different writing systems when I came across a fact about Devanagari. the conjunct consonants of the script are fascinating yet confusing; evidently some of them may combine up to 5 ...
noah johnson's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
94 views

Declension of Sanskrit words "kil" and "kila"

I have been using this search engine for Sanskrit grammar: https://sanskrit.inria.fr/DICO/grammar.html, specifically declension, and I was wondering about some results returned by the search. Indeed, ...
user3764418's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
502 views

Japanese terms from Sanskrit

This question started when I learned that "hannya haramita" (般若波羅蜜多) comes from Sanskrit "prajñā pāramitā" (प्रज्ञापारमिता). It is not hard to see that what was /p/ in Sanskrit ...
Ergative Man's user avatar
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2 votes
2 answers
621 views

Is Panini's grammar regular in the same sense as that present in the Chomsky hierarchy?

Panini's grammar is said to have algebraic rules governing every aspect of the Sanskrit language. If the rules are completely formal, what is the place of this grammar in the Chomsky hierarchy? How ...
Gratiela Monica Marcus's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
200 views

Resources for self learning Sanskrit? [closed]

I wanted to self-thought learn Sanskrit, but I don't find any reliable resource available online. The only way I can learn is online and through self-through. It's physically impossible for me to find ...
sammy's user avatar
  • 21
1 vote
1 answer
132 views

Prefix a(n)- in Sanskrit and English

In learning about the three Buddhist marks of existence - referred to by the Sanskrit words anatman (lack of permanent self), anitya (impermanence) and dukkha (suffering) - I was interested to learn ...
Lou's user avatar
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2 votes
0 answers
104 views

echo/doubling of consonants in sanskrit

I've notice that whenever people in india pronounce a sanskrit word where one syllable ends in a consonant and following syllable starts with a consonant, they tend to double up one of the consonant. ...
Nikkū's user avatar
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5 votes
2 answers
514 views

Are there traces of lost PIE laryngeals in Sanskrit?

I read on wiki that "Hittite retains laryngeals that disappeared entirely in Sanskrit (but left plenty of traces showing that it must once have existed). In Proto-Indo-Iranian, the laryngeals ...
Nikkū's user avatar
  • 161
0 votes
1 answer
153 views

questions regarding satemisation in sanskrit

I have some questions regarding satemisation in sanskrit. why there are still k in sanskrit if pie k tunred into sanskrit s ? It seems to me that pie *kʷ turned into k in sanskrit. is that right ? If ...
Nikkū's user avatar
  • 161
0 votes
1 answer
397 views

How do we know that Mitanni Indo-Aryan loan words are derived from Proto-Indo-Aryan and not Vedic Sanskrit?

This question is similer to my previous question. I came across a person who makes the following claims: The names of Previous Kings of Mitannis that are mentioned on inscriptions belongs to period ...
Nikkū's user avatar
  • 161
-2 votes
1 answer
633 views

Where did the Sanskrit language originate from?

Where did the Sanskrit language originate from? Did it originate from Persia or Greece? Where did Sanskrit evolve into a classic language: India or Persia or Greece? Origin of Sanskrit The above ...
user366312's user avatar
5 votes
3 answers
1k views

How do we know that Avestan is sister of Vedic Sanskrit and not its daughter?

I am new here and to linguistics. Recently I have developed a passion and an interest for linguistics, but I am not familiar with it. So I got into debate with a person from India. He was claiming ...
Nikkū's user avatar
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-5 votes
1 answer
363 views

Does the root word mus- in Latin mean "thief"'? Mouse=thief, Moses=Extractor etc

I first got the idea of Latin mus- = mouse = thief from this list My primary question here is whether someone can confirm this, because I have not found any direct words in Latin that indicates that ...
Mr. Mouse's user avatar
-2 votes
1 answer
129 views

What is the reason of this alternation?

The second case is similiar to e-grade / zero-grade ablaut. Is it possible to find out the place of a stress here? For use: वसति vásati वर्धति várdhati
fedor's user avatar
  • 331
3 votes
1 answer
498 views

Historically, did the Sanskrit alphabet contain two 'la' consonants?

Historically, did the Sanskrit alphabet (varnamala) contain two 'la' consonants (vyanjan varnas)? It seems there was one in the 'ya' series (varga) and another one in the 'sha' series. Current texts ...
chhatra's user avatar
  • 133
0 votes
1 answer
413 views

Algorithms used for identifying the syllables in a Sanskrit word

Could anyone give a reference to the best book or website for learning the algorithms used for identifying the syllables in a Sanskrit word, in a completely unambiguous way, just from a piece of text? ...
Mr Corn's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
75 views

The various forms of the Sanskrit word 'Para'?

I came across the word 'Paratpara' and found the meaning to be 'Greatest of the Great'. This led me to try and understand it in relation with other similar words I already knew - paraspara(mutual) and ...
Gadam's user avatar
  • 111
2 votes
1 answer
264 views

What is the frequency of Devanagari signs in Sanskrit?

I've been searching everywhere to find the frequency of Devanagari's signs (including the sign in a conjunct) in a typical Sanskrit text. I found the frequency of Devanagari conjuncts here and there ...
Ethan Coe's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
313 views

Does any Sanskrit noun stem end in e ए?

Sanskrit nouns stems ending in dipthongs are very rare but I could still find examples of at least one stem each ending in every dipthong except e‌ ए. ऐ ai - रै rai ओ o - गो go औ au - नौ nau But I ...
Sumit Mishra's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
139 views

Is Indra grammatically irregular?

I came across this on http://sanskritdictionary.com/: kubera kuberaḥ, yakṣarāṭ, yakṣendraḥ, yakṣeśvaraḥ, tryambakasakhā, guhyakeśvaraḥ, manuṣyadharmā, dhanadaḥ, dhanādhipaḥ, kinnareśaḥ, vaiśravaṇaḥ, ...
Aupakarana Abhibhaa's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
679 views

Is it possible in Sanskrit to distinguish between the names Rāma and Rām i.e. राम and राम् when used in a sentence?

Consider this sentence: रामो लेखन्या लिखति Is रामो in that sentence always referring to someone named राम (Rāma) or could it be equally possible that the person's name was राम् (Rām)? Are names like ...
MangoLover's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
1k views

Sanskrit consonant clusters

I thought it'd be fairly easy to find a list of Sanskrit consonant clusters online, but the last hour or so has proved me wrong. There's information out there about how to write conjoined consonants ...
rchivers's user avatar
  • 465
1 vote
2 answers
1k views

Is Sanskrit 100% phonetic?

Even though many languages are still written in Devanagari, they have a problem of schwa deletion. But that problem doesn't exist in Sanskrit. I know that almost all languages have phonetic ...
Akshat Sharma's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
128 views

What is meant by the term 'genitive of appurtenance'

In his Sanskrit Grammar, William Dwight Whitney describes the uses of the genitive case in Sanskrit and he mentions the 'genitive of possession or appurtenance': The genitive in its normal ...
Au101's user avatar
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6 votes
1 answer
633 views

Why are there so many 'a' sounds in Sanskrit?

I noticed that in Sanskrit (as well as in many Indo-Aryan languages), the vowel /a/ appears much more frequently than any other vowel. Many words have only have /a/ as a vowel. Is there any reason ...
Li Xinghe's user avatar
  • 161
-2 votes
2 answers
149 views

why the number of phonemes for speaking and alphabet for writing (वर्णों की कुल संख्या) in 'Sanskrit' language is fixed and specific?

In the given below sentences the word, 'sound' means any sound wave. I am not asking/talking about the meaning of that sound. That sound can be meaningless too. **I am curious about, why can't it ...
abhishek's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
254 views

Modern Thai writing system and modern Khmer writing system and the sharing of Non-Sanskrit symbols

I understand that both old and modern Khmer and old and modern Thai, effected one another and share lots of words or "roots" of words. For example Modern Thai words derived from Old Khmer ឆ្លាតor ...
user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
116 views

How to transliterate Devanagari into Brahmi (mainly, diacritics)

I have been messing around with converting a large Devanagari Sanskrit text to Brahmi using a simple mapping function. There is also this table showing how most of the characters map. I found one that ...
Lance's user avatar
  • 4,306
-4 votes
1 answer
463 views

What is the sound for ज्ञ in Sanskrit? [closed]

Wikipedia has this: ɟɲ ज्ञ jñ roughly like argue But those 3 writings all conflict with one another, so what is the correct pronunciation?
Lance's user avatar
  • 4,306
24 votes
3 answers
26k views

Is Sanskrit really the mother of all languages?

Hindus believe that "Sanskrit is the mother of all Languages". It is a fact that Sanskrit has enriched most Indian Languages including the Dravidian Languages such as Telugu, as Latin enriched some ...
Jvlnarasimharao's user avatar
8 votes
3 answers
7k views

Why are Latin and Sanskrit called dead languages?

I hear Latin and Sanskrit are called dead languages. Sanskrit is used in rituals and at the temples. I think this is also true of Latin. What is the cause of their degradation when they have enriched ...
Jvlnarasimharao's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
375 views

Is Latin "ulula" cognate with hindi उल्लू ("ullu")?

Hindi उल्लू /ʊl.luː/ (derived from Sanskrit उलूक /uluːka/) appears superficially very similar to Latin ulula (both meaning "owl"). Are these words cognate?
iacobo's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
224 views

Standardized and ambiguity-free language

Is there exist a language (the natural or the constructed one) with a completely standardized and ambiguity-free rules, and which is suitable for the modern use? I am wondering for a language which ...
user90726's user avatar
  • 129
2 votes
1 answer
212 views

Do Old Indian words with voiceless aspirated stops have cognates in other branches of Indogermanic?

Inspired by this answer I have this question: Do Old Indic (Vedic, Sankrit) words beginning with a voiceless aspirated stop (like ph, th, or kh) have cognates in other branches of Indogermanic? What ...
Sir Cornflakes's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
180 views

Possible absolute synonymy in PIE for 'night'?

I recently came across this post (question attached). But this rule seems to struggle once it comes to the Sanskrit - Indo-Aryan side of the family (PIE) , for example ratri in Sanskrit and raat in ...
WiccanKarnak's user avatar
  • 1,251
0 votes
1 answer
83 views

Given a name in sanskrit, how to find what to call the son or daughter of that person. What is the grammatical rule for forming such words? [closed]

Example:- Kunti-- Kauntey anjana-- aanjane What are the rules
Vk1's user avatar
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