etymology of 'nagasvaram'

[Guest guest]

Dear Netters,

 

I am trying to find a satisfying etymology for the

word 'nagasvaram' (the South Indian oboe). I have

still not been able to resolve the following

questions:

a) Since the same word 'nAga' means both 'snake' and 'elephant', can

we conclude that it is the similarity of the elephant's trunk to

a 'nAga' that caused it to be so named? Or can be word 'nAga' be

resolved into more basic roots?

b) does the 'naga' in the compound word naga-svaram

refer to the 'cobra' (i.e. can 'naga' mean any snake in general?)

c) does the word 'nagasvaram' come from the

snake-charmer's musical instrument (called pungi in

Hindi) (i.e., is there a word for the 'pungi' which has now fallen

into disuse?)

d) was the 'nagasvaram' named for the elephant, i.e.,

was the 'trumpet' called the 'elephant-sounding'?

 

Any information you can give me will be a help to me. (Also, can you

please let me know if there any online Pali/Prakrit dictionaries,

where I could look for connections to these words?

 

Thank you,

 

Dileep