Fwd:Etymology of khaDga

[Guest guest]

While Ambaa-l is probably not the place to be discussing linguistics

it is important to very basic stotra of our system. I am forwarding my

friend's email verbatim because he delivers the point in a technically

sound form better than I would have done it.

 

.............

Rayi-

 

The etymology of khaDga has been much studied in Indo-Aryan

linguistics because it belongs to a class of words where we can note

the intrinsic development of the cerebrals and retroflexes in

Indo-Aryan (including classical Sanskrit) after its divergence from

vedic. The process begins in vedic but is much more prominent in the

epic language.

 

Sanskrit has the root khaND †" to break or to shatter.

Avestan has a root khad (the initial as kh as in Xvarena ) which also

means to break or shatter.

 

Thus, the claims of Kuiper that khaND has a Munda origin or that of

Emeneau that it is Dravidian are incorrect. It goes back to

Proto-Indo-Iranian. This is supported by the presence of the khad root

in vedic and classical Sanskrit and specified in dhAtupATHa (to

shatter or to chop). pANini and pata~njali give the form chakhAda in

the perfect tense.

 

Now in a process that happened in Old Indo-Aryan these khad type roots

underwent cerebalization/retroflexion from their older plain condition

to develop the 'D' sound we seen khaDga as against 'd' we seen in the

root. This is established by the existence of several regular sound

changes of this form:

 

E.g. latin tondeo-> Prakrit tandula (primitive form)->Skt taNDula

Greek dendro -> Skt daNDa

Germanic standh -> Skt sthaNDila

Latin fundus -> Skt bhANDa

Iranian vIn ->Skt vINa

Iranian pAni -> Skt pANi (hand)

 

I will try to call you later this week or you call after 9.30 at home.

-A