Title: Hydronymia R̥gvedica
Source document: Linguistica Brunensia. 2016, vol. 64, iss. 2, pp. 7-54
Extent
7-54
-
ISSN2336-4440 (online)1803-7410 (print)
Stable URL (handle): https://hdl.handle.net/11222.digilib/136172
Type: Article
Language
License: Not specified license
Notice: These citations are automatically created and might not follow citation rules properly.
Abstract(s)
It is generally accepted that hydronyms represent the most archaic attainable language stratum in any language with adequate documentation. It is precisely river-names that have been preserved from the older layers of languages more frequently than other proper names or borrowed appellatives. This indicates that river names offer a unique witness to a language's prehistory, preceding the first literary documents. On the Indian subcontinent the oldest preserved literary text is the R̥gveda, dated to 1500–1200 BCE e.g. by Michael Witzel (1995a, 98). On the basis of complete textual documentation this article presents the geographical identification and etymological analyses of 29 hydronyms attested in the R̥ gveda. It is possible to conclude that the center of gravity of the early Vedic Indo-Aryans was situated in the North-West of the Indian subcontinent,in the basin of the mid- and upper stream of the Indus, plus basins of the upper streams of the Ganges & Yamuna (cf. Witzel 1995b, 343–352). Most of the hydronyms analyzed here are etymologizable as Indo-Aryan in the first approximation, but this could be a result of secondary reinterpretation ("folk etymology"). In only two cases (6.9%) non-Indo-Aryan, namely Burushaski, etymologies seem more probable. In other four cases (13.8%) there are Dravidian alternative solutions. The hypotheses of Sino-Tibetan or Munda (Austro-Asiatic) origin of some hydronyms were also tested, but were not confirmed. It means, for c. 1/5 hydronyms attested in R̥gveda the pre-Indo-Aryan origin is more or less probable.
Note
Dedicated to memory of Hermann Berger (Oct 17, 1926 – Jan 31, 2005).
The present study was prepared thanks to the grant of the The Czech Science Foundation (GAČR), GA15-12215S.
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[2] Bailey, Harold W. 1975. Indian síndhu-, Iranian hindu-. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 38(3), 610-611. | DOI 10.1017/S0041977X00048138
[3] Bailey, Harold W. 1979. Dictionary of Khotan Saka. Cambridge: University Press.
[4] Bartholomae, Christian. 1904. Altiranisches Wörterbuch. Strassburg: Trübner.
[5] Benedict, Paul. 1972. Sino-Tibetan: Conspectus. Cambridge: University Press.
[6] Berger, Hermann. 1998. Die Burushaski-Sprache von Hunza und Nager, Teil I: Grammatik. Teil III: Wörterbuch Burushaski-Deutsch, Deutsch-Burushaski. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.
[7] Bichlmeier, Harald. 2014. Zu den Grenzen der Erkenntnismöglichkeit der Forschungen alten Stils zur alteuropäischen Hydronymie: überholte Sprachwissenschaftliche Konzepte und Mythenbildung – dargestellt anhand von Gewässernamen aus Bayern und Österreich: Attersee und Sinn. In: Janka, Wolfgang – Harnisch, Rüdiger eds. Namen in Grenzräumen. Regensburg: Vulpes, pp. 9–33.
[8] Brugmann, Karl. 1906. Grundriss der vergleichenden Grammatik der indogermanischen Sprachen, Bd. II.1. Strassburg: Trübner.
[9] CVST = Peiros, Ilia – Starostin Sergei A. 1996. A Comparative Vocabulary of Five Sino‑Tibetan Languages, Fasc. V: Velars, Uvulars and Laryngeals. Melbourne: The University of Melbourne – Department of Linguistics and Applied Linguistics.
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[11] Dauzat, Albert. 1938. Dictionnaire étymologique de la language française. Paris: Larousse.
[12] DEDR = Burrow, Thomas – Emeneau, Murray B. 1984. A Dravidian Etymological Dictionary. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
[13] Eilers, Wilhelm – Mayrhofer, Manfred. 1960. Namenkundliche Zeugnisse der indischen Wanderung. Die Sprache 6(2), pp. 107–134.
[14] ESIJ = Rastorgueva, Vera S. – Ėdelman, Džoj I. 2011. Ėtimologičeskij slovaŕ iranskix jazykov. Tom 4. Moskva: Vostočnaja literatura.
[15] EWAI = Mayrhofer, Mannfred. 1986–2001. Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen. I–III. Heidelberg: Winter.
[16] Ge = Geldner, Karl Friedrich. 1951. Der Rig-Veda, aus dem Sanskrit ins Deutsche übersetzt und mit einem laufenden Kommentar versehen (3 vols.). Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
[17] Gr = Griffith, Ralph T. H. 1889. Hymns of the Rigveda. Benares: Lazarus. New Edition: New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal 1987.
[18] Grassmann, Hermann. 1873. Wörterbuch zum Rigveda. Leipzig: Brockhaus.
[19] Herman, Pierre – Eggermont, Leonard. 1993. Alexander's Campaign in Southern Punjab. Leuven: Peeters.
[20] Hoffmann, Karl. 1957. Zwei vedische Wortsippen: 1. kava-, 2. drū-. Münchener Studien zur Sprachwissenschaft. 10, pp. 59–71.
[21] Hoffmann, Karl. 1982. Vedica. Münchener Studien zur Sprachwissenschaft. 41, pp. 63–94.
[22] Ja = Jamison, Stephanie W. – Brereton, Joel P. 2014. The Rigveda. The Earliest Religious Poetry of India, Volume I–III. Oxford: University Press.
[23] Jacobsohn, Hermann. 1922. Arier und Ugrofinnen. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht.
[24] Joki, Aulis J. – Schellbach-Kopra, Ingrid. 1973. Uralier und Indogermanen. Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilaisen Seura.
[25] Keresztes, László. 1986. Geschichte des mordwinischen Konsonantismus II: Etymologisches Belegmaterial. Szeged: Attila József Univ.
[26] KEWA = Mayrhofer, Mannfred. 1956–1980. Kurzgefasstes etymologisches Wörterbuch, I–IV. Heidelberg: Winter.
[27] Kuiper, Franciscus B. J. 1991. Aryans in the Rigveda. Amsterdam-Atlanta: Rodopi.
[28] Lubotsky, Alexander. 2001. The Indo-Iranian substratum. In: Carpelan, Christian – Parpola, Asko – Koskikallio, Petteri, eds. Early Contacts between Uralic and Indo-European: Linguistic and Archaeological Considerations. Papers presented at an international symposium held at the Tvärminne Research Station of the University of Helsinki (8–10 January 1999). Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura, pp. 301–317.
[29] Macdonell, Arthur A. 1916 (reprint 2000). A Vedic Grammar for Students. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
[30] MW = Monier-Williams, Sir Monier. 1899 (reprint 1993). A Sanskrit-English Dictionary. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
[31] Negi, Sharad Singh. 1991 (reprint 2004). Himalayan Rivers, Lakes, and Glaciers. New Delhi: Gidwani.
[32] Nicolaisen, Wilhelm. 1957. Die alteuropäischen Gewässernamen der brittischen Hauptinsel. Beiträge zur Namenforschung. 8(3), pp. 209–268.
[33] Peiros, Ilia. 1998. Comparative Linguistics in Southeast Asia. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics.
[34] Pinnow, Hans-Jürgen. 1953, 1954. Zu den altindischen Gewässernamen. Beiträge zur Namenforschung. 4: pp. 217–234, 5: pp. 1–19.
[35] Plinius, Gaius Secundus Maior. 1996. Geographie: Asien: Naturkunde / Naturalis Historia in 37 Bänden. Band VI. König, Roderich et alii, eds., Zürich–Düsseldorf: Artemis & Winkler.
[36] Pokorny, Julius. 1959. Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch 1. Bern–München: Francke.
[37] RE = Wissowa, Georg et alii, eds. 1893–1980. Paulys Realencyclopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft. Stuttgart: Metzler.
[38] Schmid, Wolfgang. 1979. Lett. JUMIS, eine sprachwissenschaftliche Nachprüfung. In: Biezais, Haralds, ed. Humanitas Religiosa. Festschrift für Haralds Biezais zu seinem 70. Geburtstag dargebracht von Freunden und Kollegen. Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell, pp. 261–267.
[39] Schuessler, Axel. 2007. ABC Etymological Dictionary of Old Chinese. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press.
[40] Shafer, Robert. 1974. Introduction to Sino-Tibetan. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz.
[41] Shorto, Harry. 2006. A Mon-Khmer comparative dictionary. Sidwell, Paul et alii, eds. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics.
[42] Thieme, Paul. 1970. Sanskrit sindhu-/Sindhu- and Old Iranian hindu-/Hindu-. In: Memorial Volume of W. B. Henning. Boyce, Nora E. M. – Gershevitch, Ilya, eds. London: Lund Humphries (Asia Maior Library), pp. 447–450.
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[44] WG = Witzel, Michael – Gotō, Toshifumi, eds. 2007. Rig‑veda. Das heilige Wissen. Erster und zweiter Liederkreis. Frankfurt am Main–Leipzig: Verlag der Weltreligion.
[45] Witzel, Michael. 1995a. Early Indian history: Linguistic and textual parameters. In: Erdosy, George, ed. The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South Asia. Berlin–New York: Walter de Gruyter, pp. 84–125.
[46] Witzel, Michael. 1995b. R̥gvedic history: poets, chieftains and polities. In: Erdosy, George, ed. The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South Asia. Berlin–New York: Walter de Gruyter, pp. 307–352.
[47] Witzel, Michael. 1999. Early Sources for South Asian Substrate Languages. Mother Tongue, Special Issue, October 1999, pp. 1–76.
[48] Wolff, Fritz. 1910. Avesta. Die heiligen Bücher der Parsen. Strassburg: Trübner.
[49] Zimmer, Heinrich. 1879. Altindisches Leben. Die Cultur den vedischen Arier nach der Saṁhitā dargestellt. Berlin: Weidmann.
[50] ChDb = Chinese Database of Sergei Starostin [online]. [retrieved 22.3.2016]. Available at: http://starling.rinet.ru/cgi-bin/query.cgi?root=config&morpho=0&basename=\data\china\bigchina.
[51] Karttunen, Klaus. 2015. Zaradros. In Cancik, Hubert – Schneider, Helmuth – Landfester, Manfred, eds. Der Neue Pauly. Brill Online, [online]. [retrieved 22.3.2016]. Available at: http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/der-neue-pauly/zaradros-e12214730
[52] Kochhar, Rajesh. On the Identity and Chronology of the Rigvedic River Sarasvati. [online]. [retrieved 22.3.2016]. Available at: http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/ngier/306/contrasarav.htm
[53] R̥gveda. On the basis of the edition by Th. Aufrecht, Bonn 1877 (2. Aufl.), entered by H.S. Ananthanarayana, Austin / Texas; with corrections by Fco.J. Martínez García, synoptically arranged with the metrically restored version by B. van Nooten and G. Holland and the Padapātha version by A. Lubotsky, by Jost Gippert. [online]. [retrieved 22.3.2016]. Available at: http://titus.fkidg1.uni-frankfurt.de/texte/etcs/ind/aind/ved/rv/mt/rv.htm
[54] STDb = Sino-Tibetan Database of Sergei Starostin. [online]. [retrieved 22.3.2016]. Available at: http://starling.rinet.ru/cgi-bin/query.cgi?root=config&morpho=0&basename=\data\sintib\stibet
[55] Vishnu Purana. [online]. [retrieved 22. 3. 2016]. Available at: http://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/the-vishnu-purana-2/d/doc115963.html