Publication details
Hydronymia Rgvedica
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2016 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Linguistica Brunensia |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | Digitální knihovna FF MU |
| Field | Linguistics |
| Keywords | hydronym; etymology; Indo-Aryan; Iranian; Burushaski; Dravidian; Munda; Austro-Asiatic; Sino-Tibetan |
| Description | On the basis of complete textual documentation this article presents the geographical identification and etymological analyses of 29 hydronyms attested in the Rgveda. 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. 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 Rgveda the pre-Indo-Aryan origin is more or less probable. |
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