अथर्वन्

Sanskrit

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-Aryan *átʰarwā, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *átʰarwā (“priest”) (compare Avestan 𐬁𐬚𐬭𐬀𐬎𐬎𐬀𐬥 (āθrauuan)); ultimate origin unknown. Some scholars suggest it derives from the BMAC substrate.

Pronunciation

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /ɐ́.tʰɐɾ.ʋɐn/
• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ɐˈt̪ʰɐɾ.ʋɐn̪/

Noun

अथर्वन् • (átharvan) stem, m

1. a priest who has to do with fire and Soma

Declension

Proper noun

अथर्वन् • (átharvan) m

1. name of the priest who is said to have been the first to institute the worship of fire and offer Soma and prayers (he is represented as a Prajāpati, as Brahmā's eldest son, as the first learner and earliest teacher of the Brahma-vidyā, as the author of the Atharva-veda, as identical with Aṅgiras, as the father of Agni, etc.)
2. name of Śiva, Vasishṭha

Declension

See also

• अग्नि (agní)
• सोम (sóma)

References

• Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary, page 17
• Witzel, Michael (2003) Linguistic Evidence for Cultural Exchange in Prehistoric Western Central Asia (Sino-Platonic Papers; 129)‎, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations