नक्षत्र

Borrowed from Sanskrit नक्षत्र (nákṣatra).

• (Delhi) IPA^(key): /nək.ʂət̪.ɾᵊ/,

नक्षत्र • (nakṣatra) m

1. star or any astronomical object
2. constellation

• (star) तारा (tārā), सितारा (sitārā)
• (constellation) तारामंडल (tārāmaṇḍal)

Possibly from an earlier *nák-kṣatra (“ruling over the night”), from नक् (nák, “night”) + क्षत्र (kṣatra, “dominion, rule”). Alternatively, from the root नक्ष् (nakṣ, “to reach”).

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /nɐ́k.ʂɐt.ɾɐ/
• (Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /n̪ɐkˈʂɐt̪.ɾɐ/

नक्षत्र • (nákṣatra) stem, n or m

1. a star or any heavenly body

   Synonyms: स्तृ (stṛ), तृ (tṛ)

   • c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda 1.50.2:

     अप॒ त्ये ता॒यवो॑ यथा॒ नक्ष॑त्रा यन्त्य॒क्तुभिः॑ ।
     सूरा॑य वि॒श्वच॑क्षसे ॥

     ápa tyé tāyávo yathā nákṣatrā yantyaktúbhiḥ.
     sū́rāya viśvácakṣase.

     The stars pass away, like thieves, together with their beams,
     Before the all-beholding Sun.

2. the Sun
3. an asterism or constellation through which the moon passes, a lunar mansion
   • c. 1200 BCE – 1000 BCE, Atharvaveda

• नक्षत्रिय (nakṣatríya)

• Dardic:
  • Kashmiri: نێچھَتُر (nechatur), نێچھۆتُ (nechotu)
• Gandhari: 𐨣𐨐𐨿𐨮𐨟𐨿𐨪 (nakṣatra)
• Pali: nakkhatta
• Prakrit: 𑀡𑀓𑁆𑀔𑀢𑁆𑀢 (ṇakkhatta)
  • Central:
    • Ardhamagadhi Prakrit:
      • Awadhi: नखत (nakhat)
    • Sauraseni Prakrit:
      • Hindustani: nakhat
        • Hindi: नखत
        • Urdu: نَکھَت (nakhat)
  • Eastern:
    • Magadhi Prakrit:
      • Bihari: नखत (nakhat)
  • Northwestern:
    • Paisaci Prakrit:
      • Takka Apabhramsa:
        • Punjabi: nakhattar

          Gurmukhi script: ਨਖੱਤਰ

          Shahmukhi script: نَکھَتَّر

      • Vracada Apabhramsa:
        • Sindhi: nakhaṭru

          Arabic script: نَکَٽرُ

          Devanagari script: नखट्रु

  • Southern:
    • Helu Prakrit:
      • Dhivehi: ނަކަތް (nakat̊)
      • Sinhalese: නකත (nakata), නැකැත (nækæta)
  • Western:
    • Sauraseni Prakrit:
      • Gujarati: નખેતર (nakhetar)

Borrowed terms

• → Hindi: नक्षत्र (nakṣatra)
• → Kannada: ನಕ್ಷತ್ರ (nakṣatra)
• → Khmer: នក្សត្រ (nĕəksat)
• → Malayalam: നക്ഷത്രം (nakṣatraṁ)
• → Punjabi: ਨਛੱਤਰ (nachattar)
• → Tamil: நட்சத்திரம் (naṭcattiram)
• → Telugu: నక్షత్రము (nakṣatramu)
• → Thai: นักษัตร (nák-sàt)

• Monier Williams (1899) “नक्षत्र”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, , new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 524, column 2.
• Mayrhofer, Manfred (1996) Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan]‎ (in German), volume 2, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, page 4
• Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “nákṣatra”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 397