Word

Nirukta

Sanskrit

निरुक्त

IAST

nirukta

In General

Nirukta is the ancient etymology in sanskrit. Nirukta deals with rules for deriving the meaning of words by going to the root of each. It is often called the ear of the Vedapurusa and is a vedanga. Nirukta explains the meaning of rare words in the Vedas and how or why they are used in a particular context. Many have contributed to Nirukta, the work of Yaksa being the most important. Nirukta consists of three parts, namely Naighantuka, a collection of synonyms, Naigama, a collection of words peculiar to the Vedas, and Davata, words relating to deities and sacrifices.

Veda

In Sanskrit all words have dhatu or root and not borrowed words from other languages. The root finally rest in natural sound. Nirukta attempts to explain how certain words get to have their natural meanings, it includes a system of rules for forming words from roots, and a glossary of irregular words(Kosa), and formed the basis for later lexicons and dictionaries.