peNNai, piNai, piNi, piTi ( RE:River Krishna)

[S.Kalyanaraman]

"Chandrasekaran, Periannan"             
<Periannan.Chandrasekaran at DELTA-AIR.COM> wrote:
> Doesn't the Ta. peNNai denote both male and female palmyra tree;
>    and not just the female palmyra tree?> I would really be interested in
knowing such a usage for that word.> And the word for male palm(yra) tree if
any.

Let me cite from DEDR 4395 and DEDR 4037:

pen.n.ai = palmyra palm (cf. pen.-pan-ai = female palmyra palm); pen.t.i = the
female o any animal or plant (Te.); pin.ai = female of animals (Ta.);
pr.n.a_ka = young female (of deer, in the cpd. harin.a-pr.n.a_ka_)(Skt.)

pan-ai (in cpds.) pan-am = palmyra palm, borassus flaellifer (Ta.);
pana a palm-tree, esp. palmyra (Ma.); pane = the bastard sago tree,
caryota urens (Ka.); pane-mara = toddy palm (Kod.agu)

It would appear that the pan-ai was a more generic usage for the palm
species with descriptive cpds. used to denote more specific categories.

Kalyan

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