Word for Heart

[André Signoret]

You are quite right and all attempts to derive Skt "hRd-" from, say,
Dravidian, is nothing but romance !
"Modern" linguistics, just like modern music, art, etc. indulge in somewhat
provoking theories ! The "esprit critique" seems to have left our world...

Innovation is quite necessary but must be kept within "reasonable" limits. A
linguist is not a poet even if there is a pinch of poetry in a number of
etymological commentaries. For instance, Basque "BIHOTZ" (heart) = two
ticks, two sounds (BI + OTS) !

Etymology IMO has three functions :

1° A normal one. Such is the sequence hRd-, cor, etc...
2° A mnemotechnical one. i.e Engl. "jump" and Skt. "jhampaa-"
3° A letter-game as interesting as Scrabble or others.


----- Original Message -----
From: Valerie J Roebuck <vjroebuck at APPLEONLINE.NET>
To: <INDOLOGY at LISTSERV.LIV.AC.UK>
Sent: Friday, November 24, 2000 9:21 AM
Subject: Re: Word for Heart


> Surely Sanskrit hRdaya, "heart", is a suffixed form of hRd, with the same
> meaning, representing the IE root found in e.g. Latin cor, cordis, Greek
> ker and kardia, and the English word "heart" itself?
>
> Valerie J Roebuck
> Manchester, UK