[INDOLOGY] Mudda?

[Martin Gansten]

I should be very grateful if anyone could enlighten me as to the meaning 
and etymology of the North Indian word muddā, as in muddā daśā, 
referring to a particular astrological division of a single year of life 
(employed in varṣaphala or annual horoscopy). Clearly the word is not of 
Sanskrit origin, although it made its way into Sanskrit in early modern 
times. Monier-Williams and Böhtlingk just refer to mudda (with short -a) 
as an astrological term, without commenting on its meaning; the source 
is apparently Weber's Indische Studien 2: 276, which gives two possible 
Arabic etymologies; but as Weber was notoriously unlucky in his 
etymological guesses, I would rather hear the opinions of knowledgeable 
list members.

Martin Gansten
Lund University