[INDOLOGY] Brahmin?

[Dan Lusthaus]

Dear Jarrod,

You can answer those questions for yourself by checking Monier-Williams, 
where you will discover that Brahmin is indeed a bone fide Sanskrit term, at 
least as old as the āraṇyakas.

See
http://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/cgi-bin/monier/serveimg.pl?file=/scans/MWScan/MWScanjpg/mw0741-brahmodumbara.jpg

for Braahma.n, this would follow the modern habit of dropping the final -a, 
since braahma.na is another term with a long history.

>From Monier-Williams:

brahmin [p= 741,1]
mfn. belonging or relating to brahma or brahmā (Taittirīya-āraṇyaka)
"possessing sacred knowledge " N. of viṣṇu (Mahābhārata).

brā́hmaṇa [p= 741,2]
mfn. relating to or given by a Brahman , befitting or becoming a Brahman , 
Brahmanical (atharva-veda, Taittirīya-brāhmaṇa, Mahābhārata)
brā́hmaṇá m. one who has divine knowledge (sometimes applied to agni), a 
Brahman , a man belonging to the 1st of the 3 twice-born classes and of the 
4 original divisions of the Hindu body (generally a priest , but often in 
the present day a layman engaged in non-priestly occupations although the 
name is strictly only applicable to one who knows and repeats the veda) 
(ṛg-veda &c)
brā́hmaṇá m. = brāhmaṇācchaṃsin (Kātyāyana-śrauta-sūtra)
brā́hmaṇá m. a Brahman in the second stage (between mātra and śrotriya) 
(Hemādri 's Caturvarga-cintāmaṇi)
brā́hmaṇá m. N. of the 28th lunar mansion
brā́hmaṇa n. that which is divine , the divine (Brāhmaṇas)
brā́hmaṇa n. sacred or divine power ib. (āśvalāyana-gṛhya-sūtra).
brā́hmaṇa  n. Brahmanical explanation , explanations of sacred knowledge or 
doctrine (esp. for the use of the Brahmans in their sacrifices) Br.
brā́hmaṇa n. the brāhmaṇa portion of the veda (as distinct from its mantra 
and upaniṣad portion) and consisting of a class of works called brāhmaṇas 
(they contain rules for the employment of the mantras or hymns at various 
sacrifices , with detailed explanations of their origin and meaning and 
numerous old legends ; they are said by sāyaṇa to contain two parts: 1. 
vidhi , rules or directions for rites ; 2. artha-vāda , explanatory remarks 
; each veda has its own brāhmaṇa , that of the RV. is preserved in 2 works , 
viz. the aitareya , sometimes called āśvalāyana , and the kauṣītaki or 
śāṅkhāyana-brāhmaṇa ; the white yajur-veda has the śata-patha-brāhmaṇa ; the 
black yajur-veda has the brāhmaṇa which differs little from the text of its 
saṃhitā ; the SV. has 8 brāhmaṇas , the best known of which are the prauḍha 
or pañca-viṃśa and the ṣaḍviṃśa ; the AV. has one brāhmaṇa called go-patha) 
Nir. Gr2S3rS. &c
brā́hmaṇa n. the soma vessel of the brahman priest RV. AV.
brā́hmaṇa n. a society or assemblage of Brahmans , a conclave W.

Dan Lusthaus
Harvard University