[INDOLOGY] Etymology of vetana 'wages'

[Dieter Gunkel]

You might also check

Kim, Jeong-Soo. 2010. Untersuchungen zu altindischen Abstrakta und
Adjektiven im Rigveda und Atharvaveda. Die primären a-Stämme und die
ana-Bildungen. Bremen: Hempen,

which is partly dedicated to nouns suffixed with* -ana-*. If the author
treats *vetana-* in the book, there should be some discussion of its
morphological composition.

Best wishes,

Dieter

On Sat, Aug 6, 2016 at 11:03 PM, Olivelle, J P <jpo at austin.utexas.edu>
wrote:

> Actually, Mayrhofer (3: 254) says “Vielleicht doch mit Mehendale” — and
> given the *vid* etymology. The change from -d- to -t- is viewed as a NW
> dialectical variation. He also refers to Kuiper (ZII 8, 263f) who appears
> to derive it from *veto *with the suffix -*tana,* as Mr. Misra states.
> There appears to be no consensus among historical linguists.
>
> Patrick
>
>
>
> On Aug 6, 2016, at 3:29 PM, Nityanand Misra <nmisra at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> On 6 August 2016 at 23:56, Donald R Davis <drdj at austin.utexas.edu> wrote:
>
>> Dear Colleagues,
>>
>> M.A. Mehendale, “Some Remarks of the Language of the Original Buddhist
>> Canon,” Bulletin of the Deccan College Research Institute, Vol. 17, No. 3
>> (December 1955) suggests that the etymology of Skt. *vetana* ‘wages’ is "
>> *vedana* ‘wealth, possessions’ from /*vid* ‘to find, to obtain, to give,
>> etc.’ which is known since the Rgveda” (p167).
>>
>> Would those of you with IE expertise kindly confirm this etymology, point
>> me elsewhere, or share your thoughts on alternative etymologies?  I have
>> not yet been able to check Mayrhofer.
>>
>>
>>
> Sounds dubious, for how the *d* of *vid* would change to *t *when
> followed by a vowel is beyond me. Here is the authentic traditional
> etymology:
>
>
> vī gativyāptiprajanakāntyasanakhādaneṣu (DP 1048) → vīpatibhyāṃ tanan (US
> 3.150) → vī + tanan → halantyam (A 1.3.3), tasya lopaḥ (A 1.3.9) → vī +
> tana → sārvadhātukārdhadhātukayoḥ (A 7.3.84) → ve tana → vetana.
>
>
> The Uṇādisūtra *vīpatibhyāṃ tanan* (US 3.150) ordains the suffix *tanan*
> (of which only *tana* remains) from the root * vī
> gativyāptiprajanakāntyasanakhādaneṣu*’ which is used in the meanings of *
> gati* (movement), *vyāpti* (pervading), *prajana* (conception), *kānti*
> (desire), *asana* (throwing), and * khādana* (eating). The rule
> sārvadhātukārdhadhātukayoḥ (A 7.3.84) results in the ‘vī’ → ve
> transformation to get ‘vetana’.
>
>
> The word occurs in Amarakoṣa 2.10.38, and the various commentaries on it
> may be consulted. Both the *Udghāṭana* and *Vyākhyāsudhā* commentaries
> cite US 3.150 and explain the word as *vīyate anena iti vetanam*. The
> form *vīyate* is the passive (*yaki*, or *karmaṇi*) form of the root *vī*
> whose active (*karttari*) form is *veti*. The meaning of *vīyate anena
> iti vetanam*, consequently, is ‘that with which [something] is obtained
> is vetana’. Roots with the meaning ‘to go’ also have the meaning ‘to
> obtain’ as per the maxim *ye gatyarthāste prāptyarthāḥ*.
>
>
>
>
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