कन्या

See also: कनिया

Hindi

Alternative forms

• कनिया (kaniyā)

Etymology

Borrowed from Sanskrit कन्या (kanyā́).

Noun

कन्या • (kanyā) f (Urdu spelling کنیا‎)

1. girl
2. virgin
3. daughter

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Sanskrit

Alternative forms

Alternative scripts

• ᬓᬦ᭄ᬬᬵ (Balinese script)
• কন্যা (Bengali script)
• কন্যা (Bengali script)
• 𑰎𑰡𑰿𑰧𑰯 (Bhaiksuki script)
• 𑀓𑀦𑁆𑀬𑀸 (Brahmi script)
• 𑌕𑌨𑍍𑌯𑌾 (Grantha script)
• કન્યા (Gujarati script)
• ꦏꦤꦾꦴ (Javanese script)
• ಕನ್ಯಾ (Kannada script)
• ကနျာ (Burmese script)
• କନ୍ଯା (Oriya script)
• ꢒꢥ꣄ꢫꢵ (Saurashtra script)
• 𑆑𑆤𑇀𑆪𑆳 (Sharada script)
• 𑖎𑖡𑖿𑖧𑖯 (Siddham script)
• కన్యా (Telugu script)
• ཀནྱཱ (Tibetan script)
• 𑒏𑒢𑓂𑒨𑒰 (Tirhuta script)

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-Aryan *kanyáH, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *kanyáH, from Proto-Indo-European *ken- (“new, fresh”) (whence also कनीन (kanī́na, “young, youthful”)). Cognate with Avestan 𐬐𐬀𐬥𐬌𐬌𐬁‎ (kaniiā, “maiden”), Middle Persian [script needed] (knykʿ /kanīg/) (whence Persian کنیز‎ (kaniz)), Latin re-cēns (“recent; fresh; young”), Ancient Greek καινός (kainós, “new”).

Pronunciation

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /kɐn̪.jɑ́ː/, [kɐj̃.jɑ́ː]
• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈkɐn̪.jɑː/

Noun

कन्या • (kanyā́) f

1. girl, virgin, daughter
   • c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda 4.58.09:

     क॒न्या॑ इव वह॒तुमेत॒वा उ॑ अ॒ञ्ज्य॑ञ्जा॒ना अ॒भि चा॑कशीमि ।

     kànyā́ iva vahàtumetàvā ú àñjyáñjā̀nā àbhi cā́kaśīmi

     As maidens dock themselves with gay adornment to join the bridal feast, I now behold them.

   • c. 1200 BCE – 1000 BCE, Atharvaveda
   • c. 400 BCE, Mahābhārata
2. (astrology) the sign of the zodiac Virgo
3. the female of any animal
4. name of Durga
5. (botany) name of a tuberous plant growing in Kashmir
6. Aloe perfoliata; rubble aloe, mitre aloe
7. name of several other plants
8. (prosody) name of a metre (of four lines, each of them containing four long syllables)

Declension

Feminine ā-stem declension of कन्या (kanyā́)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	कन्या kanyā́	कन्ये kanyé	कन्याः kanyā́ḥ
Vocative	कन्ये kánye	कन्ये kánye	कन्याः kányāḥ
Accusative	कन्याम् kanyā́m	कन्ये kanyé	कन्याः kanyā́ḥ
Instrumental	कन्यया / कन्या¹ kanyáyā / kanyā́¹	कन्याभ्याम् kanyā́bhyām	कन्याभिः kanyā́bhiḥ
Dative	कन्यायै kanyā́yai	कन्याभ्याम् kanyā́bhyām	कन्याभ्यः kanyā́bhyaḥ
Ablative	कन्यायाः kanyā́yāḥ	कन्याभ्याम् kanyā́bhyām	कन्याभ्यः kanyā́bhyaḥ
Genitive	कन्यायाः kanyā́yāḥ	कन्ययोः kanyáyoḥ	कन्यानाम् kanyā́nām
Locative	कन्यायाम् kanyā́yām	कन्ययोः kanyáyoḥ	कन्यासु kanyā́su
Notes	¹Vedic

Derived terms

• अकन्या (ákanyā)

Descendants

• Pali: kaññā
  • → Khmer: កញ្ញា (kăññā)
• Maharastri Prakrit: 𑀓𑀡𑁆𑀡𑀸 (kaṇṇā)
• → Kannada: ಕನ್ಯೆ (kanye)
• → Burmese: ကန် (kan)
• → Hindi: कन्या (kanyā)
• → Telugu: కన్య (kanya), కన్యారాశి (kanyārāśi)
• → Thai: กันยา (gan-yaa)
• → Urdu: کنیا‎ (kanyā)

References

• “कन्या” in Carl Cappeller, A Sanskrit–English Dictionary: Based upon the St. Petersburg Lexicons, Strasbourg: Karl J. Trübner, 1891, →OCLC, page 108.
• Monier Williams (1899), “कन्या”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, OCLC 458052227, page 0249.
• Arthur A. Macdonell, A practical Sanskrit dictionary with transliteration, accentuation, and etymological analysis throughout, London: Oxford University Press, 1893, page 062
• Horace Hayman Wilson, A dictionary in Sanscrit and English, 2nd ed., Calcutta: Education Press, Circular Road, 1832, page 187