यवन

See also: युवन, युवन्, and यौवन

Hindi

Etymology

Borrowed from Sanskrit यवन (yavana), from Ashokan Prakrit 𑀬𑁄𑀦 (yona), from Old Persian 𐎹𐎢𐎴 (y-u-n /⁠Yaunaʰ⁠/), from Ancient Greek Ἴων (Íōn). Doublet of यूनान (yūnān).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Hindi) IPA^(key): /jə.ʋən/, [jɐ.ʋɐ̃n]

Noun

यवन • (yavan) m (female equivalent यवनी, Urdu spelling یون) (rare)

1. foreigner

   Synonyms: परदेसी (pardesī), विदेशी (videśī)

   1. a Greek

      Synonym: यूनानी (yūnānī)

   2. an Arab, a Muslim

      Synonym: अरब (arab)

   3. a European

      Synonym: यूरोपीय (yūropīya)

Declension

Declension of यवन (masc cons-stem)

	singular	plural
direct	यवन yavan	यवन yavan
oblique	यवन yavan	यवनों yavanõ
vocative	यवन yavan	यवनो yavano

References

• Dāsa, Śyāmasundara (1965–1975), “यवन”, in Hindī Śabdasāgara [lit. “Sea of Hindi words”] (in Hindi), Kashi [Varanasi]: Nagari Pracarini Sabha, page 4062
• Caturvedi, Mahendra; Bhola Nath Tiwari (1970), “यवन”, in A practical Hindi-English dictionary, Delhi: National Publishing House, page 628
• McGregor, Ronald Stuart (1993), “यवन”, in The Oxford Hindi-English Dictionary, London: Oxford University Press, page 842

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

Alternative scripts

• যৱন (Assamese script)
• ᬬᬯᬦ (Balinese script)
• যবন (Bengali script)
• 𑰧𑰪𑰡 (Bhaiksuki script)
• 𑀬𑀯𑀦 (Brahmi script)
• ယဝန (Burmese script)
• યવન (Gujarati script)
• ਯਵਨ (Gurmukhi script)
• 𑌯𑌵𑌨 (Grantha script)
• ꦪꦮꦤ (Javanese script)
• 𑂨𑂫𑂢 (Kaithi script)
• ಯವನ (Kannada script)
• យវន (Khmer script)
• ຍວນ (Lao script)
• യവന (Malayalam script)
• ᠶᠠᠸᠠᠨᠠ (Manchu script)
• 𑘧𑘪𑘡 (Modi script)
• ᠶ᠋ᠠᠸᠠᠨᠠ᠋ (Mongolian script)
• 𑧇𑧊𑧁 (Nandinagari script)
• 𑐫𑐰𑐣 (Newa script)
• ଯଵନ (Odia script)
• ꢫꢮꢥ (Saurashtra script)
• 𑆪𑆮𑆤 (Sharada script)
• 𑖧𑖪𑖡 (Siddham script)
• යවන (Sinhalese script)
• 𑩻𑩾𑩯 (Soyombo script)
• 𑚣𑚦𑚝 (Takri script)
• யவந (Tamil script)
• యవన (Telugu script)
• ยวน (Thai script)
• ཡ་ཝ་ན (Tibetan script)
• 𑒨𑒫𑒢 (Tirhuta script)
• 𑨪𑨭𑨝 (Zanabazar Square script)

Etymology

Borrowed from Ashokan Prakrit 𑀬𑁄𑀦 (yona), borrowed from Old Persian 𐎹𐎢𐎴 (y-u-n /⁠Yaunaʰ⁠/), ultimately from Ancient Greek Ἴων (Íōn, “an Ionian”). See also म्लेच्छ (mleccha, “non-Aryan, barbarian”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /jɐ.ʋɐ.n̪ɐ/

Noun

यवन • (yavana) stem, m (female equivalent यवनी)

1. a foreigner, an outsider not part of the four-tiers of varna
   1. a Greek, Ionian

      यवनेश्वर ― yavaneśvara ― king of the Greeks

      • c. 400 BCE, Mahābhārata
      • c. 200 BCE – 200 CE, Manusmṛti
      • c. 150 CE, Yavanajātaka:

        यवनजातक

        yavanajātaka

        nativity according to the Greeks

   2. Bactrian
   3. Scythians
      • c. 500 BCE – 100 BCE, Rāmāyaṇa 1.54.20b, 21a:

        विश्वामित्र अर्दितान् दृष्ट्वा पह्लवान् शतशः तदा ॥
        भूय एव असृजत् घोरान् शकान् यवन मिश्रितान् ।

        viśvāmitra arditān dṛṣṭvā pahlavān śataśaḥ tadā.
        bhūya eva asṛjat ghorān śakān yavana miśritān.

        • 2002 translation by Desiraju Hanumanta Rao

          On seeing the subdual of hundreds of Pahlava-s by Vishvamitra, then the Sacred Cow again generated deadly Shaka-s hobnobbed with Yavana-s through her mooing 'hums'.

   4. Arab, Muslim
   5. (Late Sanskrit) a European

Declension

Masculine a-stem declension of यवन

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	यवनः (yavanaḥ)	यवनौ (yavanau)	यवनाः (yavanāḥ)
accusative	यवनम् (yavanam)	यवनौ (yavanau)	यवनान् (yavanān)
instrumental	यवनेन (yavanena)	यवनाभ्याम् (yavanābhyām)	यवनैः (yavanaiḥ)
dative	यवनाय (yavanāya)	यवनाभ्याम् (yavanābhyām)	यवनेभ्यः (yavanebhyaḥ)
ablative	यवनात् (yavanāt)	यवनाभ्याम् (yavanābhyām)	यवनेभ्यः (yavanebhyaḥ)
genitive	यवनस्य (yavanasya)	यवनयोः (yavanayoḥ)	यवनानाम् (yavanānām)
locative	यवने (yavane)	यवनयोः (yavanayoḥ)	यवनेषु (yavaneṣu)
vocative	यवन (yavana)	यवनौ (yavanau)	यवनाः (yavanāḥ)

Descendants

• → Bengali: যবন (jobon) (learned)
• → Hindustani: (learned)

  Hindi: यवन (yavan)

  Urdu: یَوَن (yavan)

• → Middle Chinese: 耶槃那 (MC yae ban na)
• → Tamil: யவனர் (yavaṉar) (learned)
• → Thai: ยวน (yuuan), เยาวนะ, โยน (yoon), โยนก
  • → Burmese: ယွန်း (ywan:)

References

• Monier Williams (1899), “यवन”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 848, column 1.
• Mayrhofer, Manfred (2001), Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan]‎^[1] (in German), volume III, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, page 420
• Hellwig, Oliver (2010–2026), “yavana”, in DCS - The Digital Corpus of Sanskrit, Berlin, Germany.