नक्षत्र

Borrowed from Sanskrit नक्षत्र (nákṣatra).

• (Delhi Hindi) IPA^(key): /nək.ʂət̪.ɾᵊ/, [nɐk.ʃɐt̪.ɾᵊ]

नक्षत्र • (nakṣatra) m

1. star or any astronomical object
2. constellation

• (star) तारा (tārā), सितारा (sitārā)
• (constellation) तारामंडल (tārāmaṇḍal)

Compound of नक् (nak, “night”) +‎ क्षत्र (kṣatra, “dominion, rule”). Alternatively, from the root नक्ष् (nakṣ, “to reach”).

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /nɐ́k.ʂɐt.ɾɐ/
• (Classical) IPA^(key): /n̪ɐkˈʂɐt̪.ɾɐ/

नक्षत्र • (nákṣatra) stem, n or m

1. a star or any heavenly body

   Synonyms: स्तृ (stṛ), तृ (tṛ)

   • c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda 6.67.6:

     ता हि क्ष॒त्रं धा॒रये॑थे॒ अनु॒ द्यून्दृं॒हेथे॒ सानु॑मुप॒मादि॑व॒ द्योः।
     दृ॒ळ्हो नक्ष॑त्र उ॒त वि॒श्वदे॑वो॒ भूमि॒माता॒न्द्यां धा॒सिना॒योः॥

     tā́ hí kṣatráṃ dhāráyethe ánu dyū́ndṛṃhéthe sā́numupamā́diva dyóḥ.
     dṛḷhó nákṣatra utá viśvádevo bhū́mimā́tāndyā́ṃ dhāsínāyóḥ.

     So, through the days maintaining princely power. You prop the height as it were from loftiest heaven.
     The Star of all the Devas, established, fills the heaven and earth with food of man who lives.

2. the Sun
3. an asterism or constellation through which the moon passes, a lunar mansion
   • c. 1200 BCE – 1000 BCE, Atharvaveda

• Dardic:
  • Kashmiri: نێچھَتُر (nechatur), نێچھۆتُ (nechotu)
• Gandhari: 𐨣𐨐𐨿𐨮𐨟𐨿𐨪 (nakṣatra)
• Pali: nakkhatta
• Prakrit: 𑀡𑀓𑁆𑀔𑀢𑁆𑀢 (ṇakkhatta)
  • Central:
    • Ardhamagadhi Prakrit:
      • Awadhi: नखत (nakhat)
    • Sauraseni Prakrit:
      • Hindustani: nakhat
        • Hindi: नखत
        • Urdu: نَکھَت (nakhat)
  • Eastern:
    • Magadhi Prakrit:
      • Bihari: नखत (nakhat)
  • Northwestern:
    • Paisaci Prakrit:
      • Takka Apabhramsa:
        • Punjabi: nakhattar

          Gurmukhi script: ਨਖੱਤਰ

          Shahmukhi script: نَکھَتَّر

      • Vracada Apabhramsa:
        • Sindhi: nakhaṭru

          Arabic script: نَکَٽرُ

          Devanagari script: नखट्रु

  • Southern:
    • Helu Prakrit:
      • Dhivehi: ނަކަތް (nakat̊)
      • Sinhalese: නකත (nakata), නැකැත (nækæta)
  • Western:
    • Sauraseni Prakrit:
      • Gujarati: નખેતર (nakhetar)

Borrowed terms

• → Hindi: नक्षत्र (nakṣatra)
• → Kannada: ನಕ್ಷತ್ರ (nakṣatra)
• → Khmer: នក្សត្រ (nĕəksat)
• → Malayalam: നക്ഷത്രം (nakṣatraṁ)
• → Punjabi: ਨਛੱਤਰ (nachattar)
• → Tamil: நட்சத்திரம் (naṭcattiram)
• → Telugu: నక్షత్రము (nakṣatramu)
• → Thai: นักษัตร (nák-sàt)

• Monier Williams (1899) “नक्षत्र”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 0524.
• Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “naksatra”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 397