वणिज्

वणिज्

See also: वाणिज

Sanskrit

Alternative forms

• बणिज् (baṇíj)

Etymology

Uncertain. Possibly from Proto-Indo-European *wen(h₁)-h₂ǵ-, composed of *wenh₁- (“to win”) + *h₂eǵ- (“to drive, lead”).[1][2] Compare वनोति (vanóti), particularly in the meaning “to acquire”, and अजति (ájati, “to drive”), respectively.

Noun

वणिज् • (vaṇíj) m

1. a merchant, trader (RV. etc.)
   • RV 5.45.6d:

     एता धियं कर्णवामा सखायो ऽप या मातां रणुत वरजं गोः |

     यया मनुर विशिशिप्रं जिगाय यया वणिग वङकुर आपा पुरीषम ||

     étā dhíyaṃ kṛṇávāmā sakhāyó 'pa yâ mātâṁ ṛṇutá vrajáṃ góḥ |

     yáyā mánur viśiśipráṃ jigâya yáyā vaṇíg vaṅkúr âpā púrīṣam ||

     Come, let us carry out, O friends, the purpose wherewith the Mother threw the Cow's stall open,

     That wherewith Manu conquered Visisipra, wherewith the wandering merchant gained heaven's water.

2. (astrology, astronomy) the zodiacal sign Libra (VarBṛS.)
3. name of a particular करण (karaṇa)
4. trade, traffic, commerce (Gaut., Mn.)
5. epithet of Indra (RV.)

Derived terms

• वणिज (vaṇija, “trader”)
• वाणिज (vāṇijá) (see there for further descendants)
• वाणिज्यक (vāṇijyaka, “trader”)
  • → Classical Malay: beniaga (“trade”)
    • ⇒ Malay: niaga (back-formed)
      • Indonesian: niaga

Descendants

• Prakrit: 𑀯𑀡𑀺 (vaṇi)

References

• Monier Williams (1899), “वणिज्”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, OCLC 458052227, page 0915.

1. Wodtko, Dagmar S.; Irslinger, Britta; Schneider, Carolin (2008), “*h₂eĝ-”, in Nomina im indogermanischen Lexikon [Nouns in the Indo-European Lexicon] (in German), Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter, pages 267, 270
2. “banyan”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016, →ISBN.