पर्शु

See also: परशु

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

পৰ্শু (Assamese script)
ᬧᬃᬰᬸ (Balinese script)
পর্শু (Bengali script)
𑰢𑰨𑰿𑰫𑰲 (Bhaiksuki script)
𑀧𑀭𑁆𑀰𑀼 (Brahmi script)
ပရ္ၐု (Burmese script)
પર્શુ (Gujarati script)
ਪਰ੍ਸ਼ੁ (Gurmukhi script)
𑌪𑌰𑍍𑌶𑍁 (Grantha script)
ꦥꦂꦯꦸ (Javanese script)
𑂣𑂩𑂹𑂬𑂳 (Kaithi script)
ಪರ್ಶು (Kannada script)
បឝ៌ុ (Khmer script)
ປຣ຺ຨຸ (Lao script)
പര്ശു (Malayalam script)
ᢒᠠᡵᡧᡠ (Manchu script)
𑘢𑘨𑘿𑘫𑘳 (Modi script)
ᢒᠠᠷᠱᠤ (Mongolian script)
𑧂𑧈𑧠𑧋𑧔 (Nandinagari script)
𑐥𑐬𑑂𑐱𑐸 (Newa script)
ପର୍ଶୁ (Odia script)
ꢦꢬ꣄ꢯꢸ (Saurashtra script)
𑆥𑆫𑇀𑆯𑆶 (Sharada script)
𑖢𑖨𑖿𑖫𑖲 (Siddham script)
පර්‍ශු (Sinhalese script)
𑩰𑩼 𑪙𑩿𑩒 (Soyombo script)
𑚞𑚤𑚶𑚧𑚰 (Takri script)
பர்ஶு (Tamil script)
పర్శు (Telugu script)
ปรฺศุ (Thai script)
པ་རྴུ (Tibetan script)
𑒣𑒩𑓂𑒬𑒳 (Tirhuta script)
𑨞𑨫𑩇𑨮𑨃 (Zanabazar Square script)

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *pérḱus

Proto-Indo-Iranian *párćuš

Sanskrit पर्शु (parśu)

From Proto-Indo-Iranian *párćuš, from Proto-Indo-European *pérḱus. Cognate with Avestan 𐬞𐬆𐬭𐬆𐬯𐬎𐬱 (pər^əsuš, “rib, side”), Northern Kurdish parsû (“rib”), Ossetian фарс (fars, “side”), Old Church Slavonic прьси (prĭsi, “breast”); see also पृष्टि (pṛṣṭi, “rib”).

In the Rigveda, this word means only "rib", but it came also to mean "sickle" in the later Atharvaveda. This semantic transfer becomes clear when we take into consideration the rib-like shape of the sickle and realize that the rib of a horse was actually sharpened to produce the instrument.

Pronunciation

(Vedic) IPA^(key): /pɐ́ɾ.ɕu/
(Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /ˈpɐɾ.ɕu/

Noun

पर्शु • (párśu) stem, m

a rib
- c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda 1.105.8:
  सं मा॑ तपन्त्य॒भित॑: स॒पत्नी॑रिव॒ पर्श॑वः।
  मूषो॒ न शि॒श्ना व्य॑दन्ति मा॒ध्य॑: स्तो॒तारं॑ ते शतक्रतो वि॒त्तं मे॑ अ॒स्य रो॑दसी॥
  sáṃ mā tapantyabhíta: sapátnīriva párśavaḥ.
  mū́ṣo ná śiśnā́ vyadanti mādhyà: stotā́raṃ te śatakrato vittáṃ me asyá rodasī.
  The ribs (of the well close) round me, like the rival wives (of one husband); cares consume me, Śatakratu, although your worshipper, as a rat (gnaws a weaver's) threads.
  Heaven and earth, be conscious of this (my affliction).
curved knife, sickle
- c. 1200 BCE – 1000 BCE, Atharvaveda 12.3.31:
  प्र यच्छ पर्शुं त्वरया हरौसमहिंसन्त ओषधीर्दान्तु पर्वन् ।
  यासां सोमः परि राज्यं बभूवामन्युता नो वीरुधो भवन्तु ॥
  pra yaccha parśuṃ tvarayā harausamahiṃsanta oṣadhīrdāntu parvan.
  yāsāṃ somaḥ pari rājyaṃ babhūvāmanyutā no vīrudho bhavantu.
  Present the sickle: quickly bring it hither. Let them out plants and joints with hands that harm not.
  So may the plants be free from wrath against us, they o'er whose realm Soma hath won dominion.
name of a man
(in the plural) name of a warrior-tribe

Declension

Masculine u-stem declension of पर्शु (párśu)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	पर्शुः párśuḥ	पर्शू párśū	पर्शवः párśavaḥ
Vocative	पर्शो párśo	पर्शू párśū	पर्शवः párśavaḥ
Accusative	पर्शुम् párśum	पर्शू párśū	पर्शून् párśūn
Instrumental	पर्शुना / पर्श्वा¹ párśunā / párśvā¹	पर्शुभ्याम् párśubhyām	पर्शुभिः párśubhiḥ
Dative	पर्शवे párśave	पर्शुभ्याम् párśubhyām	पर्शुभ्यः párśubhyaḥ
Ablative	पर्शोः párśoḥ	पर्शुभ्याम् párśubhyām	पर्शुभ्यः párśubhyaḥ
Genitive	पर्शोः párśoḥ	पर्श्वोः párśvoḥ	पर्शूनाम् párśūnām
Locative	पर्शौ párśau	पर्श्वोः párśvoḥ	पर्शुषु párśuṣu
Notes	¹Vedic

Derived terms

पार्श्व (pārśva)

Related terms

पृष्टि (pṛṣṭi)

Descendants

Dardic:
- Shina: प्रशु (práśu)
- Punjabi: ਪੱਸਲੀ (passalī)
⇒ Prakrit: 𑀧𑀁𑀲𑀼𑀮𑀺𑀆 (paṃsuliā)
- Gujarati: પાંસળી (pā̃saḷī)
- Hindi: पसली (paslī)
- Old Marathi: पासोळी (pāsoḷī), पांसोळी (pāṃsoḷī)
  - Marathi: फासळी (phāsḷī)

Noun

पर्शु • (párśu) stem, f

the supporting or side wall of a well
name of a woman

Declension

Feminine u-stem declension of पर्शु (párśu)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	पर्शुः párśuḥ	पर्शू párśū	पर्शवः párśavaḥ
Vocative	पर्शो párśo	पर्शू párśū	पर्शवः párśavaḥ
Accusative	पर्शुम् párśum	पर्शू párśū	पर्शूः párśūḥ
Instrumental	पर्श्वा párśvā	पर्शुभ्याम् párśubhyām	पर्शुभिः párśubhiḥ
Dative	पर्शवे / पर्श्वै¹ párśave / párśvai¹	पर्शुभ्याम् párśubhyām	पर्शुभ्यः párśubhyaḥ
Ablative	पर्शोः / पर्श्वाः¹ / पर्श्वै² párśoḥ / párśvāḥ¹ / párśvai²	पर्शुभ्याम् párśubhyām	पर्शुभ्यः párśubhyaḥ
Genitive	पर्शोः / पर्श्वाः¹ / पर्श्वै² párśoḥ / párśvāḥ¹ / párśvai²	पर्श्वोः párśvoḥ	पर्शूनाम् párśūnām
Locative	पर्शौ / पर्श्वाम्¹ párśau / párśvām¹	पर्श्वोः párśvoḥ	पर्शुषु párśuṣu
Notes	¹Later Sanskrit ²Brāhmaṇas

References

Monier Williams (1899) “पर्शु”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 609/2.
Mayrhofer, Manfred (1996) Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan]‎^[1] (in German), volume 2, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, pages 100-101
Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “párśu”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 448