शठ

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

Alternative scripts

• শঠ (Assamese script)
• ᬰᬞ (Balinese script)
• শঠ (Bengali script)
• 𑰫𑰙 (Bhaiksuki script)
• 𑀰𑀞 (Brahmi script)
• ၐဌ (Burmese script)
• શઠ (Gujarati script)
• ਸ਼ਠ (Gurmukhi script)
• 𑌶𑌠 (Grantha script)
• ꦯꦜ (Javanese script)
• 𑂬𑂘 (Kaithi script)
• ಶಠ (Kannada script)
• ឝឋ (Khmer script)
• ຨຐ (Lao script)
• ശഠ (Malayalam script)
• ᡧᠠᡱᠠ (Manchu script)
• 𑘫𑘙 (Modi script)
• ᠱᠠᢍᠠ᠋ (Mongolian script)
• 𑧋𑦹 (Nandinagari script)
• 𑐱𑐛 (Newa script)
• ଶଠ (Odia script)
• ꢯꢝ (Saurashtra script)
• 𑆯𑆜 (Sharada script)
• 𑖫𑖙 (Siddham script)
• ශඨ (Sinhalese script)
• 𑩿𑩧 (Soyombo script)
• 𑚧𑚕 (Takri script)
• ஶட² (Tamil script)
• శఠ (Telugu script)
• ศฐ (Thai script)
• ཤ་ཋ (Tibetan script)
• 𑒬𑒚 (Tirhuta script)
• 𑨮𑨕 (Zanabazar Square script)

Etymology

Unknown.

Turner classes it with a set of "defective" words, including शण्ठ (śaṇṭha, “rogue, fool; impotent”) (only attested lexicographically), षण्ढ (ṣaṇḍha, “eunuch”), ultimately claiming a substrate origin.

Proponents of Fortunatov's law, including Burrow, claim descent from earlier *शल्थ (śaltha), from Proto-Indo-European *skel-. This would mean the word is a doublet of छल (chala, “deceit”), and a cognate of Ancient Greek σκολῐός (skoliós, “curved, bent”) and Latin scelus (“an evil deed”). The derivation is not quite clear however; aspiration is unexplained and the initial reflects *(s)ḱel-.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /ˈɕɐ.ʈʰɐ/

Adjective

शठ • (śaṭha) stem

1. false, deceitful, fraudulent, wicked, malevolent

   शठे शाठ्यं समाचरेत् ― śaṭhe śāṭhyaṃ samācaret ― Bear wickedness with the wicked

   • c. 400 BCE, Mahābhārata

Declension

Masculine a-stem declension of शठ (śaṭha)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	शठः śaṭhaḥ	शठौ śaṭhau	शठाः śaṭhāḥ
Vocative	शठ śaṭha	शठौ śaṭhau	शठाः śaṭhāḥ
Accusative	शठम् śaṭham	शठौ śaṭhau	शठान् śaṭhān
Instrumental	शठेन śaṭhena	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठैः śaṭhaiḥ
Dative	शठाय śaṭhāya	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठेभ्यः śaṭhebhyaḥ
Ablative	शठात् śaṭhāt	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठेभ्यः śaṭhebhyaḥ
Genitive	शठस्य śaṭhasya	शठयोः śaṭhayoḥ	शठानाम् śaṭhānām
Locative	शठे śaṭhe	शठयोः śaṭhayoḥ	शठेषु śaṭheṣu

Feminine ā-stem declension of शठा (śaṭhā)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	शठा śaṭhā	शठे śaṭhe	शठाः śaṭhāḥ
Vocative	शठे śaṭhe	शठे śaṭhe	शठाः śaṭhāḥ
Accusative	शठाम् śaṭhām	शठे śaṭhe	शठाः śaṭhāḥ
Instrumental	शठया śaṭhayā	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठाभिः śaṭhābhiḥ
Dative	शठायै śaṭhāyai	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठाभ्यः śaṭhābhyaḥ
Ablative	शठायाः śaṭhāyāḥ	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठाभ्यः śaṭhābhyaḥ
Genitive	शठायाः śaṭhāyāḥ	शठयोः śaṭhayoḥ	शठानाम् śaṭhānām
Locative	शठायाम् śaṭhāyām	शठयोः śaṭhayoḥ	शठासु śaṭhāsu

Neuter a-stem declension of शठ (śaṭha)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	शठम् śaṭham	शठे śaṭhe	शठानि śaṭhāni
Vocative	शठ śaṭha	शठे śaṭhe	शठानि śaṭhāni
Accusative	शठम् śaṭham	शठे śaṭhe	शठानि śaṭhāni
Instrumental	शठेन śaṭhena	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठैः śaṭhaiḥ
Dative	शठाय śaṭhāya	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठेभ्यः śaṭhebhyaḥ
Ablative	शठात् śaṭhāt	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठेभ्यः śaṭhebhyaḥ
Genitive	शठस्य śaṭhasya	शठयोः śaṭhayoḥ	शठानाम् śaṭhānām
Locative	शठे śaṭhe	शठयोः śaṭhayoḥ	शठेषु śaṭheṣu

Noun

शठ • (śaṭha) stem, m

1. cheat, rogue
   1. a false or deceitful lover (who pretends to love one woman while his heart is fixed on another)
2. a male given name

Declension

Masculine a-stem declension of शठ (śaṭha)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	शठः śaṭhaḥ	शठौ śaṭhau	शठाः śaṭhāḥ
Vocative	शठ śaṭha	शठौ śaṭhau	शठाः śaṭhāḥ
Accusative	शठम् śaṭham	शठौ śaṭhau	शठान् śaṭhān
Instrumental	शठेन śaṭhena	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठैः śaṭhaiḥ
Dative	शठाय śaṭhāya	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठेभ्यः śaṭhebhyaḥ
Ablative	शठात् śaṭhāt	शठाभ्याम् śaṭhābhyām	शठेभ्यः śaṭhebhyaḥ
Genitive	शठस्य śaṭhasya	शठयोः śaṭhayoḥ	शठानाम् śaṭhānām
Locative	शठे śaṭhe	शठयोः śaṭhayoḥ	शठेषु śaṭheṣu

Descendants

• Pali: saṭha
• → Malayalam: ശഠൻ (śaṭhaṉ) (learned)

Further reading

• Monier Williams (1899) “शठ”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 1048.
• Apte, Macdonell (2022) “शठ”, in Digital Dictionaries of South India [Combined Sanskrit Dictionaries]