𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶

Old Uyghur

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Turkic *teŋri (“sky, god”). Cognate with Old Turkic 𐱅𐰭𐰼𐰃 (teŋri), Karakhanid تَنْكْرٖى (teŋrī), Turkish tanrı, Yakut таҥара (tañara).

Noun

𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶 (teŋri)

1. (religion) god

   Synonyms: 𐽼𐽲 (bag), 𐽰𐽶𐾁𐽰𐽵𐽶 (ilahi), 𐽰𐽳𐽶𐽲𐽰𐽺 (ugan), 𐽶𐽴𐽸𐽰𐽺 (yazdan)

   • c. late 10th century, Xuanzang Biography, Book III‎^[1], HTIII: 0847-48 (23-24):

     […] 𐽷𐾁𐽼 𐽼𐽰𐽿𐾁𐽰𐽲 𐽶𐽺𐾀𐽰 𐽰𐽳𐾁𐽳𐽲 𐽰𐽴*** 𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶 𐽰𐽰𐽿𐽺𐽳 𐽽𐽰 𐾀𐽳𐽶𐽷𐽰𐾁 𐽶𐽳𐽴 […]

     […] kalp bašlagïnta ulug ez^[rua?] Teŋri ašnuča tükel yüz […]

     [Earlier,] at the beginning of the Kalpas, the great God Ezrua first [told?] in complete detail to [a] hundred [people] [his teachings] […]

   • c. 11-12th century, Unidentified Jātaka fragments‎^[2], BT13.01.07.13 (087-088)‎^[3]:

     […] **ܪܩܐܢ *ܝܩ ܟܘܝܢ ܬܢܟܪܝܡ […]

     […] [bu]rhan[l]ïg Kün Teŋrim […]

     […] My Buddhistic Sun-God […]

   • 1687, Altun Yaruk Manuscript, Book X (Golden Light Sutra in Old Uyghur)‎^[4], AY.B10.01.v02:

     […] 𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶 𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶𐽻𐽶 𐽼𐽳𐽾𐽲𐽰𐽺 […]

     […] Teŋri Teŋrisi Burhan […]

     […] O Buddha[, the] God of Gods […]

2. (rare) sky, heaven

   Synonyms: 𐽰𐽰𐽺𐽳𐽿𐽰𐽲𐽰𐽺 (anošagan), 𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶 𐽶𐽶𐽾𐽶 (teŋri yéri), 𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶𐾁𐽶𐽷 (teŋrilik), 𐽳𐽿𐾀𐽹𐽰𐽵 (uštmah)

   Antonyms: 𐽺𐽷𐽾 (nara), 𐽺𐽾𐽵 (naraka), 𐾀𐽹𐽳 (tamu), 𐽶𐽰𐽱𐾁𐽰𐽷 𐽶𐽶𐽾 (yavlak yér)

   • c. 9th century, Book of Divination‎^[5], Irk 15: 16(r):05-16(l):01‎^[6]:

     𐰖𐰣𐰀⸱𐱅𐰭𐱁𐰃⸱𐰴𐰆𐱃𐰃𐰣𐱃𐰀⸱𐰇𐰲𐰇𐰨⸱𐰖𐰃𐰞𐱃𐰀⸱𐰴𐰆𐰯⸱𐰾𐰤⸱𐱅𐰇𐰚𐰠⸱𐰚𐰇𐱁𐰇𐰾𐰢𐰾

     Yana Teŋri kutïnta, üčünč yïlta, kop esen tükel körüšmiš.

     And again by the grace of Heaven, in the third year [of their separation], they all met safe and sound.

Derived terms

• 𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶𐽽𐽶 (teŋriči, “worshipper”)
• 𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶𐽸𐽰𐽹 (teŋridem, “godly, holy, sanctified”)
• 𐾀𐽺𐽷𐽾𐽶𐽷𐽰𐽹 (teŋrikem, “ruler”)

Alternate terms

• 騰克力 (teŋkli /⁠*dəŋ kʰək̚ lɨk̚⁠/)
• 𐫎𐫗𐫐𐫡𐫏 (teŋri /⁠tnkry⁠/)
• ܬܢܟܪܝ (teŋri /⁠tnkry⁠/)

References

• Caferoğlu, Ahmet (1968) “tnkry”, in Eski Uygur Türkçesi Sözlüğü (Türk Dil Kurumu Yayınları; 260) (in Turkish), Istanbul: Edebiyat Fakültesi Basımevi, page 242
• Wilkens, Jens (2021) “(1) t(ä)ŋri”, in Handworterbuch des Altuigurischen, Göttingen: Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen, pages 695-697
• Yunusoğlu, Mağfiret Kemal (2012) Uygurca-Çince İdikut Sözlüğü [Uyghur-Chinese Divine Dictionary]‎^[7] (in Turkish), İstanbul: Türk Dil Kurumu Yayınları, →ISBN, page 61