Bahuvrihi

Bahuvrihi (बहुव्रीहि bahuvrīhi ' owning a lot of rice '), also Germanized to Bahuwrihi , is a term from Sanskrit grammar that describes a certain type of compound , namely a possessive compound . The (or the) Bahuvrihi is an exocentric compound : Its meaning does not correspond to the sum of the meanings of the individual members, but to a special characteristic feature that the speaker carries.

Bahuvrihi formations can be described with a "have" construction: A robin is a bird that has a red throat and is named after it. The eponymous example bahuvrihi is made up of bahu 'a lot' and vrihi 'rice', but combined not only means "a lot of rice", but also describes someone who has a lot of rice, i.e. a rich person.

Other examples from the German language are Dickkopf, Rotkäppchen and Schlitzohr.

See also

• Dvandva
• Tatpurusha

Web links

Wiktionary: Bahuvrihi  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

literature

• Adolf Friedrich Stenzler : Elementary book of the Sanskrit language. Grammar, texts, dictionary. Revised by Karl F. Geldner . 19th, revised and improved edition, by Albrecht Wezler. De Gruyter, Berlin et al. 2003, ISBN 3-11-017589-4 .
• Eva Tichy: Basic Indo-European knowledge for students of linguistic disciplines. Hempen, Bremen 2000, ISBN 3-934106-14-5 .