English
asana
Asana comes from Sanskrit आसन ‘sitting down’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₁éh₁s-tor ‘to sit’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁éh₁s-tor‘to sit’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*HaHstayreconstructed
- Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEआस्तेā́ste‘to sit down’
- Sanskrit, derivedc. 1500–500 BCEआसनā́sana, āsaná‘sitting down’
- Englishearliest quotation 1978asana
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₁éh₁s-tor‘to sit’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*HaHstayreconstructed
- Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEआस्तेā́ste‘to sit down’
- Sanskrit, derivedc. 1500–500 BCEआसनā́sana, āsaná‘sitting down’
- Englishearliest quotation 1978asana
Earliest quotation: 1978, Lawrence Durrell, Livia (Avignon Quintet): “She had taught him several yoga asanas and now…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₁es- ‘to be’
is, am, interest, potential, sin, sinful, soothe, swastika, sooth, quintessence, sinless, 11 more
Today it means
noun A body position, typically associated with the practice of yoga.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₁éh₁s-tor / asana