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ArchivesRe: meaning of anwesh
in reply to a message by anwesha
In Sanskrit, there is a root iS, with various meanings like to obtain, seek after, desire, etc., and is very old (it occurs in the Rgveda, and is etymologically related to the Englisk ask); in classical Sanskrit it is the usual way of saying to want (I want is ahamicchAmi, for example, and that icchAmi is a form of iS). The particle a'nu qualifies it with senses like going after, methodically, etc.; and the noun from this (with a feminine marker) anveSA' means search, investigation, etc.
The pronounciation in Hindi, and probably in Sanskrit, had less breath than the English -v-, so -w- is often used. This /ʋ/ is a voiced labio-dental approximant, which does not exist in standard English, but even in Hindi, one often hears allophonic variation from [v] to [w] for this. In other Indian languages, it meets various fates, e.g., in Bengali, it is pronounced almost anneshA. The S is a retroflex sibilant, which has almost disappeared in modern north Indian languages. In most places, it is equivalent to a palatal fricative today. Thus, anwesha is a pretty good approximation to its pronounciation in the Hindi belt today.
The pronounciation in Hindi, and probably in Sanskrit, had less breath than the English -v-, so -w- is often used. This /ʋ/ is a voiced labio-dental approximant, which does not exist in standard English, but even in Hindi, one often hears allophonic variation from [v] to [w] for this. In other Indian languages, it meets various fates, e.g., in Bengali, it is pronounced almost anneshA. The S is a retroflex sibilant, which has almost disappeared in modern north Indian languages. In most places, it is equivalent to a palatal fricative today. Thus, anwesha is a pretty good approximation to its pronounciation in the Hindi belt today.
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