天竺

First recorded use in the Traditions of the Western Regions (西域傳) portion of the Book of Han, finished in 111 CE. Itself a transcription of Old Persian [script needed] (*Hinduka-), hypocoristic of 𐏃𐎡𐎯𐎢𐏁 (hiⁿduš, “people living beyond the Indus”). Compare 身毒 (Juāndú).

天竺

1. (～國) (archaic) India or Nepal
2. (～地區) Tianzhu Area (an area in Shunyi District, Beijing, China)

• 印度 (Yìndù) (modern)

• On’yomi
  • (Tokyo) て​んじく [téꜜǹjìkù] (Atamadaka – [1])[1][2]
  • IPA^(key): [tẽ̞ɲ̟d͡ʑikɯ̟ᵝ]

/tendiku/ → /tenziku/

From Middle Chinese 天竺 (*ten *djiuk?), a transcription from either of the following:

• Old Persian *Hind-uka, an alternate of *Hinduš (“people living beyond the Indus”)
• Sanskrit सिन्धु (Sindhu, “the country around the Indus river: India”)[3]

First mentioned in the 後漢書 (Gokansho, “Book of the Later Han”), in volume 88, the 西域伝 (Saiiki Den, “Treatise on the Western Regions”).

天竺 (hiragana てんじく, rōmaji Tenjiku, historical hiragana てんぢく)

1. (archaic) India

• インド (Indo)
• 身毒 (しんどく) (Shindoku)

天竺 (hiragana てんじく, rōmaji Tenjiku, historical hiragana てんぢく)

1. foreign or exotic
2. overly spicy or hot

The prefix senses appear to have arisen after European traders arrived in Japan, by way of India.[3]

By extension from the 天 character (“sky, heavens”), and possibly by association with the Himalayas.

天竺 (hiragana てんじく, rōmaji tenjiku)

1. the sky, the heavens
2. a high place, the top of something, a summit