Reconstruction:Proto-Dravidian/mayil-

This Proto-Dravidian entry contains reconstructed words and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Dravidian

Etymology

Krishnamurti (2003: 37) prefers *may-Vr- for “peacock”.

Possibly a Wanderwort; compare, for instance, Santali ᱢᱟᱨᱟᱜ (marak’), Proto-Mon-Khmer *mraik (“peacock”), whence Mon မြာ် (pəràik) (< Old Mon mrek, mreṅ) and Khmer មោរៈ (moorĕəʾ). Similar words in Southeast Asia, such as Malay merak and Acehnese meurak (< Proto-Chamic *əmraːk), are early loans in Austronesian languages from Proto-Mon-Khmer.

Noun

*mayil-

peacock

Descendants

Southern Dravidian:
- Tamil-Kannada:
  - Kannada: ಮಯ್ಲ (mayla), ಮಯ್ಲು (maylu)
  - Tamil-Malayalam:
    - Malayalam: മയില്‍ (mayil‍)
    - Tamil: மயில் (mayil), மஞ்ஞை (maññai)
→ Sanskrit: मयूर (mayū́ra, “peacock”)
- Newar: मुयुर (muyura)
- Hindi: मोर (mor)
  - Brahui: مور‎ (mōr)
- Nepali: मयूर (mayūr)
  - Khmer: មយូរ (mɔyuu)
- Old Assamese: মৈৰা (moira)
  - Assamese: ম’ৰা (móra)
- Thai: มยูร (má yuun)
- Tibetan: རྨ་བྱ (rma bya) (only the first element)

References

Thomas Burrow; Murray Barnson Emeneau (1984), “mayil”, in A Dravidian etymological dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford [Oxfordshire]: Clarendon Press
Bhadriraju Krishnamurti (2003) The Dravidian Languages, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN
Mayrhofer, Manfred (1996) Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan] (in German), volume II, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, page 317

Thurgood, Graham (1999) From Ancient Cham to Modern Dialects: Two Thousand Years of Language Contact and Change, Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, page 350.

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