द्राक्षा

Of unclear origin.

Due to similar forms denoting various berry-type fruits found in various Indo-European branches, the word is traditionally derived from Proto-Indo-Aryan *dráHgẓʰaH, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *dʰráHȷ́žʰaH, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰréh₂ǵ-seh₂ (“grape, vine”), from *dʰreh₂ǵ- (“berry”). Said similar words include Latin frāgum (“strawberry”), Albanian dredhëz (“strawberry”), Ancient Greek τρῠ́ξ (trúx, “unfermented wine”), Proto-Slavic *dẽrnъ (“blackthorn, cornel”), and Old Irish derc (“berry”);[1] compare also the Nuristani forms Ashkun drás (“grape”), Kamkata-viri drós (“grape”), Prasuni rásik (“grape”), Tregami drás (“grape”), Waigali dras (“grape”), which seem to be from a preform *dʰraHsáH.

However, Mayrhofer notes that the variance of the word's secondary forms in Indo-Aryan, like *द्रक्षा (drakṣā) and ध्राक्षा (dhrākṣā), as well as the word's lack of attestation in Vedic texts, suggest a borrowing from some foreign source rather than inheritance from Indo-Aryan. The exact language of borrowing is unclear, and usually taken to be Iranian, Greek (which Mayrhofer seems to favor), or some unknown language of Asia Minor. In this case, the word may be a Wanderwort, spreading to some or all of the supposed cognates via contact rather than inheritance (or the word was inherited in some branches but not Indo-Iranian, where it was borrowed instead).[2][3]

An alternative theory by Oberlies takes the word as a re-Sanskritization of a hypothetical Middle Indic *दच्छा (dacchā), itself from द्रप्स (drapsa, “drop”). This proposal is formally and semantically unconvincing, and has not been elaborated on further.

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /dɾɑ́ːk.ʂɑː/
• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈd̪ɾɑːk.ʂɑː/

द्राक्षा • (drā́kṣā) stem, f

1. grape, vine

• Hindi: दाख (dākh)
• → Bengali: দ্রাক্ষা (drakkha)
• Urdu: داكھ
• Kalasha: drač̣ (“grapes”)
• Khowar: دروݯ (“droč̣”)
• Punjabi: ਦਾਖ (dākh)
• Phalura: dhráac̣
• Romani: drakh
• → Gujarati: દ્રાક્ષ (drākṣ)
• → Marathi: द्राक्ष (drākṣa)
• → Tamil: தாச்சா (tāccā), திராட்சை (tirāṭcai)
• → Telugu: ద్రాక్ష (drākṣa)
• Sindhi: दाख (dākha)

• Monier Williams (1899) “द्राक्षा”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 501/3.