या

See also: यों, यूँ, यी, यो, य, and ये

Braj

Pronoun

या (yā)

1. oblique of यह (yah)

   Synonym: इहिं (ihĩ)

See also

• इस (is) (hindi eqivalent)

Hindi

Pronunciation

• (Delhi) IPA^(key): /jɑː/, [jäː]

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Classical Persian یا (yā).

Conjunction

या • (yā) (Urdu spelling یا)

1. or

   Synonyms: अथवा (athvā), वा (vā), कि (ki)

   क्या आपको चाय या कॉफ़ी चाहिए?

   kyā āpko cāy yā kŏfī cāhie?

   Would you like tea or coffee?

   कौन बड़ा है, सुमित या सुमन?

   kaun baṛā hai, sumit yā suman?

   Who's bigger, Sumit or Suman?

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Arabic يا (yā).

Interjection

या • (yā) (Urdu spelling یا)

1. O (vocative particle)

   Synonyms: (more common) अरे (are), हे (he)

   या ख़ुदा, क्या हो गया है!

   yā xudā, kyā ho gayā hai!

   O God, what has happened! (Islam)

Nepali

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [jä]
• Phonetic Devanagari: या

Conjunction

या • (yā)

1. or

Newar

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ja]

Postposition

या • (yā) (Newa Spelling 𑐫𑐵)

1. marks the genitive case: of, belonging to

Pali

Alternative forms

Alternative scripts

• yā (Latin script)
• 𑀬𑀸 (Brahmi script)
• যা (Bengali script)
• යා (Sinhalese script)
• ယာ or ယႃ (Burmese script)
• ยา (Thai script)
• ᨿᩣ (Tai Tham script)
• ຍາ or ຢາ (Lao script)
• យា (Khmer script)
• 𑄠𑄂 (Chakma script)

Pronoun

या f

1. Devanagari script form of yā (“who”)

Declension

Declension table of "या" (feminine)

Case \ Number	Singular	Plural
Nominative (first)	या (yā)	यायो (yāyo) or या (yā)
Accusative (second)	यं (yaṃ)	यायो (yāyo) or या (yā)
Instrumental (third)	याय (yāya)	याहि (yāhi) or याभि (yābhi)
Dative (fourth)	याय (yāya) or यस्सा (yassā)	यासं (yāsaṃ) or यासानं (yāsānaṃ)
Ablative (fifth)	याय (yāya)	याहि (yāhi) or याभि (yābhi)
Genitive (sixth)	याय (yāya) or यस्सा (yassā)	यासं (yāsaṃ) or यासानं (yāsānaṃ)
Locative (seventh)	याय (yāya) or यायं (yāyaṃ) or यस्सं (yassaṃ)	यासु (yāsu)

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

Alternative scripts

• যা (Assamese script)
• ᬬᬵ (Balinese script)
• যা (Bengali script)
• 𑰧𑰯 (Bhaiksuki script)
• 𑀬𑀸 (Brahmi script)
• ယာ (Burmese script)
• યા (Gujarati script)
• ਯਾ (Gurmukhi script)
• 𑌯𑌾 (Grantha script)
• ꦪꦴ (Javanese script)
• 𑂨𑂰 (Kaithi script)
• ಯಾ (Kannada script)
• យា (Khmer script)
• ຍາ (Lao script)
• യാ (Malayalam script)
• ᠶᠠᢇ (Manchu script)
• 𑘧𑘰 (Modi script)
• ᠶ᠋ᠠ᠋᠎ᠠ (Mongolian script)
• 𑧇𑧑 (Nandinagari script)
• 𑐫𑐵 (Newa script)
• ଯା (Odia script)
• ꢫꢵ (Saurashtra script)
• 𑆪𑆳 (Sharada script)
• 𑖧𑖯 (Siddham script)
• යා (Sinhalese script)
• 𑩻𑩛 (Soyombo script)
• 𑚣𑚭 (Takri script)
• யா (Tamil script)
• యా (Telugu script)
• ยา (Thai script)
• ཡཱ (Tibetan script)
• 𑒨𑒰 (Tirhuta script)
• 𑨪𑨊 (Zanabazar Square script)

Pronunciation

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /jɑː/
• (Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /jɑː/

Etymology 1

From Proto-Indo-European *yeh₂- (“to go”).

Root

या • (yā)

1. to go, proceed, move, walk, set out, march, advance, travel, journey
2. to go away, withdraw, retire
3. to flee, escape
4. to go towards or against, go or come to, enter, approach, arrive at, reach
5. to go to a woman for sexual intercourse
6. to go to for any purpose
7. to extend to
8. to last for
9. to pass away, elapse (said of time)
10. to vanish, disappear (as wealth)
11. to come to pass, prosper, succeed
12. to proceed, behave, act
13. to find out, discover
14. to receive or learn (a science) from
15. to undertake, undergo

Derived terms

• अयान् (ayān)
• अयासम् (ayāsam)
• अयासिषम् (ayāsiṣam)
• अयीयपत् (ayīyapat)
• अयुः (ayuḥ)
• ईयायते (īyāyate)
• यय (yaya)
• ययाथ (yayātha)
• ययुः (yayuḥ)
• यये (yaye)
• ययौ (yayau)
• यातवे (yātave)
• यातवै (yātavai)
• याता (yātā)
• याति (yāti)
• यातु (yātu)
• यातुम् (yātum)
• यात्वा (yātvā)
• यापयति (yāpayati)
• यामहे (yāmahe)
• यायते (yāyate)
• याययते (yāyayate)
• यायाति (yāyāti)
• यायेति (yāyeti)
• यासत् (yāsat)
• यासिषत् (yāsiṣat)
• यासिषीष्ठास् (yāsiṣīṣṭhās)
• यास्यति (yāsyati)
• यास्यते (yāsyate)
• यियासति (yiyāsati)
• येषम् (yeṣam)
• यै (yai)

 

Noun

या • (yā) stem, f

1. going
2. a car
3. restraining
4. religious meditation
5. attaining
6. pudendum muliebre

Declension

Feminine ā-stem declension of या (yā)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	याः yāḥ	यौ / या¹ yau / yā¹	याः yāḥ
Vocative	याः yāḥ	यौ / या¹ yau / yā¹	याः yāḥ
Accusative	याम् yām	यौ / या¹ yau / yā¹	याः / यः² yāḥ / yaḥ²
Instrumental	या yā	याभ्याम् yābhyām	याभिः yābhiḥ
Dative	ये ye	याभ्याम् yābhyām	याभ्यः yābhyaḥ
Ablative	यः yaḥ	याभ्याम् yābhyām	याभ्यः yābhyaḥ
Genitive	यः yaḥ	योः yoḥ	यानाम् / याम्² yānām / yām²
Locative	यि yi	योः yoḥ	यासु yāsu
Notes	¹Vedic ²Perhaps

Etymology 2

From Proto-Indo-European *yeh₂- (“to beg, request”). Cognate with Tocharian B yāsk- (“to beg”), Ancient Greek ζῆλος (zêlos, “zeal, ardor”), Old Irish áilid (“wishes strongly, implores”). याच् (yāc) is likely an enlargement of the root.

Root

या • (yā)

1. to go to for any request, implore, solicit

Derived terms

• अवया (avayā)
• अवयान (avayāna)
• इयान (iyāna)
• यामन् (yāman)
• यासीष्ट (yāsīṣṭa)

 

References

• Monier Williams (1899) “या”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, pages 838/2, 849/1.
• Mayrhofer, Manfred (1996) Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan]‎^[1] (in German), volume 2, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, pages 407-408
• Lubotsky, Alexander (2011) The Indo-Aryan Inherited Lexicon (in progress) (Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Project), Leiden University, pages 617-8
• Cheung, Johnny (2007) Etymological Dictionary of the Iranian Verb (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 2), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 210