शुक

See also: शक, शंका, शौक़, and शोक

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

Alternative scripts

• শুক (Assamese script)
• ᬰᬸᬓ (Balinese script)
• শুক (Bengali script)
• 𑰫𑰲𑰎 (Bhaiksuki script)
• 𑀰𑀼𑀓 (Brahmi script)
• ၐုက (Burmese script)
• શુક (Gujarati script)
• ਸ਼ੁਕ (Gurmukhi script)
• 𑌶𑍁𑌕 (Grantha script)
• ꦯꦸꦏ (Javanese script)
• 𑂬𑂳𑂍 (Kaithi script)
• ಶುಕ (Kannada script)
• ឝុក (Khmer script)
• ຨຸກ (Lao script)
• ശുക (Malayalam script)
• ᡧᡠᡬᠠ (Manchu script)
• 𑘫𑘳𑘎 (Modi script)
• ᠱᠤᢉᠠ (Mongolian script)
• 𑧋𑧔𑦮 (Nandinagari script)
• 𑐱𑐸𑐎 (Newa script)
• ଶୁକ (Odia script)
• ꢯꢸꢒ (Saurashtra script)
• 𑆯𑆶𑆑 (Sharada script)
• 𑖫𑖲𑖎 (Siddham script)
• ශුක (Sinhalese script)
• 𑩿𑩒𑩜 (Soyombo script)
• 𑚧𑚰𑚊 (Takri script)
• ஶுக (Tamil script)
• శుక (Telugu script)
• ศุก (Thai script)
• ཤུ་ཀ (Tibetan script)
• 𑒬𑒳𑒏 (Tirhuta script)
• 𑨮𑨃𑨋 (Zanabazar Square script)

Pronunciation

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /ɕu.kɐ/
• (Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /ˈɕu.kɐ/

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *ḱewk-der.?

Sanskrit शुक (śuka)

Uncertain.

Probably named for its ability to speak, derived from Proto-Indo-Iranian *ćawk- (“to call”) (compare the palatalised Proto-Iranian *cawč-), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱewk-; ultimately onomatopoeic. Cognate with Late Khotanese [script needed] (sūch-, “to call”), Younger Avestan 𐬯𐬀𐬊𐬗𐬀𐬌𐬌𐬀 (saocaiia, “mockery”), Lithuanian šaũkti (“to shout”), Latvian saukt (“to call”), Tocharian B śauśä (“calls”).

Grassmann and Monier-Williams instead derive it from the root शुच् (śuc, “to purify”), believing the bird to be named for its bright colour; this is phonologically sound (indeed, the Indo-European root is formally identical for both terms) but rejected by Mayrhofer due to the differing semantics of the Khotanese cognate. Pokorny instead relates this word to Proto-Indo-European *kū-, but this is phonologically difficult since the initial consonant would need to undergo palatalisation but no *-e- can be reconstructed for this word nor is analogy to a verb form likely since none is attested.

Noun

शुक॑ • (śúka) stem, m

1. parrot
   • c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda 1.50.12:

     शुके॑षु मे हरि॒माणं॑ रोप॒णाका॑सु दध्मसि
     अथो॑ हारिद्र॒वेषु॑ मे हरि॒माणं॒ नि द॑ध्मसि

     śúkeṣu me harimā́ṇaṃ ropaṇā́kāsu dadhmasi
     atho hāridravéṣu me harimā́ṇaṃ ní dadhmasi

     • 1890 translation by Ralph T. H. Griffith

       To parrots and to starlings let us give away my yellowness,
       Or this my yellowness let us transfer to Haritâla trees.

2. a male given name

Declension

Masculine a-stem declension of शुक

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	शुकः (śúkaḥ)	शुकौ (śúkau) शुका¹ (śúkā¹)	शुकाः (śúkāḥ) शुकासः¹ (śúkāsaḥ¹)
vocative	शुक (śúka)	शुकौ (śúkau) शुका¹ (śúkā¹)	शुकाः (śúkāḥ) शुकासः¹ (śúkāsaḥ¹)
accusative	शुकम् (śúkam)	शुकौ (śúkau) शुका¹ (śúkā¹)	शुकान् (śúkān)
instrumental	शुकेन (śúkena)	शुकाभ्याम् (śúkābhyām)	शुकैः (śúkaiḥ) शुकेभिः¹ (śúkebhiḥ¹)
dative	शुकाय (śúkāya)	शुकाभ्याम् (śúkābhyām)	शुकेभ्यः (śúkebhyaḥ)
ablative	शुकात् (śúkāt)	शुकाभ्याम् (śúkābhyām)	शुकेभ्यः (śúkebhyaḥ)
genitive	शुकस्य (śúkasya)	शुकयोः (śúkayoḥ)	शुकानाम् (śúkānām)
locative	शुके (śúke)	शुकयोः (śúkayoḥ)	शुकेषु (śúkeṣu)

• ¹Vedic

Descendants

• Ashokan Prakrit: 𑀲𑀼𑀓 (suka)
  • Prakrit: 𑀲𑀼𑀅 (sua), 𑀲𑀼𑀕 (suga), 𑀲𑀼𑀓 (suka) (see there for further descendants)
• Pali: suka

Borrowed terms

• → Bhojpuri:

  Devanagari script: (semi-learned) सूगा (sūgā), सुग्गा (suggā)

  Kaithi script: (semi-learned) 𑂮𑂴𑂏𑂰 (sūgā), 𑂮𑂳𑂏𑂹𑂏𑂰 (suggā)

• → Bengali: শুক (śuk)
• → Hindi: शुक (śuk), (semi-learned) सुग्गा (suggā)
• → Kannada: ಶುಕ (śuka)
• → Magahi:

  Devanagari script: (semi-learned) सुग्गा (suggā)

  Kaithi script: (semi-learned) 𑂮𑂳𑂏𑂹𑂏𑂰 (suggā)

• → Malayalam: ശുകം (śukaṁ)
• → Odia: ଶୁକ (śuka)
• → Punjabi: ਸ਼ੁਕ (śuk)
• → Telugu: శుకము (śukamu)

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

शुक • (śúka) stem, n

1. name of several plants
   1. siris, lebbek tree, Albizia lebbeck
      • c. 400 CE – 700 CE, Amarasiṃha, Amarakośa 2.181.1:

        ग्रन्थिपर्णं शुकं बर्हं पुष्पं स्थौणेयकुक्कुरे

        granthiparṇaṃ śukaṃ barhaṃ puṣpaṃ sthauṇeyakukkure

   2. shrub of the species Ziziphus oenopolia
2. Synonym of ग्रन्थिपर्ण (granthiparṇa, “a kind of perfume”)
3. name of a mythical weapon
   • c. 400 BCE, Mahābhārata

Declension

Neuter a-stem declension of शुक

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	शुकम् (śukam)	शुके (śuke)	शुकानि (śukāni) शुका¹ (śukā¹)
vocative	शुक (śuka)	शुके (śuke)	शुकानि (śukāni) शुका¹ (śukā¹)
accusative	शुकम् (śukam)	शुके (śuke)	शुकानि (śukāni) शुका¹ (śukā¹)
instrumental	शुकेन (śukena)	शुकाभ्याम् (śukābhyām)	शुकैः (śukaiḥ) शुकेभिः¹ (śukebhiḥ¹)
dative	शुकाय (śukāya)	शुकाभ्याम् (śukābhyām)	शुकेभ्यः (śukebhyaḥ)
ablative	शुकात् (śukāt)	शुकाभ्याम् (śukābhyām)	शुकेभ्यः (śukebhyaḥ)
genitive	शुकस्य (śukasya)	शुकयोः (śukayoḥ)	शुकानाम् (śukānām)
locative	शुके (śuke)	शुकयोः (śukayoḥ)	शुकेषु (śukeṣu)

• ¹Vedic

Further reading

• Monier Williams (1899) “शुक”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 1079.
• Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “śúka”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 704
• Hellwig, Oliver (2010–2025) “śuka”, in DCS - The Digital Corpus of Sanskrit, Berlin, Germany.