हंस

See also: हँस, हस, हस्, हँसी, हिंसा, and हाँसो

Hindi

Alternative forms

• हँस (hãs)

Etymology

Borrowed from Sanskrit हंस (haṃsá). Doublet of हाँस (hā̃s).

Pronunciation

• (Delhi Hindi) IPA^(key): /ɦəns/, [ɦɐ̃ns]

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

हंस • (hans) m (Urdu spelling ہنس)

1. swan
2. goose
3. Brahminy duck, Tadorna ferruginea

Declension

Declension of हंस (masc cons-stem)

	singular	plural
direct	हंस hans	हंस hans
oblique	हंस hans	हंसों hansõ
vocative	हंस hans	हंसो hanso

Marathi

Etymology

Borrowed from Sanskrit हंस (haṃsa).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɦəu.sə/

Noun

हंस • (hausa) m

1. swan
2. goose

Pali

Alternative forms

Alternative forms

• haṃsa (Latin script)
• 𑀳𑀁𑀲 (Brahmi script)
• হংস (Bengali script)
• හංස (Sinhalese script)
• ဟံသ or ႁံသ (Burmese script)
• หํส or หังสะ (Thai script)
• ᩉᩴᩈ or ᩉᩘᩈ (Tai Tham script)
• ຫໍສ or ຫັງສະ (Lao script)
• ហំស (Khmer script)
• 𑄦𑄁𑄥 (Chakma script)

Noun

हंस m

1. Devanagari script form of haṃsa (“swan”)

Declension

Declension table of "हंस" (masculine)

Case \ Number	Singular	Plural
Nominative (first)	हंसो (haṃso)	हंसा (haṃsā)
Accusative (second)	हंसं (haṃsaṃ)	हंसे (haṃse)
Instrumental (third)	हंसेन (haṃsena)	हंसेहि (haṃsehi) or हंसेभि (haṃsebhi)
Dative (fourth)	हंसस्स (haṃsassa) or हंसाय (haṃsāya) or हंसत्थं (haṃsatthaṃ)	हंसानं (haṃsānaṃ)
Ablative (fifth)	हंसस्मा (haṃsasmā) or हंसम्हा (haṃsamhā) or हंसा (haṃsā)	हंसेहि (haṃsehi) or हंसेभि (haṃsebhi)
Genitive (sixth)	हंसस्स (haṃsassa)	हंसानं (haṃsānaṃ)
Locative (seventh)	हंसस्मिं (haṃsasmiṃ) or हंसम्हि (haṃsamhi) or हंसे (haṃse)	हंसेसु (haṃsesu)
Vocative (calling)	हंस (haṃsa)	हंसा (haṃsā)

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

Alternative scripts

• হংস (Assamese script)
• ᬳᬂᬲ (Balinese script)
• হংস (Bengali script)
• 𑰮𑰽𑰭 (Bhaiksuki script)
• 𑀳𑀁𑀲 (Brahmi script)
• ဟံသ (Burmese script)
• હંસ (Gujarati script)
• ਹਂਸ (Gurmukhi script)
• 𑌹𑌂𑌸 (Grantha script)
• ꦲꦁꦱ (Javanese script)
• 𑂯𑂁𑂮 (Kaithi script)
• ಹಂಸ (Kannada script)
• ហំស (Khmer script)
• ຫໍສ (Lao script)
• ഹംസ (Malayalam script)
• ᢀ᠋ᡥᠠᠰ᠌ᠠ (Manchu script)
• 𑘮𑘽𑘭 (Modi script)
• ᢀ᠋ᠾᠠᠰᠠ᠋ (Mongolian script)
• 𑧎𑧞𑧍 (Nandinagari script)
• 𑐴𑑄𑐳 (Newa script)
• ହଂସ (Odia script)
• ꢲꢀꢱ (Saurashtra script)
• 𑆲𑆁𑆱 (Sharada script)
• 𑖮𑖽𑖭 (Siddham script)
• හංස (Sinhalese script)
• 𑪂𑪖𑪁 (Soyombo script)
• 𑚩𑚫𑚨 (Takri script)
• ஹஂஸ (Tamil script)
• హంస (Telugu script)
• หํส (Thai script)
• ཧཾ་ས (Tibetan script)
• 𑒯𑓀𑒮 (Tirhuta script)
• 𑨱𑨸𑨰 (Zanabazar Square script)

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-Iranian *ȷ́ʰansás (“goose”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰh₂éns (“goose”). Cognate with Avestan 𐬰𐬁 (zā), Ancient Greek χήν (khḗn), Latin ānser, Latvian zoss, German Gans, Old Irish géiss, Russian гусь (gusʹ), Albanian gatë (“heron”), Old English gōs (whence English goose).

Pronunciation

• (Rigveda) IPA^(key): /ɦɐn.sɐ́/, /ɦɐ̃.s̪ɐ́/
• (Yajurveda chanting) IPA^(key): /ɦɐ.ɡm̩.sɐ́/
• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈɦɐ̃.s̪ɐ/

Noun

हंस • (haṃsá) stem, m

1. a goose, gander, swan, flamingo (or other aquatic bird, considered as a bird of passage)
   • c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda 5.78.1:

     हंसाव्इव पततमा सुताँ उप ॥

     haṃsāviva patatamā sutām̐ upa .

     Like wild geese, fly here to the soma-pressings.

2. sometimes a mere poetical or mythical bird, said in Rigveda to be able to separate Soma from water, when these two fluids are mixed, and in later literature, milk from water when these two are mixed
3. the soul or spirit (typified by the pure white colour of a goose or swan, and migratory like a goose)
4. sometimes "the Universal Soul or Supreme Spirit", identified with Virāj, Nārāyaṇa, Vishnu, Shiva, Kāma, and the Sun
5. (in the dual) "the universal and the individual Spirit"
6. a kind of ascetic
7. a man of supernatural qualities born under a particular constellation
8. an excellent draught-ox (according to some, a buffalo)
9. a temple of a particular form
10. a kind of mantra or mystical text
11. name of two metres
12. (music) a kind of measure
13. a mystical name of the letter 'h'
14. a spiritual preceptor

Declension

Masculine a-stem declension of हंस (haṃsá)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	हंसः haṃsáḥ	हंसौ / हंसा¹ haṃsaú / haṃsā́¹	हंसाः / हंसासः¹ haṃsā́ḥ / haṃsā́saḥ¹
Vocative	हंस háṃsa	हंसौ / हंसा¹ háṃsau / háṃsā¹	हंसाः / हंसासः¹ háṃsāḥ / háṃsāsaḥ¹
Accusative	हंसम् haṃsám	हंसौ / हंसा¹ haṃsaú / haṃsā́¹	हंसान् haṃsā́n
Instrumental	हंसेन haṃséna	हंसाभ्याम् haṃsā́bhyām	हंसैः / हंसेभिः¹ haṃsaíḥ / haṃsébhiḥ¹
Dative	हंसाय haṃsā́ya	हंसाभ्याम् haṃsā́bhyām	हंसेभ्यः haṃsébhyaḥ
Ablative	हंसात् haṃsā́t	हंसाभ्याम् haṃsā́bhyām	हंसेभ्यः haṃsébhyaḥ
Genitive	हंसस्य haṃsásya	हंसयोः haṃsáyoḥ	हंसानाम् haṃsā́nām
Locative	हंसे haṃsé	हंसयोः haṃsáyoḥ	हंसेषु haṃséṣu
Notes	¹Vedic

Descendants

• Magadhi Prakrit:
  • Assamese: হাঁহ (hãh)
  • Bengali: হাঁস (hãs)
  • Sylheti: ꠀꠃꠀ (áúa), ꠀꠁ (áí)
• Paisaci Prakrit:
  • Punjabi: ਹੰਸ (hans)
• Sauraseni Prakrit: 𑀳𑀁𑀲 (haṃsa)
  • Hindi: हाँस (hā̃s)

Borrowed Terms

• → Burmese: ဟင်္သာ (hangsa)
• → Hindi: हंस (hans)
• → Kannada: ಹಂಸ (haṃsa)
• → Khmer: ហង្ស (hɑng)
• → Lao: ຫັງສະ (hang sa)
• → Malay: angsa
  • → Iban: ansa
  • Indonesian: angsa
• → Mon: ဟံသာ (hɔŋsa)
• → Old Javanese: haṅsa, aṅsa
  • Javanese: ꦲꦁꦱ (angsa), ꦒꦁꦱ (gangsa)
  • → Balinese: ᬳᬗ᭄ᬲ (angsa)
• → Shan: ႁင်းသႃႇ (háng sàa)
• → Tamil: ஹம்ஸம் (hamsam) (learned)
• → Telugu: హంస (haṁsa)
• → Thai: หงส์ (hong)

Proper noun

हंस • (haṃsá) stem, m

1. name of a Deva-gandharva
2. name of a Dānava
3. name of a son of Brahmā
4. name of a son of Vasu-deva
5. name of a son of A-riṣṭā
6. name of a son of Brahma-datta and general of Jarā-saṃdha
7. name of various authors etc.
8. name of one of the Moon's horses
9. name of a mountain
10. name of the Brahmans in Plakṣa-dvīpa

Further reading

• Monier Williams (1899) “हंस”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 1286.