Sanskrit is a highly inflected language with three grammatical genders (masculine, feminine, neuter) and three numbers (singular, plural, dual). It has eight cases: nominative, vocative, accusative, instrumental, dative, ablative, genitive, and locative [1].
Nouns are grouped into "declensions", which are sets of nouns that form their cases in a similar manner. In this article they are divided into five declensions. The declension to which a noun belongs is determined largely by form.
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Sanskrit nouns have eight cases: nominative, vocative, accusative, instrumental, dative, ablative, genitive, and locative [2]. Of these eight cases, Pāṇini identified six as kārakas, or accessories to a verb. The six kārakas are the nominative, accusative, dative, instrumental, locative, and ablative cases [3]. He defined them as follows (Ashtādhyāyi, I.4.24-54):
The genitive (Sambandha) and vocative (sambuddha) are not included [4].
The basic scheme of suffixation is given in the table below—valid for almost all nouns and adjectives. However, according to the gender and the ending consonant/vowel of the uninflected word-stem, there are predetermined rules of compulsory sandhi which would then give the final inflected word. The parentheses give the case-terminations for the neuter gender, the rest are for masculine and feminine gender. Both devanagari script and IAST transliterations are given.
Singular | Dual | Plural | |
---|---|---|---|
Nominative (Kartā) |
-स् -s (-म् -m) |
-औ -au (-ई -ī) |
-अस् -as (-इ -i) |
Accusative (Karman) |
-अम् -am (-म् -m) |
-औ -au (-ई -ī) |
-अस् -as (-इ -i) |
Instrumental (Karaṇa) |
-आ -ā | -भ्याम् -bhyām | -भिस् -bhis |
Dative (Sampradāna) |
-ए -e | -भ्याम् -bhyām | -भ्यस् -bhyas |
Ablative (Apādāna) |
-अस् -as | -भ्याम् -bhyām | -भ्यस् -bhyas |
Genitive (Sambandha) |
-अस् -as | -ओस् -os | -आम् -ām |
Locative (Adhikaraṇa) |
-इ -i | -ओस् -os | -सु -su |
Vocative | -स् -s (- -) |
-औ -au (-ई -ī) |
-अस् -as (-इ -i) |
A-stems (/ə/ or /aː/) comprise the largest class of nouns. As a rule, nouns belonging to this class, with the uninflected stem ending in short-a (/ə/), are either masculine or neuter. Nouns ending in long-A (/aː/) are almost always feminine. A-stem adjectives take the masculine and neuter in short-a (/ə/), and feminine in long-A (/aː/) in their stems. This class is so big because it also comprises the Proto-Indo-European o-stems.
Masculine (kāma-) | Neuter (āsya- 'mouth') | Feminine (kānta- 'beloved') | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Dual | Plural | Singular | Dual | Plural | Singular | Dual | Plural | |
Nominative | kā́mas | kā́mau | kā́mās | āsyàm | āsyè | āsyā̀ni | kāntā | kānte | kāntās |
Accusative | kā́mam | kā́mau | kā́mān | āsyàm | āsyè | āsyā̀ni | kāntām | kānte | kāntās |
Instrumental | kā́mena | kā́mābhyām | kā́mais | āsyèna | āsyā̀bhyām | āsyāìs | kāntayā | kāntābhyām | kāntābhis |
Dative | kā́māya | kā́mābhyām | kā́mebhyas | āsyā̀ya | āsyā̀bhyām | āsyèbhyas | kāntāyai | kāntābhyām | kāntābhyās |
Ablative | kā́māt | kā́mābhyām | kā́mebhyas | āsyā̀t | āsyā̀bhyām | āsyèbhyas | kāntāyās | kāntābhyām | kāntābhyās |
Genitive | kā́masya | kā́mayos | kā́mānām | āsyàsya | āsyàyos | āsyā̀nām | kāntāyās | kāntayos | kāntānām |
Locative | kā́me | kā́mayos | kā́meṣu | āsyè | āsyàyos | āsyèṣu | kāntāyām | kāntayos | kāntāsu |
Vocative | kā́ma | kā́mau | kā́mās | ā́sya | āsyè | āsyā̀ni | kānte | kānte | kāntās |
Masculine (agní- 'fire') | Feminine (gáti- 'gait') | Neuter (vā́ri- 'water') | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Dual | Plural | Singular | Dual | Plural | Singular | Dual | Plural | |
Nominative | agnís | agnī́ | agnáyas | gátis | gátī | gátayas | vā́ri | vā́riṇī | vā́rīṇi |
Accusative | agním | agnī́ | agnī́n | gátim | gátī | gátīs | vā́ri | vā́riṇī | vā́rīṇi |
Instrumental | agnínā | agníbhyām | agníbhis | gátyā | gátibhyām | gátibhis | vā́riṇā | vā́ribhyām | vā́ribhis |
Dative | agnáye | agníbhyām | agníbhyas | gátaye, gátyāi | gátibhyām | gátibhyas | vā́riṇe | vā́ribhyām | vā́ribhyas |
Ablative | agnés | agníbhyām | agníbhyas | gátes, gátyās | gátibhyām | gátibhyas | vā́riṇas | vā́ribhyām | vā́ribhyas |
Genitive | agnés | agnyós | agnīnā́m | gátes, gátyās | gátyos | gátīnām | vā́riṇas | vā́riṇos | vā́riṇām |
Locative | agnāú | agnyós | agníṣu | gátāu, gátyām | gátyos | gátiṣu | vā́riṇi | vā́riṇos | vā́riṣu |
Vocative | ágne | agnī́ | agnáyas | gáte | gátī | gátayas | vā́ri, vā́re | vā́riṇī | vā́rīṇi |
Masculine (śátru- 'enemy') | Feminine (dhenú- 'cow') | Neuter (mádhu- 'honey') | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Dual | Plural | Singular | Dual | Plural | Singular | Dual | Plural | |
Nominative | śátrus | śátrū | śátravas | dhenús | dhenū́ | dhenávas | mádhu | mádhunī | mádhūni |
Accusative | śátrum | śátrū | śátrūn | dhenúm | dhenū́ | dhenū́s | mádhu | mádhunī | mádhūni |
Instrumental | śátruṇā | śátrubhyām | śátrubhis | dhenvā́ | dhenúbhyām | dhenúbhis | mádhunā | mádhubhyām | mádhubhis |
Dative | śátrave | śátrubhyām | śátrubhyas | dhenáve, dhenvāí | dhenúbhyām | dhenúbhyas | mádhune | mádhubhyām | mádhubhyas |
Ablative | śátros | śátrubhyām | śátrubhyas | dhenós, dhenvā́s | dhenúbhyām | dhenúbhyas | mádhunas | mádhubhyām | mádhubhyas |
Genitive | śátros | śátrvos | śátrūṇām | dhenós, dhenvā́s | dhenvós | dhenūnā́m | mádhunas | mádhunos | mádhūnām |
Locative | śátrāu | śátrvos | śátruṣu | dhenāú, dhenvā́m | dhenvós | dhenúṣu | mádhuni | mádhunos | mádhuṣu |
Vocative | śátro | śátrū | śátravas | dhéno | dhenū́ | dhenávas | mádhu | mádhunī | mádhūni |
ā-stems (jā- 'progeny') | ī-stems (dhī- 'thought') | ū-stems (bhū- 'earth') | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Dual | Plural | Singular | Dual | Plural | Singular | Dual | Plural | |
Nominative | jā́s | jāú | jā́s | dhī́s | dhíyāu | dhíyas | bhū́s | bhúvāu | bhúvas |
Accusative | jā́m | jāú | jā́s, jás | dhíyam | dhíyāu | dhíyas | bhúvam | bhúvāu | bhúvas |
Instrumental | jā́ | jā́bhyām | jā́bhis | dhiyā́ | dhībhyā́m | dhībhís | bhuvā́ | bhūbhyā́m | bhūbhís |
Dative | jé | jā́bhyām | jā́bhyas | dhiyé, dhiyāí | dhībhyā́m | dhībhyás | bhuvé, bhuvāí | bhūbhyā́m | bhūbhyás |
Ablative | jás | jā́bhyām | jā́bhyas | dhiyás, dhiyā́s | dhībhyā́m | dhībhyás | bhuvás, bhuvā́s | bhūbhyā́m | bhūbhyás |
Genitive | jás | jós | jā́nām, jā́m | dhiyás, dhiyā́s | dhiyós | dhiyā́m, dhīnā́m | bhuvás, bhuvā́s | bhuvós | bhuvā́m, bhūnā́m |
Locative | jí | jós | jā́su | dhiyí, dhiyā́m | dhiyós | dhīṣú | bhuví, bhuvā́m | bhuvós | bhūṣú |
Vocative | jā́s | jāú | jā́s | dhī́s | dhiyāu | dhíyas | bhū́s | bhuvāu | bhúvas |
ṛ-stems are predominantly agental derivatives like dātṛ 'giver', though also include kinship terms like pitṛ́ 'father', mātṛ́ 'mother', and svásṛ 'sister'.
Singular | Dual | Plural | |
---|---|---|---|
Nominative | pitā́ | pitárāu | pitáras |
Accusative | pitáram | pitárāu | pitṝ́n |
Instrumental | pitrā́ | pitṛ́bhyām | pitṛ́bhis |
Dative | pitré | pitṛ́bhyām | pitṛ́bhyas |
Ablative | pitúr | pitṛ́bhyām | pitṛ́bhyas |
Genitive | pitúr | pitrós | pitṝṇā́m |
Locative | pitári | pitrós | pitṛ́ṣu |
Vocative | pítar | pitárāu | pitáras |
The numbers from one to ten are:
The numbers one through four are declined. Éka is declined like a pronominal adjective, though the dual form does not occur. Dvá appears only in the dual. Trí and catúr are declined irregularly.