मुष्क

See also: मूषक and मूषिक

Sanskrit

Alternative scripts

মুষ্ক (Assamese script)
ᬫᬸᬱ᭄ᬓ (Balinese script)
মুষ্ক (Bengali script)
𑰦𑰲𑰬𑰿𑰎 (Bhaiksuki script)
𑀫𑀼𑀱𑁆𑀓 (Brahmi script)
မုၑ္က (Burmese script)
મુષ્ક (Gujarati script)
ਮੁਸ਼੍ਕ (Gurmukhi script)
𑌮𑍁𑌷𑍍𑌕 (Grantha script)
ꦩꦸꦰ꧀ꦏ (Javanese script)
𑂧𑂳𑂭𑂹𑂍 (Kaithi script)
ಮುಷ್ಕ (Kannada script)
មុឞ្ក (Khmer script)
ມຸຩ຺ກ (Lao script)
മുഷ്ക (Malayalam script)
ᠮᡠᢢᡬᠠ (Manchu script)
𑘦𑘳𑘬𑘿𑘎 (Modi script)
ᠮᠤᢔᢉᠠ (Mongolian script)
𑧆𑧔𑧌𑧠𑦮 (Nandinagari script)
𑐩𑐸𑐲𑑂𑐎 (Newa script)
ମୁଷ୍କ (Odia script)
ꢪꢸꢰ꣄ꢒ (Saurashtra script)
𑆩𑆶𑆰𑇀𑆑 (Sharada script)
𑖦𑖲𑖬𑖿𑖎 (Siddham script)
මුෂ‍්ක (Sinhalese script)
𑩴𑩒𑪀 𑪙𑩜 (Soyombo script)
𑚢𑚰𑚶𑚊 (Takri script)
முஷ்க (Tamil script)
ముష్క (Telugu script)
มุษฺก (Thai script)
མུ་ཥྐ (Tibetan script)
𑒧𑒳𑒭𑓂𑒏 (Tirhuta script)
𑨢𑨃𑨯𑩇𑨋 (Zanabazar Square script)

Etymology

Traditionally derived from मूष् (mūṣ, “mouse”) +‎ -क (-ka, diminutive suffix), the shape of human testicles being compared to mice.^[1]^[2] However, Lubotsky is skeptical of this derivation due to the short u vowel in मुष्क implying the lack of a laryngeal, as opposed to the long ū in मूष्.^[3]

Pronunciation

(Vedic) IPA^(key): /muʂ.kɐ́/
(Classical Sanskrit) IPA^(key): /ˈmuʂ.kɐ/

Noun

मुष्क • (muṣká) stem, m

testicle, scrotum
- c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda
(dual number) pudenda muliebria
(dubious) an arm
a muscular or stout person
a thief
a crowd, heap, multitude

Declension

Masculine a-stem declension of मुष्क (muṣká)
	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	मुष्कः muṣkáḥ	मुष्कौ / मुष्का¹ muṣkaú / muṣkā́¹	मुष्काः / मुष्कासः¹ muṣkā́ḥ / muṣkā́saḥ¹
Vocative	मुष्क múṣka	मुष्कौ / मुष्का¹ múṣkau / múṣkā¹	मुष्काः / मुष्कासः¹ múṣkāḥ / múṣkāsaḥ¹
Accusative	मुष्कम् muṣkám	मुष्कौ / मुष्का¹ muṣkaú / muṣkā́¹	मुष्कान् muṣkā́n
Instrumental	मुष्केण muṣkéṇa	मुष्काभ्याम् muṣkā́bhyām	मुष्कैः / मुष्केभिः¹ muṣkaíḥ / muṣkébhiḥ¹
Dative	मुष्काय muṣkā́ya	मुष्काभ्याम् muṣkā́bhyām	मुष्केभ्यः muṣkébhyaḥ
Ablative	मुष्कात् muṣkā́t	मुष्काभ्याम् muṣkā́bhyām	मुष्केभ्यः muṣkébhyaḥ
Genitive	मुष्कस्य muṣkásya	मुष्कयोः muṣkáyoḥ	मुष्काणाम् muṣkā́ṇām
Locative	मुष्के muṣké	मुष्कयोः muṣkáyoḥ	मुष्केषु muṣkéṣu
Notes	¹Vedic

Descendants

Dardic:
- Kalasha: muṣk, muṣ
→ Middle Persian: mwšk' (mušk)
- Persian: مشک (mošk)
- → Ancient Greek: μόσχος (móskhos)
  - Greek: μόσχος (móschos)
    - → Romanian: mosc
  - → Late Latin: muscus (see there for further descendants)
  - → Translingual: Moschus
→ Old Armenian: մուշկ (mušk) (via an Iranian language)
- Armenian: մուշկ (mušk)
→ Telugu: ముష్కము (muṣkamu)

References

Monier Williams (1899) “मुष्क”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 824/2.

^ Mayrhofer, Manfred (1996) Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan]‎^[1] (in German), volume 2, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, page 363
^ Webster's New World College Dictionary, Cleveland, Ohio: Wiley Publishing Inc., 1953
^ Lubotsky, Alexander (2011) The Indo-Aryan Inherited Lexicon (in progress) (Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Project), Leiden University, page 319

[1] Mayrhofer, Manfred (1996) Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan]‎^[1] (in German), volume 2, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, page 363

[2] Webster's New World College Dictionary, Cleveland, Ohio: Wiley Publishing Inc., 1953

[3] Lubotsky, Alexander (2011) The Indo-Aryan Inherited Lexicon (in progress) (Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Project), Leiden University, page 319

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