Sanskrit

Sanskrit

Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...

 is a highly inflected

Inflection

In grammar, inflection or inflexion is the modification of a word to express different grammatical categories such as tense, grammatical mood, grammatical voice, aspect, person, number, gender and case...

 language with three grammatical gender

Grammatical gender

Grammatical gender is defined linguistically as a system of classes of nouns which trigger specific types of inflections in associated words, such as adjectives, verbs and others. For a system of noun classes to be a gender system, every noun must belong to one of the classes and there should be...

s (masculine, feminine, neuter) and three numbers (singular, plural, dual). It has eight cases

Grammatical case

In grammar, the case of a noun or pronoun is an inflectional form that indicates its grammatical function in a phrase, clause, or sentence. For example, a pronoun may play the role of subject , of direct object , or of possessor...

: nominative

Nominative case

The nominative case is one of the grammatical cases of a noun or other part of speech, which generally marks the subject of a verb or the predicate noun or predicate adjective, as opposed to its object or other verb arguments...

, vocative

Vocative case

The vocative case is the case used for a noun identifying the person being addressed and/or occasionally the determiners of that noun. A vocative expression is an expression of direct address, wherein the identity of the party being spoken to is set forth expressly within a sentence...

, accusative

Accusative case

The accusative case of a noun is the grammatical case used to mark the direct object of a transitive verb. The same case is used in many languages for the objects of prepositions...

, instrumental

Instrumental case

The instrumental case is a grammatical case used to indicate that a noun is the instrument or means by or with which the subject achieves or accomplishes an action...

, dative

Dative case

The dative case is a grammatical case generally used to indicate the noun to whom something is given, as in "George gave Jamie a drink"....

, ablative

Ablative case

In linguistics, ablative case is a name given to cases in various languages whose common characteristic is that they mark motion away from something, though the details in each language may differ...

, genitive

Genitive case

In grammar, genitive is the grammatical case that marks a noun as modifying another noun...

, and locative

Locative case

Locative is a grammatical case which indicates a location. It corresponds vaguely to the English prepositions "in", "on", "at", and "by"...

 .

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.

Cases

Sanskrit nouns have eight cases

Grammatical case

In grammar, the case of a noun or pronoun is an inflectional form that indicates its grammatical function in a phrase, clause, or sentence. For example, a pronoun may play the role of subject , of direct object , or of possessor...

: nominative

Nominative case

The nominative case is one of the grammatical cases of a noun or other part of speech, which generally marks the subject of a verb or the predicate noun or predicate adjective, as opposed to its object or other verb arguments...

, vocative

Vocative case

The vocative case is the case used for a noun identifying the person being addressed and/or occasionally the determiners of that noun. A vocative expression is an expression of direct address, wherein the identity of the party being spoken to is set forth expressly within a sentence...

, accusative

Accusative case

The accusative case of a noun is the grammatical case used to mark the direct object of a transitive verb. The same case is used in many languages for the objects of prepositions...

, instrumental

Instrumental case

The instrumental case is a grammatical case used to indicate that a noun is the instrument or means by or with which the subject achieves or accomplishes an action...

, dative

Dative case

The dative case is a grammatical case generally used to indicate the noun to whom something is given, as in "George gave Jamie a drink"....

, ablative

Ablative case

In linguistics, ablative case is a name given to cases in various languages whose common characteristic is that they mark motion away from something, though the details in each language may differ...

, genitive

Genitive case

In grammar, genitive is the grammatical case that marks a noun as modifying another noun...

, and locative

Locative case

Locative is a grammatical case which indicates a location. It corresponds vaguely to the English prepositions "in", "on", "at", and "by"...

 . 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 . He defined them as follows (Ashtādhyāyi, I.4.24-54):

1. Apādāna (lit. 'take off'): "(that which is) firm when departure (takes place)." This is the equivalent of the ablative case, which signifies a stationary object from which movement proceeds.
2. Sampradāna ('bestowal'): "he whom one aims at with the object". This is equivalent to the dative case, which signifies a recipient in an act of giving or similar acts.
3. ("instrument") "that which effects most." This is equivalent to the instrumental case.
4. ('location'): or "substratum." This is equivalent to the locative case.
5. Karman ('deed'/'object'): "what the agent seeks most to attain". This is equivalent to the accusative case.
6. Kartā ('agent'): "he/that which is independent in action". This is equivalent to the nominative case. (On the basis of Scharfe, 1977: 94)

The genitive (Sambandha) and vocative (sambuddha) are not included .

Basic noun and adjective declension

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. (-ई -ī)> (-इ -i)> (-ई -ī)> (-इ -i)> (-ई -ī)> (-इ -i)>

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative (Kartā)	-स् -s (-म् -m)
Accusative (Karman)	-अम् -am (-म् -m)
Instrumental (Karaṇa)	-आ -ā
Dative (Sampradāna)	-ए -e
Ablative (Apādāna)	-अस् -as
Genitive (Sambandha)	-अस् -as
Locative (Adhikaraṇa)	-इ -i
Vocative	-स् -s (- -)

a-stems

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		āsyè	āsyàyos		kāntāyām	kāntayos	kāntāsu
Vocative	kā́ma	kā́mau	kā́mās	ā́sya	āsyè	āsyā̀ni	kānte	kānte	kāntās

i- and u-stems

i-stems

Masc. and Fem. (gáti- 'gait')			Neuter (vā́ri- 'water')
Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	gátis	gátī	gátayas	vā́ri
Accusative	gátim	gátī	gátīs	vā́ri
Instrumental	gátyā	gátibhyām	gátibhis		vā́ribhyām	vā́ribhis
Dative	gátaye, gátyāi	gátibhyām	gátibhyas		vā́ribhyām	vā́ribhyas
Ablative	gátes, gátyās	gátibhyām	gátibhyas		vā́ribhyām	vā́ribhyas
Genitive	gátes, gátyās	gátyos	gátīnām
Locative	gátāu, gátyām	gátyos
Vocative	gáte	gátī	gátayas	vā́ri, vā́re

u-stems

Masc. and Fem. (śátru- 'enemy')			Neuter (mádhu- 'honey')
Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	śátrus	śátrū	śátravas	mádhu	mádhunī	mádhūni
Accusative	śátrum	śátrū	śátrūn	mádhu	mádhunī	mádhūni
Instrumental		śátrubhyām	śátrubhis	mádhunā	mádhubhyām	mádhubhis
Dative	śátrave	śátrubhyām	śátrubhyas	mádhune	mádhubhyām	mádhubhyas
Ablative	śátros	śátrubhyām	śátrubhyas	mádhunas	mádhubhyām	mádhubhyas
Genitive	śátros	śátrvos		mádhunas	mádhunos	mádhūnām
Locative	śátrāu	śátrvos		mádhuni	mádhunos
Vocative	śátro	śátrū	śátravas	mádhu	mádhunī	mádhūni

Long Vowel-stems

-stems ( 'progeny')			-stems ( 'thought')			( 'earth')
Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative						dhíyas			bhúvas
Accusative			, jás	dhíyam		dhíyas	bhúvam		bhúvas
Instrumental				dhiyā́
Dative	jé			dhiyé,			bhuvé,
Ablative	jás			dhiyás,			bhuvás,
Genitive	jás	jós		dhiyás,	dhiyós		bhuvás,	bhuvós
Locative	jí	jós		dhiyí,	dhiyós		bhuví,	bhuvós
Vocative	jā́s					dhíyas			bhúvas

-stems

-stems are predominantly agental

Agent (grammar)

In linguistics, a grammatical agent is the cause or initiator of an event. Agent is the name of the thematic role...

derivatives like 'giver', though also include kinship terms like 'father', 'mother', and 'sister'.

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	pitā́	pitárāu	pitáras
Accusative	pitáram	pitárāu
Instrumental	pitrā́
Dative	pitré
Ablative	pitúr
Genitive	pitúr	pitrós
Locative	pitári	pitrós
Vocative	pítar	pitárāu	pitáras

Numerals

The numbers from one to ten are:

1. éka
2. dvá
3. trí
4. catúr
5. pañca
6. ṣáṣ
7. saptá, sápta
8. aṣṭá, áṣṭa
9. náva
10. dáśa

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.