Prakrit

[ prah-krit, -kreet ]

noun

1. any of the vernacular Indic languages of the ancient and medieval periods, as distinguished from Sanskrit.

Prakrit

/ ˈprɑːkrɪt /

noun

1. any of the vernacular Indic languages as distinguished from Sanskrit: spoken from about 300 bc to the Middle Ages See also Pali

Derived Forms

• Praˈkritic, adjective

Other Words From

• Pra·kritic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Prakrit¹

1780–90; < Sanskrit prākṛta, derivative of prakṛti; prakriti

Word History and Origins

Origin of Prakrit¹

C18: from Sanskrit prāktra original, from pra- before + kr to do, make + -ta indicating a participle

Example Sentences

Based on extensive research of Sanskrit and Prakrit texts and drawing upon archaeological data, she presents a more complex picture of Indian history.

From Washington Post

No practice is more demanding than santhara, which was first mentioned in texts written more than 1,500 years ago and derives from a word in the ancient Prakrit language meaning “bed of grass.”

From New York Times

C. Conjugation.—The synthetic conjugation was already commencing to disappear in Prakrit, and in the modern languages the only original tenses which remain are the present, the imperative, and here and there the future.

From Project Gutenberg

In the articles Indo-Aryan Languages and Prakrit the history of the earlier stages of the Indo-Aryan vernaculars is given at some length.

From Project Gutenberg

The Adi Granth is largely in old Punjabi and Hindi, but Prakrit, Persian, Mahratti and Gujrati are also represented.

From Project Gutenberg