Sandhi Overview A4

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SANDHI

(Numbers indicate chapter of introduction.)

1) EXTERNAL SANDHI (11, 13, 16)


Sanskrit words regularly change their pronunciation when they stand together with other words.
Sanskrit spelling marks all these changes. This process is called external sandhi, and its general
principles are quite simple:

1) The last sound of a word changes, depending on the first sound of the next word. Sometimes,
that first sound also changes.
2) A consonant at the end of a word becomes more similar to the first sound of the next word.
3) A vowel at the end of a word interacts (and often merges) with a following vowel, but remains
the same when a consonant follows.

Overview of external sandhi (fields before voiced initial sounds are shaded).
F I N A L S O U N D
k ṭ t p ṅ n m ḥ āḥ aḥ
k ṭ t p ṅ n m ḥ āḥ aḥ zero
g ḍ d b ṅ/ ṅṅ 1 n/nn1 m r ā a2 vowels

I
N I T I A L
k ṭ t p ṅ n ṃ ḥ āḥ aḥ k/kh
g ḍ d b ṅ n ṃ r ā o g/gh
k ṭ c p ṅ ṃś3 ṃ ś āś aś c/ch
g ḍ j b ṅ ñ ṃ r ā o j/jh
S
k ṭ ṭ p ṅ ṃṣ3 ṃ ṣ āṣ aṣ ṭ/ṭh
O U N D

g ḍ ḍ b ṅ ṇ ṃ r ā o ḍ/ḍh
k ṭ t p ṅ ṃs3 ṃ s ās as t/th
WO

g ḍ d b ṅ n ṃ r ā o d/dh
R D
O F

k ṭ t p ṅ n ṃ ḥ āḥ aḥ p/ph
g ḍ d b ṅ n ṃ r ā o b/bh
F

ṅ ṇ n m ṅ n ṃ r ā o n/m
O L L O W I N G

g ḍ d b ṅ n ṃ r ā o y/v
g ḍ d b ṅ n ṃ ø6 ā o r
g ḍ l b ṅ 7 ṃ r ā o l
k ṭ c (ch)4 p ṅ ñ (ś/ch)4 ṃ ḥ āḥ aḥ ś
k ṭ t p ṅ n ṃ ḥ āḥ aḥ ṣ/s
g (gh)4 ḍ (ḍh)4 4
d (dh) b (bh)4 ṅ n ṃ r ā o h
1 When word-final -n (or more rarely, -ṅ) is preceded by a short vowel and the next word begins with a
vowel, the -n/ṅ doubles: smayan iva –› smayann iva. 2 Exception: -aḥ + a- –› -o ऽ-: naraḥ asti –› naro ’sti
(नरो ऽिस्त). 3 Between a word-final -n and any initial sound that is formed using the tongue (c-/ch-, ṭ-/ṭh-,
t-/th-), an s-sound is inserted. Before the palatal c/ch, the palatal ś is added; before the retroflex ṭ/ṭh, a
retroflex ṣ, and before dental t/th, a dental s. Before the s-sound, the n turns into anusvāra ṃ: kasmin cit
–› kasmiṃś cit. 4 While sandhi primarily affects the word-final sounds, there are a few cases in which the
initial sound of the next word is also affected: agacchat hi –› agacchad dhi. The new forms of these word-
initial sounds are given in brackets after the sandhied word-final consonants in the grid. 5 If a short vowel
precedes, that vowel is lengthened. E.g. बुिद्धः रक्षित –› बुद्धी रक्षित ‘Wisdom protects.’ 6 The sign used above the
l is the anunāsika. Its devanāgarī representation is ◌ँ , and it is pronounced like an anusvāra, yet it nasalises
consonants, not vowels. (Pronounce it by pronouncing an l while at the same time producing the hum-
like nasalised sound of the anusvāra.)

Summary of external visarga sandhi


Initial Sound
Final sound a) voiced b) unvoiced, except c) c) palatal, retroflex or dental stop
(palatal) -ś, (retroflex) -ṣ, (dental)
-ḥ -r
-s
-āḥ -ā -āś, -āṣ, -ās
-ḥ
-o,
-aḥ except before -aś, -aṣ, -as
vowels: -a
Exception 1: -aḥ + a- –› -o ऽ- Exception 2: -iḥ/-uḥ + r- –› -ī/-ū r-
Exception 3: Original final -r remains as -r in front of all initial voiced sounds except r-: e.g.
punaratra

Overview of vowel sandhi


FINAL VOWELS
ṛ e ai o au
ā ya va ra e ’ ā a o ’ āva a
INITIAL VOWELS

ā yā vā rā a ā ā ā a ā āvā ā
e ī v r a ā a āv
o y ū r a ā a āv
ar yṛ vṛ ṝ a ṛ ā ṛ a ṛ āvṛ ṛ
ai ye ve re ae ā e a e āve e
ai yai vai rai a ai ā ai a ai āvai ai
au yo vo ro a o ā o a o āvo o
au yau vau rau a au ā au a au āvau au
indicate that the short and long vowels (e.g. short ă and long ā) behave in the same way here.
Shaded columns: complex vowels whose original second element is dropped before a following vowel.
Note: After final -e and -o, initial a- drops out. To avoid confusion, the former presence of the a- is
marked in writing with the avagraha ऽ/an apostrophe ’ in transliteration:
वने अिस्त vane asti –› वने ऽिस्त vane ’sti.

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