Personal and geographical names in the Gupta inscriptions/Conclusion III
Concept Publishing Company Delhi, 1978
| The full text of this chapter has been converted into Wiki format by Laxman Burdak |
Conclusion III
We have seen from the Place-names discussed earlier that they were named either after some hero, just as Gaya from Gayasura, Nepala from the name of "Ne" ṛṣi, or after deities just as Piṣṭapura, named after Pistapurika goddess. Other examples are Indrapura named after God Indra, Devarastra named after some unspecified god. Some places were named after number, just as Kotivarsa, Pancakulyavapaka, Pancanagari. The other category of place-names includes names derived either from some natural surrounding just as Trivrta, having (good) surroundings on the three sides; Vatodaka, surrounded by water; Krmila, full of krmis or insects; Tumbavana, abounding in Tumba plants; or from the name of a tree just as Vaṭagohali, PalaSavrndaka, Lavangasika (the clove tree); Erandapalla, named after Eranda plant. In some cases the names point out the geographical situation, just as Adyapatha, Uttaramandala, Daksinapatha, Daksinamsaka-vlthi, Vindhyatavl, Gosata- punjaka, Airikina, Samgohalikagrama, Surastra, Kanci, Donga-grama, Samatata.
The place names were named after Tribes just as Pundra- vardhana named after the Pundras ; Vanga after Vangas; Aryyavarta after the Aryas; Kakanadabota after the Kakas; Mulanagiratta and Nagirattamandala after the Nagas. Some place-names seem to have been based on proper names, e.g. Midu-vilala-ksetra, Jolari-ksetra, Mahipala-ksetra, Pakkavilala- ksetra.
The second part of the geographical names is a place-name suffix which usually denotes the size or the nature of the place. The examples are the suffixes pura, palli, rastra, rajya, Pradesa, Desa, Nagara, Varsa, Visaya, bhukti, mapdala, nauyoga, patha, ksetra, gohali, puskarini, vithi, pottaka, pataka, padvika. We have found some place-names which may be categorised as the abbreviated place-names. Either
306 Personal and geographical names in the Gupta inscriptions
the suffix has been submerged in the name due to the prakritisation or it has been dropped. The examples are Davaka, Kurala, Avamukta, Nepala, Palakka, Vengi, Krmila, etc.