Devadasi, Devadāsī, Deva-dasi: 8 definitions

Introduction:

Devadasi means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, the history of ancient India, Marathi. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.

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In Hinduism

Natyashastra (theatrics and dramaturgy)

Source: archive.org: Natya Shastra

Devadāsī (देवदासी) or ‘maid-servants to gods’ seem to have been not only dancers, but also actresses assuming male roles also.

Natyashastra book cover
context information

Natyashastra (नाट्यशास्त्र, nāṭyaśāstra) refers to both the ancient Indian tradition (shastra) of performing arts, (natya—theatrics, drama, dance, music), as well as the name of a Sanskrit work dealing with these subjects. It also teaches the rules for composing Dramatic plays (nataka), construction and performance of Theater, and Poetic works (kavya).

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India history and geography

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Indian Epigraphical Glossary

Deva-dāsī.—(EI 22, 33; LL), a dancing girl attached to a temple; a female temple-servant. See vilāsinī, gaṇikā, mahārī. Note: deva-dāsī is defined in the “Indian epigraphical glossary” as it can be found on ancient inscriptions commonly written in Sanskrit, Prakrit or Dravidian languages.

India history book cover
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The history of India traces the identification of countries, villages, towns and other regions of India, as well as mythology, zoology, royal dynasties, rulers, tribes, local festivities and traditions and regional languages. Ancient India enjoyed religious freedom and encourages the path of Dharma, a concept common to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism.

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Languages of India and abroad

Marathi-English dictionary

Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionary

dēvadāsī (देवदासी).—f (S) A female dancer and courtesan attached to a temple.

Source: DDSA: The Aryabhusan school dictionary, Marathi-English

dēvadāsī (देवदासी).—f A female dancer and court- ezan attached to a temple.

context information

Marathi is an Indo-European language having over 70 million native speakers people in (predominantly) Maharashtra India. Marathi, like many other Indo-Aryan languages, evolved from early forms of Prakrit, which itself is a subset of Sanskrit, one of the most ancient languages of the world.

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Sanskrit dictionary

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Devadāsī (देवदासी).—f. (-sī) A courtezan, especially one employed as a dancer, &c. in a temple. E. deva a deity, and dāsī a female slave.

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1) Devadāsī (देवदासी):—[=deva-dāsī] [from deva-dāsa > deva] f. a temple Nāch-girl, [Religious Thought and Life in India 451]

2) [v.s. ...] the wild citron tree, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Devadāsī (देवदासी):—[deva-dāsī] (sī) 3. f. A courtezan.

context information

Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.

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Kannada-English dictionary

Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpus

Dēvadāsi (ದೇವದಾಸಿ):—[noun] a prostitute attached to a temple as a dancer.

context information

Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.

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