gopova

gopa

masculine nominative singular + enclitic particle

cowherd; herdsman; cattle guard
guard; watchman; security

Built from

go — root · cow, cattle
From √gam 'go', the cow being the animal that goes/grazes. Cognates: Sanskrit go, Greek bous, English cow (from PIE *gwou-).
pa — root · protect, guard
From √pā 'guard, protect, feed'. Cognate root in English father, Latin pater, Greek patēr—originally 'protector, feeder'.
eva — prefix · emphatic particle
Enclitic particle marking emphasis, identity, or confirmation ('indeed', 'just'). Often attached without sandhi.

Analysis. gopa (cowherd) + eva (emphatic particle 'indeed, just'); or gopa + iva (resemblance particle 'like, as if'). The enclitic marks emphasis or comparison.

Etymology. gopa from go (cow; √gam 'go') + pa (protector; √pā 'guard'). Cognate: Sanskrit go-pā. The root √pā appears in English father (Old English fæder, from PIE *pə-ter 'protector', kinship term based on guarding/feeding), Latin pater, and Greek patēr. The image is of one who herds and guards cattle.

Meanings from the Digital Pāḷi Dictionary; morphology and etymology by Claude.

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