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kālaṅkatā

kālaṅkata

masc nom pl of kālaṅkata (pp); fem nom sg of kālaṅkata (pp); fem nom pl of kālaṅkata (pp); nt nom pl of kālaṅkata (pp); …

1. died; dead; deceased; passed away (in); lit. done (one's) time
2. death (of); lit. done (one's) time
3. dead person; deceased; lit. done (one's) time

Built from

• kāla — root · time
  From √kal 'measure, count'. The concrete sense is a span or interval marked out; applied to seasons, years, and the duration of life.
• ṅ — prefix · nasal marker
  Anusvara before -k- assimilates the point of articulation, converting kar- to ṅkar-. This is phonological, not morphemic.
• kata — ending · done, made (past participle)
  Past participle -ta of √kar 'do, make'. Marks completed action: 'one who has done (his) time', i.e. died or lived out his span.

Analysis. kāla (time) + ṅkata (past participle suffix -ta of √kar 'do, make'), with anusvara: 'one who has done time', hence dead or having completed one's lifespan.

Etymology. Compound of kāla 'time, season' (Sanskrit kāla, from √kal 'measure out'; cognate with English 'calendar') and the past participle of √kar 'make, do' (Sanskrit √kr̥, from Proto-Indo-European *ker- 'to make, create'; cognates: English 'create', Latin 'creare'). The imagery is spatial: time as a measured span one traverses and completes.

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

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