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puratthimena

puratthima

masc instr sg of puratthima (adj); nt instr sg of puratthima (adj)

1. puratthima (adj): eastern
2. puratthimena (ind): to the east (of); lit. with the east
3. puratthima (adj): front; fore

Built from

• pura — root · front, forth
  From the root meaning 'before, ahead' (cognate with English fore, Latin pro-, Greek pro-). The spatial sense of facing forward naturalized the east as the cardinal direction of approach.
• tthima — ending · superlative (most, -est)
  Superlative suffix (akin to Sanskrit -tama) marking the most extreme or chief instance. Here it emphasizes 'easternmost' or 'the forward direction par excellence'.

Analysis. Compound: pura- (front, fore) + atthima (easternmost), literally 'front-most' or directionally 'toward the east (the quarter ahead)'.

Etymology. Sanskrit puraḥ (before, in front) + atthima (superlative of existing directional), from pura- meaning 'in front, forward' (cognate with English fore, Greek pro-, Latin pro-) and a superlative suffix -thima (akin to Sanskrit -tama). The east was conceived as the primary direction (the direction one faced), hence pura- (forward/front) came to mean 'eastward'.

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

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