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upaṭṭhākassa

upaṭṭhāka

masc dat sg of upaṭṭhāka (noun); masc gen sg of upaṭṭhāka (noun); masc dat sg of upaṭṭhāka (adj); nt dat sg of upaṭṭhāka (adj); …

1. attendant; assistant; lit. who stands near
2. nurse; nursing assistant; lit. who stands near
3. follower; devotee; supporter; lit. standing near
4. attending; supporting; assisting; lit. standing near

Built from

• upa — prefix · near, close to
  Locative and approach: 'up close to' or 'alongside'. Cognate with Greek hypo-, Latin sub-, English up. Concrete proximity → figurative support and attendance.
• ṭhā — root · stand
  Cognate with English stand, German stehen, Sanskrit sthā. The image of standing upright grounds meanings of position, status, and support.
• ka — ending · agentive suffix
  Forms agent nouns ('one who does'). Here with frequentative sense: 'one who habitually stands near'.

Analysis. upa- (up close to, near) + ṭhāka (one who stands), lit. 'one who stands near'; a frequentative derivative of √ṭhā 'to stand'.

Etymology. upa- (approach, nearness; cognate with Greek hypo-, Latin sub-, English up) + √ṭhā (stand; cognate with English stand, German stehen, Sanskrit sthā). The concrete sense 'standing near' becomes 'attending' and 'serving'.

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

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