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yathā

indeclinable particle

1. like; as; as per; according to; how; in whatever way
2. because; since
3. (gram) for example; lit. like

Built from

• ya- — root · which, what
  Relative pronoun stem from Proto-Indo-European *kwo-, the same root as English 'who' and Latin 'qui'. Carries the sense of identifying or pointing out.
• -thā — ending · manner, way
  Adverbial suffix forming the ablative or locative sense, freezing the case into an indeclinable particle. Common in Pali adverbial formations (kathaṁ 'how', athā 'then').

Etymology. From yad- (relative pronoun, 'which, what') + -thā (ablative/locative suffix forming adverbs of manner). Cognate with Sanskrit yathā; the root yad- is related to Latin qui, quid and English who, what (all from Proto-Indo-European *kwo-). The suffix -thā appears also in athā 'then' and kathaṁ 'how' and derives from an old ablative or locative case ending.

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

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