Philosophy of Grammar in Ancient India: Reinterpreting the Gargya Controversy in Nirukta 1.12-1.14

Visigalli, Paolo (2023) Philosophy of Grammar in Ancient India: Reinterpreting the Gargya Controversy in Nirukta 1.12-1.14. ACTA ORIENTALIA ACADEMIAE SCIENTIARUM HUNGARICAE, 76 (2). pp. 169-192. ISSN 0001-6446

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Abstract

This paper offers a systematic reinterpretation of the Gargya controversy, a remarkable episode in the his-tory of early India's reflections on language. Recorded in Yaska's Nirukta, this controversy centers on the issue whether all or only certain nouns are 'born from' (i.e., derived from) verbs. While Saka?ayana and the etymologists, including Yaska, believe that all nouns are derivable, Gargya and the grammarians maintain that only morphologically regular nouns are derivable. This paper examines the arguments developed in this controversy and argues that Yaska's belief that all nouns are derivable is not only a linguistic axiom but also reflects non-linguistic concerns pertaining to the raison d'etre assigned to the discipline of etymology and to the belief that the Veda transcends history.

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