# जम्बु
## Pali
### Alternative forms

* jambu (Latin script)
* 𑀚𑀫𑁆𑀩𑀼 (Brahmi script)
* জম্বু (Bengali script)
* ජම‍්බු (Sinhalese script)
* ဇမ္ဗု or ၹမ္ၿု or ၹမ်ၿု (Burmese script)
* ชมฺพุ or ชัมพุ (Thai script)
* ᨩᨾᩛᩩ (Tai Tham script)
* ຊມ຺ພຸ or ຊັມພຸ (Lao script)
* ជម្ពុ (Khmer script)
* 𑄎𑄟𑄴𑄝𑄪 (Chakma script)

### Noun

जम्बु f
* Devanagari script form of jambu

#### Declension
## Sanskrit
### Alternative forms

* जम्बू (jambū)

### Alternative scripts

* জম্বু (Assamese script)
* ᬚᬫ᭄ᬩᬸ (Balinese script)
* জম্বু (Bengali script)
* 𑰕𑰦𑰿𑰤𑰲 (Bhaiksuki script)
* 𑀚𑀫𑁆𑀩𑀼 (Brahmi script)
* ဇမ္ဗု (Burmese script)
* જમ્બુ (Gujarati script)
* ਜਮ੍ਬੁ (Gurmukhi script)
* 𑌜𑌮𑍍𑌬𑍁 (Grantha script)
* ꦗꦩ꧀ꦧꦸ (Javanese script)
* 𑂔𑂧𑂹𑂥𑂳 (Kaithi script)
* ಜಮ್ಬು (Kannada script)
* ជម្ពុ (Khmer script)
* ຊມ຺ພຸ (Lao script)
* ജമ്ബു (Malayalam script)
* ᡯᠠᠮᠪᡠ (Manchu script)
* 𑘕𑘦𑘿𑘤𑘳 (Modi script)
* ᠽᠠᠮᠪᠤ (Mongolian script)
* 𑦵𑧆𑧠𑧄𑧔 (Nandinagari script)
* 𑐖𑐩𑑂𑐧𑐸 (Newa script)
* ଜମ୍ବୁ (Odia script)
* ꢙꢪ꣄ꢨꢸ (Saurashtra script)
* 𑆘𑆩𑇀𑆧𑆶 (Sharada script)
* 𑖕𑖦𑖿𑖤𑖲 (Siddham script)
* ජම‍්බු (Sinhalese script)
* 𑩣𑩴 𑪙𑩲𑩒 (Soyombo script)
* 𑚑𑚢𑚶𑚠𑚰 (Takri script)
* ஜம்பு³ (Tamil script)
* జమ్బు (Telugu script)
* ชมฺพุ (Thai script)
* ཛ་མྦུ (Tibetan script)
* 𑒖𑒧𑓂𑒥𑒳 (Tirhuta script)
* 𑨥𑨢𑩇𑨠𑨃 (Zanabazar Square script)

### Etymology

Of uncertain origin. Related to Sanskrit जम्बुल (jambula), जम्बूल (jambūla), जम्बाल (jambāla), *जम्बून (jambūna), *जम्बुरुल्ल (jamburulla, “Syzygium cumini; Pandanus odorifer”).
Perhaps together with Sanskrit जम्बीर (jambīra, “citron tree”) borrowed from a non-Aryan substrate. Might be related to Middle Armenian դամոն (damon, “damson plum”), Armenian դամբուլ (dambul, “a variety of plum”) and other words found in Native Caucasian languages listed there. S. L. Nikolayev and S. A. Starostin propose a Caucasian origin.

### Noun

जम्बु • (jambu) stem, f
* the jambul tree (Syzygium cumini, syn. Eugenia jambolana, or certain other species of Syzygium)
    Synonym: जम्बुल (jambula)
** Kauś 8
** c. 400 BCE, Mahābhārata

#### Usage notes

* Many dictionaries of Sanskrit identify this term as originally referring to the rose apple (Syzygium jambos). However, as pointed out by Wujastyk, this identification is clearly erroneous; Indian botanical descriptions of the jambu correspond to Syzygium cumini, not Syzygium jambos. Furthermore, Syzygium jambosis not known in India before the early modern period, while attestations of jambu date back to before the Common Era. This confusion may have originated since reflexes of the term can refer to Syzygium jambos in many Southeast Asian languages.
* Meister claims that jambu may have originally referred to the jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) based on what he identifies as sculptural depictions of the jambu. However, most modern Indo-Aryan languages refer to the jackfruit using descendants of Sanskrit पनस (panasa).

#### Derived terms

* जम्बुद्वीप (jambudvīpa)
* *जम्बुकाष्ठ (jambukāṣṭha)
* *जम्बुरुक्ष (jamburukṣa)

### Noun

जम्बु • (jambu) stem, n
* the jambul fruit
** c. 600 BCE – 400 BCE, Pāṇini

#### Descendants

* Prakrit: 𑀚𑀁𑀩𑀽 (jaṃbū)
** Assamese: জামু (zamu), জাম (zam)
** Bengali: জাম (jam)
** Helu Prakrit:
*** Dhivehi: ދަނބު (daᵐbu)
** Gujarati: જાંબુ (jā̃bu)
** Hindi: जामु (jāmu)
** Marathi: जांब (jāmba)
** Nepali: जामु (jāmu)
* Pali: jambu
* → Chinese: 閻浮 / 阎浮 (yánfú)
* → Dhivehi: ޖަންބު (jan̊bu)
* → Old Javanese: jambu
** Javanese: ꦗꦩ꧀ꦧꦸ (jambu)
** → Malay: jambu
* → Old Khmer: jamvū
** Khmer: ជម្ពូ (cumpuu)
* → Portuguese: jambo
* → Sinhalese: ජම්බු (jambu)
* → Spanish: yambo
* Telugu: జంబువు (jambuvu)
* → Thai: ชมพู่ (chom-pûu), ชมพู (chom-puu)

### References

* ↑ Mayrhofer, Manfred (1956) Kurzgefasstes Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindischen [A Concise Etymological Sanskrit Dictionary]‎ (in German), volume I, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, pages 418–419
* ↑ Mayrhofer, Manfred (1992) Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan]‎ (in German), volume I, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, page 571
* ↑ Turner, Ralph Lilley (1931) “जामुनु”, in A comparative and etymological dictionary of the Nepali language, London: K. Paul, Trench, Trubner, page 215a
* ↑ Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “jambula”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 283
* ↑ Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “jambāla¹”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 283
* ↑ Kuiper, F. B. J. (1948) Proto-Munda Words In Sanskrit‎, Amsterdam: N.V. Noord-Hollandsche Uitgevers Maatschappij, page 27
* ↑ https://starling.rinet.ru/cgi-bin/response.cgi?single=1&basename=%2fdata%2fcauc%2fcaucet&text_number=1276&root=config
* ↑ Dominik Wujastyk (2004) “Jambudvīpa: apples or plums?”, in Jan P. Hogendijk, Kim Plofker, Michio Yano, and Charles Burnett, editors, Studies in the History of the Exact Sciences in Honour of David Pingree (Islamic Philosophy, Theology and Science. Texts and Studies; 54), Leiden: Brill, →DOI, →ISBN, pages 287-301
* ↑ Michael W. Meister (2009) “Exploring Kafirkot: When is a Rose Apple not a Rose?”, in Ihsan Ali, Ibrahim Shah, Dr. Ruth Young, editors, Pakistan Heritage, volume 1, Hazara University Department of Archaeology, →ISSN, pages 109-128

### Further reading

* “जम्बु” in Carl Cappeller, A Sanskrit–English Dictionary: Based upon the St. Petersburg Lexicons, Strasbourg: Karl J. Trübner, 1891, →OCLC, page 181, column 2.
* Arthur Anthony Macdonell (1893) “जम्बु”, in A practical Sanskrit dictionary with transliteration, accentuation, and etymological analysis throughout, London: Oxford University Press, page 099
* Monier Williams (1899) “Jambū”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 412, column 3.