# क

| क | U+0915, &#2325; DEVANAGARI LETTER KA |
| ← औ [U+0914] | Devanagari | ख → [U+0916] |

## Translingual
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /kə/

### Letter

क (ka)
* the Devanagari script’s unvoiced, unaspirated guttural consonant; k /k/

#### See also

This letter creates several irregular ligatures.
* क्त (kt) (kta): क + त
* क्ष (kṣ) (kṣa): क + ष

## Dhivehi
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [kə]

### Letter

क • (ka)
* The eighth consonant in Dhivehi, written in Devanagari

## Hindi
### Pronunciation

* (Delhi) IPA: /kə/, [kɐ]

### Letter

क • (ka)
* the first consonant in Hindi

#### See also

* (nuqta form): क़ (qa)
* Devanagari script letters: अ, आ, इ, ई, उ, ऊ, ऋ, ए, ऐ, ओ, औ, अं, अः, अँ, क, ख, ग, घ, ङ, च, छ, ज, झ, ञ, ट, ठ, ड, ढ, ण, त, थ, द, ध, न, प, फ, ब, भ, म, य, र, ल, व, श, ष, स, ह, त्र, ज्ञ, क्ष, क़, ख़, ग़, ज़, झ़, ड़, ढ़, फ़

## Marathi
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /kə/
* Audio:(file)

### Letter

क • (ka)
* The first consonant in Marathi.

## Nepali
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [kʌ]
* Phonetic Devanagari: क

### Letter

क • (ka)
* The first consonant in Nepali.

## Pali
### Alternative forms

* ka (Latin script)
* 𑀓 (Brahmi script)
* ক (Bengali script)
* ක (Sinhalese script)
* က or ၵ (Burmese script)
* ก or กะ (Thai script)
* ᨠ (Tai Tham script)
* ກ or ກະ (Lao script)
* ក (Khmer script)
* 𑄇 (Chakma script)

### Pronoun

क m
* Devanagari script form of ka (“who (m.)”)
** c. 500 AD, Kaccāyana, Pālivyākaraṇaṃ [Pali Grammar]‎ (overall work in Pali), page 2; republished as Satish Chandra Acharyya Vidyabhusana, editor, Kaccayana's Pali Grammar (edited in Devanagari character and translated into English), Calcutta, Bengal: Mahabodhi Society, 1901:अक्खर इच्‍चनेन क्वत्‍थो? अत्थो अक्खर-सञ्ञातोAkkhara iccanena kvattho? Attho akkhara-saññāto.What is the meaning of this, viz. a 'letter'? The meaning comes from being skilled in letters.

#### Declension
### Pronoun

क n
* Devanagari script form of ka (“what”)

#### Declension
## Sanskrit
### Alternative scripts

* ক (Assamese script)
* ᬓ (Balinese script)
* ক (Bengali script)
* 𑰎 (Bhaiksuki script)
* 𑀓 (Brahmi script)
* က (Burmese script)
* ક (Gujarati script)
* ਕ (Gurmukhi script)
* 𑌕 (Grantha script)
* ꦏ (Javanese script)
* 𑂍 (Kaithi script)
* ಕ (Kannada script)
* ក (Khmer script)
* ກ (Lao script)
* ക (Malayalam script)
* ᡬᠠ (Manchu script)
* 𑘎 (Modi script)
* ᢉᠠ (Mongolian script)
* 𑦮 (Nandinagari script)
* 𑐎 (Newa script)
* କ (Odia script)
* ꢒ (Saurashtra script)
* 𑆑 (Sharada script)
* 𑖎 (Siddham script)
* ක (Sinhalese script)
* 𑩜 (Soyombo script)
* 𑚊 (Takri script)
* க (Tamil script)
* క (Telugu script)
* ก (Thai script)
* ཀ (Tibetan script)
* 𑒏 (Tirhuta script)
* 𑨋 (Zanabazar Square script)

### Pronunciation

* (Vedic) IPA: /kɐ/
* (Classical Sanskrit) IPA: /kɐ/
* (Vedic) IPA: /kɐ́/
* (Classical Sanskrit) IPA: /kɐ/

### Etymology 1

From Proto-Indo-Aryan *kás, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *kás, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷós. Cognate with Avestan 𐬐𐬀 (ka), Ancient Greek ποῖος (poîos), Latin quis, Old English hwā (whence English who).

#### Pronoun

क • (ká)
* interrogative pronoun; who, what, which
    सः कः? ― saḥ kaḥ? ― Who is he?
    एषः कः? ― eṣaḥ kaḥ? ― What is this?

##### Usage notes

Sentences beginning with क (ka) are often terminated with इति (iti).

##### Declension

See किम् (kim).

### Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

#### Noun

क • (ka) stem, m
* a name
** name of (a) प्रजापति (prajāpati)
** name of ब्रह्मन् (brahman)
** name of दक्ष (dakṣa)
** name of विष्णु (viṣṇu)
** name of यम (yama)
** name of गरुड (garuḍa)
* the soul
* a particular comet
* the sun
* fire
* splendor, light
* air
* a peacock
* the body
* time
* wealth
* sound
* a king
* Synonym of कामग्रन्थि (kāmagranthi)

##### Declension

* ¹Vedic

### Etymology 3

From कम् (kam, “to wish, desire, love”).

#### Noun

क • (ka) stem, n
* happiness, joy, pleasure
* water
* the head
* hair, a head of hair

##### Declension

* ¹Vedic

### References

* Monier Williams (1899) “क”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, […], new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 247/2.
* Mayrhofer, Manfred (1992) Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen [Etymological Dictionary of Old Indo-Aryan]‎ (in German), volume 1, Heidelberg: Carl Winter Universitätsverlag, pages 284-285