Vya-/ Bya- alternation

Dear Yuttadhammo,

The by- form could be considered the more authentic Pali /Prakrit
version while the vy- form has arisen in Pali under later Sanskrit
influence. Both forms occur in manuscripts. There has been a constant
trend during transmission of Pali texts to change Pali/Prakrit forms
(back) to Sanskrit forms.
According to Geiger the Sanskrit consonant combination -vy- has usually
been changed to -bb- via -vv- in Paali, but sometimes it has been
retained or re-introduced by editors; see Pali Grammar para 54,6. A good
example is udayabbaya/udayavaya. Geiger discusses changes from Sanskrit
to Pali when the Pali language originally arose.
The v > y alternation, like in aavudha > aayudhya is a related example.
See PG para 46,1.
For more information read one of K.R. Norman's studies of the history of
the Pali language.
I hope that this is of use,
                                         Bh. Nyanatusita

Yuttadhammo wrote:

>>I have no idea what the reason for "byaa-" being used in place of
>>"vyaa-"
>>might be; when I drew attention to it, I was briefly ridiculed for my
>>(supposed) inability to read the Thai.  I was reading the Thai fine,
>>but
>>wondering why "v" had been replaced with the Thai "b"/"ph" sound. 
>>Is this
>>a "standard variation"?  It certainly isn't euphonic variation (e.g.,
>>the variable double-"p" in various Pali titles).
>>   
>>
>
>I don't know much, but I thought that changing 'vy' to 'by' was indeed
>common sandhi, e.g. "byaapaada" = "vyaapaada".
>
>Best wishes,
>
>Yuttadhammo
>Doi Suthep
>Chiang Mai
>Thailand
>
>
>
>
>
>Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 
>