Etymologically
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yoga

Etymology and origin of the English word yoga

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1818
Borrowed from
Hindi योग
Ultimate origin
Sanskrit (योग)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈjoʊ.ɡə/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Hindi योग (yoga),[2][3] from Sanskrit योग (yóga, “union, yoking”),[2][3][4][5] from the root of yunákti, he yokes,[4] from PIE Proto-Indo-European *yeug- (“to join”), the source of yoke.[3][2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A Hindu system of philosophy and exercises seeking union with the Supreme Spirit: 1820, in William Ward's A View of the History, Literature, and Religion of the Hindoos;[2][6][3] MWU dates it to 1818.[4]

Semantic evolution

Its aim is the union of the self with the supreme being through meditation and ascetic practice.[5] In the West, it came to mean above all a system of physical postures, breathing control and meditation practised for health and relaxation.[7][8] The word yogi, one who practises yoga, is older in English, from 1619.[2]

Timeline

  • 1619 – yogi.[2]
  • 1818 – first use (MWU).[4]
  • 1820 – the Hindu philosophy.[2][6]

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. A Hindu discipline of meditation and ascetic practice aimed at union of the self with the supreme being.
  2. A system of exercises, postures and breathing control practised for health and relaxation.

Word family

  • yogic
  • yogism
  • Hatha yoga

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ a b Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Yoga.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/yoga. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·