chakra (English)

Where does "chakra" come from?

The English word 'chakra' was borrowed from Hindi 'चक्र' and directly from Sanskrit 'चक्र', where it originally meant 'wheel, disc, cycle'[1][2]. The Sanskrit term traces back to Proto-Indo-Iranian '*čakrám' meaning 'wheel', which derives from the Proto-Indo-European reduplicated form '*kʷékʷlos' meaning 'wheel'[3][4][5]. This Proto-Indo-European form ultimately stems from the root '*kʷel-' meaning 'to turn'[4]. Through these linguistic stages, the word shares a common ancestry with terms like 'cycle' and 'wheel'[1].

Open questions

The Proto-Indo-European and Proto-Indo-Iranian forms are reconstructed rather than directly attested. [3] [4] [5]

Full etymology tree

chakra (English), 'Any of (at least) seven centres of spiritual energy in or near the body, according to Ayurveda philosophy.'
- borrowed चक्र (cakra) (Hindi), 'circle, ring'
  - borrowed चक्र (cakra) (Sanskrit), 'a wheel (of a chariot or a potter's wheel)'
    - inherited *čakrám (Proto-Indo-Iranian), 'wheel'
      - derived *kʷekʷlóm (Proto-Indo-European)
        derived *kʷelh₁- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to turn (end-over-end)'
- borrowed चक्र (cakra) (Sanskrit), 'a wheel (of a chariot or a potter's wheel)'
  - inherited *čakrám (Proto-Indo-Iranian), 'wheel'
    - derived *kʷekʷlóm (Proto-Indo-European)
      - derived *kʷelh₁- (Proto-Indo-European), 'to turn (end-over-end)'

Ancestors

*kʷelh₁- (Proto-Indo-European)
चक्र (Hindi)
चक्र (Sanskrit)

Cognates and doublets

chakram (English)
charkha (English)
chukker (English)
cycle (English)
cyclus (English)
wheel (English)

Descendants and derived words

chakra healing (English)
chakral (English)
chakric (English)

Sources

Updated September 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris