Sanskrit ((especially formerly) Sanscrit)) [From Sanskrit saṃskṛta put together, well-formed, perfected].
The dominant classical and scholarly language of the Indian subcontinent, the sacred language of Hinduism (with Pali), a scriptural language of Buddhism, and the oldest known member of the Indo-European language family. It is usually written in the Devanagari script, which runs from left to right. Much as Latin influenced European languages, Sanskrit has influenced many languages in South and South-East Asia. Since the 19c, it has also provided loans to European languages including English and French. The most apparent of these loans relate to religion, philosophy, and culture, such as ... ...
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