Etymograph

English

dharana

Dharana comes from Sanskrit धारणा ‘holding, bearing’, from धृ ‘to bear’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- ‘to hold, support’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰer-1‘to hold, support’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*dʰar-1‘to hold, carry’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Aryanprehistoric (reconstructed)*dʰar-1reconstructed
  4. Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEधृ2dhṛ‘to bear’
  5. Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEधारणा3dhāraṇā‘holding, bearing’
  6. Englishtodaydharana3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Sanskrit धृ
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Sanskrit धारणा
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English dharana

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰer-Wiktionary, Sanskrit धृ‘to hold, support’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Iranianc. 2500–1800 BCE*dʰar-Wiktionary, Sanskrit धृ‘to hold, carry’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-Aryanprehistoric (reconstructed)*dʰar-Wiktionary, Sanskrit धृreconstructed
  4. Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEधृWiktionary, Sanskrit धारणाdhṛ‘to bear’
  5. Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEधारणाWiktionary, English dharanadhāraṇā‘holding, bearing’
  6. EnglishtodaydharanaWiktionary, English dharana

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- ‘to hold, support’

drug, firm, dark, dry, drama, throne, dare, drone, drain, feasible, formidable, drastic, refrain, darn, dazed, dor, dharma, dern, 41 more

Today it means

noun Single-minded focus or concentration as part of practising yoga.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “dharana”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Sanskrit धृ, Sanskrit धारणा. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *dʰer- / dharana

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