"Yona" is a Pali word used in ancient India to designate Greek speakers. Its equivalent in Sanskrit, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil is the word "Yavana" and "Jobonan/Jubonan" in Bengali. "Yona" and Yavana are both transliterations of the Greek word for "Ionians" (Homer ''Iāones'', older *''Iāwones''), who were probably the first Greeks to be known in the East. In Telugu another word "Yavanika", means drama stage, an invention brought by Hellenistic people. "Yunani", likewise, means medicine from Greeks.

The Yavanas are mentioned in the Buddhist discourse of the ''Middle Length Sayings'', in which the Buddha mentions to the Brahman Assalayana the existence of the Kamboja and Yavana people who have only two castes, master or slave. The direct identification of the word "Yavana" with the Greeks at such an early time (6th-5th century) can be doubted however.

Direct identification of these words with the Greeks include:

The mention of the "Yona king Antiochus" in the Edicts of Ashoka (280 BCE)

The mention of the "Yona king Antialcidas" in the Heliodorus pillar in Vidisha (110 BCE)

King Menander and his bodyguard of "500 Yonas" in the Milinda Panha.

The description of Greek astrology and Greek terminology in the Yavanajataka ("Sayings of the Yavanas") (150 CE).

The mention of "Alexandria, the city of the Yonas" in the Mahavamsa, Chapter 29 (4th century CE).

Although the association with eastern Greeks seems to have been quite precise and systematic until the beginning of our era (other foreigners had their own descriptor, such as Sakas, Pahlavas, Kambojas etc...), these terms came to designate more generally "Europeans" and later "foreigners" in the following centuries.

Old World usage

This usage was shared by many of the countries east of Greece, from the Mediterranean to India:

Egyptians used the word ''j-w-n(-n)-’''

Assyrians used the word ''Iawanu''

Persians used the word ''Yauna'' or ''Yavanu''

Indians - used the word ''Yavana'' in Mahabharata and other historic texts.

Sri Lankans - used the word ''Yona'' in Mahawamsa and other historic texts.

In Biblical writings, the word was ''Yāvān'' (and still is, in modern Israeli Hebrew - יוון)

In Arabic, Turkish, Persian and Urdu it is ''Yunan''

See Also Sanskrit Yoni

Indian references

In Indian sources, the usage of the words "Yona", "Yauna", "Yonaka", "Yavana" or "Javana" etc. appears repeatedly, and particularly in relation to the Greek kingdoms which neighboured or sometimes occupied the Indian north-western territories (which is now Afghanistan or part of Pakistan) over a period of several centuries from the 4th century BC to the 1st century AD, such as the Seleucid Empire, the Greco-Bactrian kingdom and the Indo-Greek kingdom. The Yavanas are mentioned in detail in Sangam literature epics such as ''Paṭṭiṉappālai'', describing their brisk trade with the Cholas in Tamilakam.

After Alexander's invasion, the Greek settlements had existed in eastern parts of Achaemenid empire, north-west of India, as neighbors to the Iranian Kambojas. The references to the Yonas in the early Buddhist texts may be related to the same.

Role in Buddhism

Edicts of Ashoka (250 BC)

Some of the better known examples are those of the Edicts of Ashoka (c. 250 BC), in which the Buddhist emperor Ashoka refers to the Greek populations under his rule. Rock Edicts V and XIII mention the Yonas (or the Greeks) along with the Kambojas and Gandharas as a subject people forming a frontier region of his empire and attest that he sent envoys to the Greek rulers in the West as far as the Mediterranean, faultlessly naming them one by one. In the Gandhari original of Rock XIII, the Greek kings to the West are associated unambiguously with the term "Yona": Antiochus is referred as ''"Amtiyoko nama Yona-raja"'' (lit. "The Greek king by the name of Antiochus"), beyond whom live the four other kings: ''"param ca tena Atiyokena cature 4 rajani Turamaye nama Amtikini nama Maka nama Alikasudaro nama"'' (lit. "And beyond Antiochus, four kings by the name of Ptolemy, the name of Antigonos, the name of Magas, the name Alexander").

Dipavamsa and Sasanvamsa

Other Buddhist texts such as the Dipavamsa and the Sasanavamsa reveal that after the Third Buddhist Council, the elder (thera) Mahárakkhita was sent to the Yona country and he preached Dharma among the Yonas and the Kambojas, and that at the same time the Yona elder (thera) Dharmaraksita was sent to the country of Aparantaka in western India also. Ashoka's Rock Edict XIII also pairs the Yonas with the Kambojas (''Yonakambojesu'') and conveys that the Brahmanas and Sramanas are found everywhere in his empire except in the lands of the Yonas and the Kambojas.

Mahawamsa

The ''Mahawamsa'' or Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka refers to the thera Mahárakkhita being sent to preach to the Yona country, and also to the Yona thera Dhammarakkhita, who was sent to ''Aparanta'' (the "Western Ends"). It also mentions that king Pandukabhaya set aside a part of the city of Anuradhapura for the Yonas. Another Yona thera, Mahádhammarakkhita, is mentioned as having come from Alexandria in the country of the Yonas, to be present at the building of the Ruwanweliseya.

Milindapanha

Another example is that of the Milinda Panha (Chapter I), where "Yonaka" is used to refer to the great Indo-Greek king Menander (160–135 BC), and to the guard of "five hundred Greeks" that constantly accompanies him.

Invasion of India

The ''Vanaparava'' of Mahabharata contains verses in the form of prophecy complaining that ''"......Mlechha (barbaric) kings of the Shakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Bahlikas etc. shall rule the earth (i.e India) un-righteously in Kaliyuga..." ''. This reference apparently alludes to chaotic political scenario following the collapse of Mauryan and Sunga dynasties in northern India and its subsequent occupation by foreign hordes of the Yavanas, Kambojas, Sakas and Pahlavas etc.

There are important references to the warring ''Mleccha'' hordes of the Shakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas etc. in the ''Bala Kanda'' of the Valmiki Ramayana.

Indologists like Dr H. C. Raychadhury, Dr B. C. Law, Dr Satya Shrava and others see in these verses the clear glimpses of the struggles of the Hindus with the mixed invading hordes of the barbaric Sakas, Yavanas, Kambojas, Pahlavas etc. from north-west. The time frame for these struggles is 2nd century BCE downwards. Dr Raychadhury fixes the date of the present version of the Valmiki Ramayana around/after 2nd century CE.

The other Indian records describe the 180 BCE ''Yavana'' attacks on Saketa, Panchala, Mathura and Pataliputra, probably against the Sunga empire, and possibly in defense of Buddhism. The main mentions of the invasion are those by Patanjali around 150 BCE, and of the Yuga Purana, which, like the Mahabharata, also describes Indian historical events in the form of a prophecy:

:''"After having conquered Saketa, the country of the Panchala and the Mathuras, the Yavanas, wicked and valiant, will reach Kusumadhvaja ("The town of the flower-standard", Pataliputra). The thick mud-fortifications at Pataliputra being reached, all the provinces will be in disorder, without doubt. Ultimately, a great battle will follow, with tree-like engines (siege engines)."''

:''"The Yavanas (Greeks) will command, the Kings will disappear. (But ultimately) the Yavanas, intoxicated with fighting, will not stay in Madhadesa (the Middle Country); there will be undoubtedly a civil war among them, arising in their own country (Bactria), there will be a terrible and ferocious war."''

The ''Anushasanaparava'' of Mahabharata affirms that the country of Mathura, the heartland of India, was under the joint military control of the Yavanas and the Kambojas.

From the references noted above, it appears certain that the ''Yavana'' invasion of Majjhimadesa (''Mid India'') was jointly carried out by the Yavanas and the Kambojas. The Greek Yavanas were apparently a minority foreigners in India and naturally may have obtained, in this invasion, the military support of their good neighbors, the warlike Kambojas. The evidence from the Mathura Lion Capital inscriptions of Saka great Satrap (Mahakshatrapa) Rajuvula also lends strong credibility to this view.

The ''Mid India'' invasion was followed by almost two centuries of Yavana rule which in the light of evidence presented above, appears to have been a joint Yavana-Kamboja rule.

Scientific abilities

There is a claim by proponents of the Aryan invasion theory that some Indian literature praises the knowledge of the Yavanas, or Greeks, as superior. Such claims are being re-examined by scholars with more concrete backgrounds in both spoken Sanskrit and Vedic temple rituals for greater cultural accuracy.

For example, one claim holds that a version of the Mahabharata describes yavanas as "sarvajnaa", or omniscient. Such superlatives, dispersed throughout the epic, were a common Sanskritic means of announcing characters, tribes, or families and paying due literary respect. For instance, the hated antagonist of the epic, Duryodhana, is in many verses renamed "Suyodhana", the prefix "su" meaning good, beautiful, and excellent.

Historically, people outside the Sanskrit world were termed "mlecchas", or barbarians with impure knowledge. "Barbarian" itself is derived from the Sanskrit "barbarah", meaning unpolished, lowly, fool or blockhead, while "sanskrit" refers to perfect action, polished, and cultured. This is consistent with Sanskrit's reputation across even present-day India as "deva bhaasha", or divine language.

References to "mlechha" teachings having any profound effect on India's enormous body of knowledge are discarded in serious academic circles. A more accurate description of Greeks may be from the "Brihat-Samhita", where the mathematician Varahamihira says: ''"The Greeks, though impure, must be honored since they were trained in sciences".

Other references

On the 110 BCE Heliodorus pillar in Vidisha in Central India, the Indo-Greek king Antialcidas, who had sent an ambassador to the court of the Sunga king Bhagabhadra, was also qualified as "Yona".

The Mahavamsa also attests Yona settlement in Anuradhapura in ancient Sri Lanka, probably contributing to trade between East and West.

Buddhist texts like Sumangala Vilasini class the language of the Yavanas with the Milakkhabhasa i.e. ''impure language''.

The Yonas and other northwestern invaders in Indian literature

The Yavanas or Yonas are frequently found listed with the Kambojas, Sakas, Pahlavas and other northwestern tribes in numerous ancient Indian texts.

The Mahabharata groups the Yavanas with the Kambojas and the Chinas and calls them "Mlechchas" (Barbarians). In the Shanti Parava section, the Yavanas are grouped with the Kambojas, Kiratas, Sakas, and the Pahlavas etc. and are spoken of as living the life of Dasyus (slaves). In another chapter of the same Parava, the Yaunas, Kambojas, Gandharas etc. are spoken of as equal to the "Svapakas" and the "Grddhras".

Udyogaparava of Mahabharata says that the composite army of the Kambojas, Yavanas and Sakas had participated in the Mahabharata war under the supreme command of Kamboja king Sudakshina. The epic numerously applauds this composite army as being very fierce and wrathful.

Balakanda of Ramayana also groups the Yavanas with the Kambojas, Sakas, Pahlavas etc. and refers to them as the military allies of sage Vishistha against Vedic king Vishwamitra The Kishkindha Kanda of Ramayana locates the Sakas, Kambojas, Yavanas and Paradas in the extreme north-west beyond the Himavat (i.e. Hindukush).

The Buddhist drama Mudrarakshasa by Visakhadutta as well as the Jaina works Parisishtaparvan refer to Chandragupta's alliance with Himalayan king Parvatka. This Himalayan alliance gave Chandragupta a powerful composite army made up of the frontier martial tribes of the Shakas, Kambojas, Yavanas, Parasikas, Bahlikas etc. which he utilised to defeat the Greek successors of Alexander the Great and the Nanda rulers of Magadha, and thus establishing his Mauryan Empire in northern India.

Manusmriti lists the Yavanas with the Kambojas, Sakas, Pahlavas, Paradas etc. and regards them as degraded Kshatriyas (members of the warrior cast). Anushasanaparava of Mahabharata also views the Yavanas, Kambojas, Shakas etc. in the same light. Patanjali's Mahabhasya) regards the Yavanas and Sakas as anirvasita (pure) Shudras. Gautama-Dharmasutra regards the Yavanas or Greeks as having sprung from Shudra females and Kshatriya males.

The Assalayana Sutta of Majjhima Nikaya attests that in Yona and Kamboja nations, there were only two classes of people...Aryas and Dasas...the masters and slaves, and that the Arya could become Dasa and vice versa. The Vishnu Purana also indicates that the "chatur-varna" or four class social system was absent in the lands of Kiratas in the East and the Yavanas and Kambojas etc. in the West.

Numerous Puranic literature groups the Yavanas with the Sakas, Kambojas, Pahlavas and Paradas and refers to the peculiar hair styles of these people which were different from those of the Hindus. Ganapatha on Pāṇini attests that it was a practice among the Yavanas and the Kambojas to wear short-cropped hair (''Kamboja-mundah Yavana-mundah'').

Vartika of Katayayana informs us that the kings of the Shakas and the Yavanas, like those of the Kambojas, may also be addressed by their respective tribal names.

Brihat-Katha-Manjari of Kshmendra informs us that king Vikramaditya had unburdened the sacred earth of the Barbarians like the Shakas, Kambojas, Yavanas, Tusharas, Parasikas, Hunas etc. by annihilating these sinners completely.

The Brahmanda Purana refers to the horses born in Yavana country.

The Mahaniddesa speaks of Yona and Parama Yona, probably referring to Arachosia as the Yona and Bactria as the Parama Yona.

Later meanings

The terms "Yona", "Yonaka" or "Yavana" later took on a wider meaning of Mlechchas/Barbarians and a designation to all foreign tribes or the westerners visiting India. Indian languages did not address the difference based on religion early on but after the arrival of Islam to the subcontinent, more than Mussalaman or Muslim, appellation Yavana along with Turuka, Turuska, Tajik, and Arab came to be used for invaders professing Islam as their religion.

Contemporary usage

The word Yona, or one of its derivatives, is still used by some languages to designate contemporary Greece, such as in Arabic (يونان), in Hebrew (יוון), in Turkish ("Yunanistan"), in Assyrian (Yawnoye ܝܘ̈ܢܝܐ), or the Hindi, Urdu, Malay and Indonesian languages ("Yunani").

See also

Yavana Kingdom

Greco-Buddhism

Names of the Greeks

History of Buddhism

Kambojas

Footnotes

References

''The shape of ancient thought. Comparative Studies in Greek and Indian philosophies'', by Thomas Mc Evilly (Allworth Press, New York 2002) ISBN 1-58115-203-5

External links

Pali dictionary definition of "Yona"

---- ''"Yona" is also a common transliteration of the Hebrew form of the given name commonly given to both men and women, Jonah''

Category:Ancient Greeks in Asia Category:Ancient India Category:Ancient peoples of Pakistan Category:Sanskrit words and phrases Category:Pāli words and phrases

el:Γιόνα ru:Йона (греки)

name	Shivaraj Kumar
birth name	Shivu Putta Swamy
birth date	July 12, 1962
birth place	Bangalore, Karnataka, India
occupation	Actor
yearsactive	1986 - present
spouse	Geetha (1990 - Present)
children	02 Daughters (Niveditha & Vasantha)
parents	Dr. Rajkumar, Parvatamma Rajkumar
awards	}}

Shivaraj Kumar (Kannada: ಶಿವರಾಜಕುಮಾರ್) (real name Putta Swamy) is a Kannada film actor. He is the son of Kannada thespian Dr. Rajkumar. After graduating in B.Sc. (Chemistry), Shivaraj Kumar made his debut screen appearance in Singeetham Srinivas Rao's ''Anand.'' Shivanna's first three movies ''Anand, Rathasapthami'' and ''Mana Mechchida Hudugi'' all completed silver jubilee thus earning him the title ''Hatrick Hero - Shivaraj Kumar.'' His movie Jogi is one of the biggest blockbusters in the Kannada film industry.

Today with more than 100 Kannada films to his credit, Shivraj Kumar maintains the standards set by his father by not acting in remake movies. Shivanna has won year 2005 Best Actor award for his film Chigurida Kanasu. In 2010, he starred in the movie Sugreeva which was shot in 18 hours.

Family and early life

Born on 12 July 1962 in Bangalore, in Karnataka, to Sri Rajkumar and Smt Parvatamma. He has two sisters and two brothers; his younger brother, Raghavendra Rajkumar is a film producer and a film actor, his youngest brother, Puneet Rajkumar is also a Kannada film actor.

After his graduation from Madras University in 1983, Shivaraj Kumar, on the insistence of K. Balachander, joined an acting school in Madras. After training in Kuchupudi dance at Vempetti Chinni Sathyam in Madras during his college days, he made an entry into the Kannada film industry with a hit film ''Anand.''

Shivaraj Kumar married Geeta, the daughter of Former Chief minister of the Karnataka S.Bangarappa. The couple have two daughters Niveditha and Nirupama.

Acting career

He started his acting career with the film ''Anand'' in 1986, which was a silver jubilee hit. In his career spanning over 25 years, he acted in a variety of roles. A number of his movies completed silver jubilee. The most notable movies of his career are ''Janumada Jodi, Jogi, Anand, Rathasapthami, Nammoora Mandara Hoove, Om,'' and ''Chigurida Kanasu''. His upcoming movie Jogayya is one of the most anticipated releases of the year 2011. He also acted in a movie Sugreeva, which was shot in 18 hours. His film Om, directed by Upendra, set a trend of gangster movies in Kannada and other film industries in India. It is one of the biggest hits and most popular movies in the industry, which manages a re-release every year with housefull shows even now.

His movie is shot in 7 wonders of the world and his another movie Tamassu directed by journalist and activist Agni Shridhar which deals with Hindu Muslims riots. His 100th movie Jogayya is the sequel to his blockbuster movie Jogi.

Debut

He never intended to join films as a hero, as he was suffering from inferiority complex with his looks and had apprehension that the people may not accept him as a hero. However, by the insistence of K. Balachander, he plunged into acting. Thus the film Anand was launched in 1985 and Shivanna was renamed as Shivaraj Kumar for the screen.

Awards and honours

Shivaraj Kumar has won 4 filmfare and three state awards in the best actor category. He has also won numerous Cine-Express, Sirigannada, ETV awards. He has also been conferred various titles like ''Hatrick Hero'', ''Shivanna'' among others.

Filmfare award

Om (1995)

Nammoora Mandara Hoove (1996)

A.K.47 (1999)

Thamassu (2010)

State award

Om (1995)

Hrudaya Hrudaya (1999)

Chigurida Kanasu (2004)

Jogi (2004–2005)

Other

Ujvala Express Award: Aanand (1986), Bhoomitaayiya Chochala Maga (1998)

Chitra Rasikara Sangha Prashasti: Midida Shruthi (1992), Janumada Jodi (1996), A.K.47 (1999)

Hero-Honda Express Award: OM (1995), Janumada Jodi (1996), A.K.47 (1999)

AaryabhaTa Prashasti: Janumada Jodi (1996)

Screen Award: Nammoora Mandara Hoove (1996)

SICA Special Jury Award: Tavarige Baa Tangi (2002), Chigurida Kanasu (which was remade in Hindi as ''Swades'' in 2004)

Hello Gandhinagara Award: Chigurida Kanasu (2004)

Filmography

Si.NO	Year	Film	Role	Notes
1	1986		Anand
2	1986	Rathasapthami	vishwanath
3	1987	Manamecchida Hudugi	shivu
4	1988	Samyuktha	inspector shivraj
5	1988	Shiva Mecchida Kannappa
6	1988	Ranaranga
7	1989	Inspector Vikram	Vikram
8	1989	AdheRaaga AdheHaadu	Double duo one as re-incarnation
9	1990	Asegobba Meesegobba	Ram Prasad Sharma & Lakshmana Prasad Sharma	Remake of Hrishikesh Mukherjee's 1979 movie Gol Maal
10	1990	Mruthunjaya
11	1991	Aralidha Huvugalu	vijay kumar
12	1991	Modada Mareyalli	Ravi
13	1992	Mididha Shruthi	Balu
14	1992	Purushothama	Raj-Paramshivu
15	1992	Mavanige Thakka Aliya	Ganesha
16	1993	Jagamecchida Huduga
17	1993	Chirabandhavya
18	1993	Anandha Jyothi
19	1994	Gandhada Gudi -2		Sequel to Gandhada Gudi
20	1994	Muthanna/ Diamond kiran	Double role
21	1994	Gandugali		Mahesh
22	1995	Gadibidi Aliya	Double role
23	1995	Savya Saachi
24	1995	Om	Sathya alias Satya Murthy	Directed By Upendralater made in Telugu as "Omkaram" and 'Arjun Pandit' in Hindi
25	1995	Mana Midiyithu
26	1995	Samara
27	1995	Dore	Dore
28	1996	Ibbara naduve Mudhina Ata
29	1996	Gajanooru Gandu
30	1996	Shiva Sainya
31	1996	Annavra Makkalu
32	1996	Nammoora Mandara Hoove	Director -Sunil kumar desai
33	1996	Adhithya
34	1996	Janumada Jodi	Krishna	Director by T S Nagabharana
35	1997	Ganga Yamuna	With Malashree
36	1997	Simhada Mari
37	1997	Ammavra Ganda
38	1997	Mudhina Kanmani
39	1997	Raja
40	1997	Jodi Hakki	Maacha
41	1997	Premaraga Haadu Gelathi
42	1998	Nammoora Huduga
43	1998	Kurubana Rani
44	1998	Andaman
45	1998	Mr.Putsami
46	1998	Bhumithaiya Chochalamaga	Karna
47	1998	Gadibidi Krishna
48	1999	Janumadhatha
49	1999	Chandrodhaya
50	1999			co-starred Om Puri
51	1999	Vishwa
52	1999	Hrudhaya Hrudhaya		Won State Award
53	2000	Yare ni Abhimani
54	2000	Preethse		co-starred Upendra and Sonali Bendre
55	2000	Hagalu Vesha
56	2000	Indradhanush
57	2000	Krishna Leele
58	2000	Devara Maga		Acted with Ambarish
59	2000	Galate Aliyandru
60	2001	Madhuve Agona Baa
61	2001	Asura
62	2001	Bahala Chennagide
63	2001	Bhava Bamaidha
64	2002	Sundarakaanda
65	2001	Yuvaraja
66	2002	Jodi
67	2002	Kodandarama
68	2002	Ninne Preethisuve
69	2002	Thavarige Ba Thangi
70	2003
71	2003	Sri Ram
72	2003	Smile
73	2003	Nanjundi		Hamsalekha's 200 movie
74	2003	Chigurida Kanasu		Won many Awards
75	2004	Rowdy Aliya
76	2004	Sarwabouma
77	2004	Kanchana Ganga
78	2005	Rishi
79	2005	Rakshasa
80	2005	Valmiki
81	2005
82	2005	Anna Thangi
83	2006	Ashoka
84	2006	Thavarina Siri
85	2006	Gandugali Kumara Rama
86	2007	Thaiya Madilu
87	2007	Santha (2007)
88	2007	Gandana Mane
89	2007	Lava-Kusha
90	2008	Sathya In Love
91		Bandhu BaLaga
92	2008	Madesha
93	2008	Paramesha Paanwala
94	2009	Nanda
95	2009	Hatrick Hodi Maga
96	2009	Bhagyada Balegara
97	2009	Devaru Kotta Thangi
98	2010		Shot in 18 hours
99	2010	Thamassu
100	2010	Jogayya
101	2010	Mylari
102	2011	Cheluveye Ninne Nodalu		Filming
103	2011	Lakshmi		Filming
104	2012	Shiva

External links

ShivarajKumar fansite

Discussion forum

Interview with Shivraj Kumar

References

Kumar, Shivaraj Kumar, Shivaraj Category:Living people Kumar, Shivaraj Category:Indian actors