Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2022 February 8

= February 8 =

Devalayam Redirect to kovil
Devalayam (Temple in English)is getting redirected to "Kovil" Tamil Language word Page. Devalayam is a Sanskrit Language origin word and should have connections to any Sanskrit based word like Prarthana Mandir, Bhagawan Mandir, and so on. If there is no page for Devalayam it should be linked or redirected to appropriate Sanskrit language based near meaning words. — Preceding unsigned comment added by DeepakMalhar (talk • contribs) 16:31, 8 February 2022 (UTC)
 * I'm afraid I don't have the background in either Indian architecture or the languages involved. Does Devalayam refer to a Hindu temple in general or to a specific type or design of such temple?  Maybe we do have a better target.  -- Jayron 32 16:46, 8 February 2022 (UTC)
 * Also, although this is more of a general point and might be less relevant in this case, redirects on the English Wikipedia should reflect on how the terms are used in English, rather than how they are used in the source language. 惑乱 Wakuran (talk) 17:30, 8 February 2022 (UTC)
 * To further complicate matters, I see that Wikipedia has an article for Devaalayam (which I assume is generally a matter of transcription rather than a different word), but that article is about a 1960's movie. 惑乱 Wakuran (talk) 17:33, 8 February 2022 (UTC)


 * , by that argument Courgette should not redirect to Zucchini, because one is a French word and the other is Italian. This is plainly nonsensical, because the words refer to the same thing. The question is, do "devalayam" and "koyil" refer to the same thing? If so, then the redirect is reasonable, though Koil should say somewhere that devalayam is another name for it. If they are not the same thing, then it is less clear. Perhaps it should redirect to Hindu temple architecture - though that article doesn't mention "devalayam" either. --ColinFine (talk) 18:06, 8 February 2022 (UTC)


 * It does mention aalayam, of which devālayam is obviously a compound (deva meaning 'god'). —Tamfang (talk) 02:50, 16 February 2022 (UTC)


 * In some Dravidian languages this is a term for a place of worship: Tamil தேவாலயம் (tēvālayam), Telugu దేవాలయం (dēvālayaṃ). In Tamil it can also be used for a Christian church, as seen e.g. here; Telugu uses a borrowing from English church for that purpose. The term derives from Sanskrit देवआलय ("devālaya"), meaning "divine abode"; the "abode" bit is also represented in "Himalaya" – abode of snow. Our article Hindu temple has a list of names by which they are referred to in various Hindic languages, including Devalayam (దేవాలయం) and Kovil (கோவில்). The Sanskrit name devalaya is also mentioned. The best solution is (IMO) to make this a dab page between Hindu temple and the film (which is also sometimes referred to as Devalayam). --Lambiam 19:09, 8 February 2022 (UTC)

The article Koil (or Kovil) feels a bit questionable to me. Kovilis simply the Tamil word for "temple". Of course temples in the Tamil-speaking region are built in a distinct architectural style, but in Tamil Kovil can refer to any temple (a temple in North India would also be called Kovil in Tamil). On the other hand, the Tamil word Kovil is not normally used in English. So if the article is about temples in Tamil Nadu, it should be called Temples in Tamil Nadu. Just like we have an article on Churches in Norway, and not on Kirke (Norwegian for "church"). --Jbuchholz (talk) 07:19, 9 February 2022 (UTC)
 * The term kovil is used in English texts. I have not examined if it has a specific architectural meaning in these uses, but Wiktionary defines it as "A Hindu temple built in a distinct style of Dravidian architecture". --Lambiam 12:09, 9 February 2022 (UTC)