jataka

J8A1T1A1K5A1
UK/ˈdʒɑːtəkə/

noun

Any of a large number of Indian tales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha.

OriginSanskrit जातक →
RareScrabble 17
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Meanings

nounjataka (plural jatakas or jataka)

plural jatakas · alternative Jataka

  1. BuddhismAny of a large number of Indian tales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha.

    In the centuries after the Buddha's life, many ordinary, non-literate Indians would have learned of him through Jatakas, popular morality tales about his imagined previous lives […]

    2016, Sunil Khilnani, Incarnations, Penguin, published 2017, page 4

Origin

  1. Sanskritजातक“born under”
  2. Englishjataka

From Sanskrit जातक (jātaka, “born under”).

More words from Sanskrit

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 本生
  • 本生 (běnshēng)tales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha
Finnish jataka
  • jatakatales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha
Hindi जातक
  • जातक (jātak)tales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha
Indonesian jataka
  • jatakatales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha
Japanese ジャータカ
  • ジャータカ (jātaka)tales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha
Korean 자타카
  • 자타카 (jataka)tales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha
Russian джа́таки
  • джа́таки (džátaki)tales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha
Thai ชาดก
  • ชาดก (chaa-dòk)tales concerning the previous lives of Gautama Buddha
Cite this entry
APA

jataka. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/jataka

MLA

“jataka.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/jataka. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “jataka,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/jataka.

Source: jataka on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.