Meanings
plural mridangams · alternative mridang · alternative mrudang · alternative mridanga · alternative mrudanga · alternative mrudangam · alternative mrdangam · alternative mrithangam · alternative miruthangam · alternative mirudhangam
- entertainmentA percussion instrument used in southern Indian music, consisting of a two-sided drum whose body is usually made from a hollowed piece of jackfruit wood.First known use 19th c.
A sarangi player set the tone and Kalavati began to sing in her sweet, melodious voce; mridangam and sitar accompanied her.
2015, Tridip Suhrud, translating Govardhanram Madhavram Tripathi, Sarasvatichandra I, Orient BlackSwan 2015, p. 145
Origin
- Hindiमृदङ्ग
- Tamilமிருதங்கம்
- Sanskritमृदङ्ग
- Malayalamമൃദംഗം
- Englishmridangam
Borrowed from Malayalam മൃദംഗം (mr̥daṅgaṁ), from Sanskrit मृदङ्ग (mṛdaṅga). Alternative forms are from various other Indian languages such as miruthangam, mirudhangam are borrowed from Tamil மிருதங்கம் (mirutaṅkam), mridang from Hindi मृदङ्ग (mŕdaṅg) etc.
More words from Malayalam, Sanskrit, Tamil
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
mridangam. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mridangam
“mridangam.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mridangam. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mridangam,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mridangam.
Source: mridangam on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.