Atharvan (Sanskrit: अथर्वन्IAST: Atharvan, nominativesingular: अथर्वा IAST: Atharvā) is a legendary Vedic sage (rishi) of Hinduism, who along with Angiras, is supposed to have authored ("heard") the Atharvaveda. He is also said to have first instituted the fire-sacrifice or yajña. Sometimes he is also reckoned among the seven seers, the Saptarishi. His clan is known as the Atharvanas. Atharvan married Shanti, daughter of PrajapatiKardama, and had a great sage Dadhichi as a son. He is referred to as a member of the Bhrigu clan.
According to the Mundaka Upanishad and other texts, he was the eldest son and (Manasaputra) born from mind of the creator deity, Brahma.
Etymology
Vedic atharvan is cognate with Avestanāθrauuan / aθaurun, "priest", but the etymology of the term is not yet conclusively established. It was once thought to be etymologically related to the Avestanātar, but that is now considered unlikely (Boyce, 2002:16). It has been suggested by scholars that the Vedic and Avestan terms are not of Indo-European origin, and are derived from the BMAC substrate.
Lubotsky, A. (2001). "The Indo-Iranian Substratum". In Carpelan, C.; Parpola, A.; Koskikallio, P. (eds.). Early Contacts between Uralic and Indo-European: Linguistic and Archaeological Considerations. Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura. pp. 301–317.
Witzel, Michael (2003). "Linguistic Evidence for Cultural Exchange in Prehistoric Western Central Asia". Sino-Platonic Papers Volume 129. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations.
