Sutlej

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A river flowing through India and Pakistan, known for its significance in the Indus River system and its historical importance in the region
2. A major watercourse that originates in Tibet and travels through northern India before joining the Indus River in Pakistan
3. This trans-Himalayan river holds cultural and geographical importance, serving as a natural boundary and a vital resource for agriculture and communities along its banks

Etymology: The Sutlej is one of the five rivers that give the Punjab its name, and its English name carries a Sanskrit word meaning "hundred channels." The Sanskrit "śatadru" combines "śata," meaning hundred, with "dru," meaning a flowing stream or channel, and the river was known by that name in ancient Indian texts. Over the centuries the word passed through the Prakrit and Hindi forms of the name, and the modern Hindi "satluj" is the form English speakers took over. The spelling "Sutlej" is therefore an English rendering of a Hindi pronunciation rather than a direct transcription of the Sanskrit. The river itself is a major tributary of the Indus, flowing from the Himalayas through India and into Pakistan, so the word's journey from Sanskrit to English follows the river's own geography across the region.