Pandit

A pandit (Sanskrit: पण्डितः, romanized: paṇḍitaḥ; Hindi: पंडित, romanized: paṇḍit; also spelled pundit, pronounced ; abbreviated Pt. or Pdt.) is an individual with specialised knowledge or a teacher of any field of knowledge in Sanskrit or Hinduism, particularly the Vedic scriptures, dharma, or Hindu philosophy; in colonial-era literature, the term generally refers to lawyers specialized in Hindu law. Whereas, today the title is used for experts in other subjects, such as music. Pandit entered English as the loanword pundit, referring to a person who offers opinion in an authoritative manner on a particular subject area (typically politics, the social sciences, technology or sport), usually through the mass media. The equivalent titles for a Hindu woman are vidushi, pandita, or panditain; however, these titles are not currently in widespread use. In Sanskrit, pandit generally refers to any "wise, educated or learned man" with specialized knowledge. The term is derived from paṇḍ (पण्ड्) which means "to collect, heap, pile up", and this root is used in the sense of knowledge. The term is found in Vedic and post-Vedic texts, but without any sociological context. The female form is paṇḍitā, and the most famous named female example is Pandita Ramabai.