As a deity name
Name 703 of the Ganesha Sahasranāma — Ganesha Purana (Upasana Khanda), as taught by Sage Vyasa / Lord Ganesha
Name 435 of the Rama Sahasranāma — Padma Purana / Skanda Purana, as taught by Lord Shiva to Goddess Parvati
Name 221 of the Surya Sahasranāma — Bhavishya Purana, as taught by Lord Brahma / Sages
As a Hindi name
अयन · noun · masculine
गति । चाल · सूर्य या चंद्रमा की दक्षिण से उत्तर या उत्तर से दक्षिण की गति या प्रवृत्ति जिसको उत्तरायण और दक्षिणयन कहते हैं । बारह राशिचक का आधा · राशिचक्र की गति — Śabdasāgara
अयन · masculine
movement, path, course; a particular measure of time (= 3 ṛitus), equalling 180 days; half-year
Cited formation "अयन" is अय + -न: अय means "गमन । जाना । गति", and the suffix -न forms abstract nouns (masc. or fem.). CHD Basic Grammar App. I §8(18) — cited from the extracted rule table — base gloss: Śabdasāgara
a Hindi word, a tatsama: the Sanskrit word borrowed unchanged into Hindi अयन — per Wiktionary’s etymology record
“Borrowed from Sanskrit अयन (ayana).” — per Wiktionary’s etymology record
ayana mfn. going, VS. xxii, 7; Nir.
ayana n. walking, a road, a path, RV. iii, 33, 7 &c. (often ifc. cf. naimiṣāyana, puruṣāyaṇa, praśamāyana, samudrāyaṇa, svedāyana), (in astron.) advancing, precession, Sūryas.
As a Sanskrit word
Meaning
‘course, circulation’, N. of various periodical sacrificial rites, &c. the sun's road north and south of the equator, the half year, &c., the equinoctial and solstitial points, &c.
Scripturally attested Verified derivationMultiple readings (5)Why this matches what you typed
The spelling you confirmed, अयन, is itself a dictionary headword — no grammatical transformation stands between what you typed and the meaning above.
Dictionary citations
ayana mfn. going, VS. xxii, 7; Nir.
ayana n. walking, a road, a path, RV. iii, 33, 7 &c. (often ifc. cf. naimiṣāyana, puruṣāyaṇa, praśamāyana, samudrāyaṇa, svedāyana), (in astron.) advancing, precession, Sūryas.
(with gen. [e.g. aṅgirasām, ādityānām, gavām, &c.] or ifc.) ‘course, circulation’, N. of various periodical sacrificial rites, AV.; ŚBr. &c. the sun's road north and south of the equator, the half year, Mn. &c., the equinoctial and solstitial points, VarBṛS. &c.
way, progress, manner, ŚBr.
place of refuge, Mn. i, 10
Alternative readings
More than one analysis survives full verification. That ambiguity is real, so we show every reading rather than pick one silently.
Caveats
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