() is a term for 'elephant' used in Vedic texts. Other terms for 'elephant' include () and ().
The elephant in the Rigveda
In Rigveda 1.84.17 and 4.4.1. and probably other instances, the Rigveda seems to refer to elephants (e.g. Bryant 2001: 323), an animal native to South Asia. It has been speculated that some of these verses might be references to domesticated elephants. In RV 1.64.7, 8.33.8 and 10.40.4, "wild" elephants are mentioned.
In the Rigveda and in the Atharvaveda, the term is translated as 'elephant' (according to Keith and Macdonell, Roth and other scholars). In the Rigveda, (animal with a hand) occurs in RV 1.64.7 and RV 4.16.14.
Ibha
RV 9.57.3 and RV 6.20.8 mention s, a term meaning 'servant, domestics, household' according to Roth, Ludwig, Zimmer and other Indologists. Other scholars like Pischel and Karl Friedrich Geldner translate the term as 'elephant'. According to Sayana, Mahidhara and the Nirukta, is translated as 'elephant'. Megasthenes and Nearchos also connect with 'elephant'. The term is only used in the Samhitas, and especially in the Rigveda.
Another term that may mean 'elephant' is (RV 8.33.8; RV 10.40.4). According to Macdonell and Keith, refers to elephants.
The elephant in other Hindu texts
The Akananuru (27) and the Purananuru (389) state that elephants were raised and trained in ancient Tamilagam's northern boundary of Venkatam hills, Tirupati.
Notes
References
Bryant, Edwin (2001). The Quest for the Origins of Vedic Culture. Oxford University Press. . Macdonell, A.A. and Keith, A.B. 1912. The Vedic Index of Names and Subjects. Talageri, Shrikant: The Rigveda: A Historical Analysis. 2000.