An Avatar Was Originally a God Coming Down
An avatar is your on-screen self. The word is Sanskrit for a deity's descent into the world, and computing borrowed it in the 1980s.
An avatar is the figure representing a person in a game or online space. The word is Sanskrit: *avatara* means a descent, and in Hindu tradition it names a deity taking bodily form on earth, as Vishnu does. Computing borrowed the term in the mid 1980s for exactly that idea — a person taking form in another world.
- An on-screen representation. *Choose your avatar.*
- A deity's earthly form. *An avatar of Vishnu.*
- An embodiment of a quality. *An avatar of restraint.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | avatar | A custom avatar. |
| Plural | avatars | Player avatars. |
| Sanskrit | avatara | The ten avataras. |
| Related | incarnation | A later incarnation. |
| Related | profile picture | Update your picture. |
How it is used in a sentence
- Pick an avatar for your profile.Everyday computing.
- Rama is an avatar of Vishnu.Religious sense.
- He was an avatar of the old school.Embodiment.
Words English took from Sanskrit
- Avatar — a descent, an embodiment
- Karma — action and its consequences
- Guru — a teacher
- Jungle — from *jangala*, uncultivated land
- Yoga — from a root meaning to yoke or join
From Sanskrit *avatara*, descent, from *ava*, down, and *tarati*, he crosses over. The computing sense dates from role-playing games of the 1980s.
Who first used it for computing?
Role-playing games in the mid 1980s used it for the player's figure, and it spread through online worlds in the following decade.
Avatar or profile picture?
A profile picture is a static image. An avatar can be a figure you move and control, though the words overlap online.