Main Entry:

swas·ti·ka

Pronunciation:

\ˈswäs-ti-kə also swä-ˈstē-\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Sanskrit svastika, from svasti well-being, from su- well + as- to be; akin to Sanskrit asti he is, Old English is; from its being regarded as a good luck symbol

Date:

1871

1 : a symbol or ornament in the form of a Greek cross with the ends of the arms extended at right angles all in the same rotary direction 2 : a swastika used as a symbol of anti-Semitism or of Nazism