The name was invented in the twentieth century by the great dancer Rukmini Devi and others. It is supposed to indicate that this style was the original style described in a book on Natya by the sage Bharata, i.e. "Bharata's Dance". The text describes poses but in the absence of illustration, the exact poses had to be re-imagined -- the quality of this re-imagination is a tribute to the intellectual and aesthetic abilities of Rukmini Devi and her teachers, but there is no other link between Bharatanatyam now and the dances described in ancient Tamil texts.
ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY n eɪ m WORD_BOUNDARY w ʌ z WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n v ɛ n t ɪ d WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY t w ɛ n t iə θ WORD_BOUNDARY s ɛ n t̠ʃ ə ɹ ɹ i WORD_BOUNDARY b aɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY ɡ ɹ eɪ t WORD_BOUNDARY d æ n s ə ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ ʌ k m iː n i WORD_BOUNDARY d ɪ v i WORD_BOUNDARY æ n d WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ ð ə ɹ z WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ t WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ z WORD_BOUNDARY s ə p oʊ z d WORD_BOUNDARY t ʊ WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n d ɪ k eɪ t WORD_BOUNDARY ð æ t WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ s WORD_BOUNDARY s t aɪ l WORD_BOUNDARY w ʌ z ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ə ɹ ɹ ɪ d̠ʒ ɪ n ə l WORD_BOUNDARY s t aɪ l WORD_BOUNDARY d ɪ s k ɹ aɪ b d WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ WORD_BOUNDARY b ʊ k WORD_BOUNDARY ɔ n WORD_BOUNDARY n æ t ɪ ə WORD_BOUNDARY b aɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY s eɪ d̠ʒ WORD_BOUNDARY b æ ɹ ɑ t ə WORD_BOUNDARY aɪ WORD_BOUNDARY iː WORD_BOUNDARY b æ ɹ ɑ t ə z WORD_BOUNDARY d æ n s WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY t ɛ k s t WORD_BOUNDARY d ɪ s k ɹ aɪ b z WORD_BOUNDARY p oʊ z ɪ z WORD_BOUNDARY b ʌ t WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY æ b s ə n s WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ l ə s t ɹ eɪ ʃ ə n WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ɛ ɡ z æ k t WORD_BOUNDARY p oʊ z ɪ z WORD_BOUNDARY h æ d t ə WORD_BOUNDARY b iː WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ iː ɪ m æ d̠ʒ ɪ n d WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY k w ɔ l ɪ t i WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ s WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ iː ɪ m æ d̠ʒ ɪ n eɪ ʃ ə n WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ z WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ WORD_BOUNDARY t ɹ ɪ b j uː t WORD_BOUNDARY t ə WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɪ WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n t ə l ɛ k t̠ʃ uː ə l WORD_BOUNDARY æ n d WORD_BOUNDARY ɛ s θ ɛ t ɪ k WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ b ɪ l ə t i z WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ v WORD_BOUNDARY ɹ ʌ k m iː n i WORD_BOUNDARY d ɪ v i WORD_BOUNDARY æ n d WORD_BOUNDARY h ɜː WORD_BOUNDARY t iː t̠ʃ ə ɹ z WORD_BOUNDARY b ʌ t WORD_BOUNDARY ð ɛ ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ z WORD_BOUNDARY n oʊ WORD_BOUNDARY ʌ ð ə ɹ WORD_BOUNDARY l ɪ ŋ k WORD_BOUNDARY b ɪ t w iː n WORD_BOUNDARY b æ ɹ ʌ t æ n ʌ t ɪ æ m WORD_BOUNDARY n aʊ WORD_BOUNDARY æ n d WORD_BOUNDARY ð ə WORD_BOUNDARY d æ n s ɪ z WORD_BOUNDARY d ɪ s k ɹ aɪ b d WORD_BOUNDARY ɪ n WORD_BOUNDARY eɪ n t̠ʃ ə n t WORD_BOUNDARY t æ m ɪ l WORD_BOUNDARY t ɛ k s t s WORD_BOUNDARY