-ਆ

• (Standard Punjabi) IPA^(key): /äː/

From a merger of a few sources, but in all cases from Proto-Indo-Iranian *-kas, from Proto-Indo-European *-kos:

• Inherited from Apabhramsa -अउ m (-aü, nominative), from Prakrit -𑀅𑀑 (-ao), -𑀅𑀬𑁄 (-ayo), -𑀅𑀕𑁄 m (-ago, nominative), from Sanskrit -अकः ~ -अको m (-akaḥ ~ -ako, agentive suffix, variant nominative forms based on sandhi). Doublet of -ਅਕ (-aka).
• From historic a-stems extended by Middle Indo-Aryan -𑀓- (-ka-), from Sanskrit -क (-ka).
• Borrowed from Classical Persian ـه (-â), from Middle Persian -k' (-ag), from Proto-Iranian *-akah.

-ਆ • (-ā) m

1. suffix found in many masculine nouns of both Indo-Aryan and Perso-Arabic origin
2. forms some nouns with agentive meaning from verbs or nouns
3. forms some nouns with possessive meaning
4. forms adjectives from nouns, showing a property

   ‎ਝੂਠ (jhūṭh, “lie”) + ‎-ਆ (-ā) → ‎ਝੂਠਾ (jhūṭhā, “false, fake, liar”)

   ‎ਭੁੱਖ (bhukkha, “hunger”) + ‎-ਆ (-ā) → ‎ਭੁੱਖਾ (bhukkhā, “hungry, famished”)

As a noun:

An an adjective:

• -ਈ (-ī, “suffix for many feminine nouns”)

Likely inherited from Apabhramsa -अ (-a), the singular vocative case for masculine -अ (-a) stems. Possibly influenced by the Persian vocative case particle ا (â).

-ਆ • (-ā)

1. case ending for masculine unextended nouns:
   1. singular vocative case

For masculine extended nouns ending in -ਆ (-ā), the singular oblique case -ਏ (-ē) shortens to -ਇ (-i) when suffixed with -ਆ (-ā) to form -ਇਆ (-iā).