PURANA
Purana
(noun) a body of 18 works written between the first and 11th centuries and incorporating legends and speculative histories of the universe and myths and customary observances
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Proper noun
Purana (plural Puranas)
(Hinduism) A text that is part of an ancient Indian genre of Hindu or Jain written literature, concerning various topics, including cosmogony and mythology.
Source: Wiktionary
Pu*ra"na, n. Etym: [Skr. pura, properly. old, ancient, fr. pura
formerly.]
Definition: One of a class of sacred Hindoo poetical works in the Sanskrit
language which treat of the creation, destruction, and renovation of
worlds, the genealogy and achievements of gods and heroes, the reigns
of the Manus, and the transactions of their descendants. The
principal Puranas are eighteen in number, and there are the same
number of supplementary books called Upa Puranas.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition