The Sacred Ganga Talao - Mauritius

The Sanskrit term liṅgaṃ, transliterated as linga has many meanings, generally as a mark, sign, characteristic or phallus. It has a number of specific uses in Sanskrit that are derived from this general meaning. Vaman Shivram Apte's dictionary gives seventeen definitions of the term, including these examples:

An example of the use of the word linga in general Sanskrit usage to represent the concept of "sign" occurs in this passage from the Bhagavad Gita:

This is translated by Swami Gambhirananda as "O Lord, by what signs is one (known) who has gone beyond these three qualities?" and by Winthrop Sargeant as "By what marks is he recognized, Who has transcended these three qualities, O Lord?". In this quotation the word liṅgais is the instrumental plural form of liṅga, so liṅgais means "by marks" or "by signs".

An example of use of the word linga as a technical term in philosophy is given in this passage from the Sāṃkhya-Kārikā which describes the role of attributes in recognition of objects perceived by the senses:

The term lingam is sometimes used synonymously for shivalingam, a specific type of icon or altar representing the god Shiva.

In Tamil ilingu literally means "home is here", denoting a mound of clay Goddess Uma made to symbolize Mount Kailas and worship God Siva in it.

REFERENCE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lingam