What does 傍ら mean?
傍ら is a Japanese noun meaning “beside(s, while, nearby” in English. It can also be translated as “while (doing)” depending on context. It is written as 傍ら in kanji, かたわら in hiragana, and katawara in romaji. This word is part of JLPT N1 vocabulary.
Example sentence
メアリーは読書をしており、１匹の猫がかたわらで眠っていた。
Mary was reading, with a cat sleeping beside her.