Tulu - the language of the Tuluvas
Tulu is
an ancient language spoken mainly in South Kanara, in Mangalore, Udupi upto
Kundapur and a small part of north Kerala. The language is spoken by over 2.5
million Mangaloreans, the colloquial term generally used for Tulu-speakers. It
is presumed Tulu belongs to the Dravidian family of languages but it is very different
from say Tamil and Kannada. However Tulu is considered to be one of the most
highly developed languages of the Dravidian family. And the language has a lot
of written literature and oral literature.
Tulu is
primarily spoken in South Kanara or Dakshina Karnataka, also known as Tulu
Nadu, a region comprising Mangalore, the districts of South Kanara and Udupi on
the west coast of Karnataka, and Kasaragod taluk of north Kerala.
Apart from
these areas, Tulu is also spoken in Maharastra, Mumbai, Bangalore and other
parts of India where Tulu-speaking people have settled for long. It is also
spoken in USA and Gulf countries where significant number of Tulu-speaking
people, have settled. Non-native
speakers such as the Konkani-speaking Mangalorean Catholics and Gowd Saraswath
Brahmins, Karhade Brahmins and Daivajnas, as well as Beary Mangaloreans are
also well-versed in the language. Apart from Kannada script; historically Tulu
Brahmins used Tigalari script mainly used to write Sanskrit.
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| Mangaladevi temple in Mangalore |
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| Milagres Church in Mangalore |
Tulu is
thought to be the ‘language of the waters’ as the traditional homeland of the
Tulu-speaking people is the coastal region in present Karnataka and northern
Kerala. Linguists have suggested that the word ‘Tulu’ means that which is
connected with water, based on the words from Tulu, Kannada, Tamil and
Malyalam. ‘Tulave’ (Jackfruit) means watery in Tulu; and the other words
related to water in Tulu include ‘talipu’, ‘teli’, etc. In Tamil, ‘tuli’ means
a drop of water and ‘tulli’ means the same in Malyalam. The oldest available
inscriptions in Tulu are from the period between 14th and 15th
century AD. These inscriptions are in the Tigalari script, are found in areas
in and around Barkur, which was the capital of Tulu Nadu during the Vijaynagar
period. Another group of inscriptions are found in the Ullur Subrahmanya temple
near Kundapura.
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| Mangalore Airport |
Many linguists
have suggested that Tulu is among the oldest languages in the Dravidian family
which branched independently nearly 2000 years ago. This dating is based on the
fact that the region where Tulu was spoken was known to the ancient Tamils as
Tulu Nadu. The Tamil poet Mamular describes Tulu Nadu and its dancing beauties
in one of his poems. In Halmidi inscriptions, one also finds mention of the
Tulu country as the kingdom of Alupas. Surprisingly, the region was also known
to the Greeks of the second century as ‘Tolokoyra’. Here one needs to mention
of the ‘Charition mime’, a Greek play belonging to second century BC. The play’s
plot is located around the coastal Karnataka, where Tulu is predominantly
spoken. The play is mostly in Greek, but the Indian characters in the play are
seen speaking a language different from Greek.
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| Mangalore cty Corporation bldg |
Interestingly,
according to Malyalam works like ‘Keralolpathi and ‘Sangam’ literature in
Tamil, the region stretching from the Chandragiri river, now part of Kasaragod
district of Kerala to Gokarna, now part of Uttara Karnataka, was ruled by the
Alupas and was known as ‘Alva Kheda.’ This kingdom was the homeland of the
Tulu-speaking people. Today, Tulu is widely spoken in Dakshina Karnataka,
Mangalore, Udupi district and Kasaragod in Kerala. The cities of Mangalore,
Udupi and Kasaragod are the cultural centres of Tulu culture and tradition.
Efforts are on to include Tulu in the list of Official languages of India. Many
online sites from Mangalore and Udupi post requests inviting Tuluvas to like
and support this cause.
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| Infosys in Mangalore |
The
earliest available Tulu literature that survives to this day is the Tulu
Translation of the great Sanskrit epic of Mahabharata called ‘Tulu Mahabharato’.
It was written by Arunabja, a poet who lived in Kodavur, near Udupi around the
late 14th and 15th century AD. Other important literary
works in Tulu are: Sri Bhagavata, Kaveri and Devi Mahatmyam’s Tulu translation.
It is
believed that till 20th century, Tigalari script was used by Tulu
Brahmins, apart from Kannada script. Even today, the official script of the eight
Tulu monasteries (Ashta Mutthas in Udupi) founded by Madhvaacharya is Tigalari. Tigalari or Tulu is a southern Brahmic script which was used to write Tulu, Kannada and Sanskrit languages. It evolved from the Grantha script. It bears high similarity and relationship to its sister script Malayalam, which also evolved from the Grantha.
The chief priests of the monasteries write their names using this script when
they are appointed. To give further impetus to the language, Tulu Sahitya
Academy was established by the Karnataka state government in 1994 as also the
Kerala Tulu Academy in Manjeshwaram by the Kerala state government in 2007, to
promote Tulu literature.
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| Shri Krishna temple, Udupi |
In a way,
Tulu-speaking people are a distinct culture and indeed different from the
Kannadigas of Karnataka. During British rule, this region was under Madras Presidency
and later during the re-orgnisation of states this region was included in
Karnataka state.
The new generation of Tulu-speaking population, have been
demanding official language status for Tulu and a separate state for Tuluvas.
Though the statehood demand has been subdued, this demand is getting stronger
in recent years in the region. Several organizations have taken up the cause of
the Tuluvas to voice their demand. But it is not clear how intense is their
demand for a state but they are very keen that the central government include
Tulu in the list of Official languages of India.
Tuluvas are a hard-working and enterprising people. Their contribution can be seen in various fields. In Mumbai, majority of the Udupi hotels and even many bars and restaurants are owned by them. You might be surprised to know that amongst the many major banks in India, most of them have originated from Mangalore and South Kanara – Canara Bank, Syndicate Bank, Vijaya Bank, Karnataka Bank and Corporation Bank. Tuluvas have also made a rich contribution to business, sports, academics, medical, etc. Some of the prominent Mangaloreans are – Aishwarya Rai, Pooja Hegde, Sneha Ullal, Rohit Shetty, Sandeep Chowta, Shilpa Shetty, Sunil Shetty and Guru Dutt, to name a few in the glamour and Bollywood. Budi Kunderan, Ravi Shastri and recent debutant cricketer KL Rahul hail from this region. Entrepreneur BR Shetty, Restaurateur SB Shetty and many others who have made a name for themselves in India and abroad. Among the politicians, the familiar names are – George Fernandes, Janardhan Poojary, Sadanand Gowda, TA Pai, Margaret Alva, Oscar Fernandes, Veeraappa Moily and others. BV Karanth, the writer, Devi Prasad Shetty, a surgeon, KS Hegde, an associate of Anna Hazare are some of the Mangaloreans who have made a name and excelled in different fields. Besides there many well educated managers and other professionals occupying top positions in the corporate world in India and around the world.
But the native Tuluvas feel they and their region is neglected or not given its due by the elected state governments. However, presently there is a strong demand that Tulu be included in the Official language list so that the language spoken by over 2.5 million Tuluvas gets its due and is recognized; and gets its due importance amongst the Official languages spoken in different regions of India.
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Today there are many branded and attractively packaged oils, but coconut oil has been used in India, especially coastal areas for ages. It is a multi purpose oil, used in cooking, hair care, skin care, massaging and even medication too.
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| Malpe beach |
Tuluvas are a hard-working and enterprising people. Their contribution can be seen in various fields. In Mumbai, majority of the Udupi hotels and even many bars and restaurants are owned by them. You might be surprised to know that amongst the many major banks in India, most of them have originated from Mangalore and South Kanara – Canara Bank, Syndicate Bank, Vijaya Bank, Karnataka Bank and Corporation Bank. Tuluvas have also made a rich contribution to business, sports, academics, medical, etc. Some of the prominent Mangaloreans are – Aishwarya Rai, Pooja Hegde, Sneha Ullal, Rohit Shetty, Sandeep Chowta, Shilpa Shetty, Sunil Shetty and Guru Dutt, to name a few in the glamour and Bollywood. Budi Kunderan, Ravi Shastri and recent debutant cricketer KL Rahul hail from this region. Entrepreneur BR Shetty, Restaurateur SB Shetty and many others who have made a name for themselves in India and abroad. Among the politicians, the familiar names are – George Fernandes, Janardhan Poojary, Sadanand Gowda, TA Pai, Margaret Alva, Oscar Fernandes, Veeraappa Moily and others. BV Karanth, the writer, Devi Prasad Shetty, a surgeon, KS Hegde, an associate of Anna Hazare are some of the Mangaloreans who have made a name and excelled in different fields. Besides there many well educated managers and other professionals occupying top positions in the corporate world in India and around the world.
But the native Tuluvas feel they and their region is neglected or not given its due by the elected state governments. However, presently there is a strong demand that Tulu be included in the Official language list so that the language spoken by over 2.5 million Tuluvas gets its due and is recognized; and gets its due importance amongst the Official languages spoken in different regions of India.
Ayurved clinic - Turmeric-capsules--Immuno-defense
MyPost
Oil for all seasons:
Today there are many branded and attractively packaged oils, but coconut oil has been used in India, especially coastal areas for ages. It is a multi purpose oil, used in cooking, hair care, skin care, massaging and even medication too.
It suits all hair and it nourishes the hair, boosting hair growth,
helps to rid of dandruff, dry scalp and providing nutrition and giving a shiny
sheen to hair.
It is also good for skin care, especially people with dry skin. It
tends to keep the skin smooth, soft, supple and glowing.
It's excellent for body massage. People apply it normally or sometimes
warm it a bit. Either way it works for your body, hair and skin. A weekly application
is ideal.
And the best thing about coconut oil is, its natural. In the coastal
states its still widely used. Forget the branded oils, cream and gel, try
coconut oil and feel the difference. And it's back in fashion too not only in
India but abroad too.
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Picture Post:
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| Chittorgarh fort in Mewar, Rajasthan in India |
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Bharata, My Brother
by Anil Kumar Naik
- Foreword by Shri Asaranna Swami,
Durga Parmeshwari temple, Kateel, Karnataka.
Price: Rs 200 + P&F Rs 50 (India)
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