GOAN HISTORY and CULTURE: History of Indian Languages In response to several requests to transmit this message to other Goan websites, or other Goans please feel free to do so! Those who suggest transmitting this in the native language are welcome to translate this into Konkani. Please use our name and e-mail address so that we can receive direct feedback from the readers; which is welcome!
Those NOT interested in Goan History or Culture: And Those who know it all! Please feel free to hit the DEL button NOW. I invite Goans to review what they read, add their own views and use the information to start a dialogue with their family as a Sunday talk or a mid-week dinner-conversation. Or it could be a topic for conversation of a Goan club meeting. Hopefully this will stimulate among all of us, including our families, a discussion on the language of Goan culture. Abstracted from the Book Amchi Khobor - Our News - Inside Goa By Philomena and Gilbert Lawrence. History of Indian Languages: After settling in North India, the Aryans established some major language groups. Their oral language was Chandasa which later evolved into Sanskrit used in the heart of Aryan territory. Chandasa and Sanskrit were spoken, popularized, publicized, monopolized, and refined by Hindu Brahmins but the languages had no script. However, common folk spoke Prakrits which are simpler languages with fewer vowels and consonants. When a script was introduced during the Mauryan period in early 300 BCE, Indian languages spread rapidly. The Indian script was partially inspired by written letters brought across by Alexander the Great's armies. Pali was the major language of Mauryan kings and Buddhism, the religion they patronized; the script was developed by followers of Gautama Buddha. Pali-Mauryan script goes from right to left and is derived from the Aramaic script via Brahmi script. But there were also other scripts: Braj, Magahi, Marwan, Mythoi. Prakrits continued to be the common spoken language and were exploited by Jains - devotees of Vardhamana Mahavira - who wrote their scriptural texts in various Prakrits. Being the common tongue, Prakrit developed and evolved into an important language in North India. Jainism thrived under the Chaulukya dynasty from 530-1190 CE, and Goa was part of that territory. The current Devanagari script in North India was developed in the10th century CE. Over the centuries, many people, including Basava the Lingayat leader in the 12th century CE, crusaded against Sanskrit's domination. They viewed Sanskrit as a feudal orientation of Hindu Brahmins. Sanskrit, like Latin, was considered a language associated with inherited inequalities and priestly prerogatives. Migration set the stage for several variations of Prakrit languages. The Prakrit Languages: Ardhmagadhi was the language people in Magadh and Bihar spoke from 600 BCE to 100 CE. Jains gave sermons in this Prakrit which later progressed to Eastern Hindi and Maharashtri Apbhransh (vernacular). Magdhi Apbhransh evolved into Bangla, Udia, Assamese, Bhojpuri. Shourseni was spoken in the Mathura region of North India between 100 BCE - 500 CE. Digamber Jains wrote philosophical literature in the Shourseni language. Jain Maharashtri was the language of non-agamic Jain literature. Maharastri Apbhransh language later evolved into Marathi. Nagar Apbhransh evolved into Gujarati and Rajasthani. Paishachi Apbhransh evolved into Kashmiri. Many other Apbhransh languages - Western Hindi, Urdu, and Punjabi - were born from the combination of various Prakrit languages. Dravidian languages - Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kanada - are unrelated to Sanskrit. Kanada has its dialects including Kanada, Tulu, and Kodagu spoken on the Konkan (west) coast. Some classic Sanskrit writings also have their roots in old Prakrits spoken in North India during Vedic and Pre-Vedic periods. Some believe the Konkani language is a fusion of two varieties or sub-varieties of Prakrits. Much of this is speculation because there is meager literature dating to that period for an adequate evaluation. Hence a lot depends on the analysis of the scholars. Due to the language links between Konkani and Bengali, one version of the Gowda Saraswat Brahmins (GSB) migration to Goa relates to their stay in Bihar prior to one group moving to the Konkan region and another branching off to Bengal. From these language roots, came the current languages of the Indian subcontinent. There are at least 18 distinct languages in India and six official languages in Pakistan. Next week Part 2: History of Konkani Regards, Philomena and Gilbert Lawrence PS: Have you looked at the World Goa Day WGD webpage? It is very stimulating and their theme song is very thrilling. ########################################################################## # Send submissions for Goanet to [EMAIL PROTECTED] # # PLEASE remember to stay on-topic (related to Goa), and avoid top-posts # # More details on Goanet at http://joingoanet.shorturl.com/ # # Please keep your discussion/tone polite, to reflect respect to others # ##########################################################################
