10/17/08

About Marathi

Geographic distribution

     Marathi is primarily spoken in Maharashtra and parts of neighboring states of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka, Chattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, union-territories of Daman-diu and Dadra Nagar Haveli. The cities of Baroda, Surat, Ahmedabad and entire South Gujarat, particularly the Dang district, Belgaum, Hubli, Dharwad, Gulbarga, Bhalki, Bidar (Karnataka) Indore, Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh) Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh) and Tanjore (Tamil Nadu) each have sizable Marathi-speaking communities. Marathi is also spoken by Maharashtrian émigrés worldwide, in USA, UAE, South Africa, Singapore, Germany, UK, Australia & New Zealand. The Ethnologue states that Marathi is spoken in Israel and Mauritius.

Official status

     Marathi is an official language of Indian state of Maharashtra, and a co-official language or used for official purposes in Goa, union territory of Daman and Diu and Dadra Nagar haveli. The Constitution of India recognizes Marathi as one of India's 22 official languages.

     In addition to all universities in Maharashtra, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (Gujarat), Osmania University (Andhra Pradesh), Gulbarga university (Karnataka), Devi Ahilya University of Indore and Goa University (Panaji) all have special departments for higher studies in Marathi linguistics. Recently Jawaharlal Nehru University (New Delhi) has announced to start a special department for Marathi.

History

     Four Prakrit vernacular languages were originally derived from Vedic Sanskrit. Further change in the Prakrits led to the Apabhramsha languages. Marathi evolved from Sanskrit through Maharashtri Prakrit and then Maharashtri Apabhramsha. Marathi may thus be described as being a re-Sanskritised, developed form of Maharashtri Apabhramsha.

     Maharashtri Prakrit was commonly spoken until 875 A.D. and was the official language of the Satavahana empire. It had risen to a high literary level and works like Karpurmanjari and Saptashati (150 BC) were written in it. Maharashtri Prakrit was most popular among the Prakrit languages and widely spoken in western and southern India. It was spoken from Malwa and Rajputana in north to Krishna and Tungabhadrain south. Today's Marathi and Kannada speaking parts have spoken Maharashtri for centuries.

     Maharashtri Apabhramsha (also known as Jain Apabhramsha) came into use about 200 years later and remained in use (by about A.D. 400) for more than a century. Apabhrmasha was used widely in Jain literature and formed an important link in evolution of Marathi. This form of Apabhramsha was re-Sanskritised and eventually became Marathi.

     According to the written forms and historical attestations and evidences, Marathi is said to date to the 8th century.

Pre-13th century

Earliest forms

     The first written attestation of Marathi, a document found in Karnataka, dates from A.D.700 The earliest known written form is on the copper plate of Vijayaditya found in Satara, dated 739.

     The stone inscription at the feet of Shravanabelagola Gomateshwar in South Karnataka, whose first line reads as "Chavundarajen Karaviyalen" (श्रीचावुण्डराजे करवियले, श्रीगंगराजे सुत्ताले करवियले, meaning Built by Chavundaraja, the son of Gangaraja), is another old specimen, constructed in A.D.983.

     Also, an interesting couplet is found in the Jain monk Udyotan Suri's 'Kuvalayamala' in the 8th century, referring to a bazaar where the Marhattes speak Didhale (Dile - given), Gahille (Ghetale - taken). The Marathi translation of Panchatantra is also considered very old.

     It is obvious that at 983 A.D, Marathi was one of the distinctly different current languages, widely used by the people of area from North Maharashtra till South Karnataka. The six inscriptions now available dating between A.D. 979—1270 and placed in distant parts like Mysore, Khandesh and Mumbai are an index of the large area over which Marathi was spoken.

     It is because the language was spoken so widely that the deeds of charitable gifts like the one at Patan recording the maintenance grants given by King Soidev to Changdev's University and the imperial mandates expected to be obeyed by all, like the Edict of King Aparaditya, of A.D. 1183, were inscribed in Marathi. The Pandharpur inscription (A.D. 1273) of the days of Raja Shiromani Ramdevrao is in flawless Marathi. Marathi was now spoken by all classes and castes.

12th century to 1905

Yadava

     Marathi literature began and grew thanks to the rise of the Yadava dynasty of Devgiri, who adopted Marathi as the court language and patronized Marathi learned men, and the rise of two religious sects - Mahanubhav Panth and Warkari Panth. Marathi had attained a venerable place in court life by the time of the Yadava Kings. During the reign of the last three Yadava Kings, a great deal of literature in verse and prose, on astrology, medicine, puranas, vedanta, kings and courtiers were created. Nalopakhyan, Rukmini swayamvar and Shripati's Jyotishratnamala (1039 AD) are few examples.

     The oldest book in prose form in Marathi, Vivekasindhu (विवेकसिंधु) is written by Mukundaraj, a yogi of Natha Pantha and arch-poet of Marathi. Mukundaraj bases his exposition of the basic tenets of the Hindu philosophy and Yoga Marga on the utterances or teachings of Shankaracharya. Mukundaraj's another work Paramamrita considered the first systematic attempt to explain the Vendantic principles in Marathi language. One of the famous saints of this period is Sant Dnyaneshwar (1275–1296) who wrote Bhavarthadeepika, popularly known as Dnyaneshwari (A.D 1290) and Amritanubhava. He also composed devotional songs called abhangas. Dnyaneshwar gave a higher status to Marathi by bringing the sacred Geeta from Sanskrit to Marathi. Mahanubhav panth and Warkari panth adopted Marathi as the medium for preaching their doctrines of devotion.

Mahanubhav sect

     Notable examples of Marathi prose are "Līḷācarītra" (लीळाचरीत्र), events and anecdotes from miracle filled life of Chakradhar Swami of the Mahanubhav sect compiled by his close disciple, Mahimabhatta, in 1238. Mahanubhav sect made Marathi a vehicle for the propagation of religion and culture.

       They were followed by the Warkari saint-poet Eknath ((1528–1599). Eknath's Bhavarth Ramayana brought the message of Bhagvat cult to the people with great power. Mukteswar translated the great epic Mahabharata into Marathi. Social reformers like saint-poet Tukaram transformed Marathi into a rich literary language. A real genius, Saint Tukaram’s(1608-49) poetry contained his wonderful inspirations. He was a radical reformer. Conciseness, clarity, vigor and earnestness were the peculiarities of his poetry. A shudra by birth, Tukaram wrote 3000 Abhangas. Their appeal is timeless. He was followed by Ramadas. Writers of the Mahanubhav sect contributed to Marathi prose while the saint-poets of Warkari sect composed Marathi poetry. However, the latter group is regarded as the pioneers and founders of Marathi literature. Jainism too enriched Marathi during Bahamani period. Another notable aspect is the contribution of Christian missionaries in Goa. Father Stephens (1549-1619) who came to India, studied Marathi language. His Krista Purana (क्रिस्तपुराण), written in Marathi and Konkani is considered a classic on the model of Dnyaneshwar

Dialects
Marathi language edition

     Standard Marathi is based on dialects used by academicians and the print media, and is influenced by educated élite of the Pune region. Maharashtra Sahitya Parishad (MSP) is apex guiding body for literary institutions of Marathi language. From time to time, MSP helps out in discourses over various aspects of Marathi and in laying down precedents by framing rules, whenever required.

     Indic scholars distinguish 42 dialects of spoken Marathi. Dialects bordering other major language areas have many properties in common with those languages, further differentiating them from standard spoken Marathi. The bulk of the variation within these dialects is primarily lexical and phonological (e.g. accent placement and pronunciation). Although the number of dialects is considerable, the degree of intelligibility within these dialects is relatively high. Historically, the major dialect divisions have been Ahirani, Khandeshi, Varhadi, Wadvali, Samavedi and Are Marathi.

Ahirani

     Ahirani is spoken in the west Khandesh North Maharashtara region.

     Ahirani is a language today spoken in the Jalgaon (Bhadgaon,Erandol, Pachora, Parola), Nandurbar, Dhule and Nashik (Baglan, Malegaon and Kalwan tehsils) districts of Maharashtra, India. It is further divided into dialects, such as Chalisgaon, Malegaon and Dhule group. Amalner is considered the cultural capital of Khandesh as Amalner has witnessed Akhil Bhartiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan. Adapting & bending the words from Hindi and Gujarati, Ahirani has created its own words which are never found in these languages. Ahirani is a colloquial form and uses the Modi script for its writing.

Khandeshi

     Khandeshi is spoken in East Khandesh specifically in Yawal and Raver Talukas. Khandeshi is also called as Tawadi which is specifically spoken by Leva Patils dominant caste of east Khandesh. Bahinabai Chaudhari is well known poet in Khandeshi, the study of her literature is studied and included in Marathi language. It is often misquoted that Bahinabai is an ahirani poet.

Varhadi

     Varhādi or Vaidarbhi is spoken in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.

In Marathi, the retroflex lateral approximant ḷ (IPA: [ɭ]) is common, while in the Varhadii dialect, it corresponds to the palatal approximant y (IPA: [j]), making this dialect quite distinct. Such phonetic shifts are common in spoken Marathi, and as such, the spoken dialects vary from one region of Maharashtra to another.

Konkani



    Konkani refers to the collection of dialects of Marathi language spoken in the Konkan region. It is often mistakenly extended to cover Goan Konkani which is an independednt language. Grierson has referred to this dialect as the Konkan Standard of Marathi in order to differentiate it from Konkani language. The sub-dialects of Konkani gradually merge from standard Marathi into Goan Konkani from north to south Konkan. The various sub dialects are: Parabhi, Koli, Kiristanv, Kunbi, Agari, Dhangari, Thakri, Karadhi, Sangameshwari, Bankoti and Maoli.

Wadvali

    This dialect may not necessarily be named thus. It was primarily spoken by Wadvals, which essentially means agricultural plot owners, of the Naigaon, Vasai to Dahanu region. Somavamshi Kshatriyas speak this dialect. This language is preserved mostly by the Roman Catholics native to this region, since they are a closely knit community here and have very few relatives outside this region. It was also widely spoken among the Hindus native to this region, but due to external influences, ordinary Marathi is now more popular among the Hindus. There are many songs in this language. Recently a book was published by Nutan Patil containing around 70 songs. The songs are about marriage, pachvi etc. The dialect of the Kolis (fisherfolk) of Vasai and neighbouring Bombay resembles this dialect closely, though they speak with a heavier accent.

Samavedi

    Samavedi is spoken in the interiors of Nala Sopara and Virar region to the north of Mumbai in the Vasai Taluka, Thane District of Maharashtra. The name of this language correctly suggests that its origins lie with the Samavedi Brahmins native to this region. Again this language too finds more speakers among the Roman Catholic converts native to this region (who are known as East Indians), but nevertheless is popular among the Samavedi Brahmins. This dialect is very different from the other Marathi dialects spoken in other regions of Maharashtra, but resembles Wadvali very closely. Both Wadvali and Samavedi have relatively higher proportion of words imported from Portuguese as compared to ordinary Marathi, because of direct influence of the Portuguese who colonized this region till 1739.

Are Marathi

     Are Marathi, written in Devanagari script as अरे मराठी, is another dialect spoken mostly in Andhra Pradesh.[citation needed]

Thanjavur Marathi and Namdev Marathi

     Thanjavur Marathi, Namdev Marathi and Bhavsar Marathi are spoken by many Southern Indians. This dialect evolved from the time of occupation of the Marathas in Thanjavur in southern Tamil Nadu. It has speakers in parts of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

Others
Dangii (spoken near the Maharashtra-Gujarat border)
Judæo-Marathi (spoken by the Bene Israel Jews)
Kadodii (spoken near Vasai)

     Other dialects of Marathi include Warli of Thane District, Dakshini (Marathwada), Deshi (Eastern Konkan Ghats), Deccan, Nagpuri, Ikrani and Gowlan.

     Other languages having considerable Marathi influence
Dakhini and Hyderabadi Urdu spoken in Hyderabad and some parts of Deccan are considerably influenced by Marathi. The grammar of Hyderabadi Urdu is adapted from Marathi. In fact, it is also called a creole between Marathi and Urdu with some Telugu words.
Kannada: especially the northern Karnataka Kannada has been heavily influenced by Marathi. E.g. the feature of aspiration, quite non-native to any Dravidian language, is found in northern Kannada. Also some kinship terms like vahini (brother's wife) are adapted from Marathi. The use of Marathi for numbers is also common amongst Northern districts of Karnataka.


Marathi organisations

Many government and semi-government organisations exist which work for regulation, promotion and enrichment of Marathi language. These are either initiated or funded by Government of Maharashtra. Few prominent Marathi organisations are given below:
Rajya Marathi Vikas Sanstha
Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Mahamandal (Central confederation of all Marathi organisations)
Mumbai Marathi Sahitya Sangh
Maharashtra Sahitya Parishad, Pune
Marathi Vishwakosh (encyclopedia) project
Vidarbha Sahitya Sangh, Nagpur
Marathwada Sahitya Parishad, Aurangabad

Outside Maharashtra state
Gomantak Marathi academy
Madhya Pradesh Sahitya Parishad, Jabalpur
Andhra Pradesh Sahitya Paraishad, Hyderabad
Marathi Sahitya Parishad, Karnataka

Akhil Bhartiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan

     An annual gathering of all marathi poets, writers and critics happens at various places across the country. In 2007 it was organised at Sangli in Maharashtra. The purpose of these gatherings is to enrich Marathi literature by making knowledge sharing and throwing innovative ideas. This also gives the people in that region an opportunity to meet and interact with their favourite writers.









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