- Tulu language
Infobox Language
name = Tulu
nativename = Tulu
states =India
region = Coastal Karnataka and parts of northern Kerala. (historically known asTulu Nadu )
speakers = 1,949,000 (1997 survey) [ [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=tcy Ethnologue report for Tulu] ]
familycolor = Dravidian
fam2 = Southern
script=Kannada script , Tigalari
iso2=dra|iso3=tcy|notice=IndicTulu is a Dravidian language of
India with fewer than two million speakers, known asTuluva s. Most Tuluvas live in the districts ofDakshina Kannada andUdupi in the west of the state ofKarnataka . It is also spoken in the Kasaragod taluk ofKerala . The original written script of the language, similar toMalayalam script Fact|date=May 2008, is rarely used today. It is normally written in theKannada script Fact|date=May 2008 now.Geographic distribution
There are indications in a few
Malayalam works that the region stretching from theChandragiri river , now part of theKasaragod district ofKerala , to Gokarna, now part ofUttara Kannada district of Karnataka, was calledTulu Nadu .Fact|date=November 2007 However, the present dayTulu linguistic boundary is confined to Dakshina Kannada and theUdupi district. Northern Kasaragod, Dakshina Kannada and the Udupi district (exceptKundapur ) are the major Tulu cultural regions.Tuluva s have a saying: "Oorudu nanjaanda paarad badkodu". A loose translation would be: "If it's tough at home; run away and survive". Tuluvas are true to this character and have migrated to other places in great numbers.Mumbai andThane in Maharastra state has a sizable population ofTuluva s. Tulu is widely spoken in theDakshina Kannada ,Udupi andUttara Kannada districts of Karnataka state. Efforts are also being made to get Tulu included in the list of national languages of India [ [http://www.yakshagana.com/tulu-recog.htm Why Tulu language deserves recognition from Kendra Sahithya Academy and why it should be included in schedule 8B of the constitution] ] .cript
19th century
missionaries used theKannada script to transcribe Tulu works, but it soon fell out of use. Tulu is mostly written in the Kannada script since most people study Kannada in schools. Attempts are being made to revive the original scriptTulu Script .Tulu Script is similar toMalayalam script "Mandara Ramayana" is a modern epic written in Tulu by Mandara Keshav Bhat.
Some inscriptions in Tulu languages may be found in and around the village of
Barkur .The language
The paucity of literary works has rendered the precise dating of the origin of this language very difficult.
Spoken Tulu changes as we move from South to North. There is a common perception that there are only two Tulu dialects, namely Shivalli and Common. But a study of the language and pronunciation suggests there are four distinct dialects of this language: Shivalli, Jain, Common, and Tribal.
; Brahmin dialect: Spoken by Tulu Brahmins (
Sthanika Brahmins andShivalli Brahmins ). [ [http://tuluver.com Tulunadu and Tulu community around the world - www.tuluver.com - Home ] ]; Jain dialect: Spoken by the Jains in the northern part of Tulu Nadu.; Common dialect: Spoken by the majority of people of Tulu Nadu; the dialect of commerce, entertainment and art.; Tribal dialect: Spoken by tribal people; closely resembles the Common dialect.
Tulu is not taught in schools. Schedule 8B of the
Constitution of India does not recognize it as an official language. Tulu is also considered anendangered language .References
See also
*
Languages of India
*Madhava
*Kanakana kindi
*List of national languages of India
*List of Indian languages by total speakers
*Tuluva
*Kasaragod Tulu
*Beary bashe External links
* [http://www.yakshagana.com/Tululipi.htm The Tulu Script] www.yakshagana.com
* [http://www.boloji.com/places/0020.htm Tulu Language: Its Script and Dialects] www.boloji.com
* [http://www.mangalore.com/documents/languages.html Common Kannada, Tulu and Konkani phrases] www.mangalore.com
* [http://www.buntsworld.com/ Community Website for Tulu speaking community] www.buntsworld.com
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