Kanara Catholics: Konkani amchi bhas

Konkani, with a speaking population of2,256,502 (2011 Census: Goa 964,305, Karnataka 788,294, Maharashtra 399,255, Kerala 69,449) has had a long and complex evolutionary history. Classified under the western branch of the Indo-Aryan family, it is spoken by scattered populations from Gujarat to Kerala. Technically, Konkani applies to “multiple, closely related individual languages that are deemed in some usage contexts to be a single language.”

Konkani has similarities with Munda, an Austro-Asiatic language, and a strong Dravidian influence. Both Dravidian and Indo-Aryan languages are relatively recent arrivals to South Asia. The Indo-Aryan language family is broadly classified into the ‘outer’ and ‘inner’ branches. The inner branch, Old Indo-Aryan, spoken in the Punjab/Haryana regions, constituted the speech of the composers of the Rgveda. The outer branch shows evidence of greater contact with Dravidian speakers.

Old Indo-Aryan can be dated to c 1500 BCE. There is, however, good evidence for earlier forms, linked to outer Indo-Aryan, that appear in South Asia between c.2000-1500 BCE. They are less directly linked to the Vedic texts and located in regions beyond Punjab, specifically Sindh, where they moved as newer groups appeared in Punjab. While the inner branch moved into the Gangetic basin, the outer moved into the Deccan, south along the West Coast,and eastward south of the Vindhyas, mleccha territories according to Vedic texts.

A number of word and structure forms are shared between the western (Marathi, Konkani) and eastern Indo-Aryan languages (Bangla, Ahom, Bihari, Oriya) of the outer group. These suggest a shared common process that was restricted to these groups. Konkani and Marathi shared a common origin before their movement into peninsula India. The separation became more pronounced as they moved further into the Deccan and along the West Coast to evolve into Marathi and Konkani via two intermediate Prakrit stages, Magadhi Apabrahmsa and Sauraseni Apabrahmsa respectively. The Western Ghats, a formidable barrier, afforded Goa a degree of isolation that preserved more of the earlier forms in Konkani. Goa possesses the highest diversity of Konkani variants, strong evidence that it evolved in Goa.

Throughout this southward movement, however, both remained in contact with and were influenced by Dravidian languages. The Sindh-Saurashtra-Gujarat-Maharashtra-Deccan corridor, which extended to the Konkan, served as the conduit for the spread of Dravidian languages as well. All these regions have place and river names that can be traced to Dravidian origins. Some of the structural similarities shared by eastern languages like Bangla and south-western languages like Marathi are also shared by Dravidian languages, indicating the early influence of Dravidian, designated loosely as ‘Proto-Kannada’, on outer Indo-Aryan.

The shift from predominantly Dravidian-speaking to predominantly Indo-Aryan-speaking population was a gradual process. It most likely occurred through intense contact between these populations.In such multilingual encounters, the language of the newcomer belonging to a technologically, economically, and militarily dominant society, becomes the lingua franca. In Goa, it is possible that Konkani (or its ancestor) speakers gained dominance because of the superior skills in agricultureand other technologies they brought from Sindh in southern Harappa. Today, that situation has reversed. Konkani has faced and is facing potential threats to its survival from situations that give other languages dominance.

Through its recent history, Konkani has been influenced by several languages (Persian, Arabic, Kannada, Portuguese, Tulu, Malayalam, English). It has many dialects brought about by regional distribution, caste, and religion. Each major region, Northern (Ratnagiri), Central (Goa), and Southern (Karnataka, Kerala), has sub-variations, like Antruz, Bardesi, Sashasti etc. A Konkani speaker’s dialect can identify his caste (Brahman, Chardo, Shet, Gavde) or religion (Hindu, Christian, Navayat). Konkani has no script of its own. It uses five scripts, Roman, Kannada, Malayalam, Perso-Arabic, and Devanagari.

During the Portuguese era, Konkani was studied and used as a medium of communication with Goan Christians. The first printed Konkani book, Doutrina Crista, appeared in 1622. The Arte da Lingoa Canarim, is the first printed grammar of a modern Indian language. The so-called 1684 ban on Konkani has often been cited as an attempt to suppress Konkani. It was actually an attempt by the viceroy to settle rivalry between Portuguese-speaking Franciscans and Konkani-speaking secular priests for control of parishes.

Konkani has wrongly been termed as a dialect of Marathi. Katre’s The Formation of Konkani shows that Konkani and Marathi are separate languages that developed from a common parent prakrit with Konkani preserving an earlier stage of development. The language vs. dialect controversy gained political overtones when the Indian Union was restructured around linguistic identities. If Konkani was seen as a dialect of Marathi, it would strengthen the case for incorporation of Goa into Maharashtra. Making it the State language had a direct bearing on the construction of a new Goan identity.

Today, the Constitution recognises Konkani as a separate language. Perhaps the greatest threat to its survival comes from English- the pottaachi bhas, ‘language of the stomach’, as Konkani speakers increasingly turn to it in the pursuit of education and a well-paying job in other parts of India and globally. In these circumstances, it is left to us to ensure Konkani, amchi bhas that gave us a unique identity, a language whose roots go back many thousand years, does not become an orphan.