Language documentation in Andamans: Highs and Lows

It is not surprising that language deaths go unnoticed when 10% of world languages are spoken by less than 100 speakers. Great Andamanese, is a highly endangered mixed language spoken by less than ten speakers from a community of 53 aboriginal people in Strait Island, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, India.

Great Andamanese is one of the oldest living languages of the world spoken by the Negrito population who are being identified by modern geneticists to be the initial settlers of the northern coastal areas of the Indian Ocean 50-70 thousand years ago from –out –of-Africa migration. This fact alone makes its documentation very essential for preserving linguistic and cultural characteristics unique to its location, and for opening new insights for linguists, cognitive scientists, geneticists, philosophers, and also for shaping our understanding of population genetics and human migration.

For a community, which is on the verge of losing its language completely, it becomes imperative that it gets urgent attention from people related to language documentation and revitalization.Great Andamanese is a highly endangered language today due to several reasons ranging from external forces such as such as military, economic, religious, cultural or educational subjugation to internal forces such as a community’s negative attitude towards its own language. And often these forces combine to produce disastrous results for an endangered language.

Language documentation not only helps in maintenance, revitalization and motivation for transmission of an endangered language to next generations but also engender a change in attitude towards language by the speech community, which is very vital for turning the tide over.

Though it is difficult to turn the tide back completely, language documentation does provide us with enough ways to slow down the process of language death.

A Story from Hungary

I Love You!

By Kotsolyani Daejeo

Re-translated from Hindi

It was difficult to win Rosy. It was the time when cows begin to walk back to their shades and I was standing near the corner of the street waiting for her. Rosy was standing at the grocery shop at the other hand, playing with the rubber with her white little fingers. During those long hours of waiting, I used to wonder that the dark shadows of crouching night make her weary like the moon whose light gives rise to the birth of fairies in fairytales.I wanted to awaken the woman inside Rosy. In the beginning I used to play some cheap romantic tricks, like gifting her strawberry flavored chocolates and the things like that. And then I used to pour honey in her ears with my sweet talk. And sometimes touching her hands with my shaking fingers so that I can wake up that stone hearted fairy in her. At last she said what I was long waiting for-

I love you!

These words hit the roof of my head like a hot missile. In every room of my house, these words were laughing endlessly like a maniac. The guitar hanging on the wall suddenly started playing old tunes of love. On top of it, Grand pa who was hanging on that cheap frame stuck on the wall suddenly started smiling. I thought the moon could not sleep the whole night, because he heard her saying those beautiful words.

She came again, the next day. She removed her hat silently and looking at the other side of her eyes, said

I love you!

I used to wait impatiently for her home comings. That little girl’s every little talk was like big news for me. In fact she was also surprised that she was happy. Whenever I used to hear her talking to me, I used to feel as if sirens are playing Beethoven in my heart and fire brigades are running down the street with their loud bells ringing.

Soon the chilly winters got over, I naphthalened my overcoats and changed the heavy curtains with light cotton ones. Finally the spring sprang on the courtyard around my house. I was expecting something different in this changed season. But Rosy kept on saying the same words-

I love you!

I do not have a very powerful stock of words, but still I can say in plain words that she was faithful girl. It was good feeling to be loved by someone. But I started avoiding these meetings. First I gave the hints with my polite letters that I have to go for long journeys-to
Australia, Madagascar and beyond. But she kept coming. One midnight, she came and lied on the sofa as if it belonged to her own house and kept staring at the fire place. I asked what is it. She said

I love you!

I said, I know that. Say something else.

Rosy tried hard, coughed but could say nothing other than those three words. I said- Rosy you are a fool. Go back to your house!

Next morning I received a thick letter from the courier company. I was convinced that it will hold the key for our break-off. But in that letter, only this much was written in big bold letters-

I love you!

My head was spinning. These sacred and lovely words which were so beautiful in the beginning had now taken the form of a big devil ordering me to toe the line. Like an emperor, it had destroyed everything of mine. These words had entered my furniture, books and clothes like a cheap perfume which does not leave very easily. Wherever I went, I found the same dreadful words. On my sofa cover, handkerchiefs and so on. It was all gifted by her.

Finally to get rid of this dreadful situation, I had to change my address. I secretly found a house at the other side of the city and started living there. I was having a quiet life, away from those dangerous words.
Reading books lying on the sofa alone. Rosy had vanished. In fact summers had arrived, then something happened which shook me from the bottom.

One day the lady who did my laundry, brought my clothes at my house and handed me a bag full of small chits. When I took them out, they all started flying in the wind like spirits. In each chit, the same dangerous words were scribbled-

I love you!

It was her hand writing. I knew it. My heart was thumping and I came out looking for her. I was scared. I could see her every where. Hovering all over my house. On the trains. On the roads and in the coffee shops. My old fear had gripped me again. She was there-everywhere!

Soon she sent a big stale cake on which my name was written with the same ordering words. I cried. This is hell!I was silent. I was waiting for a miracle to happen.

One evening when I was coming back from work, I saw her standing at the railing. I hesitated but then succumbed to the urge of inviting her inside. I wanted to throw away those bloody logics, tricks, and the stupid known behavior of all males and then throw Rosy out of my house. Throw those deadly spirits as well which I Had invited on my own. She was silent. But her silence also meant an order for me- to speak. I started speaking.

Rosy didn’t utter a word. I asked, what has happened to you? Why your heart is beating so fast? Why your eyes are wet?

She finally sat on the sofa. Her lips were simmering with pain as if they want explode with pain. She was pressing her lips hard. She suddenly got up and started looking at me. She was dumb founded. Looking for words to share her loneliness. I helped her. And finally she said with tears rolling out-

Yes I love you!

I said, I know it. Say something else!

Lexicography In Hindi: what is it?

Lexicography is the science of making dictionaries and it is the sub part of the bigger science ‘Lexicology” i.e the science of words.Lexicography traces its roots in ancient
India in the works like Sanskrit’s nighantu of Yaskacharya in 1000 BC. Similar works have also been done in other classical languages of
India like Tamil in the form of akarati nikhandu etc in the medieval period. Since that time, dictionaries of different varieties have been produced over the years in various Indian languages. Though many seem to have been lost with the passage of time, some are still available to us like amarkosh and mednikosh. Hindi (with Urdu) which is the 2^nd most spoken language in the world, is the official language of the Indian republic, also displays a unique lexicographical tradition. As observed in other lexicographical traditions, in Hindi lexicographical tradition also monolingual dictionaries preceded bilingual/multilingual dictionaries. The dictionaries of Nanddas, Banarsidas, Badridas, Haricharan Das, Chetan Vijay etc belong to this genre of Hindi Monolingual dictionaries. Though Hindi Lexicographical tradition dates far back than lexicographical traditions of languages like English, but by the end of 19^th century Hindi lexicography lagged behind the advances made in languages like English, French, German etc. In the 21^st century, we see a new ray of hope in Hindi lexicography by the advent of
India as a knowledge base for information technology..

The Saga of Place names

Place names have always caught our fascination to the extent that there are people and communities who traditionally attach place names with their personal names. Take a look at Marathi surnames ( Puntambekar, Tendulkar etc) 
Andaman Islands also throw up a rich variety of place names ranging from the indigenous native names to the names kept by colonizers and settlers. In fact place names tell us a lot about the culture and priorities of the people residing there. Starting with native names kept by the indigenous people of these islands, which are now a minority in their own land. Place names like ‘Putatang’, ‘Jirkatang’, ‘karmatang’ and ‘phultang’ are all indigenous names, which have stood the test of times. Notice that, all these names end in ‘tang’ which is actually a modified version of a Great Andamanese word ‘tong’ meaning ‘tree’. Great Andamanese who inhabited this whole mass of islands were people who were close to nature and their life was symbiotically connected with the surrounding ecosystem. The usual custom of naming places by these islanders primarily consisted, naming the place after the abundant natural resources of that particular area. Therefore we come across names such as ‘maro phong’ (literally honey-hole) where honey was found in abundance. Similarly names ending in ’tong’ indicated that the place is abundant in that particular flora. Moreover place names also indicated the unique topographical feature of the camping area of the indigenous community. Therefore we have ‘raetphor’ (literally big-bamboo-small bamboo), an area near today’s Mayabander. Likewise an obsolete name like ‘bol phong’ was used by the Great Andamanese to indicate the region of present
Long Island. It is not to say that all the indigenous groups shared common place names. The reality is that each hunter-gatherer community maintained a repertoire of place names according to their relationship to the region and area inhabited by them.In fact we can still find a variety of names kept by Jarawa people for the region they inhabit. In E.H. Man’s dictionary of ‘Bea’ language (a southern Great andamanese language), we come across various place names across the length and breadth of
Andaman islands. An important thing to note down here is that ‘Bea’ people who inhabited the southern Andamans had provided place names even for the regions going beyond the northern limits of
Andaman Islands. But that does not mean that they had already coined all place names. The truth is that, when they accompanied the British colonizers in their
Island expeditions, they were asked to tell the place name, and the clever ‘Bea’ men instantly gratified them by keeping a new place name by looking at the visual and topographical landscape. The native islanders usually kept themselves confined to their respective territory. When the British colonizers coaxed them to come out of their abode and took them for various island expeditions, it also gave rise to strengthening of mythology and folktales in the communities. For example when ‘Bea’ people were shown the ‘Saddle point’ the second highest hill in Andamans, they were convinced that it is none other than ‘pulugachang’ (the abode of the first man). The traditional place naming tradition of ‘Jero’, another Great Andamanese group is equally interesting. ‘Jero’ who were primarily seacoast dwellers usually kept place names after the seascape. For example we find place names like ‘toro-taec’(literally leaf of turtles) for a place near Mayabander implying that turtles were in abundance there. ‘Jero’ who were so fond of turtle meat to the extent that they would even risk their own life for hunting turtles, found it wi ttingly suitable to keep this name for the same area. Also their name for Port Blair, the administrative capital of colonizers, ‘lao-ter-nyo’ (literally ‘house of evils’) sounds equally appropriate because it reminds us of the misery Great Andamanese were brought to by their sojourn in Port Blair. This saga of naming places by different people did not stop just with the extinction of the Great Andamanese, but people of all hues and cries gave all colorful names to places in Andamans. Be it Burmese Borang and Bajota of Mayabander area, Webi of Karen settlers, Baul Dera and Haridas Katai of Bengali settlers, Padnabhpuram and Tirur of Tamils, and Birsanagar and Hanspuri of Ranchi settlers. Amazingly the new settlers of the islands are also adopting the practice of naming places after natural ecosystems. We now see place names such as Sagwan Nallah (literally creek of Sagwan trees), and Khatta Khadi (literally sour mangroves). But the major place name givers were non other than British colonizers. They coined most of the English place names, be it Port Blair after the Archibald Port Blair or
Atlanta point after the sailing vessel. This list and explanations are short, but I hope serves to illustrate some of the facets of place names and the many associations they bring about. The Historical aspect of place names comes about when one tries to find out why and who were the people or events that led to the genesis of those names 

Need of the hour- Instant IQ!

 

Why do we need to know so much? Why we are hungry to know what’s cooking in the kitchen next door? Nobody on earth will underestimate the virtue of knowing it all. But the question is why do we do it? The answer lies in human beings insatiable lust for knowledge of all kinds which precedes their other insatiable hunger ’sex’.

We meet an old friend after a long time, and the first things which zip through our mind, is where was he all these days?,what does he do for living? etc.We go to the market and find a crowd gathered around something. We instantly leap towards the crowd and become a volunteer in the pursuit of knowledge. Others, who have something else in mind, just ask a passerby about what is happening. If not satisfied, we will try another potential Mr. know all.

The tendency or good old habit of playing the role of Sherlock Holmes for all and sundry things which happen all around us, seems to be genetically encoded in us like the gene of baldness. Why the dog next door never barks at passing by Mrs.WXY but barks at you? is a intriguing question which can take permanent seat in our mind if left unresolved.We all want to know everything happening around us- from the bed sheets to game theory. But you will also find people showing colors of least interest in knowing at all. Don’t get duped, these are the people who are wise enough to save their precious energy in other quality pursuits of knowledge. They are like parasites which also need to know all but rather than doing their own IQ enquiry, depend on other gullible sources of knowledge. But it is also to be understood that, IQ dispensing is also a very savoring experience for the people all around. The more you tell, the more you want to tell.

Meet a stranger looking for directions, give him a blank look or tell him about your inability to help him/her. Bingo, you got 100 curses etched in his/her mind like stone engraving of Ashoka age. Haven’t you met a foreigner asking why bovine creatures are masquendering over the road dividers?  And I Know you had a hard time explaining him/her the reasons and benefits. But question is why does he/she want to know and also why do we find ourselves hard pressed to answer, though we can just show our indifference. 

Knowledge is a necessary evil, if you don’t have it you cannot live, but if you have it- you going to puke it as soon as it gets.Adding knowledge to the imbibed knowledge is also something we relish a lot. Heard an incident and its causes, we instantly apply all available knowledge filters, which drains out some info and add new ingredients. Some people are really very good at this art of cooking potpourri of imported knowledge. And the common mass savors this delicious apple pie.

We come across many exponents of this pursuit of knowledge in the form of university intellectuals to road side vendors. They might display their wares as different and genuine but ultimately it will lead to the same art of knowledge gathering.From hunters and gathers to urban humans, we love to know and brag a lot about it. Because this is what we are as far as we humans are concerned.

I hope an age will come when all will find access to this instant IQ easily available and accessible. And for that we need not depend on our primitive tools like eavesdropping.

Confessions continued!