------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2006 * * * Y E A R * * * O F * * * T H E * * * S E N I O R ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Goa Sudharop Annual Awards on November 20, 2006 @ Mandovi Hotel @ 4:30pm Chief Guest: Dr. Asha Vishwanath Sawardekar
A series of essays as a tribute to Goan Seniors can be found at: http://www.goanet.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=524 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ On Thu, November 16, 2006, Shri Eduardo Faleiro, former Union Minister, spoke at the Xavier Center of Historical Research, Alto Porvorim, Goa. The theme of his talk was the language issue in Goa. The below article is based on that talk. LANGUAGE AND BEYOND By Eduardo Faleiro At the time of the conquest of Goa by the Portuguese in the early sixteenth century Konkani and Marathi were the languages prevailing here. Authors differ on their opinion as to whether both languages were written or marathi alone was the literary language and Konkani, the spoken language. Noted Goan historian Panduranga Pisurlenkar observes: "If the language spoken in Goa is Konkani, the literary language of the Goan Hindus is traditionally Marathi. Cunha Rivara and Mons. Sebastiao Rodolfo Dalgado believed that there was literature in Konkani language and that it was destroyed by the Portuguese due to religious intolerance. We may, however, note that the Portuguese territory of Goa before 1763, consisted only of the Old Conquests namely Tiswadi, Salcete and Bardez; the rest of the same territory was not under the Portuguese rule. It is therefore logical that had there been any book or document written in this language it would have been found in the New Conquests. The truth is that there are no vestiges whatsoever of the existence of a Konkani literature before the conquest of Goa by the Portuguese. There was certainly literature in Goa but written in marathi and sanskrit". (Goa Pre-Portuguesa atraves dos escritores lusitanos dos seculos XVI & XVII, pp 49 et seq). Fr. Antonio Pereira remarks "marathi was the hieratic language of Goa though not understood by the masses for whom Konkani was more familiar and homely: 'lingua da terra vulgar', the popular language of the place." After the Portuguese conquest, foreign missionaries wrote konkani in the roman script. "As a rule the majority of the books of the Jesuits and Franciscans, in prose are in konkani and those in poetry are in marathi". (The Makers of Konkani Literature, p.11). Other writers hold a different view. According to Prof. Lourdino Rodrigues "today we know with incontestable evidence that Goa had a konkani version of Ramayana and Mahabharata in the 16th century and konkani was such a highly developed language that its vocabulary was richer than portuguese and marathi." (Pre sixteenth century Mohabharat Adi Porv' p.XI ). The first significant publication in Konkani by a Goan during the Portuguese era was "Udentechem sallok" (Lotus of the East), a fortnightly published from Pune by Eduardo Bruno de Souza, in 1889. Konkani in roman script was kept alive by Goan catholics who migrated to Bombay and other parts of India and who had studied the script in the Portuguese primary schools at the end of the 19 th and beginning of the 20th century. The reason, according to Mons. Dalgado was that whilst the Portuguese were intolerant towards the local languages, the British administration would promote them. "The British administration far from persecuting and ostracizing the native languages assumes as one of its main duties to open schools everywhere and provide generous grants to private schools for their teaching, to stimulate in every way the attendance of the students, to use these languages in the preparation for higher studies, to promote text books so that even rough dialects are written . Look at the Goan community in Bombay which is more in contact with the British administration and with the intellectual activities of its subjects; it has for the last several years, periodicals in the mother tongue, literary publications, mostly translations or adaptations as it always happens in the initial stages and even dramatic productions which are appreciated by those who do not know or know only superficially European languages." (Dicionario Portuguez-Konkani, pp.XIV-XV). Konkani literature in devanagari script was pioneered by Vaman Varde Valaulikar (Shenoi Goenbab) in the early Twentieth Century. It gained impetus after Liberation and more so after the enactment of the Official Language Act. Konkani has a great potential as a literary language because of its strong cultural heritage, an admixture of the east and the west, its plurality of religious beliefs and its rich musical tradition. The Official Language Act was enacted in 1987. It is intended to achieve greater unity and harmony among our people and to strengthen our common cultural heritage. If in the process of implementing the Official Language Act any section of the population feels aggrieved, such complaints should be examined sympathetically. Several suggestions for redressal of grievances were brought to my notice over the last few months. They relate to membership of literary bodies, grants to writers, publication of konkani books in devanagari as well as roman script etc. I have spoken to the Chief Minister as well as to the Minister for Art and Culture regarding these suggestions and I am confident that they will be looked into to the satisfaction of all concerned. Representatives of the aggrieved interests may now interact with the Government and work out the modalities. School education is intended mainly to provide a suitable career, economic and social status and better prospects in life. India is today among the fastest growing economies in the world. Economic success of a Nation leads to cultural assertion. In emerging India it will be necessary to be fluent in at least two Indian languages including Hindi, for success in the mainstream economy and society. English is at present the main international language. In this globalized world, proficiency in English is also very important. There is no reason for any language controversy in Goa. If differences do arise the protagonists of marathi and konkani in devanagari and roman scripts should together find a solution. They should approach the Government whenever necessary. Institutions such as the Central Institute of Indian Languages are also available for advice. The present Government is responsive and sympathetic to any proposal that strengthens our unity and enhances our linguistic and cultural solidarity. _______________________________________________ Goanet mailing list Goanet@lists.goanet.org http://lists.goanet.org/listinfo.cgi/goanet-goanet.org