Sourashtra language
In this name a language is spoken in Tamil Nadu.
It is an Indo-Aryan Language, off shoot of Sauraseni
Prakrit – so says the Sourashtra Scholar T.M.Ramarai. Its earlier name was
Patnuli. The people were engaged in Silk Weaving and hence in Tamil they were
called as PaTTunuulkaaran. But the term referred to all those people who were
engaged in Silk Weaving.
So to have distinct identity, they changed the community name as Sourashtra,
denoting that they speak a language called Sourashtra.
It was earlier remained as a spoken language for they migrated to South from North India long back and lost everything before they finally settled in Tamil Nadu.
T.M.Ramarai took lot of efforts to make this as a literary language. He rediscovered the script for this language and printed many books. Others followed suit.
And now it is a literary language for a number of famous books like Sanskrit Bhagavath Geetha, Tamil Thirukkural etc. translations of which are now available in Sourashtra language.
So to have distinct identity, they changed the community name as Sourashtra,
denoting that they speak a language called Sourashtra.
It was earlier remained as a spoken language for they migrated to South from North India long back and lost everything before they finally settled in Tamil Nadu.
T.M.Ramarai took lot of efforts to make this as a literary language. He rediscovered the script for this language and printed many books. Others followed suit.
And now it is a literary language for a number of famous books like Sanskrit Bhagavath Geetha, Tamil Thirukkural etc. translations of which are now available in Sourashtra language.
The regional language Tamil and the Common India
contact language English they have to study in schools. There is no provision for the study of a third
language in the school in Tamil Nadu. With the result this language could not be
introduced in the Elementary Schools and they are denied Education in their
Mother Tongue.
These people have their own complacency that the need is very much less to learn a third language viz. their mother tongue for they can communicate through Tamil or English in writing and orally they can speak their mother tongue with their relatives.
So only a few intelligent Sourashtras learn how to write in this language and compose many literary works.
These people have their own complacency that the need is very much less to learn a third language viz. their mother tongue for they can communicate through Tamil or English in writing and orally they can speak their mother tongue with their relatives.
So only a few intelligent Sourashtras learn how to write in this language and compose many literary works.
In the absence of Government’s support, the progress
of this language is dead slow.
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