Kolami

Kolami (Northwestern Kolami/Southeastern Kolami) also known as Kōlav, is a tribal Central Dravidian language spoken in Maharashtra and Telangana states of India. It falls under the Kolami–Naiki group of languages. It is the most widely spoken Central Dravidian language.

Kolami, kōlav
kolami, kōlav
कॊलमि, कोलव्
Native toIndia
RegionMaharashtra, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh
Ethnicity239,583 Kolam (2011 census)[1]
Native speakers
128,451, 54% of ethnic population (2011 census)[2]
Dravidian
  • Central
    • Kolami–Naiki
      • Kolami, kōlav
• Devanagari,

• Telugu script, • Goykanadi, • Modi script,

• Tamil script
Language codes
ISO 639-3Either:
kfb – Northwestern Kolami
nit – Southeastern Kolami (Naiki)
Glottolognort2699

Sathupati Prasanna Sree has developed a unique script for use with the language.

Personkōlavan, kōlavtad
Peoplekōlavar
LanguageKolami, kōlav
CountryMaharashtra

Classification

Kolami,kōlav language has been classified as a central dravidian language. It is well known as dravidian language of Maharashtra state. Well influenced by south central dravidian languages like Telugu and Gondi. It is also a tribal Dravidian language. Kolami is the dialect of the Kolam tribal group.

The Kolami/kōlav dialect differs considerably from the Gond language of the neighboring district. In some respects, Kolami/Kōlav is closely related to Telugu and in others to Kannada. The influence of the Bhilli language is felt as the communication in the surrounding area comes into contact. Some other points of similarity are also important like the Toda dialect of the Nilgiris and according to Dr. Grierson, linguistically speaking, the Kolami/kōlav may be the remaining descendants of the Dravidian tribes. who either never participated in the development of the main Dravidian language or who never adopted Dravidian language.

Writing systems

Currently, kolami, Kōlav language is used in Telugu and Devanagari script and also in Goykanadi for writing purposes.

Characteristics

Kolami has a two-gender system, being either masculine or non-masculine. Kolami has developed aspirated stops, distancing itself from its ancestor Proto-Dravidian.

Phonology
Vowels[3]
Front Central Back
short long short long short long
High i iː u uː
Mid e eː o oː
Low a aː
Consonants[3]
Labial Dental/
Alveolar		 Retroflex Palatal Velar Glottal
Nasal m n ɳ ŋ
Plosive voiceless p t ʈ t͡ʃ k
voiced b d ɖ d͡ʒ ɡ
Fricative voiceless s h
voiced z
Approximant central ʋ j
lateral l ɭ
Rhotic r

Sample Text
PhrasesEnglish TranslationDēvanāgariTelugu
Inne pēr tāned ?What is your name ? इन्नॆ पेर् तानॆद्  ?ఇన్నె పేర్ తానెద్ ?
Anne pēr rāmakMy name is rāmak अन्नॆ पेर् रामक्అన్నె పేర్ రామక్
ĀyYesआय्ఆయ్
TōdNoतोद्తోద్
War ittiCome hereवर् इत्तिవర్ ఇత్తి
Sē attiGo thereसे अत्तिసే అత్తి
Etti āṇi enāṅwhere and howऎत्ति आणि ऎनाङ्ఎత్తి ఆణి ఎనాఙ్

Also see Kolami Swadesh list on wiktionary.

References
  1. "A-11 Individual Scheduled Tribe Primary Census Abstract Data and its Appendix". www.censusindia.gov.in. Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
  2. "Census of India Website : Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India". censusindia.gov.in. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  3. Krishnamurti, Bhadriraju (2003). The Dravidian Languages. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-139-43533-8.
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