The Konkani Language And Literature

About the Book:-Konkani language is mostly spoken on the western coast of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala. Konkani people are scattered all over the world. This language belongs to the group of Indo-Aryan languages. Marathi and Gujarati are closer languages to it. It is bit similar to even Bengali as far as pronunciations are concerned. Some linguists opine that Konkani was derived from Maharashtrian Prakrit and Mahrashtrian Apabhransha languages. Konkani lexicographer late Sripad Desai affirms that Konkani was emerged from Apabhansha language in and around 10 to 12 centuries AD. He feels that Rajasthani, Gujarati and Konkani are from the same family. In the earlier times Konkani had business interactions with Arabian countries. Therefore some Arabian-Persian words entered Konkani. During 11th century Kadamba kings ruled Goa. Obviously, some Kannada words too found place in Konkani. In the 13th century, Konkani people residing in Kerala accepted some words from Malayalam and Tamil. The orthography, vocabulary, grammar and overall style of Konkani have an impact of other languages. The author has prepared this thin monograph is a part of the Gazetteer of Bombay. It gives well researched insights into the development of the language and literature of Konkani. Many word etymologies are discussed, along with tables to illustrate developments, inflections, and grammatical points.