Page:Castes and Tribes of Southern India.djvu/66

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INTRODUCTION.

Kōya or Kōi.—A dialect of Gōndi, spoken by the Kōyis in the Vizagapatam and Godavāri districts.

Poroja, Parjā, or Parjī.—A dialect of Gōndi.

Tulu.—The language largely spoken in South Canara (the ancient Tuluva). It is described by Bishop Caldwell as one of the most highly developed languages of the Dravidian family.

Koraga.—Spoken by the Koragas of South Canara. It is thought by Mr. H. A. Stuart[1] to be a dialect of Tulu.

Bellera.—Spoken by the Belleras of South Canara, and regarded as a dialect of Canarese or Tulu.

Toda.—The language of the Todas of the Nīlgiri hills, concerning which Dr. W. H. R. Rivers writes as follows.[2] "Bernhard Schmid,[3] who wrote in 1837, appears to have known more of the true Toda language than any one who has written since, and he ascribes two-thirds of the Toda vocabulary to Tamil, and was unable to trace the remaining third to any other language. Caldwell[4] believed the language of the Todas to be most closely allied to Tamil. According to Pope,[5] the language was originally old Canarese with the addition of a few Tamil forms, but he has included in his vocabulary words which have probably been borrowed from the Badagas."

Kota.—A mixture of Canarese and Tamil spoken by the Kotas of the Nīlgiri hills.

Badaga.—The language of the Badagas of the Nīlgiri hills. Said to be an ancient form of Canarese.


  1. Manual of the South Canara district.
  2. The Todas, 1906.
  3. Madras Journ., Lit. and Sci., V., 1837.
  4. Comparative Grammar of the Dravidian Languages. 2nd Ed., 1875.
  5. Outlines of the Toda Grammar appended to Marshall's Phrenologist among the Todas.