Tag Archives: badaga

Badaga Dictionary

A lot of young friends who visit this website ( truly humbled and thrilled that there are more than 627,000 hits – JP) ask me whether there are any books to 1) learn Badaga language and on 2) Badaga Dictionary.

There are some books on Badaga Language and you can find the list on the page ‘Books on Badaga .

Prof.Paul Hockings
Christiane Pilot-Raichoor

 Prof.Paul Hockings has brought out ‘A Badaga English Dictionary‘ way back in 1992 along with (late) Christiane Pilot-Raichoor.

Some pages from this book are given below.

See A Badaga _ English Dictionary 

 

Prof.Paul Hockings informs me that the book A Badaga – English Dictionary was published in 1992, and is 865 pages long. Moreover the fully revised expansion of it is now ready for publication, and will be about 1000 pages long. A shorter and cheaper Student Edition is also planned (13 Feb 2019)

Another very useful and in my opinion a great source of interesting information on Badagaru Dhoddaru Shloka (proverbs) along with dictionary is
Counsel from the Ancients: A Study of Badaga Proverbs, Prayers, Omens and Curses

I understand that Nelikolu Trust is bringing out a Badaga – Tamil – English (authored by Dr.Haldorai) soon. It must be very interesting since Tamil, understood by many Badagas, is included.

 

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Deepak from Nanjanaadu writes …

Deepak from Nanjanaadu

Sir, I used to mail you 4 to 5 years back. My father is in Army[Subedar Major].I wanted to ask you is there any translation of the book – “History of Hethey Amman“, either in English or if possible in Hindi.

Then sir, I am really happy to see your interest towards our community.Really it  feels good to see such an interest and effort.Hope this effort will try to reveal the feelings that we teens have towards our community. Visiting the site after so many years it feels as if it is your obsession.Please don’t let this obsession get dormant.We youngsters actually need someone to tell our identity and tell us who we are.

Hello Deepak, I am very glad and feel thrilled to see your email. Unfortunately, there is no translation of the booklet on Hethey in English or Hindi.

I feel extremely happy that this website and its contents make youngsters like you to learn about us, ‘tell our identity and tell us who we are‘ as you have beautifully put it. As I keep repeating, ‘there is plenty to learn and know about ‘Badagas, the beautiful people of the Blue Mountains‘.

My motivation to keep going with this website is due to the encouraging words like yours. Thank you very much. – Wg Cdr JP

Badaga Origin

This article is reproduced due to readers request

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Many mistakenly claim that Badaga Origin is nothing but Badaga migration from Mysore  [now in Karnataka state] during Tipu’s time only because of  the name Badaga (meaning northerner). It is very debatable. Unfortunately many Badagas have believed it in the absence of any convincing and conclusive evidence to the contrary. But the latest revelations and links about the language, especially from the epics and writings during the Tamil Sangam period tell a totally different story (see below).

Portrait of Tipu Sultan once owned by Richard ...

I am firmly of the view that our history is much older- may be a thousand years or more older – and my initial ‘research’ confirms that. There is a lot written about the migration from Mysore theory by many anthropologists, researchers and others. For obvious reasons, most of them are/were ‘outsiders’ – like the early European missionaries and British. The one person who has done a lot to highlight about Badagas, in 1960s, Prof.Paul Hockings has chosen to go along with his predecessors in concluding that since Badaga means north[ner], they have migrated from southern  Mysore  during Tipu Sultan’s rule over Mysore to avoid being forcibly converted to Islam. Also sited in support of migration is the resemblance/similarity of Badaga (language) to Haleya [old] Kannada.

But, B.Balasubramaniam, a highly educated Badaga, in his book“ Paamé ” – The history and culture of the Badagas of the Nilgiris, feels that Badagas migrated from Southern Karnataka [then Mysore State] about 700 years back, much before Tipu’s time, around 1311 AD during the plundering raid of Malik Kafir.

  I am, also, firmly of the view that it is possible that Badagas have lived in the Nilgiris for thousand of years like the Thodas [Thodhamaru ] or Kothas [Kotharu] and migration theory is an attempt by historians and anthropologists to explain away a ‘historical puzzle’.  The mystery of migration needs to be solved once and for all.

What we DO NOT know about Badagas is more than what we know about them. Such is the mystery of Badaga Origin. Read the complete article here