A Badaga-English Dictionary.

• Author: Zvelebil, Kamil V.

To review a work like this is not an easy task. To do full justice to a dictionary of this kind one should (and could) comment on almost any one of its entries. Some of the comments would be positive, some would attempt to add to our knowledge, and a few would be mildly critical. I must therefore make a severe selection. I shall first say a few words about the format of the work, as well as about Emeneau's foreword and the authors' introduction, and then present my comments on a number of selected entries.

There is no doubt that the Dictionary is one of the truly important works on Dravidian linguistics, and a pillar of Nilgiri studies in particular. Paul Hockings is undisputably expert on the Badagas, and Pilot-Raichoor probably knows more about their language than anyone else. Their Dictionary is the latest of several recent publications (most post-1980) that have substantially added to the in-depth studies of Nilgiri linguistics launched years ago by M. B. Emeneau. For the convenience of Dravidianists and non-Dravidianists alike, I have listed these publications in a bibliography appended to this article.

The work under review is introduced by a brief foreword (by M, B. Emeneau), followed by an introduction (by the authors), followed by the main body of the dictionary, which "incorporat[es] a Gazetteer of Badaga placenames." An English-Badaga glossary comes next - and is very useful. There are seven appendices: list of Badaga communes and their constituent hamlets, list of 131 Nilgiri archaeological sites, Badaga names of 194 Toda hamlets with their Toda counterparts, Badaga names of Kota villages, list of 381 Latin plant names, list of 163 Latin animal names, Badaga pair- and echo-words. A bibliography and a sketch-map of the Nilgiris close the volume. This account itself suggests the encyclopaedic character of the work.

In his brief foreword, Emeneau apparently agrees with Hockings that "there seems to be no room for doubt that the sixteenth century is the period of the Badaga migration into the Nilgiris" (pp. viii-ix). He also mentions the Nilgiri linguistic microarea "which is characterized by numerous features, structural and lexical," and notices as one such feature the retention of the contrast between *r and *r (t), found in Toda, Irula-Urali, Alu-Kurumba, possibly Sholega, and, indeed, apparently in Badaga; if so, then that might represent "diffusion of this contrast into the language (in one of its dialects?) from some one of the nuclear Nilgiri tribal languages (and then subsequent loss)" (p. ix).

The introduction (pp. xi-xvii) offers important information for the benefit of the user of the dictionary and mentions certain features not usually found in other Dravidian dictionaries, such as etymologies (occasionally faulty), personal and place-names, names of deities, sample phrases, proverbs, etc. Many of these are most useful, and some are of great importance. Thus, e.g., on pp. 107-8 there is a detailed discussion of the name of sixteen hamlets, Osatti / Hosatti / Hosahatti, with exact geographical locations, etymology, etc. On p. 223 we are told that the old name of Doddabetta, the highest mountain in Tamilnadu (2637 m) is Ko:dabetta (DEDR 2049 + 5474 - if this etymology is accepted rather than 2196 on p. 222). Ko:tagiri is discussed in detail on pp. 225-26, Giri Betta is another name of the Irula sacred mountain, Rangaswamy Peak (Ir. Ni:lagiri Ranga or Rangabottu), p. 241; the designation Ni:lagiri itself is discussed on p. 349, etc., etc. Relevant bibliography is given with each of these entries, as well as alternative names (thus Neilgherry, Neilgherries, Neelgerries, Nilagiries, Nilguerries, Neelgharees, Neelagharry, Neilgherry, Nilgerry, Nilgiris!). The entries of names of deities and (pseudo-) historical personalities are equally important: e.g., on p. 258 Cikkanna / Sikkanna Dore, said to have been Tipu Sultan's revenue collector on the Nilgiris till c. 1790; or Muyya:r Ma:riamma (p. 485), a goddess worshipped at Cikkamma-gudi - the weekly worship being offered by a Kasava Irula priest.

Now finally to individual entries (Bad. = Badaga).

P.5. akkure n. dandruff, scuff: possible connection with DEDR 3811 (Ka. hakku crusted or dry mucus or rheum, scab, Ta. pakku scab of a sore, dried mucus of the nose, etc. [cf. DEDS 3155]) is questionable; another possibility would be Irula akkara, kd:d'akkara ear-wax, Kurumba akara n. Kopfschuppen, i.e., with DEDS 5 Ta. acaru dandruff, scurf; in sheep and goats, akir a kind of scurf, Ka. agaru etc. dandruff. It is of course possible that, ultimately, all these items are related (** pak-V- ?).

P. 6. Sub agasa: the underlying Skt. word is akasa, not akasam.

P. 8. anga:lu n. feet, footprint, sole: Ir(ula) anga:lu, Ur(ali) anga:le sole.

P. 9. ajje / hajje n. footprint: we can add Ir. a:najje elephant-footmark (important in Ir. life and culture).

P. 10. atta / atlu n. loft, attic, upstairs room, storage room. This important item of Nilgiri tribal culture (for Ir., cf. Zvelebil 1982 [1]: 88, and especially story no. 16, ibid., 287-90) is termed atti in Ur. Ir., whereas in M(ele) N(adu) Ir. the current term is cappara, raised platform of wicker-work or bamboo-work and mud or simply of bamboo for storing away things, usually raised between the kitchen-part and the 'living-room' part of an It. ku:re house. The etymology of Ir. cappara is not (yet) clear; a connection may probably be established with DEDR 2331 Ta. cappati anything flat, cappali to flatten, Ka. cappate etc. flatness, flat, etc. Ur. atti is clearly DEDR 93.

P. 12. adaka n. burial (of corpse): cf. Ir. adakka n. burial, Alu-Kur. adaka id., Ir. adaka ma:du to bury, Alu-Kur. adaka ma:d- id.

P. 13. adigal / adigalu n. holy sage, guru . . ., etc. I very much doubt the suggested connection with Skt. adhi receptacle, foundation. It is almost certain that the word is identical with the well-known Tamil atikal deity; sages, ascetics; term of respect used with names; spiritual preceptor, etc., derived as plural of the word ati foot, since feet of deities and holy persons stand as pars pro toro for them, and are, as such, currently worshipped ("the holy feet of the Lord" in bhakti). Why search for a tenuous Skt. etymology when a perfectly simple Dr. connection is available? On the other hand, when a clear Skt. etymology is at hand, it is omitted; anna (p. 21) food, etc., is of course Skt. anna eaten; food or victuals, especially boiled rice.

P. 23. Bad. and Ir. have many items in common; most of such items are either Kannada-based; or else, they are Nilgiri words. Cf. Bad. appara adv. very much, too much; adj. many: Ir. appara that much, very much; many.

P. 29. Bad. aricina / arisina adj. yellow, etc.: Ir. arcina; Bad. aruvade n. harvest: Ir. aruvade n. harvest (DEDR 212 or 315); Bad. avare n. lablab bean: corresponds to Ir. va:re (DEDR 264) with the typical phono-logical development in Ir.

P. 30. Bad. are n. slab, flat rock: Ir. *are- id. in Ir. place-names like Arekko:du "Rock-boundary" and Areyu:ru "Rock-village."

P. 45. a:pa rice-cake (no etymology given): DEDR 155. a:pe peg (no etymology given): DEDR 340.

P. 48. A very interesting (and important) item is Bad, a:re, ha:re n. crowbar (made by Kotas) DEDR 4093. Cf, It. a:.re

P. 50. a:se / a:ce n...