Telugu language
Telugu (/ˈtɛlʊɡuː/;[6] తెలుగు, Telugu pronunciation: [ˈt̪eluɡu]) is a Dravidian language native to the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, where it is also the official language. Spoken by about 96 million people (2022),[7] Telugu is the most widely spoken member of the Dravidian language family, and one of the twenty-two scheduled languages of the Republic of India.[8] It is one of the few languages that has primary official status in more than one Indian state, alongside Hindi and Bengali.[9] Telugu is one of the six languages designated as a classical language by the Government of India. It is the 14th most spoken native language in the world.[10] Modern standard-Telugu is based on the dialects of erstwhile Krishna, Guntur, East, and West Godavari districts of Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema.[11][12][13]
Telugu
- Middle Telugu
- see Telugu languages
- India
- Andhra Pradesh
- Telangana
- Yanam district, Puducherry
- West Bengal (additional)[4]
49-DBA-aa
Telugu
Teluguvāru
Telugu, Teluṅgu, Tenuṅgu
Telugu Nāḍu
Telugu is also spoken in the states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and the union territories of Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It is also spoken by members of the Telugu diaspora spread across countries like United States, Canada, Australia, Malaysia, Mauritius, UAE, Saudi Arabia and others.[14][15] Telugu is the fastest-growing language in the United States.[16] It is also a protected language in South Africa and is offered as an optional third language in schools in KwaZulu-Natal province.[5][17]
According to Mikhail S. Andronov, Proto-Telugu split from the Proto South-Central-Dravidian language around 1000 BCE.[18][19] The earliest Telugu inscription found so far is the Kalamalla inscription dating to 575 CE put up by Renati Chola king Erikal Mutturaju Dhanunjaya.[20] Inscriptions in Old Telugu script were found as far away as Indonesia and Myanmar.[21] Telugu was the court language of various dynasties of South India namely the Eastern Chalukyas, Eastern Gangas, Kakatiyas, Vijayanagara Empire, Qutb Shahis, Madurai Nayaks, Thanjavur Nayaks.[26] Telugu was used officially as a language of bureaucracy outside its homeland even by non-Telugu dynasties like the Thanjavur Marathas in Tamil Nadu.[27][23]
Telugu has an unbroken, prolific, and diverse literary tradition of over a thousand years.[28][29] Pavuluri Mallana's Sāra Sangraha Ganitamu (c. 11th century) is the first scientific treatise on mathematics in any Dravidian language.[30][31] Avadhānaṃ, a literary performance that requires immense memory power and an in-depth knowledge of literature and prosody, originated and was specially cultivated among Telugu poets for over five centuries.[32][33] Roughly 10,000 pre-colonial inscriptions exist in Telugu.[34]
In the precolonial era, Telugu became the language of high culture across South India.[39] Vijaya Ramaswamy compared it to the overwhelming dominance of French as the cultural language of modern Europe during roughly the same era.[38] Telugu also predominates in the evolution of Carnatic music, one of two main subgenres of Indian classical music and is widely taught in music colleges focusing on Carnatic tradition.[42] Various non-Telugu people over the centuries have remarked on the natural musicality of Telugu speech, referring to it as a mellifluous and euphonious language.[41][43][44]
Legal status[edit]
Telugu is the official language of the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. It is one of the 22 languages under schedule 8 of the constitution of India. It is one of the official languages of the union territories of Puducherry. Telugu is a protected language in South Africa. According to the Constitution of South Africa, the Pan South African Language Board must promote and ensure respect for Telugu along with other languages.[126] The Government of South Africa announced that Telugu will be re-included as an official subject in the South African schools after it was removed from the curriculum in state schools.[17]
In addition, with the creation in October 2004 of a legal status for classical languages by the Government of India on 8 August 2008, Telugu was also given classical language status due to several campaigns.[127][83][128]
Geographical influence[edit]
Telugu region boundaries[edit]
Andhra is characterised as having its own mother tongue, and its territory has been equated with the extent of the Telugu language. The equivalence between the Telugu linguistic sphere and the geographical boundaries of Andhra is also brought out in an eleventh-century description of Andhra boundaries. Andhra, according to this text, was bounded in north by Mahendra mountain in the modern Ganjam district in Odisha and to the south by Srikalahasteeswara temple in Tirupati district. However, Andhra extended westwards as far as Srisailam in Nandyal district, about halfway across the modern state.[137] According to other sources in the early sixteenth century, the northern boundary is Simhachalam and the southern limit is Tirumala of the Telugu Nation.[138][139][140][141][142][143]
There are four regional dialects in Telugu:[144]
Colloquially, Telangana, Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra dialects are considered the three Telugu dialects and regions.[145]
Waddar, Chenchu, and Manna-Dora are all closely related to Telugu.[146] Other dialects of Telugu are Berad, Dasari, Dommara, Golari, Kamathi, Komtao, Konda-Reddi, Salewari, Vadaga, Srikakula, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, Rayalaseema, Nellore, Guntur, Vadari Bangalore, and Yanadi.[147]