Alexander Duncan Campbell

“ With the exception of a few letters peculiar to Sanscrit words, and evidently taken from the Nagree alphabet, the round and flowing characters of the Teloogoo bear no resemblance to the square Devanagree: and even if the Teloogoo alphabet were found to be derived from the Nagree, it would only prove that the people of Telingana had borrowed the invention of a more civilized nation. The origin of their language might still be as different from that of their alphabet, as the origin of our present Roman characters, from that of our Saxon words. ”

“ Nearly the whole body of Teloogoo literature consists of Poetry, written in what may be termed the superior dialect of the language; but so different is this from the inferior or colloquial dialect, in common use among all classes of the people, that even to the learned, the use of commentaries is indispensable for the correct understanding of many of their best works. This peculiarity of two dialects is common to the Teloogoo, with the Tamil and the Karnataca. ”

“ But these alone are not sufficient: the force, the elegance, and even the meaning of our expressions, must still depend, in a great degree, on an idiomatical arrangement of the terms which we employ. To illustrate the particular disposition of words which is most consonant to the genius of the Teloogoo language, is the object of the present chapter, and as immediately connected with this subject, I shall here take occasion to treat of the adverbs, conjunctions, interjections, and other indeclinable words, unnoticed in the preceding part of this work. ”

“ A great number of books, composed during the reign of Krishna Royaloo, are still to be found in the libraries of the present Polygars, of whom many in the Northern Districts, as far as Nellore, and several in the South, are descended from the former officers of the Vidianagara government: but the intolerant zeal of the Mahommedans, whose irruptions into the South of India terminated in the overthrow of the Vidianagara Empire, has left of the more ancient Teloogoo works little else remaining than the name. ”

“ It is of great importance that the reader should constantly bear in mind that, in nouns denoting inanimate things, the nominative is generally used for the accusative, and the accusative for the ablative, but that this is not the case with nouns denoting animate objects.
By the addition of the various postpositions to the different cases which they govern, the reader may form any number of other cases at pleasure. ”

“ In Teloogoo, two vowels never can come in contact; therefore, when a word terminating in a connected vowel is followed by another commencing with an initial vowel, there is either the change termed by Grammarians Sundhi, or a consonant is inserted between the two words ; unless the initial vowel be one of the Sanscrit letters ఋ roo, ౠ, and , which at the beginning of a word, are to be considered the same as consonants. ”

“ The reader need not be surprized if, in the course of his studies, he should meet with some examples in opposition to the foregoing rules, supported by good authority. On no part of Grammar are the opinions of Teloogoo authors so much at variance, as with respect to the changes attempted to be explained in this chapter : the ingenuity and subtilty with which each combats the arguments of his opponent, have gained for every celebrated writer on Grammar some adherents ”

“ After these changes in the original letters of the crude Sanscrit noun, some of the Sanscrit corruptions affix Teloogoo terminations, in the same manner as the Sanscrit derivatives, and others take no affixes. In either case, the rules already given for the declension of the ~ C3$ nouns apply equally to the >sS. It will, therefore, be sufficient to submit a few explanations respecting the manner in which the nominative singular is formed from the crude Sanscrit noun ; at the same time, these, from the nature of the subject, must be necessarily very undeterminate. ”

“ OF THE ELISION, INSERTION, AND PERMUTATION, OF LETTERS.
Possessing the refined and inexhaustible Sanscrit, as the established medium for the communication of knowledge, to the few among whom it's dissemination is thought to be lawful; Teloogoo writers have had little inducement to give much attention to the cultivation of their own language. Their literature consists almost entirely of poetry ”

“ Of these kings, the most celebrated was Krishna Royaloo, a prince who reigned during the earlier part of the sixteenth century. He is highly renowned in Telingana for his piety in repairing the numerous temples in the Carnatick, and [29] for the great personal bravery he displayed in the course of his extensive conquests in the Peninsula, but Chiefly for his munificent encouragement of Teloogoo literature. ”

“ The origin of every part of the Teloogoo verb may be traced to that crude form of it termed the (Telugu characters) root; which is sometimes also an abstract noun, and, in the common dialect, is often the 2d person singular of the affirmative imperative. It always ends in (Telugu characters) ”

“ The works still extant, however, are sufficiently numerous and various to evince the great degree of refinement to which the Teloogoo has attained. Few languages will be found more copious, more nervous, or more regular in construction, and it may boast, in a peculiar manner, of great elegance of expression, and melody of sound. ”

“ Inaccuracies respecting situation are not uncommon in the writings of the ancients relative to Indian geography, and those which have just been mentioned, with some other similar inconsistencies, may perhaps be reconciled, by supposing that under the name of the Ganges, either the Ganges proper, or the Godavery, may occasionally be understood. ”

“ The Teloogoo is spoken with the greatest purity in the Northern Circars, and with much of its native simplicity by the Ratsawars, Velmawars, and other superior classes in those districts. More conversant with arms, however, than with books, the Ratsawars [32] and Velmawars are in general ignorant of the principles of their own tongue. ”

“ The Student, however, may find it more convenient to refer occasionally to this chapter as he advances, than, at the very commencement of his labours, to enter into some of the most perplexing niceties of the language. ”

“ Although the Teloogoo would thus appear to have been a cultivated language at a very early period, it is hardly to be expected, among the different political and religious convulsions which have so often violently agitated the Deccan, that many of the productions of so remote an age should have reached these times. ”

“ The reader will bear in mind that in conversation and official business, the inferior is used to the entire exclusion of the superior dialect, and that in all books or studied compositions, a contrary rule obtains. ”

“ Every endeavour has been used to select those opinions which are most generally received at present, but the subject itself is so intricate, and the opinions of native Grammarians respecting it so contradictory, that a foreigner who attempts to illustrate it must necessarily feel diffident of success. ”

“ The words of the Teloogoo language, formed of the letters treated of in the foregoing pages, are classed by Sanscrit Grammarians under four distinct heads. 1st. దేశ్యము Deshyumoo, or, as it is more emphatically termed, అచ్చదేశ్యము Utsu Deshyumoo, the pure language of the land; 2d. తత్సమము Tutsumumoo, Sanscrit words assuming Teloogoo terminations. 3d. తద్భవము Tudbhuvumoo, Teloogoo corruptions of Sanscrit words, formed by the substitution, the elision, or addition of letters ”

“ The singular inflexion of nouns belonging to this declension is formed by changing the final (Telugu characters) of the nominative into (Telugu characters) ; thus, nom. (Telugu characters) a husband, inflexion (Telugu characters) nom. ”

“ The indefinite adjective pronouns are prefixed to plural substantives, without any intermediate affix ; they are merely the nominative cases of the indefinite substantive pronouns of the third person, viz. ”

“ It is of importance that this peculiarity should be strongly impressed on the memory of the Student, for it will be found to pervade the verbs and adjectives, and materially to affect the construction of the language. ”

“ The Vocative singular is either the same as the nominative singular, or is formed by merely lengthening the final vowel of that case ; unless the nominative end in v>, when that vowel is changed into ^ or o.
The Ablative singular is formed by adding to the singular inflexion the postpositions er 6 . ^# . S* & c . or $ to t } le i n fl ex j on o f nouns denoting nanimate things ending in "O.
PLURAL.
The Nominative plural is formed, in various modes, from the nominative singular, according to the declension to which the substantive belongs. It always ends in ex>. ”

“ Our want of sufficient attention to their habits and customs, rather than any callous disregard for their prejudices, has occasionally driven others of this tribe to similar acts of self destruction, which are much to be deprecated, and which, indelibly imprinted on the minds of the people, materially affect the popularity of our Government. ↑ See the Adhurvana Vyacurnum, as given in the Audhra Cowmudi. (Telugu characters) The adherents of Anᶁhra Vishtnoo (before mentioned) who then resided on the banks of the Godavery spoke Tutsama words, (Sanscrit derivatives) . ”

“ The l#bo adjectives are indeclinable, varying neither in gender, in number, nor in case; but dependent for these distinctions upon the substantive nouns or pronouns, to some of which they are invariably prefixed. ”

“ These three lingums are said to have marked the chief boundaries of the country known in modern times by the name of Telingana. The first, that of Shri Shuelum, still celebrated in the Deccan, is particularly described in the extract from Captain Colin Mc‘Kenzie’s journal inserted in the 5th volume of the Asiatic Researches, of which a part is subjoined in a note below. ”

“ Soomutee Shutukum, literally, truth is life to a promise, honor is life to a woman-
The dative is also often used, without a verb, to denote actual possession, 385 as expressed by our verb to have; 39fK>8Po"EPj& n> 'eX> he has much money ; literally, to him, much money; TTW&tf A&oaiT^SxyvSO the King has ten sons, literally, to the King, ten sons- This coincides with the latin rule " Est pro habeo regit dativum," only that in Teloogoo the est is not expressed but understood. ”

“ The Country known by the name of Modogalingum or Trilingum appears to have been subdivided, at a very early period, into the Calinga and Andhra provinces. Calinga [17] stretched northwards along the coast, from the Godavery towards the Ganges ”

“ To these we may also add the అన్యదేశ్యము, Unyu Deshyumoo, or words from other countries, sometimes given as a subdivision of the first Class, and comprizing, according to the definition of ancient writers, words adopted from the dialects current in the Canarese, Mahratta, Guzerat, and Dravida provinces only, but now also including several of Persian, Hindoostanee, and English origin. ”