Kannada, a language spoken in Karnataka a state of India. Kannada is also called as language of silicon valley of India (Bangalore, capital city of Karnataka). Kannada has an unbroken literary history of nearly two thousand years. Kannada has been estimated to be over 2500 years old, ranked as the third oldest language after Sanskrit and Tamil. Kannada alphabet evolved over 1900 years ago.
History of Kannada
The Halmidi inscription is the oldest known Kannada language inscription in the Kannada script. Experts agree that it is the oldest, but differ on the absolute date. Estimates vary between 450 A.D. and early 7th century A.D.. The ‘Kavirajamarga‘ written by King Nripatunga around the 9th century A.D. is believed to be the earliest literary work in Kannada. This treatise on poetry also served as an indicator that Kannada was a fully developed literary language.
Proto-Kannada is said to have evolved after separating from its source around 1500 BCE, while its script evolved during Ashokan times around the 4th or 3rd century BCE from ancient Brahmi. Halagannada has transformed from the 5th century CE during the reign of the Kadambas of Banavasi (ancient royal dynasty of Karnataka 345-525 CE). History of Kannada can be divided into three parts Halegannada (Old Kannada), Nadugannada (Middle Kannada) and Hosagannada (Modern Kannada).
The Halagannada (Old Kannada) period shows a marked influence of Jainism, both in language and literature. One of Kannada literature’s greatest authors, Pampa, Sri Ponna and Ranna lived in this era. Pampa has created the “Vikramarjuna Vijaya” and “Adipurana”, both considered classics to this day. And great prose writings such as the Vaddaradhane of Shivakotiacharya, indicating that a considerable volume of classical prose and poetry in Kannada had come into existence a few centuries before Kavirajamarga.
The Nadugannada (Middle Kannada) period shows considerable influence from both Hindu and Jain philosophies. A secular philosophy also developed in this time and this had a profound impact on several aspects of Kannada culture. This period also witnessed the birth of several genres in Kannada literature, with new forms of composition like “Ragale” and meters like the “Sangatya” and “Desi” being developed as well. Kumara Vyasa, who wrote the “Karnata Bharata Kathamanjari“, was arguably the most influential Kannada writer of this period. His work, entirely composed in the native Bhamini Shatpadi (hexa-meter), is a sublime adaptation of the first ten books of the Mahabharata. Hindu saints of the Vaishnava sect such as Kanakadasa, Purandaradasa, Naraharitirtha, Vyasatirtha, Sripadaraya, Vadirajatirtha, Vijaya Dasa, Jagannatha Dasa, Prasanna Venkatadasa produced devotional poems in this period.
The Hosagannada (Modern Kannada) period witnessed the rebirth of Kannada, both in terms of cultural consciousness and linguistic identity to the modern form found employed. This period was the consequence of the occupation of India by foreign powers, when the need to reaffirm an identity was thought to be necessary. Modern Kannada in the 19th and 20th century has been influenced by many movements, notably Navodaya, Navya, Navyottara, Dalita and Bandaya. Contemporary Kannada literature has been highly successful in reaching people of all classes in society. Further, Kannada has produced a number of prolific and renowned poets and writers such as Kuvempu, Bendre, Karanth, Masti Venkatesha Iyengar, V K Gokak, U R Ananthamurthy, Girish Karnad, Kambara and many more. Works of Kannada literature have received eight Jnanpith awards, the highest number awarded to any Indian language.
Currently Kannada has rich set of writers who are providing the tremendous contribution to its literary in various fields and making it one of the rich languages in India as well as in world.