Njanga Ninga: Language Varieties in and around Kerala

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Njanga Ninga: Language Varieties in and around Kerala

Postby vijayjohn » 2022-01-26, 20:13

A little under three years ago, I posted the first episode of a show called Njanga Ninga here along with all the vocabulary in it in IPA (you'll have to scroll down a few posts to see all of the vocabulary words). The first episode featured the village of Puthussery. I think the background song in that episode was this (approximation of lyrics listed as song #11 here in Malayalam script):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RI-wWlITGx0
I posted the vocabulary, again in IPA, for a few more episodes on another forum that I quit, so I think I'll start a thread to move them here.

The second episode is set in Perambra [peːˈɾaːmbra], Kozhikode district, in northern Kerala, near one of the biggest cities in Kerala and also near where Vasco da Gama landed:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FzultxHJxdw
The new words are:

[oˈɾoːli] - a kids' game. IIUC, it's basically a game of tag that starts with everyone touching a coconut tree. One person tags one of the people touching a tree, and then they're it and have to tag the next person
[mənd͡ʒəˈplaːʋɯ] - 'old jackfruit tree'. This isn't highlighted in the video, but the host does ask what it means. They clarify that it means [ʋəjəˈsaːja ˈplaːʋɯ] or [pəˈɻəkɔɭɭa ˈplaːʋɯ]
[ˈkaːɾɰa] - 'to climb' or [ˈkeːruga] (or [ˈkeːrɰa]), spelled as if to be pronounced /kajaruka/. I'm guessing [ˈkaːɾuga] is a valid pronunciation in this variety
[ˈkɔɭɭɯ] - 'courtyard' or [pəˈrəmbɯ], or 'raised bank of soil' or [ˈməɳd̪iʈa]
[kuˈruŋɯne] - 'as a shortcut', 'instead of going the long way', or something similar. They translate this as [muˈrit͡ʃiʈɯ], which literally means 'having cut'. [kuˈrukɯʋəɻi] is listed in dictionaries as meaning 'shortcut'
[ˈt̪aːje] - 'down' or [ˈt̪aːɻe]. Some Malayalam-speakers replace [ɻ] with [j]
[ˈkuːʋa] - a kind of plant that produces arrowroot, apparently used for medicinal purposes. Not a dialect-specific term as far as I'm aware, but it trips up the host nevertheless (I had no idea about any of this stuff until I looked it up just now)
[ʋəjˈjəprəm] - 'backyard', translated as [pinˈnaːmbɔrəm], a term I wasn't previously familiar with! :P
[kojˈjaːkaːɾɛn] - 'guy who climbs the coconut tree and collects coconuts'. Doesn't have a direct equivalent in any other variety of Malayalam that I know of
[pɔˈt̪eːɳi] - 'ladder'. We just say [ˈjeːɳi] like the host. I'm not sure what the etymology of the other part of the local term is. [pɔˈkuga] means 'to carry on/over your head', though
[t̪əˈɭa] - 'noose'. Apparently, the standard term is [t̪əˈɭəpɯ]
[ˈʋaːkət̪i] - 'knife for cutting down coconuts'. The more common pronunciation at least in the video seems to be [ˈbaːkɛti]; this /ʋ/ > [ b ] change is characteristic of northern Kerala and also found in Lakshadweep. [kəˈt̪i] is the Malayalam word for 'knife'
[ˈkəɳɖi] - 'step'. They just translate this to English in the video. Traditionally, at least, we would say [pəˈɖi]
[uˈpeːɾi] - glossed over in this video. In northern Kerala, this means 'stir-fried plantains'. In southern Kerala, it means '(deep-fried) plantain chips' (or crisps, if you're British)
[t͡ʃɔˈɳəŋɰa] - 'to scrape'. We would (apparently!) say [t͡ʃɔˈɾəɳɖɰa] or [t͡ʃɔˈɾəɳɖuga] (prescriptively [t͡ʃuˈɾəɳɖuga]). I'm guessing [t͡ʃɔˈɳəŋuga] would be correct in this variety as well
[jɛˈɖeːwuːɖe] - 'through the side road', for us [jeɖəʋəɻijilˈkuːɖe] or perhaps [jeɖəʋəɻiːˈkuːɖe], incorrectly transcribed in the video as if it were pronounced *[jɛˈɖeːkuːɖa] (note how the transcription mistakenly suggests a pronunciation closer to how we would pronounce it, which is probably also the standard form)
[t̪iˈɾimbuga] - 'to do laundry'. The host points out that this is a false friend with standard Malayalam where this means 'to massage'. We would say [t̪uˈɳi n̪əˈnɛkʲuga], literally 'to get clothes wet'
[ˈpiːja] - 'to squeeze (out)', presumably from the standard term [piˈɻijuga] as a result of the /ɻ/ > [j] sound change mentioned above; the past tense form is apparently [ˈpiːɲi]
[oˈlumbuga] - 'to wash' or [kəˈɻuguga]
[oːl oːɖ ˈɨɳɖɯ] - not really listed but mentioned unclearly to mean 'he (or she/they?) is there', presumably corresponding to something like [aːɭ əˈʋiɖe ˈjɔɳɖɯ]. [aːɭ] again means 'person' but isn't a very polite term for 'person'
[kuˈt̪uːɭijiɖuga] - 'to dive', translated as [muˈŋaːŋguɻijiɖuga] although I would think [ˈmuŋuga] to be an acceptable translation
[haːjˈjaːɾɯ] - 'hajji', i.e. Muslim who has completed the hajj or pilgrimage to Mecca at least once. Listed in my dictionary as either [ˈhaːd͡ʒi] or, like the translation on the show, [haːˈd͡ʒjaːɾɯ]
[ˈkoːpɛɾa] - 'hut for storing firewood', misleadingly spelled in the video as if to be pronounced *[ˈkoːpɔɾa] and then mispronounced by the host as *[ˈkoːpuɾa], [puˈɾa] being a standard Malayalam term for 'hut'
[kajˈjaːɭɯ] - 'assistant', literally 'hand person', translated using the Sanskrit loanword [saˈhaːj]
[ˈuːɾəɾud̪ɯ]! - 'don't slip (and fall)!' or [ˈt̪en̪n̪i ˈʋiːɻəɾud̪ɯ]. 'To fall' for us is [ˈʋiːɻuga], and 'to slip' for us is [ˈt̪en̪n̪uga] so I guess in this variety, it would be [ˈuːɾuga], which for us would mean 'to take (something) off'!
[ʋigˈgəɾud̪ɯ]! - 'don't fall!' or [ˈʋiːɻəɾud̪ɯ]; maybe 'to fall' is [ˈʋigguga] then
[umˈmaːɾət̪e ˈt̪ɛŋɯ] - 'the coconut tree in the front' or [ˈmunʋəɕət̪e ˈt̪ɛŋɯ]. I think [ˈmunnilət̪e ˈt̪ɛŋɯ] would work as a translation into standard Malayalam as well. I'm guessing [umˈmaːɾəm] means 'front'
[ʋənˈniŋʲa] - IIUC this means 'medium-sized coconut'
[moˈt͡ʃulɯ] - 'big coconut'? They gloss over this quickly and don't translate it clearly, so I'm not sure
[ʋɛɭəˈt͡ʃɪlɯ] - apparently a kind of toy made by bending twigs(?) at the top of a (coconut?) tree. I think this means something more like 'fussing' in at least one other variety of Malayalam (not sure which). [ʋəˈɭət͡ʃɛl] means 'bend' even in standard Malayalam
[kɔˈɾəɭɯ] - 'top of the coconut tree' or [ˈt̪ɛŋinde ˈməɳɖa]
[əɖiˈt͡ʃaːɾa] - 'net-like thing at the top of the coconut tree'
[məˈnut͡ʃen] - 'man'. I noticed this is how the speaker pronounces the Sanskrit loanword /manuʃjan/ around 14:53. We would say [ˈmənʃɛn]
[ɔɳəˈkoːla] - 'dried palm leaves' or [ɔˈɳəŋija ˈoːla]
[paːn̪ˈd̪oːn] - 'fiber on the back of a palm leaf'
[maːˈɳoː]? - 'do (you) want?' or [ʋeːˈɳoː]? IINM low-caste people near where my parents live regularly replace /ʋ/ with [m], so this is probably a fairly common sound change
[ˈkiːja] - 'to come down, descend' or [jɛˈrəŋuga]. [ˈkiːɻe] means 'down' (it's synonymous with [ˈt̪aːɻe], although IME we don't say [ˈkiːɻe] and only use [ˈkiːɻ]- in compound nouns) even in standard Malayalam
[poːjiˈkiː] - 'go ahead and go!' or [pɔˈkʲoːɭuː]

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Re: Njanga Ninga: Language Varieties in and around Kerala

Postby vijayjohn » 2022-01-26, 20:16

My dad already knows most of the words in my first post in this thread and even a few of the ones from the second episode of Njanga Ninga.

The third episode features the Paniya language and is set in Mananthavady [maːnən̪d̪əˈʋaːɖi], Wayanad [ʋəjəˈn̪aːɖɯ] district, immediately to the northeast of Kozhikode district. One of the men in this video claims that Paniya is spoken all over Wayanad district; I also know for a fact that it is spoken in the Nilgiri Hills near Gudalur in Tamil Nadu, and Wikipedia claims that there are a few hundred speakers in Karnataka as well. At the beginning of this episode, the host claims to be from Thiruvilwamala, about halfway in between Mananthavady and my parents' hometown, Thiruvalla:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFzMQzSiC3U
The new words are:

[n̪ɪˈrɯt̪a] - 'to stop', i.e. [ˈn̪irt̪ɯga] or [n̪iˈrɯt̪ɯga]. This was the first word I noticed about 40 seconds in although it isn't actually listed in the video.
[ˈn̪iːŋgə] - 'y'all' or 'you (formal)'. Most Tamils would probably use this exact same word. We would say [ˈn̪iŋəɭ].
[ˈoːɖə] - 'there', i.e. [əˈʋiɖe]. I have seen a similar form in Jeseri, spoken in Lakshadweep, so I'm guessing this is probably a common non-standard form.
[jiˈraːkaːn] - 'to get off'. I would say [jɛrəˈkaːn], but phonemically, it's /irakkaːn/. Note that the first phoneme surfaces as [ i ] in Paniya because of the second vowel being lengthened and thus blocking the /i/ > [e] sound change.
[ˈkawt̪ɯ] - 'neck', i.e. [kəˈɻut̪ɯ]
[ˈuːɖɯt̪e] - 'from here', i.e. [jiˈʋiɖət̪e]. This seems to be a common enough pronunciation among native speakers of Malayalam that I'm not sure it's specific to Paniya at all.
[muˈkət̪e] - 'on top (describing a noun)'. Given how similar all this is to Malayalam, I'm guessing 'top' in Paniya is [muˈkəm]. This is translated into Malayalam is [ˈmoːɭilət̪e], although I think [ˈmoːɭile] would also work.
[t̪əɖiˈjəmma] - 'maternal grandmother', translated into Malayalam as [əmˈmuːmma]. I don't use this term because my maternal grandmother died when my mom was very young, so I don't know whether we use it in our community, but [əmˈmuːmma] seems to be a very well-known term for 'grandmother'. The host translates it as simply [əmˈmeːɖe ˈjəmma] 'mother's mother'.
[kiˈɲəmma] - 'younger maternal aunt', i.e. mother's younger sister, translated into Malayalam as [eˈɭejəmma], another term I'm unfamiliar with
[ˈawɖa] - same as [ˈoːɖə] except closer to standard Malayalam just like [ˈuːɖɯt̪e]
[ˈmeːkeʈɯ] - traditional Paniya clothing, although the old lady in the video sounds to me like she's pronouncing it more like [ˈməːkɯʈɯ]
[kuˈpaːjəm iˈɖɯn̪d̪ɯ] - 'wearing clothes/a shirt', mistranslated in the video as [ˈʋəst̪rəm d̪ʱəˈɾikʲuga] 'to wear clothes' rather than [ˈʋəst̪rəm d̪ʱəˈɾikʲun̪n̪u] 'wearing clothes'. Both translations are very formal and could have instead been replaced with just [kuˈpaːjəm iˈɖun̪n̪u]
[t̪əˈləpoja] - [t̪əˈləpoɻa], the name of a nearby village, with the [ɻ] > [j] change common among people at least in northern Kerala
[puːd̪əŋˈguːmbəɭəm] or [puːd̪əŋˈgaːj] - 'wintermelon', i.e. [kumˈbəɭɛŋʲa], which I immediately associate with [eɾiɕˈɕeːɾi] or (somewhat less immediately) [moˈɭuːʃəm]
[kuˈɖuma] - probably misidentified as a Paniya word meaning a type of hairstyle; [kuˈɖumi] is the lone tuft of hair known in some other Indian languages as shiksha that remains after a Brahmin's head is shaven
[kelˈpəɾipɯ] - 'banana chips' (see previous post under [uˈpeːɾi])
[ˈawt̪ɯ] - 'inside', i.e. [əˈgət̪ɯ]
[t͡ʃawkɯˈgɛʈɯ] - 'tied-up sack', i.e. [ˈt͡ʃaːkɯgɛʈɯ], not listed in the video but still different enough that I wouldn't have recognized it without the host immediately clarifying it
[ˈn̪iːŋgə jeŋˈgaː ˈpond͡ʒɯ]? - 'where are y'all going?', i.e. [ˈn̪iŋəɭ eŋoːˈʈaː ˈpoːwn̪n̪əd̪ɯ]? Not quite sure which language this is in since it's identified as Tamil but I suspect this may just be Paniya
[ˈn̪əmma ˈjiŋga ʋəˈɾe] - 'we're going here/this way', i.e. [ˈn̪əmməɭ iˈŋoːʈɯ poʋˈʋaː]. This does sound much more like Tamil, although it's kind of weird because this sounds like the inclusive pronoun rather than the exclusive one
[ajj ˈɛŋgɯ ˈpɔːnɛ]? - 'where are you going?' i.e. [n̪iː jeˈŋoːʈɯ ˈpoːwn̪n̪u] (I would be far more likely to say [poʋˈʋaː] rather than [ˈpoːwn̪n̪u], but I think that's mostly just me, and I think [ˈpoːwn̪n̪u] is the cognate here). This may be the local variety of Tamil since Wayanad borders both Tamil Nadu and Karnataka
[n̪aːm məˈɖəŋgi ˈpɔːnɛ] - 'I'm going back', i.e. [ɲaːn məˈɖəŋi ˈpoːwn̪n̪u]/[poʋˈʋaː]
[ˈn̪əmmɛ ˈjɛŋgə ˈpoːgɛ] - 'where are we going?', the form the guy with the host uses when recounting the conversation. It sounds like some kind of pidginized Tamil. In Malayalam, [ˈn̪əmməɭ eˈŋoːʈɯ poʋˈʋaː]?
[ˈn̪əmma ˈaŋgə ˈpoːgɛ] - 'we're going there/that way', i.e. [ˈn̪əmməɭ əˈŋoːʈɯ poʋˈʋaː]
[upaːd̪iˈɾaːkɯ] - 'at midnight', i.e. [paːd̪iˈɾaːt̪rikʲɯ]. Some Malayalees would probably see [paːd̪iˈɾaːjkʲɯ]. Not listed in the video
[ʋən̪ˈd̪aː] - 'he came'. Paniya appears to mark the subject on the verb like Tamil does, whereas in Malayalam, 'came' for all subjects would be [ˈʋən̪n̪u]. Also not listed
[ˈʋən̪d̪u] - 'having come', i.e. [ˈʋən̪n̪ɯ], also not listed and also roughly identical with the Tamil form
[kəˈɾeːnd͡ʒi] - 'having cried', i.e. [kəˈɾɛɲɯ]. This is probably specific to Paniya
[ˈpoːɖit͡ʃ oˈraːŋgʋa ˈkaːɳe] - 'is so scared it couldn't sleep', i.e. [ˈpeːɖit͡ʃ orəˈŋaːn pətˈtun̪n̪illa], listed though no one actually said it in the video
[ˈmɔʈɛn] - 'boy', i.e. [ˈaːɳguʈi] (compare [pɛˈʈəmma] in Puthussery?)
[mɔˈʈət̪i] - 'girl', i.e. [ˈpeɳguʈi]
[ˈt̪ɛmbət̪ɯ] - 'at the end/edge', i.e. [ətˈtət̪ɯ]
[ˈt̪uɭɭi ˈjuːɖɯn̪n̪ɯ] - transcribed for whatever reason as if it was pronounced as one word [t̪uɭˈɭuːɖɯn̪n̪ɯ] and translated as [t͡ʃaːɖiˈkʲoːɭuː] 'take a jump!' but sounds suspiciously like [ˈt̪uɭɭi jiʋiˈɖɯn̪n̪ɯ] 'jump from here' or [ˈt̪uɭɭi jəʋiˈɖɯn̪n̪ɯ] 'jump from there'
[t͡ʃəˈkɨru] - 'jackfruit seed(s)', i.e. [t͡ʃəˈkəkuɾu]
[jeːŋ kuˈt̪aː kaːɳəˈlaː] - 'I wasn't feeling well', transcribed for whatever reason as if to be pronounced [eːguˈd̪aː kaːɳəˈlaː] and translated as [eˈnikʲɯ suˈgəmilla]
[oˈraːʈi] - 'wife', i.e. [ˈbʱaːɾja] (note that in Malayalam, we use a Sanskrit loanword for this, whereas Paniya appears to use a Dravidian word different from Tamil /manaiʋi/)
[ˈuːmi] - translated by the speaker himself as [kəˈla], i.e. [kəˈləm] 'waterpot'. However, [ˈuːmi ˈboɭɭa] is translated in the show as [pət͡ʃəˈʋɛɭɭəm] 'pure water'
[ˈboɭɭa] - 'water', i.e. [ˈʋɛɭɭəm]
[ˈpuɭɭa] - 'kid/child', unlisted but translated as [kuˈʈi]; compare [piɭˈɭaːɾɯ] 'kids'
[ʋiɭeˈjaːɖa] - 'to play', unlisted but translated as [kəˈɭikʲuga]; almost identical to the Tamil equivalent
[ʋoːɭiˈgoːɭ] - 'volleyball', unlisted but translated as [ʋoːɭiˈboːɭ]
[məˈka] - 'children', 'sons', 'daughters', i.e. [məˈkəɭ]
[t̪ɛˈɾəɳɖɯ kəlˈjaːɳəm] - unlisted but described as a Paniya coming-of-age ceremony for a girl. The host makes a sensational claim that the guests keep dancing nonstop for three days without even sitting down or sleeping. No idea what [t̪ɛˈɾəɳɖɯ] means, but [kəlˈjaːɳəm] in Malayalam means 'wedding' and comes from the Sanskrit word for 'happiness'

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Re: Njanga Ninga: Language Varieties in and around Kerala

Postby vijayjohn » 2022-01-28, 5:32

Apparently, some people in the part of Kerala my parents are from also use these expressions:
vijayjohn wrote:[ˈmoːn̪d̪i] - 'evening'
[ˈmiːrɯ] - The video claims that this word means 'ant(s)'. We say [uˈrumbɯ] or [ʊˈrʊmbɯ]. However, I think my dad said that (he thinks) [ˈmiːrɯ] means a specific kind of ant that we call something else (I don't remember for sure which kind, though; I'm sure he mentioned [ˈt͡ʃoːnɛn] but not whether he said that was the same thing or he said something like "not that one, the other one!" I think "the other one" might be called [iˈrumbɯ] and that the local guy teaching him the word might have been using to translate it into more standard Malayalam only for the host to "correct" him with the generic term [uˈrumbɯ]). IIRC, [ˈt͡ʃoːnɛn] is a big but harmless black ant, and [iˈrumbɯ] is a smaller but much more poisonous red ant but not a fire ant, often seen fighting a [ˈt͡ʃoːnɛn], and my dad used to tell his (younger) brother stories about these two kinds of ants fighting.
[ˈt͡ʃən̪d̪ɯ] or [ˈsən̪d̪ɯ] - 'road'. We say [ʋəˈɻi] like in the video.
[jiˈɖɯliʋəɻi] - 'side street'. We say [jiˈɖəʋəɻi] or [jɛˈɖəʋəɻi] like in the video.
[ˈʋeːlit̪əri] or [ˈʋeːlt̪əri] - 'wire fence' (if I understood correctly). We don't really have a word for this, hence the long-winded gloss in the video.

And our word for this:
[kojˈjaːkaːɾɛn] - 'guy who climbs the coconut tree and collects coconuts'. Doesn't have a direct equivalent in any other variety of Malayalam that I know of

is apparently [pəd̪iˈjaːn]. We also apparently have this:
[t̪iˈɾimbuga] - 'to do laundry'.

Now, at last, for the fourth episode of Njanga Ninga, set in none other than the state capital, Thiruvananthapuram! Many of the phrases in this episode are definitely not unique to Thiruvananthapuram:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEkGvB4A_dQ
[əɳˈɳaːt͡ʃi] - 'sir'; not listed, but comes up in the background rap towards the beginning. A common term in southern Kerala that doesn't really have an equivalent that I know of elsewhere in Kerala
[pəˈɭeja kaˈɖa] - 'old store'; this is identical to how we (including the host) would say it except that [ɻ] here is replaced by [ɭ] just like lots of native speakers do in Indian Tamil
[t͡ʃəˈʈeːm ɕiːˈleːm] - 'shirt and [ˈmuɳɖɯ]'; I would say this myself, but the video translates it to [ˈʃərʈum ˈmuɳɖum]. Is it translating this into Malayalam or into English? :P I've always assumed [t͡ʃəˈʈa] is merely an early Dravidianization of English shirt anyway
[ˈjin̪d̪a] - 'this (before a noun phrase)', from Tamil, used repeatedly by people in Thiruvananthapuram in this video but not listed; in Malayalam, normally, we say [jiː]
[ˈʋən̪d̪ɯ] - 'having come', i.e. [ˈʋən̪n̪ɯ]; identical to Tamil AFAICT
[ˈan̪d̪a] - 'that (before a noun phrase)', again from Tamil; we say [aː]
[ˈt̪oːja] - [ˈd̪oːɕa]. Compare Sri Lankan Tamil tōcai vs. Indian Tamil dōcai
[ˈʈəkəne] - 'immediately, suddenly', i.e. [peˈʈen̪n̪ɯ]
[ˈjen̪d̪əɾɯ] - 'what', i.e. [ˈjen̪d̪ɯ]. It isn't really listed in the video except in the first speech bubble in the intro but frequently pops up in the background music from 3:47. Also frequently used by Malayalees in Kanyakumari, which is now just across the state border in Tamil Nadu
[jenˈnət̪ɯ ˈʋeːɳəm]? - 'What is it that you want?' i.e. [jen̪ˈd̪aːɳɯ ˈʋeːɳɖəd̪ɯ]? ('What do you want?' for me, and I guess in Standard Malayalam, would be [ˈjen̪d̪ɯ ˈʋeːɳəm]?)
[ˈəpi] - 'son'. There is an old inter-dialect pun where some people from northern Kerala visit a house in southern Kerala. The lady of the house offers them [ˈboːnd͡ʒi] 'limeade' (see below). Unfamiliar with this term, they decide to turn the offer down. The lady protests to their shock, "[ajˈjoː], [ˈjende ˈjəpi jeɭəkijəˈd̪aː]!" meaning 'oh no! My son mixed (i.e. made) it!'. However, in northern Kerala, [ˈəpi] means 'shit', so "[ajˈjoː], [ˈjende ˈjəpi kələkijəˈd̪aː]!" sounds more like (warning: really gross!) 'oh no! It's my diarrhea!'. This is why the host acts like he's so offended when the local guy uses this word. In the episode, it's somewhat misleadingly translated as [ˈkuʈi] 'child'
[ˈt͡ʃuːmbuga] - 'to nibble', or in Standard Malayalam, [n̪oˈɳejuga]
[ˈboːnd͡ʒi ˈʋeɭɭəm] - 'limeade'. [ˈʋeɭɭəm] simply means 'water' but can be used to refer to probably any liquid other than (I guess) milk, even with words that already refer to a liquid of some sort
[t̪əˈrikuɻi] - apparently a kind of loom (see 9:51). [t̪əˈri] apparently means 'loom'. Not necessarily a non-standard term and not listed
[ˈt̪aːɾɯ] - Standard Malayalam term for 'ball of thread' but also 'flower', also not listed
[əˈɾəɖɯ] - 'spinning wheel', i.e. [ˈt͡ʃərka] (the kind Gandhi famously used)
[puˈɖɯd̪əla] or [ˈpuːʈɯn̪d̪əla] - apparently a kind of spindle
[kəˈʋəɳi] - cloth normally worn at the waist but worn over the shoulders instead, i.e. [ˈmeːlmuɳɖɯ] or [ɾəɳˈɖaːm ˈmuɳɖɯ], probably a Standard Malayalam term with roughly this meaning
[t̪etˈtaːli] - not listed, apparently normally means 'catapult' but can mean 'slingshot' in Thiruvananthapuram?
[ˈd̪aːʋəɳi] - 'scarf', Standard Malayalam term that isn't listed in the video
[ˈjɛkɯ] - 'to/for me', i.e. [jeˈnikɯ]
[t̪inˈnɤːkɯ] - 'for eating', i.e. [t̪inˈnun̪n̪əd̪inɯ]
[jennəˈt̪eːjŋgilum] - 'anything', i.e. [jen̪ˈd̪eŋgilum]
[uɳˈɖaː] - 'is/are there?' i.e. [uɳˈɖoː] (or e.g. [oɳˈɖoː]). This is just straight-up Tamil
[əˈʋəniʈɯ] - 'to him', i.e. [əʋɛˈnoːɖɯ], probably from Tamil /aʋankiʈʈa/, pronounced something like [ˈəʋəŋgiʈə]
[t͡ʃenniˈjaː] - 'did (you) ask?' i.e. [t͡ʃoːd̪iːt͡ʃoː]
[t̪oˈrəpa] - 'broom', i.e. [ˈt͡ʃuːl] or [ˈt͡ʃuːlɯ]
[koːɾəmˈbaːja] - 'grass mat', i.e. [pʊlˈpaːja]
[ˈt͡ʃaːkoɭət͡ʃi] - 125 rupees, i.e. [ˈn̪uːtijiɾɯʋət̪ənd͡ʒɯ ˈɾuːba]; see the post on traders' jargon. As the businessmen in the video indicate, this is not Thiruvananthapuram-specific
[t̪oːt̪əˈŋaːw] - 250 rupees, i.e. [jiɾuˈn̪uːtijəmbəd̪ɯ ˈɾuːba]
[ˈt͡ʃaːʋu] - 1, i.e. [ˈon̪n̪ɯ]
[ˈt̪oːʋu] - 2, i.e. [ˈɾəɳɖɯ]
[t̪iˈluʋɯ] - 3, i.e. [ˈmuːn̪n̪ɯ]
[ˈpaːt̪ɯ] - 4, i.e. [ˈn̪aːlɯ]
[t̪əˈʈɛlɯ] - 5, i.e. [ˈənd͡ʒɯ]
[t̪əˈɖəʋɛlɯ] - 6, i.e. [ˈaːrɯ]
[n̪ɔˈɭɛkʲɛlɯ] - 7, i.e. [ˈjeːɻɯ]
[ʋəˈlu] - 8, i.e. [ˈjeʈɯ]
[ˈt̪aːja] - 9, i.e. [ˈombəd̪ɯ]
[puˈlu] - 10, i.e. [ˈpət̪ɯ]. These numerals sound weirdly similar to Austronesian languages!
[ˈpoːjeŋgi poː] - 'go if you have to!' i.e. [ˈpoːɳeŋgil pʷɨjˈkʲoː] or [ˈpoːɳeŋgil poː]. [ˈpoːjeŋgi poː] sounds to me like it literally means 'go if you went!' :P
[jeŋˈgoːra] - 'Where are you going?' translated as [jeŋoːˈʈaː] 'where to?' but sounds more like just the Tamil expression [ˈeŋgɯ ˈpoːre] (or something similar) spoken quickly
[kəɾuˈʋaːɖɯ] - 'dried fish' i.e. [oɳəkəˈmiːn]. The fishwife in the video jokes with the host that there is no [oɳəkəˈmiːn], only [kəɾuˈʋaːɖɯ]; I'm guessing this line was scripted
[ˈpiːjəɳikʲa] - translated as [ˈmət̪ɛn] 'melon' but perhaps more accurately [məˈt̪ɛŋʲa] 'pumpkin'
[ˈjeːt̪ɛŋʲa] - 'plantains'. I'm not sure only people in Thiruvananthapuram say this, but I would say [ˈjeːt̪ɛkʲa]
[ˈpuːɭa] - 'cassava/tapioca', i.e. [ˈkəpa] or [məɾəˈt͡ʃiːni]. I'm not sure why this is listed, since if I understood the video correctly, this is the term used in Kozhikode, in northern Kerala, and emphatically not in southern Kerala. Maybe they just wanted to warn northern Malayalees against using this term there :P
[ˈpəɭɭɯ] - 'insult, cursing'. This is how we would say it, too. It's translated as [t̪eˈri]

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Re: Njanga Ninga: Language Varieties in and around Kerala

Postby vijayjohn » 2022-01-30, 4:24

The fifth episode of Njanga Ninga takes place in Manjeshwaram, on the exact opposite end of Kerala (the northernmost part of Kerala, in Kasaragod district, near the border with Karnataka) from the previous episode. The informant in this episode says that what they speak here is Beary Bashe:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgAerQKfo7g
[ˈn̪əkɯ] - 'to/for me', i.e. [jeˈnikʲɯ]. [ˈn̪əkɯ] to most Malayalam-speakers would mean 'lick!'
[ˈn̪ikɯ] - 'to/for you', i.e. [n̪iˈnəkɯ]. In standard Malayalam, this sounds more like 'wait!'
[ˈuːɖɯt̪e] - see episode 3
[ˈmaːrgəm] - 'road', as explained using the English word in the video. This is not a dialect-specific term at all but rather a Sanskrit loanword that has been used in literary Malayalam for hundreds of years and with cognates in plenty of Indian languages, though not usually used in casual conversation in Malayalam where we would instead say [ʋəˈɻi] (or, these days, use the English word like the host in this video). Perhaps here, they just use it more casually/frequently
[kiˈd̪iɲiʈɯ] - seems to mean 'having come down', which would make sense since [ˈkiːɻe] means 'down', but the translation on the show is [eˈrəŋijiʈɯ], which makes it seem like it means 'having come out'
[əˈgər] - 'wall', i.e. [t͡ʃuˈməɾɯ] (as they say in the video and have written in parentheses), or perhaps ?[t͡ʃoˈməɾɯ], or [məˈd̪il]
[ˈsiːd̪e] - 'straight', i.e. [ˈn̪eːɾe]. Compare Hindi/Urdu [ˈsid̪ʱa] (plural [ˈsid̪ʱe]; I think this form is also used as an adverb)
[ˈt͡ʃəŋgəm] - 'big bridge'; the informant in the video explains that it's the kind of bridge a bus crosses
[ˈkund͡ʒi] - 'shoulder', i.e. [t̪oːɭ]. The host makes a claim I don't quite understand that in Malabar (northern Kerala), particularly Kozhikode, this same word means the kind of money that you might give to kids (as an allowance? Or to buy something?). The speech bubble suggests that it can also mean 'back' i.e. [muˈd̪ugɯ]. For 'back' or 'backside', we also say [poˈrəʋɛɕəm]
[məˈd̪u] - 'axe', i.e. [məˈɻu]
[d̪aːrˈʋaːj] - 'TV serial', perhaps from the Shuddh Hindi neologism, which is something like [d̪ʱaɾaˈʋaɦɪk]
[t̪uˈʋaːɭɯ] - 'handkerchief', i.e. [t̪uˈʋaːla] for me or [t̪uːˈʋaːla] for some other speakers, a Portuguese loanword from toalha 'towel'
[muɳˈɖaːsɯ] - 'turban (made from a piece of cloth)', translated as [t̪əˈleːkeʈɯ], which literally just means 'something tied on (around) the head'
[ˈt̪əʈəm] - the same cloth but untied and carried over the shoulder
[jeˈlaːsərəm] - 'headscarf/hijab', i.e. [ˈt̪əʈəm] in other varieties of Malayalam (I'm not familiar with either term)
[ˈjiːʈɯ] - 'fertilizer', i.e. [ʋəˈɭəm]. The fact that [ʋəˈɭəm] is used as the translation here really makes me wonder why it was treated as a new word in episode 1! [ˈjiːʈɯ] can apparently refer to a kind of tree or plant also used to make fertilizer, which the host claims people in his area call [ˈsiːməkon̪n̪ɯ]. No idea what kind of plant this is
[məˈd̪a] - 'rain', i.e. [məˈɻa], with the same sound change again
[beɳˈɳuːrɯ] - 'ash', i.e. [ˈt͡ʃaːɾəm], though for whatever reason translated by the host as [ʋeɳˈɳiːrɯ], which is perhaps a term known elsewhere in (northern?) Kerala
[d͡ʒeːˈbaːləm] - 'temple', i.e. [d̪eːˈʋaːlejəm], though not listed, so I'm not sure whether I transcribed this correctly
[ˈd͡ʒaːt̪ra] - translated as [ˈulsəʋəm] 'festival' although similar terms in other Indian languages generally mean 'pilgrimage'. In Malayalam, [ˈjaːt̪ra] simply means (any) 'travel, trip, voyage' whereas a pilgrimage is called [t̪iːrˈt̪ʰaːɖɛnəm]
[pɐj] - 'cow', i.e. [pəˈɕu]. This is the same term used in Tamil
[pəˈd̪upɛn] ([pəˈd̪upɛ̃]?) - apparently, this is the Tulu word for 'spinach', i.e. what in Malayalam, we call [ˈt͡ʃiːɾa]. The informant appears to instead say [ˈt͡ʃiːɾəm] (in Beary Bashe?), but the video glosses over this
[ələˈsaːɳɖa] - apparently Tulu for 'beans (or some variety thereof)', i.e. [ˈpajərɯ]
[ˈbeɭrika] - apparently Beary Bashe for 'cucumber', i.e. [ˈʋeɭɭɛɾikʲa]
[ˈt̪awt̪ɛn] ([ˈt̪awt̪ɛ̃]?) - apparently Tulu for 'cucumber' but very much glossed over and not written in this video
[puˈd̪u] - 'worm' i.e. [puˈɻu], obviously nothing surprising here!
[poˈɲaːrɯ] - supposedly a very old (and presumably native Dravidian) term for 'nostalgia' used in Beary Bashe(?) or at least in Kasaragod whereas Malayalam (spoken elsewhere, or at least Standard Malayalam) only has the neologisms(?) [grɯˈhaːd̪uɾət̪ʋəm] (literally 'distancing from home'), [grɯhəʋiˈjoːgəʋjəd̪ʱa] ('grief from abandoning home'), and [ʋiʈɯˈn̪oːʋɯ] ('pain of abandonment') for it. The first two are Sanskrit-derived, and the last uses native words
[ʋəˈnəŋgəɾejɛl] - apparently another word specifically used in Kasaragod with a similar meaning; literal meaning sounds a bit like 'forest crying'
[ˈd̪uːɭɯ] - 'dust', i.e. [poˈɖi]
[ˈbeːkəm pəreˈjaːm] - 'will explain the situation/matter', i.e. [ˈkaːɾjəm pəreˈjaːm]
[ˈpullinde ˈmuʈa] - apparently 'haystack', translated as [pulˈkuːna] literally 'grass hunchback'; literally means 'egg of grass'
[keˈd̪a] - 'cattleshed', translated as [t̪oˈɻut̪ɯ]. We also say [jeˈɾut̪il]
[ˈd͡ʒaːga] - 'place', i.e. [st̪ʰəˈləm]. Both of these are probably Indo-European loanwords. [st̪ʰəˈləm] is a loanword from Sanskrit. For [ˈd͡ʒaːga], compare the Hindi/Urdu equivalent [d͡ʒəˈga] from Persian
[uːnˈd͡ʒaːɭɯ] - 'swing', i.e. [uːˈɲaːl]; compare Tamil ūñcal, which shows that the form in the local variety in Kasaragod is more conservative as it doesn't share the *nd͡ʒ > [ɲ] sound change Malayalam has
[bɯˈɭi koˈɖɯkəɳɖa] - 'shouldn't cry/don't cry', i.e. [kəˈɾejəɳɖa]. In Malayalam, [ʋiˈɭi] means 'call', and [koˈɖɯkəɳɖa] means 'shouldn't give (to a third person)' or 'don't give (something to a third person)!'
[kuˈd̪i] - 'pit, ditch', i.e. [kuˈɻi]. This is again the same sound change that we've been treated to examples of throughout the video. The Malayalam word is also part of my family name (not my last name!), [t͡ʃeˈɭikuɻijil], literally 'in the mud pit' :P

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Re: Njanga Ninga: Language Varieties in and around Kerala

Postby vijayjohn » 2022-01-30, 4:26

The sixth episode of Njanga Ninga takes place in a place called Panikkotty near Vadakara in Kozhikode district in northern Kerala, about 20 km west of Perambra, featured in the second episode:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=deHMGm8gCYQ
[kɔˈjəkɛɾəɖɯ] - 'tube well', i.e. [kɔˈɻəlkɛɳərɯ]
[jɛn̪ˈd̪eːnu] - 'Why are you here?' i.e. [jɛn̪d̪ɪˈnaː ˈʋən̪n̪əd̪ɯ]?
[ˈt͡ʃeːd̪i] - 'threshold', i.e. [ˈt̪iɳɳa]
[ˈjiːt͡ʃilɯmmɯlɯ] - 'on the step'. They translate this as simply step-[il], but we could also say [pəˈɖijil]
[koːˈnaːj] - 'porch', translated as [koːˈlaːja], a word I myself did not know. We also have the Portuguese loanword [ʋeˈɾaːn̪d̪a], which is also more or less the usual word in Indian English: verandah
[oːr] - probably just a contraction of [əˈʋər] 'they', commonly used in multiple nonstandard varieties of Malayalam
[oːr əˈŋoːʈe ˈpojka] - 'they went next door' or [əˈʋər əˈporət̪e ˈʋiːʈil poːj]. [əˈŋoːʈe] just sounds like '(towards) there'; I would say [əˈŋoːʈɯ]
[əŋəˈʈeːlɯ] - 'next door', i.e. [aˈjəlpəkət̪ɯ]
[jɛɖəʋɛləˈkaːr] - 'neighbors', translated as [ajəlpəkəˈkaːr]. I would probably say just [ajəlˈkaːr]
[koːˈnaːləgəm] - translated in the episode itself in English as 'dining hall' and in Malayalam as [n̪əˈɖumuri], a term literally meaning 'middle room' that I've never heard before
[ˈoːkɯ] - 'to/for her', i.e. [əˈʋəɭkɯ]. This is again the common sound change in multiple varieties of *ava > [oː] plus dropping of [ɭ] at the beginning of a consonant cluster, which is also fairly common
[ˈkoːn̪d̪əla] - 'tip', translated as [ˈt̪umbɯ], another word I didn't know. I'd probably just say [ˈəttəm] 'end (as in endpoint)'
[peɾuˈd̪eːɾi] - 'stonemason' or [kəlpəɳiˈkaːɾɛn]
[pəˈɾuŋɛn] - 'iguana', translated as [uˈɖumbɯ], yet another word I didn't know
[ˈmoːn̪d̪i] - see the third word here
[pud̪ijaːməˈkaːr] - an old word for 'police', or as they say in the video, [poːˈliːs] :P
[kaːˈluːn̪n̪i] - 'boundary marker' or [əd̪iɾəɖeˈjaːɭəm]
[jɛˈnəkɯ] - 'to/for me', i.e. [jɛˈnikɯ]. This is kind of interesting to me because I'm pretty sure a lot of Tamils say this word this way as well, but it's not Standard Malayalam, and this is filmed about as far away from Tamil Nadu as you can get in Kerala
[ˈmaːɳɖa] - 'do(es)n't need/want', i.e. [ˈʋeːɳɖa]. Some low-caste people closer to where my parents are from also say this
[ˈkɔɭɭɯ] - 'raised bank of soil' or [ˈməɳd̪iʈa]; see also episode 2
[t̪iˈɾiɲikilla] - translated as [mənsiˈlaːjilla] 'didn't understand' but given episode 2, I'm guessing this is simply how they pronounced [t̪iˈɾiɲiʈilla] 'haven't/hasn't understood'
[ˈjiːɖɯt̪əmbəɾe] - 'up to here', i.e. [jiˈʋiɖəmʋəɾe]
[ˈaːɖɯt̪əmbəɾe] - 'up to there', i.e. [əˈʋiɖəmʋəɾe]
[bəˈkɯn̪n̪ɯ] - apparently 'from the end', but translated as [əˈtət̪ɯn̪n̪ɯ], which itself sounds non-standard. :P I might say [ətəˈt̪iːn̪n̪ɯ]
[meˈɲaːn̪n̪ɯ] - 'day before yesterday', i.e. [meniˈɲaːn̪n̪ɯ], misspelled(?) in the video as if to be pronounced *[miniˈjaːn̪n̪ɯ]
[od̪eˈjaːrkəm] - 'manners, politeness, civility', i.e. [məˈɾjaːd̪a]
[ˈɲaːɭɯ] - 'we', no equivalent in other varieties of Malayalam as far as I'm aware since it doesn't seem to be specifically inclusive or exclusive
[ˈjiŋʲi](?) - 'you', again with no single equivalent in Malayalam I know of
[pɛˈrəɳəm] - 'should give birth', i.e. [prəˈsəʋikʲɛɳəm], though I think [ˈpeːrəɳəm] might be an acceptable translation as well
[ojjaːɾəˈpaːɖɯ] - 'making a commotion', i.e. [bɛˈhɛɭəm ˈʋɛkʲəl]. The host notes that this is similar to the word [ot͡ʃəˈpaːɖɯ] 'commotion'
[ˈʋaːjʋəreja] - 'to make a fuss', i.e. [ʋəˈɻəkɯ pəˈrejuga]
[miˈrɨːrɯkɯn̪n̪ɯ] - 'am/are/is grumbling', translated as [miˈrumirukun̪n̪u], a word I wasn't familiar with


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