1850.] 



Language of the Gonds. 



43 



with his paper, the author Mr. Driherg remarks, (p. 8.) The 

 Gonds " have no written character ; and though formerly the lan- 

 guage was apparently perfect, at present it is fast getting mixed 

 with Hindui and Maharatta ; many words of Tamil origin are also 

 to be met with." It seems that the remoter mountaineers speak the 

 language with the greatest simplicity and purity, the borderers 

 adopting foreign words ; and from these last Mr. Di iberg drew his 

 materials. He also mentions using Hindi words in a version made 

 by him of the parable of the prodigal son. 



4. Walter Elliot, Esq., in writing to me on this subject states— 

 u Mr. Frye in the neighbouring districts has made much progress in 

 reducing the dialect of the Khonds to system, has adapted it to the 

 Telugu character, prepared a grammar of its structure, and collect- 

 ed extensive vocabularies, and even lengthened compositions. From 

 some specimens, with which he favored me, I have no doubt of the 

 near affinity of the tongue with the Tamulian stock. Two-thirds of 

 the list of words he sent me were referrible to Tamil. Telugu, or 

 Canarese roots." This result quite corresponds with the one arrived 

 at in the paper already adverted to; as published in the Madras Li- 

 terary Journal, No. 16; this also showed the existence of a few Sans- 

 crit, or Pracrit derivations. 



5. In the grammar drawn up by the Rev. J. G. Driberg I may 

 advert to the use of Tamil inflexions to nouns, but sometimes ap- 

 plied to a different case — and next to the interchange of Tamil and 

 Telugu pronouns ; and to an accusative case in Tamil appearing as 

 a nominative in Gondf. Of course I am to suppose that care was 

 taken in forming the grammar ; and I can only proceed on data di- 

 rectly before me. 



6. First of nouns. Genitive manrdsan a of a man. The old Tamil 

 has a genitive in atha ; but this, obscurely, or corruptly enunciated 

 might sound like long a> It is perhaps simply the Canarese genitive 

 in a. Manardsank in the dative, but ku or hi in Tamil, which the 

 Pariars, and other low natives, pronounce simply as k. The vocative 

 is e manrdsaui ; it is not unusual to hear e (pronounce ey) colloqui- 

 ally used in Tamil, but 5 is written; the simple inflexion at the end 

 is sufficient, except when calling to any one at some distance : that 

 inflexion in Gondi is i, in Tamil e, but colloquially the difference is 

 small ; and, if judging by the ear only, one might often suppose the 

 use of Tamil vowels aa vague as they are in provincial use in Eng- 



