Malvani Konkani

Malvani (Northern Konkani) is a dialect of Konkani with significant Marathi influences and loanwords.^[1] Though Malvani does not have a unique script, scripts of the other languages native to the regions its speakers inhabit are used. Devanagari is used by most of the speakers. Malvani is very popular language used for newspaper articles and dramas. But however, Bhats (Chitpavans and Deshasthas) have given up speaking this dialect and have adopted proper Marathi instead. Malvani is still safe from 'language death', particularly due to locals of lower-caste communities (Marathas and below) who tirelessly continue to preserve this traditional dialect. It is also known as Kudali.

Difference from standard Marathi

All pronouns have a change from la to ka. Words in Marathi for yes, where, here, there, have different Malvani counterparts. Other grammatical nuances differ from standard-spoken Marathi.

Geographical distribution

Malvani is spoken in the southern part of Konkan Vibhag^[2] i.e. Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts; chiefly in the towns of Ratnagiri, Rajapur, Devgad, Malvan, Kudal, Kankavli, Sawantwadi and Vengurla. The language is also spoken in North Goa, especially Pernem taluka. The Census Board of India counts Malvani as a Konkani dialect (which is official language of State of Goa). According to Census Board of India, there are around 46851 Malwani speakers throughout the country, with 24 Lakh (2.4 million) Konkani living speakers. According to unofficial reports, around 8,68,825 (868,825) Malvani speakers live throughout the Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts.

References

See also

• Konkani Language
• Chitpavani Konkani
• Ratnagiri District
• Sindhudurg District
• Malvan region
• Malvani people
• Malvani cuisine

External links

• http://konkanionline.blogspot.com/