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:f AN INTENSIVE COURSE IN MALAYALAM I CENTRAL INSTITUTE OF INDIAN LANGUAGES INTENSIVE COURSE SERIES No. 4. General Editor M. S. THDtUMALAI £?••••: CIIL Intensive Course Series-—4 AN INTENSIVE COURSE IN MALAYALAM B. SYAMALA EUMARI CENTRAL INSTITUTE OF INDIAN LANGUAGES MANASAGANGOTRI, MYSORE-570006 R«tPublished: November 1981 Kartika 1903 , ©Central Institute of Indian Languages 1981 No part pi this book should be reproduced in any form without written pennission from the Publisher. PUBLISHED AT THE CENTRAL iNSTinrrB OF INDIAN LANGUAGES, MANASAGANGOTRI, MYSORB-S7(J60^ BY D. P. PATTANAYAK, DIRECTOR AND PRINTED BY THE" MANAGER, OF INDIA PRESS, CCSMBATORB, 641 019. ; ••-.••.^^•r r.v * FOREWORD ; > . ^../;,. The Central Institute of Indian Languages was set up on the 17th July, 1969 with a view to assisting and co-ordinating the development of Indian languages. The Institute was charged with the responsibility of serving as • a nucleus to bring together all the research and literary out-put from the various linguistic streams to a common head and narrowing the gap between basic research and developmental research in the fields of languages and linguistics inlndia. The Institute and its five Regional Language Centres are thus engaged in research and teaching, which lsad to the publication of a wide-ranging variety of materials. Preparation of materials designed for teaching/learning at different levels and suited to specific needs is one of the major areas of interest of the Institute. Basic research relating to the acquisition of language and study of language in its manifold psycho-social relations constitute another broad range of its interest. The publications will include materials produced by the members of the staff of the Central Institute of Indian Languages and its Regional Language Centres and associated scholars from Universities and Institutions, both Indian and foreign. The Central Institute of Indian languages has initiated a Basic Course Series in major Indian languages to provide suitable and comprehensive material for learning and teaching the language concerned for Indians. In a language teaching situation, the teacher is expected to combine the roles of a psycho- linguist, socio-linguist, linguist, language pedagogue, a creator of materials, a literary critic and a testing and evaluation expert. Most of his competences are naturally reflected in the materials, which simultaneously are graded from simple to complex, known to the unknown and contrived to the natural. This is a very difficult task. After research and experimentation we have come out with more questions than answers at each stage of the material. For example, how basic is basic ? What is grading ? In what way can linguistic and cultural matter be graded ? Is question, with which most learning begins, simpler than statement ? How does one move from a purely language based competence to creating litrerary sensibilities ? How does one build into the material conceptual prose ? How are lessons to be presented ? VI Should the translated discourse structure be made to look similar to the origi- nal discourse structure ? Questions such as these have been answered diffe- rently by different teachers and researchers. This search is a continuing phenomenon^ Therefore, these materials represent our unfinished education in this area. ii. An Intensive Course in Malayalam The format for the basic course is the result of a consensus arrived at by the lecturers and principals of the five Regional Language Centres of the Insti- tute engaged in thelteaching of major Indian languages. This is the product of almost eight years of teaching and research. This format is flexible and has left much scope for individual authors to innovate. If these courses help the desirous to learn and stimulate those interested in applied linguistics, with special reference to the teaching of Indian languages as second/foreign languages, then the Institute would feel rewarded. I congratulate the teachers, the trainees, the supervisors and the press and publication people who have brought out the publication in a creditable manner. DEBI PRASANNA PATTANAYAK Director EDITOR'S NOTE Malayalam is the language of Kerala. It is spoken in all the States and Union Territories of India. Speakers of Malayalam are found all over the . world. Malayalam belongs to the Dravidian family of languages and has a highly cultivated literary history of its own dating back to 11th or 12th cen- tury, A.D. While the native speakers of Malayalam are known for their enter- prise, and their eager acceptance of dynamic ideas and a universal outlook, the language itself is marked by a tremendous variety and vitality in its modern literary growth. Malayalam language bears a convincing testimony to the development, the expression and the flowing together of both Dravidian and Aryan traditions. And Kerala continues to be a land of confluence of different religions and ideologies. Malayalam language fully reflects this confluence in its vocabulary. While some language learning materials have been published in the past for. the learning of Malayalam as a second/foreign language, the present work An Intensive Course in Malayalam is distinct from all the above. For the first time, a grammatically graded, and comprehensive second/foreign language learning Malayalam manual is available. A deliberate control of the situa- tions, structures, and vocabulary is attempted effectively in this book. Since a second language student would benefit greatly by a mastery of the script of the language he is learning, the book adopts a method of presentation which demands a previous knowledge of Malayalam script. This knowledge can be easily gained with the help of books referred to in the Introduction. While in the past IVialayalam has been learned by speakers of other lan- guages largely to attend to their immediate transactional needs (notable excep- tions are easy to identify), in recent times, a large number of school children and others have begun to learn Malayalam, not only to meet the immediate'or prospective transactional needs but also to enjoy its literature, and to partici- pate in and appreciate its cultural and ideological milieu. Hence, the present volume aims at having a balanced blend to meet the requirements of both 'nstrumental and integrational demands: Language teaching, in some sense, is an artificial activity. It requires breaking the global language into, at times, even arbitrary units. The books vii Vlll in the Intensive Course Series are no exception to these inevitable consequences of the model followed. This was, however, borne in mind all through to keep the artificial element under control. Each language learning manual in the Intensive Course Series coveis the 'basic' structures of that language used for certain identified topics of com- mon interest. Lessons are generally presented in the form of conversations. These lessons are grouped under various units. The variables for the choice of dialect through which the materials are presented, the methods for the administration of exercises and drills in the class, and other tips for both the teacher and the learner would be found in the Introduction. It should be emphasized here that the Intensive Course Series is an integral part of the scheme of language teaching of the Regional Lan- guage Centres of the Central Institute of Indian Languages. Books in the Intermediate Course Series and the Advanced Course Series are an extension of the books published under the Intensive Course Series. M. S. THIRUMALAI PREFACE An Intensive Course in Malayalam is meant for the adult learners who would like to learn Malayalam as a second/foreign language. This book, in its many versions, has been tried out with several batches of learners belong- ing to different mother tongue groups, and has assumed the present shape after a long process of designing and redesigning," writing and rewriting, and editing on the basis of learner reactions and responses of a varied sort. In the preparation of this book, I am indebted to a number of people who include my supervisors, students, colleagues and dear ones. I am most grateful to Dr. D.P. Pattanayak, Director, Central Institute of Indian Lan- guages, for his guidance in every step during the organisation of the format and content of this book, for the stimulating discussions I had with him with regard to various pedagogic and linguistic strategies that underline the pre- paration of this book and for his constant encouragement in taking up this work and completing it. I owe a deep sense of gratitude to Dr. M.S. Thirumalai, Deputy Director, Central Institute of Indian Languages, who with his unfailing perseverance, guided me in the various stages of preparation of this book starting from the very beginning up to the proof reading stage. But for his persuasion and timely guidance, this book would not have seen the light of the day. I should record my profound thanks to my husband Shri K. V. Srini- vasan, University of Mysore, who from the point of view of a linguist as well as that of a second language learner of Malayalam helped me a lot with his comments and criticisms in deciding the form and content of this book. I have to specially acknowledge my several batches of Malayalam students on whom these materials were tried out and who taught me a great lot while they learned Malayalam from me. I am also thankful to my former and present colleagues of the Regional Language Centres and the Central Institute of Indian Languages whose ' opi- nions and comments helped me considerably in preparing this book. Among them I would like to specially mention the names of Dr. U.P. Upadhyaya, Dr. Reginald Soloman and Dr. S. Rajaram. I must now thank my teacher Dr. V.R. Prabodhachandran Nair, Pro- fessor, Department of Linguistics, University of Kerala who reviewed this book in its manuscript form and gave several constructive suggestions.

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