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The following statement is a
tentative attempt to project the problems and
possibilities of Malayalam in the backdrop of
globalization and information explosion superhighway. It
proposes to evaluate, on the one hand, its development
during the course of the twentieth century, which is
typically declared as over by 1989, especially in the
context of the collapse of communism and the strengthening
of the forces of capitalism, exciting the much publicized
‘end of history’ thesis. It also tries to speculate, on
the other hand, on its possible position in the so-called
‘post-historical’ society of the twenty first century, in
which, a possible ‘recolonization’ effectuating forms of
‘imperial expansion’ including ‘information imperialism’
or ‘information colonization’ and a consequential cultural
erosion partly due to flow of migration, are predicted.
In contrast to the nineteenth century, the twentieth
century does not diagnostically belong to Malayalam.
Almost all significant contributions on Malayalam language
and its grammatical description by great traditionalists
from Gundert (1951) to Keeralapaanini RajaRaja Varma
(1895) had been made in the nineteenth century:
Grammatical works of Spring (1839). Peet (1854), Mathen
(1863), Arbuthnot (1864), Collins (1864), Muthathu (1876),
Garthweite (1877), Nedungadi (1878), Frohnmeyer (1889),
Raman (1890). The revised versions of the works of Varma
(1917) and Prabhu (1919) are conspicuous contributions in
the beginning of the twentieth century. In fact the period
from 1850 to 1950 can legitimately be considered as a
self-contained unit, specifically from the angle of
proposing and consolidating traditional grammatical
statements in Malayalam. To be more explicit, the period
between 1850-1920 was one of proposals. After 1920, in
general, was a faithful or even dogmatic acceptance and
practice of the Malayalam language by teachers, students
and scholars. Therefore, the nineteenth century for
Malayalam can be reasonably marked as the period between
1850-1950.
If the ‘end of history’ thesis is adhered to, for purposes
of projections on twenty first century, the period of
forty years after 1950 would constitute the twentieth
century for Malayalam. Although there are doubts and
apprehensions about its real impact, positive contribution
and even its relevance in different circles of scholars.
Malayalam linguists would like to refer to it as an era of
modern linguistics. Vicissitudes and vicious circle
weakened the initiatives offered by modern linguistics in
India. Therefore, the terminal decade of the present
century can be considered as the beginning of the twenty
first century, in tune with the political, economic and
international compulsions. It also provides an opportunity
for common thinking as to its impact on different aspects
of human life in various parts of the world. Language is
quite basic an aspect of human behavior. It is an
effective tool for social interaction. The impact of the
‘New World Order’ or the so-termed ‘New Disorder’ on our
regional languages in general and the Malalyalam language
in particular is worthy of careful investigation and
speculation.
The possible impact of globalization and the commercial
consumer culture initiated and reared carefully by
international societal networks like the IMF, World Bank,
GATT and G-7 on our country requires detailed scrutiny.
The attitude of the Malayalee people towards their
language and culture has been constant even after
independence. Although English was an instrument of
colonization, it was the choice for, at least a large
section of people. They imbibed it as a pragmatic
instrument of economic competions. Attitudinally,
Malayalees keep a well thought out balance in properly
assessing the pros and cons of learning English and
Malayalam. In this respect they have been practicing a
happy but typical mixture of localisation and
globalisation with reference to their mothertongue and the
other tongue, English. They have been resorting to the
same game even with Hindi and with other languages as
well. This factor is quite crucial, in fact, for a
possible projection on their aspirations for the
twentyfirst century.
The Malayalam language has made significant advancement in
different dimensions during the last several decades.
Especially in the realms of literature, mass
communication, cinema and education. It has mad
significant strides when compared to several other
languages in the Indian Union. Painstakingly by built up
in the post-independent years, it has naturally evolved in
a congenial set up of a general cultural, social,
political and educational milieu of Kerala. One would be
aware of the utility of a language, native or foreign,
when one is in a specific situation in which one is under
pressure to use it as a tool. Industry, tourism, commerce,
technology etc., are areas where one will feel such a
pressure which exerts an indirect impact on one’s attitude
towards a language as an instrument of survival in a fast
changing world.
The socio-political changes to which the speech
communities have been continuously subjected to in Kerala
have enabled the common man and even the scholarly to
rediscover, Malayalam as a language useful for education,
technology, mass media and political dialogue. At the same
time, an average Malayalee is aware of its limitations in
a number of practical situations in life. This awareness
continues to help him, generally, in not becoming
unnecessarily biased in its use. Probably this would be
the reason why an average Malayalee is not highly
disturbed at the exciting calls of language loyalists for
glorification of the native tongue and for the crusades
against English medium schools and education. The genuine
willingness to consider language as a tool for progress
and stability makes a Malayalee a typical representative
competitor for survival in the twenty first century which
is seemingly heading towards a ‘greed is good’ commercial
consumerism. The examples of Japan and Korea are very
often quoted as examples, of booming powers with a
commendable national growth rate, made possible through
the development of indigenous languages. The very fact
that we belong to a developing Third World ‘peripheral’
country such a desirable position seems not attainable at
present. Of course, it would become nearly impossible a
task to be equal to the ‘core’ countries in the imminent
international scenario of recolonisation. Is the new order
good or bad for us? What shall we do to counter the
disadvantages of the system ? These are different types of
questions which requires quite a bit of argument in
future. In all probability, regional defence could wither
away in global invasion and languages are no exception to
this. They are liable to be reshaped to the changing
cultures and tendencies. ‘There has been a progressive
globalization of the world economy since the beginning of
this century but it was in the 1970s and 1980s that a
phenomenal acceleration took place’. The gap between the
developed and the developing world continues to widen.
International labour migrations are a growing phenomenon
within the third world as well.
The trials and tribulations of linguistic studies in India
reviewed from this situation can excite a few interesting
observations. The growth of linguistics as a discipline in
this part of our country, per se, has been in the form of
a sort of sympathetic vibration to the tunes of
advancements made in the west. It was not a logical
consolidation effected on the basis of any ongoing
activity on indigenous data. Once introduced and acquired
it grew in certain dimensions and in due course it started
showing the diagnostic symptoms of malnutrition and
maladjustment. Its efforts to enter fresh fields and
pastures was not very successful and as a result, many of
the Universities are struggling had to maintain their
appeal. There spreads an impression that institutes and
organizations or higher research have been
characteristically nose-diving into discontent,
discomfiture, incompetence and impotence in reaching
academic standards. One is trying to seek refuge in the
explanation that the changing world order has been
seriously affecting the scope of our discipline. At least
to that extent we are now aware of the change in
situations and its impacts. Of course, we cannot say that
the decline of the linguistics in India is to be directly
related to the ongoing process of progressive
globalization. Nevertheless, the fact that linguists in
India did not care much for self-defense by innovations,
rediscovery and imagination would loom large in our minds.
With a view to contemplate indirectly at least on the
possible resurrection of linguistics in the coming decade
we have to seek ways of overcoming handicaps and
imbalances both by making our presence felt in various
exercises on language and by meaningfully entering the
inform sphere to satisfy the requirements of the
twenty-first century like surfing the Internet, acquiring
data on the information superhighway, transmission through
cyberspace etc. The question that looms large before us
is, how do we keep pace with the changing requirements of
our languages both in terms of our attitude towards them
and in their real utility vis-à-vis English, the lingua
franca of international politics and business.
It is beyond doubt that English being a near global tongue
can function as a bridge between language barriers. It is
used by approximately 700 million speakers, by the bulk of
the world mailing system and electronic information
services. Will it be possible, to take a technological and
economic leap, without this language in future ? If the
answer is in the negative, what type of balance will one
have to envisage between, say, English and Malayalam on
the one hand, English, Hindi and Malayalam on the other ?
Their co existential patterns would definitely beg
redefinition and reformulation. Furthermore, we will have
to reassess our aspirations for regional, national and
international languages now in the novel contexts of
national and international linkage. The fact that a number
of developing countries are rediscovering English in the
context of globalizations and their active role in
international relations must be an eye opener for us too.
It need not be a choice between English and Malayalam, of
course, but the question is, how do the people use both ?
Rediscovery of a language would help considerably the
prevention of cultural pollution by a process of
localization effectuating an assertion of the right to use
a language, although foreign, in accordance with the local
culture, local variations and local formations. Such an
exercise would prove to be important in realizing the
relevance of localization in an era of globalization.
Yet another factor which requires active consideration is
the impending ‘withdrawal of the State’ from welfare
responsibilities. Encouragement of privatization and a
mere concern for preservation of law and order would in
effect initiate forces of elitism. As the individual
freedom envisaged for private sector can make the
educational sphere more self-financing without much of
State control, it will, consequentially cater more to the
needs and aspirations of the elite in society who can
easily afford the technical and managerial higher
education extravaganza. In this context a proposal for
higher education through the medium of mother tongue would
definitely lack plausibility. As a result the relevance of
Malayalam in higher education or technical education, for
an average Malayalee, would only be marginal. At the same
time, in the context of privatization and globalization
the importance of English is destined to grow still more
significantly. Of course, one can dream that the present
day trend of globalization in a unipolar set up need not
last for long. Change is an ever racing horse and at times
it gallops too. That is how it can result, often, in
rebuffs, rebukes, rebellion or even upheavals. But, now
many of us do have time and patience to wait for history
to repeat itself. There is every reason to assume that the
first half of the twenty-first century will find a
typically diminishing patronage of regional languages by
the State. Instead, its renewed and positive enthusiasm,
in a convenient camouflage, in the global tongues to keep
pace with the changing requirements. Other challenges
before the State in the cut-throat race for global
competitiveness will be so demanding that it will find it
difficult provide any significant support financial or
administrative to the development of regional languages.
To over-exaggerate, languages like Malayalam will be left
alone with its speakers to meet with its destiny.
Its use in literary creations will also be subjected to a
‘qualitative change which is to be predicted and discussed
by scholars in the concerned exercises. The ongoing
changes in the aims and means of education will affect the
preservation and maintenance of our regional languages.
This is especially so in Kerala for Malayalam because a
Malayalee by predicament aims to hit inevitably beyond his
boundaries for survival and success and therefore it is
less likely that he holds on to his mother tongue too long
and far if it would not help him in his strides.
If these highlight the problems for a language like
Malayalam, what are its prospects of enhancing its ability
to handle problems of technology and information
management ? Malayalam is capable of exhibiting an unusual
rate of vehicular load which is quite essential for it to
get planned for future purposes. It is a sad state of
affairs that there are no accepted attempts so far
projected to provide a comprehensive grammar of Malayalam
which can replace the traditional statements on the
grammar of the language Who is responsible for this ? the
torch bearers of tradition ? the advocates of modern
linguistics ? Only a resurgence in Malayalam grammatical
thinking and its possible consolidation could make the
language usable to the maximum effect in the context of
modern technology liberalization, globalization and
consumerism. The language will have to be reshaped and
prepared for new functions identification of the differing
functions of the language and the rediscovery of its real
potentialities are quite crucial. It will have to be
carried out with a diagnostic evaluation of the relevance
of localization in the context of globalization and their
possible mutual interferences. Malayalam has been adopting
the policy of borrow and grow even from very early times
well before the IMF and World Bank compulsions were not
even heard of. It and its people have an inherent ability
for adaptation. Didn’t you notice the word MALAYALAM
written in English ? You can read it from left to right or
right to left as MALAYALAM itself Do you require any other
proof for its inherent flexibility ?
REFERENCES
Ezhuthachan. 1975. The History of The Grammatical Theories
in Malayalam. Trivandrum : DLA
ISDA Journal. Quarterly Journal of the Institute for the
Study of Developing Areas. Vol.4 No.4.1994. Special Issue
Papers of the Conference on VISIONS OF THE FUTURE
Trivandrum
Seminar 429.1995. Globalization and The Union - A
Symposium on Globalisation and Trade Union Options. New
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