LANGUAGE IN INDIA

MODES OF ADDRESS IN KANNADA
A Sociolinguistic Study of Language Use in Mysore District
L. Manjulakshi, Ph.D.

1. INTRODUCTION

Terms and modes of address are important in any society for purposes of identification and expression of ideas. The use of these terms depends upon the social rank, age, and the sex of the persons involved in any communicative situation. The relationship that exists or is perceived to exist between persons addressing and persons addressed to come to control and guide the selection and use of terms and related modes of delivery.

As Koul (Koul, 1989) points out,

A study of terms of address in any language plays a very important role in socio-linguistic research. These are determined by certain factors, namely social structure, cultural pattern and geographical setting. The role of human beings varies in a particular society according to the requirements of that society … the modes of address are determined by socio-economic status, literacy level, caste, age and sex. The selection of modes of address is influenced by different historical and social factors. Individual differences between speaker and speaker depend upon individual personality differences.

Modern society is highly dynamic in the relations that obtain between individuals, between members of various groups, and between various groups. This initiates rapid change in the linguistic behavior of individuals and groups.

2. MODES OF ADDRESS

Modes of address include diminutive first names, first and second names surnames, professional titles, different interjections of address

An attempt is made here to describe the modes of address and address terms in Kannada language spoken in Mysore District (including Chamarajanagar, Kollegal and Gundlupet taluks.

The types of address terms are as follows:

1. Caste Name
2. Names by which the exalted status of individuals are revealed or implied.
3. Personal name
4. Kinship term
5. Professional term and - Professional-kinship term
6. Professional-Names for exaltation
7. Personal name-kinship term
8. Personal name-professional term
9. Non-respectable term

3. COLLECTION OF DATA

There are several address terms in Kannada language. The use of these address terms are determined by several factors, such as education, socio-economic status, age, sex, caste, the context, etc.

I collected data using the following:

1. Observation and experience
2. Discussions
3. Literary texts
4. Questionnaires

To understand the usage of the forms of address, keen observation is necessary. Observation reveals the particular choices of modes of address and their frequency. The Questionnaire that I used elicited personal information from the informants: name, place of birth, sex, age, religion, caste, education and occupation. My goal was to collect data relating to familial, social and professional relations.

The Familial category gave a list of all possible kinship relations. The social category included social relations such as landlord-tenant, master-servant, friend-stranger, neighbor-acquaintance, etc. The professional relations category included dynamic relations such as shopkeeper-customer, doctor-patient, teacher-student, lawyer-client, the official-petitioner, etc.

I also used frequent discussion with the native speakers trying to find out the modes of address they employed and the frequency of the use of certain modes of address in different situations. Besides, literary texts like fiction, plays and historical documents also provide useful date regarding the modes of address.

4.SOCIAL STRUCTURE AND DYADIC RELATIONS

For a study of the modes of address and pronominal usage in Kannada, it is very important to understand the social structure of the people who speak Kannada language. Traditionally, the Kannada or Kannadiga society is classified into various castes. Each of these castes has several sub-castes of varying status. The hierarchical placement of existing castes and the sub-castes, the origin of the caste system and its widespread use or acceptance within the Kannada society, and the justification for the continuation of the system raise heated debate, which, perhaps, is not directly relevant to our research here. The linguistic modes of address and reference in the external social contexts and in public places, however, somewhat indicate the direction in which one castes perceives its rank vis-à-vis another caste.

The watertight compartments of castes that may have existed in the past between castes are broken to some extent due to the dynamic changes in social and economic fields that usually accompany modernization, spread of education, and socio-economic and political reforms. Who lives in isolated groups came closer and had interchange of ideas and relations. These developments have had their own impact on the modes of address. Still there exist some colloquial and rustic modes of address, while several of the past address modes based on caste hierarchy have become obsolete.

For example, the word "Holeya" today stands for an abusive address addressed to a person irrespective of his caste or class identity, in the minds of individuals who still use this term. Originally this term was used to refer to a so-called untouchable caste whose caste-ordained duty unfortunately involved performing "unclean or polluted" jobs. This was certainly used as an abusive term in the past. Since this word also denotes the caste that bears this name, people do see in the use of such address terms some abusive connotation, referring to the caste that bears this name. People see in such acts an implicit acceptance and even subscribing to the caste-hierarchy ordained in the varnashrama system, implied in the expression. There is, thus, a tension in the usage of various forms of address and reference. Unthinking or indiscriminate use of terms with such connotations causes problems in social interaction.

5. THE LITERATE AND NON-LITERATE USAGE

There appears to be two broad categories of usage emerging in Kannada - Literates and non-literates. Modes of address among the literates have undergone changes and "improvements" whereas among the non-literates such changes are not prominent.

The style of speech employed by the non-literate group of people reveals some differences in the pronunciation of certain words. Sanskrit words or even Kannada words with lengthy and hard syllables become corruptive and diminutive in the forms used by the non-literate persons. For example "vidye", "vishaya", " santhosha" are pronounced as " yidye","yishya", " santosa".

6. ECONOMIC STATUS AND THE PROFESSIONS

Another important factor that influences the variations in the modes of address is the profession and/or the economic status of the individuals involved in the transaction.

In this context, persons who are poor in education and have to struggle hard for their livelihood, have great difficulty in improving or altering their modes of address and pronominal usage.

7. TYPES OF MODES OF ADDRESS

Use of Caste Names

To address a Brahmin priest, "Swamy, poojarri!" is used. A Brahmin cook is addressed as "En bhattre!" A Jangama, (a Lingayat sect priest) is addressed "ayyagaLu!" or "ayyanoore!" A government official is addressed "Sahebra!" A guru or head of a maTTha is addressed "Swamigalu!" The English term 'Sir' is changed into "Saar!" and is used in addressing an educated person or an official. This word is used as a mark of respect also between two educated persons, the younger addressing the elder as an exalted term of address. Most of the people in rural areas use the word "Saar" instead of "Swami." Another respectable or exalted term of address by a person of lower caste or lower social and economic position to a person of higher caste, or higher social and economic position is "Buddhi!" Its literal meaning is that the person addressed is an enlightened person of eminence!

Personal Names

Persons, who are closely aquatinted with or related to one another, use their names to address one another. This is done with the purpose of drawing the attention of that particular person and not to distract others nearby. "en Gopala" meaning "Hello, Gopala!, "aye Saroja" meaning "Hello, Saroja!"

Use of Kinship Terms

Kinship terms are used either between persons who are related to one another, or between persons who assume such relationship although they are not related to one another as kith and kin.

As Thirumalai (2002) points out in his book, HOW TO LEARN ANOTHER LANGUAGE,

There are cross-linguistic similarities as well as dissimilarities in the coinage and use of kinship terms. In addition to the terms, there are also interesting conventions as to how a stranger or a friend would be accepted or placed in the kinship spectrum. In the United States, it is not important that the friends of your family be incorporated into some notional kinship relations with you and your family. They can always be considered as your friends. The general tendency is to accept uncles and aunts from close friends of the family. The depth of such kinship is often at the level of friendship only. On the other hand, in several other cultures, from the status of being strangers and acquaintances, people graduate to become friends, and from the level of friendship, people seem to graduate to become notional family members. In other words, in these cultures the ultimate goal is to see and treat your closest friends and well-wishers as members of your biological family. You may be treated as a brother or a sister, or an aunt or an uncle, depending upon your age and gender. The terms of address and reference that go with these kinships would be used to address and refer to you.

Perceived close cooperation and friendship, age, generation, gender, socioeconomic ranking, theological disposition, secular tendencies (including first name address and reference) seem to be important factors in inducting strangers and acquaintances into a kinship relationship. … Some cultures accept friends as brothers and sisters, and some others prefer to accept the friends as in-laws - brother-in-law or sister-in-law. Some may treat you as an aunt (mother's sister) and some others may treat you another type aunt (father's sister). You may be taken to be father's brother or mother's brother! Observe how people address and refer to one another in ordinary conversations.

The very words denote relationship. These are varied in forms, but convey the same meaning and effect.

Wife addressing husband

As per a widely prevalent Hindu custom, wife never addresses the husband by his name. She uses address terms as - "Enoo Andre" "Rii", or third person "avaru"

Wife always addresses the husband using the plural form to show respect to the husband. Husbands used to address their wives as, " Le Baare (Hey, Come!), tagolle (Hey, Take it!), kootkoLLe" (Hey, Sit down!" While this is still prevalent in many households, currently it has become a fashion for the husband to address the wife by her name, e.g. "Le parvathi!" (Hey, Parvathi!) and reciprocally the wife addresses him using his name "Suresh!", "ree Ganesh!" etc.

Some of the address terms are borrowed from other languages and used as substitutes for Kannada terms. For example, aunty, uncle, mummy, daddy, mama, papa, kaka, chacha, etc., are more widely used these days.

8. USE OF PROFESSIONAL TERMS

Professional terms are used while addressing persons who pursue the mentioned profession or occupation, such as, "gurugale" for a teacher or religious person, "Doctre" for a physician, "aacharre" for a carpenter or goldsmith, "Srinivasa mestru" for a school or college teacher. While addressing an official, the terms of address, irrespective of caste or class is: "Sahebra" or "Sahebre", "Saar", " Swamy." Sometimes the personal name will be linked with kinship, for example "Ravi chikkappa" for Uncle Ravi (younger brother of father), "Raju mama or mava" for maternal uncle, etc.

Usually an agriculturist by profession belonging to vokkaliga caste is addressed as, Sometimes, a person, who was a patel or a headman of the village, continues to be addressed as "patelre." The "patel" prefix is used with the name of the addressee as " patel puTTappa."

9. RESPECTABLE AND NON-RESPECTABLE TERMS

In the past, and in the present in many places, the caste system was and is very rigid. Some classes of people had to live away from the society of high caste people. The Brahmins had their own streets called "Keri" or "Agrahara." Jangamas lived in their own "keri" or street. Likewise persons pursuing traditional professions lived in their own streets or "keris."

Then persons of high castes addressed persons of lower castes in non-respectable terms like, "Eno, baaro, hogo, kukkarbadi (for sit-down), Tholagu (for go away) etc.

As the socio-political dynamics changed and as people become more educated and enlightened, many social changes have taken place. Caste has lost its rigidity in public life, even though it still is retained in domestic life. A person of high caste is more reluctant these days to address a person of low caste as, " Enappa", enayya", " barappa, hogappa, kutuko" etc., using terms that show a lesser social place to the person being addressed.

10. OTHER FORMS OF ADDRESS

It may be said that the most common forms of addresses are : Firat name, nickname, last name, and Title+Honorifie suffixes. Examples for nicknames are: kulla, putta, kencha, kariya, gidda for boys, and putti, kenchi, and giddi for girls.

Examples of affectionate terms of address for children are Moga, putani, chinna, mari, papu, chinnari.

11. TERMS OF ADDRESS

While communicating terms denoting relationship like father, mother, aunt, uncle, brother, sister etc., each of the terms will be preceded by the pronoun "My/our." While addressing in the Vocative voice, the terms directly take the form of address such as " Appa/Anna/Ayya/Appaji" for father , "Amma/avva/avvayya" for mother, "Mava, mavayya" for uncle, "Atte" for aunt, "Anna, annayya" for elder brother, "Thamma, thammanna" for younger brother. Proper names of younger sister/brother themselves form modes of address. Other forms used in addressing are "chikkappa, chikkaiah, chigappa" "doDDappa," "doDDayy" for paternal uncle, "chikkamma, chikkava" for paternal/maternal aunt. Sometimes these addresses vary. Terms of address may be used in some interesting ways, depending upon certain family contexts. For example, in a joint family system, it is possible that sisters may be living under the same roof and household. If the eleder sisters have children, the term used by younger sisters to address them "akkaa" may be used by the children of the elder sisters to address their mothers. The younger sisters call the mother of the children "akka" and the children will also address their mother as "akka" and their father "bhaava" and not as amma and appa respectively.

Terms of Respect gurugale, swamiyore/swamigale, ayya/ayynore- When a person is usually addressed with these terms, people avoid using the real name of the persons to address them. The title is seen to be a mark of respect, and using a personal name of the person who occupies such respectable position is showing disrespect.

12. CONCLUSION

Modes of address and pronominal usage are intimately connected in Kannada, as in many other Indian languages. Both are governed by the same rules. A person may be addressed with as many titles as there are relationships or roles that he or she plays in society.

The use of the terms of address and second person pronouns are correlated with social structure and cultural patterns of society. It is seen that people from the rural areas generally tend to use non-honorific forms of address without considering the age, sex and status of people.

There has been considerable change among rural people due to the spread of modern education, economic development, industrialization and social reforms. Still non-honorific forms of address are in common use. On the other hand, irrespective of caste or class, people living in urban areas use mostly honorific forms of address for all strangers, neighbors and acquaintances. In rural areas, people use familial relational terms whereas in urban areas people address one another by their first names or professional titles.

Modes of address are also correlated with modes of greetings. The use of greeting forms, both verbal and non verbal, varies according to socio- linguistic factors and inter-personal relationship.

Modes of address are influenced by the context. Thus there are two types of addressing forms (a) Static form and (b) Non-static form. Both these forms are used for all the three relationships, namely familial, social and professional.

Familial relations include relationships both paternal and maternal.

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