Roman or Devanagari: Some insights on Konkani scripts in Goa

The Global Konknni Forum (GKF) is tirelessly fighting for the cause of the Roman Konkani script in Goa.

Their argument is that Devanagari alone cannot be the sole official script for Konkani, and the Roman script needs to be given equal status since the majority of the Konkani-speaking minority uses Roman script in daily life.

The GKF has sought support not only from other associations in the State working towards the growth of Roman Konkani, but also from other associations outside the State, especially those in Mangalore and other states.

While dealing with sensitive and complex issues related to his mother tongue, senior Konkani linguist and researcher, Dr (Fr) Pratapananda Naik SJ, expressing the linguistic views on the Konkani language, its dialects and scripts says, “At present, there is more fiction rather than facts being spoken and written about Konkani scripts, but let my focus be only on facts.”

“In the past, adversaries tried to belittle Konkani saying that she had no script. Now, protagonists create an uproar about Konkani scripts, dialects and . There is utter ignorance and confusion among Konkani, especially among those who insist on one script for Konkani,” he adds.

According to Fr Naik, the Roman script is considered, by some, to be an alien script.

“In Goa, the Roman script is considered as foreign and Devanagari as the ‘natural script’ by the protagonists of the Devanagari script,” Fr Naik mentions.

Dr (Fr) Pratapananda Naik, Konkani linguist and researcherAt present, Roman, Kannada and Devanagari scripts are mainly used for writing Konkani. Of these three, the Roman script has the oldest tradition in Konkani writing from the 16th century onwards.

“This is a false narrative, because any script is a set of symbols arbitrarily chosen to represent speech sounds. If Devanagari script was created exclusively for Konkani, the term ‘natural script’ is acceptable,” he continues.

“The fact is that Devanagari was invented for Sanskrit, and finally took the present form in the 9th century. Prior to that, Sanskrit was written in Brahmi, Kharosthi, Sharada, Grantha etc,” he informs.

Fr Naik further explains that Konkani is written is several different scripts, and not merely in Devanagari.

“At present, Roman, Kannada and Devanagari scripts are mainly used for writing Konkani. Of these three, the Roman script has the oldest in Konkani writing from the 16th century onwards,” Fr Naik notes. “Is it feasible to impose one script for Konkani?”

“The answer is definitely ‘no’ for various reasons. Though Konkani is the State language of Goa, only 30.93 percent of the total Konkani population is found in Goa. Konkani speakers are mainly spread in Goa, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerala and Gujarat. They use different dialects and scripts,” he continues.

He throws light on the interesting fact that Konkani, as a language, is more about cultural identity and communication.

“Since Konkani is not standardised, each group uses its own dialect for oral communication. Very few use it for written communication. Konkanis require Konkani only to maintain their cultural identity," says Fr Naik.

"In this context, Konkani did not succeed to become the medium of instruction beyond primary school level, as a common medium of communication or to earn one’s livelihood, except in (stage performances using Roman script for texts),” he shares.

What's even more interesting is that, so far, Konkani has survived because it is a spoken language, Fr Naik reveals.

“The one script, one dialect, one community’ principle has not succeeded so far to unite Konkani and it is unlikely to succeed in the future. If a group forces this ‘unity in uniformity’ principle, Konkani will survive, but Konkani will perish,” he opines.

Irrespective of the script used, the use of Konkani is on the decline, he shares.

“Day after day, reading in is diminishing and social media is gaining prominence. For the survival of Konkani, at present, accepting the three scripts formula is the best and most realistic option,” he believes.

“When reading of Konkani in any script is rapidly diminishing and the use of English is increasing, it is a futile exercise to impose one script for all Konkani. Let Konkani decide the choice of one or more scripts,” he suggests.