In News
- A book of poems by a veteran Kodagu poet has brought the spotlight on Kodava Takke, an endangered language.
About Kodava Takke
- A language in the Dravidian group
- The original language of the Kodagu district in Southern Karnataka
- UNESCO has classified the language as an Endangered Language.
- It has no separate script and is traditionally written using the Kannada script.
- According to the 2001 census, Kodava takke is spoken by just 166,187 people.
About Kodavas
- It is a small martial community in Kodagu district in Karnataka.
- It is an ethno-linguistic tribe, claiming to be the original inhabitants of Kodagu.
- Traditionally, they are land-owning agriculturists.
- The community has its rituals around guns and weapons like swords.
- The special privilege to own firearms without a license was granted to the Kodavas.
Kailpodh festival (festival of arms)
- It is celebrated annually in the month of September.
- It is marked by the worship of guns, Odi Kathi and Peeche Kathi (two different kinds of swords), and agricultural equipment.
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