Goalparia
Encyclopedia
Goalpariya is a dialect
of the erstwhile Goalpara district
of Assam
in India
. It is largely spoken in Dhubri
, Goalpara
, Kokrajhar
and Bongaigaon
districts which were created from the erstwhile Goalpara district. The basic characteristic of the Goalpariya dialect
is that it is a composite one into which words of different concerns and regions have been amalgamated.
scholars consider Goalpariya is a part of Assamese dialects, specifically, a western Assamese dialect. The two erstwhile western districts of Assam, Kamrup and Goalpara, posses several local dialects. In fact, the Goalpariya dialect is similar to the Rajsbansi dialect which was evolved under the Koch kings. Of course, the differences between the eastern and western Assamese dialects are wide and range over the whole field of phonology, morphology and not infrequently vocabulary.
The eminent historian, Sir G. A. Grierson observed in his book Linguistic Survey of India that the dialect of western and southern Goalpara in Assam is pure Rajbonshi. He did not find any linguistic uniformity between Ahom dominated east Assam and Goalpara-Kamrup region or with Bengal.
s, Mechs
, Chawtals and other communities of the region. They call their dialect as deshi bhasa. A large section of these people are known as Rajbongshi
, which means men of royal descent who are Koch
in origin. To trace the intermingling nature of this dialect, one can look its words. For example, the word kechha, meaning story, could have been derived from the Urdu
word kissa and transformed itself into the Goalpariya dialect
. The Urdu
influence may be traced to the Mughal general, Mir Jumla, who, during his invasion of Assam
, had pitched his military camp at Panbari in Dhubri
district, probably due to the Panbari Mosque
which was used by Muslim soldiers. Indeed, a section of the Mughals had settled in the district and the process of acculturation followed. There are many other Arabic, Persian
and Urdu
words in use in the Goalpariya dialect such as roshan, haram, nasta, chacha, chachi, bhabi, nana and nani. These are particularly used by the Muslim community.
, the old district can roughly be divided into two zones, the eastern and the western, on the basis of variation in their dialects. The eastern zone is contiguous to the district of Kamrup
and the western zone is closer to north Bengal
. Thus, moi ahilo in Assamese
becomes moiahilung in the eastern zone and moiasilong in the western zone. Moiahilung resembles the dialect of Kamrup district and differs a little from that of the west zone. As the eastern zone is close to Kamrup district, it could not keep itself aloof from the latter’s influence.
In this context, the following examples will serve to show that the dialect of these zones have many points in common with that of Kamrup.
Eastern Kamrup: 1. Api gila gharor para olaw 2. Bhal amta kaikhal
Western Kamrup: 1. Api gila gharar para ola 2. Bhal atmu kai khalak.
The western zone on the other hand, being contiguous to North Bengal, could not remain unaffected from the Bengali influence. For example, Bengali
words such as matha (head), pakhi (birds) and Assamese words such as duar (door), chuli (hair), bihan (morning), which were used in early Assamese, are used by the people of Goalpara. There are some peculiarities in the dialect of Goalpara. For example, uyak aisa khaibe (he has to come), mok ei kamta or kajta kara khai (I have to do this work). Again, sometimes “L” becomes “N” in western dialect, such as lage becomes nage and lal becomes nal (red), infusing another difference in the dialect. In the Goalpariya dialect, expressions such as pet peta (rotten), tiktika (deep) are very common. It is worth noting that the Maithili word angcha (garment), and Hindi words such as kawari (door) and damad (bridegroom) have directly entered into the Goalpariya dialect and are still found in the same form and carrying the same meaning.
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
of the erstwhile Goalpara district
Goalpara District
Goalpara district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarters are located in Goalpara town.-History:...
of Assam
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. It is largely spoken in Dhubri
Dhubri
Dhubri is the headquarters of Dhubri district India. It is a small old town on the bank of the Brahmaputra and Gadadhar Rivers. In 1883, the town was first constituted as a Municipal Board and is situated about west from Guwahati, the state capital.Dhubri was an important commercial centre and...
, Goalpara
Goalpara
Goalpara is the district headquarter of Goalpara district, Assam, India. It is situated west of Guwahati.-Etymology:The name of Goalpara is said to have originally derived from `Gwaltippika` meaning `Guwali village` or the village of the milk men. In the local dialect "para" means...
, Kokrajhar
Kokrajhar
Kokrajhar is a city in Bodoland Territorial Council, Assam, one of the North East States and territories of India.Kokrajhar city is located along the bank of Gourang River. The North East Indian Railways divides the city into two sides, north and the south...
and Bongaigaon
Bongaigaon
Bongaigaon is the district headquarters of Bongaigaon District, Assam, India. The city is situated north west of Guwahati.It is a very developing City in Lower Assam. It has two parts - Old Bongaigaon and New Bongaigaon. Bongaigaon is predominantly inhabited by the Koch Rajbongshi Community which...
districts which were created from the erstwhile Goalpara district. The basic characteristic of the Goalpariya dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
is that it is a composite one into which words of different concerns and regions have been amalgamated.
Origin and Background
AssameseAssamese language
Assamese is the easternmost Indo-Aryan language. It is used mainly in the state of Assam in North-East India. It is also the official language of Assam. It is also spoken in parts of Arunachal Pradesh and other northeast Indian states. Nagamese, an Assamese-based Creole language is widely used in...
scholars consider Goalpariya is a part of Assamese dialects, specifically, a western Assamese dialect. The two erstwhile western districts of Assam, Kamrup and Goalpara, posses several local dialects. In fact, the Goalpariya dialect is similar to the Rajsbansi dialect which was evolved under the Koch kings. Of course, the differences between the eastern and western Assamese dialects are wide and range over the whole field of phonology, morphology and not infrequently vocabulary.
The eminent historian, Sir G. A. Grierson observed in his book Linguistic Survey of India that the dialect of western and southern Goalpara in Assam is pure Rajbonshi. He did not find any linguistic uniformity between Ahom dominated east Assam and Goalpara-Kamrup region or with Bengal.
Folk Community and Culture
The people who speak this dialect, call themselves deshi, a dominant section, leaving out the Bodos, RabhaRabha
Rabha is a little known Scheduled Tribe community of West Bengal and Assam. The language/dialect spoken by the Rabha people is also of the same name. In West Bengal, Rabha people mainly live in Jalpaiguri district and Cooch Behar district. Moreover, almost, 70 per cent of them live in...
s, Mechs
Mech tribe
Mech tribe is one of the scheduled tribes of India and belong to Bodo-Kachari group of tribes. They belong to Mongoloid race and speak mainly Bodo language, which is a Tibeto-Burman dialect but have got influenced by the Assamese language. The Mech people live in the Dooars region of West Bengal...
, Chawtals and other communities of the region. They call their dialect as deshi bhasa. A large section of these people are known as Rajbongshi
Rajbongshi
Koch Rajbongshi is an ancient tribe originally from the ancient Koch kingdom. The Rajbongshi tribe is referred to as Koch Rajbongshi, or Rajbanshi, or Rajvanshi. The word "Rajbongshi" literally means "royal community"...
, which means men of royal descent who are Koch
Koch
Koch may refer to:* Koch , a type of Arctic boat* Koch people , an ethnic group originally from the ancient Koch kingdom in north east India* Koch , people with this surname* Koch, Łódź Voivodeship, a village in central Poland...
in origin. To trace the intermingling nature of this dialect, one can look its words. For example, the word kechha, meaning story, could have been derived from the Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
word kissa and transformed itself into the Goalpariya dialect
Dialect
The term dialect is used in two distinct ways, even by linguists. One usage refers to a variety of a language that is a characteristic of a particular group of the language's speakers. The term is applied most often to regional speech patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors,...
. The Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
influence may be traced to the Mughal general, Mir Jumla, who, during his invasion of Assam
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
, had pitched his military camp at Panbari in Dhubri
Dhubri
Dhubri is the headquarters of Dhubri district India. It is a small old town on the bank of the Brahmaputra and Gadadhar Rivers. In 1883, the town was first constituted as a Municipal Board and is situated about west from Guwahati, the state capital.Dhubri was an important commercial centre and...
district, probably due to the Panbari Mosque
Panbari Mosque
The historic Panbari Masjid or Rangamati Masjid is an excellent example of great architectural achievement of the Mughal Empire in the 15th/16th century. The masjid situated on the National Highway 31, about 25 km east from Dhubri town, near Panbari and Rangamati, is considered to be the...
which was used by Muslim soldiers. Indeed, a section of the Mughals had settled in the district and the process of acculturation followed. There are many other Arabic, Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
and Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
words in use in the Goalpariya dialect such as roshan, haram, nasta, chacha, chachi, bhabi, nana and nani. These are particularly used by the Muslim community.
Geo-physical Condition
There are, of course, some variations in the dialect as one move from one place to another which is not surprising as when there is a physical separation in terms of distance. According to Birendra Nath Dutta, the former president of the Asom Sahitya SabhaAsom Sahitya Sabha
The Asam Sahitya Sabha was founded in 1917 in Assam, India to promote the culture of Assam and Assamese literature. Presently it has about one thousand branches all over Assam and also outside the state. The central office is at Jorhat a city of historical importance...
, the old district can roughly be divided into two zones, the eastern and the western, on the basis of variation in their dialects. The eastern zone is contiguous to the district of Kamrup
Kamrup
Kamrup district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India, named after Kamarupa, a name by which Assam was previously known in ancient times. The district, however, is now a small western part of Assam, with a distinctive native Kamrupi culture and dialect . The distinctive...
and the western zone is closer to north Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
. Thus, moi ahilo in Assamese
Assamese language
Assamese is the easternmost Indo-Aryan language. It is used mainly in the state of Assam in North-East India. It is also the official language of Assam. It is also spoken in parts of Arunachal Pradesh and other northeast Indian states. Nagamese, an Assamese-based Creole language is widely used in...
becomes moiahilung in the eastern zone and moiasilong in the western zone. Moiahilung resembles the dialect of Kamrup district and differs a little from that of the west zone. As the eastern zone is close to Kamrup district, it could not keep itself aloof from the latter’s influence.
In this context, the following examples will serve to show that the dialect of these zones have many points in common with that of Kamrup.
Eastern Kamrup: 1. Api gila gharor para olaw 2. Bhal amta kaikhal
Western Kamrup: 1. Api gila gharar para ola 2. Bhal atmu kai khalak.
The western zone on the other hand, being contiguous to North Bengal, could not remain unaffected from the Bengali influence. For example, Bengali
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
words such as matha (head), pakhi (birds) and Assamese words such as duar (door), chuli (hair), bihan (morning), which were used in early Assamese, are used by the people of Goalpara. There are some peculiarities in the dialect of Goalpara. For example, uyak aisa khaibe (he has to come), mok ei kamta or kajta kara khai (I have to do this work). Again, sometimes “L” becomes “N” in western dialect, such as lage becomes nage and lal becomes nal (red), infusing another difference in the dialect. In the Goalpariya dialect, expressions such as pet peta (rotten), tiktika (deep) are very common. It is worth noting that the Maithili word angcha (garment), and Hindi words such as kawari (door) and damad (bridegroom) have directly entered into the Goalpariya dialect and are still found in the same form and carrying the same meaning.