Kozhikode: The first Tulu-Malayalam bilingual dictionary is all set for release on December 11. Dharmasthala Temple administrator Dr Veerendra Hegde will release the book at the venue of the Global Tulu conference at Badiadka in Kasargod.
"It has been tough to come out with a dictionary on Tulu as the language doesn't have a standard form. The dictionary has done justice to the dialectic variations of Tulu," says Prof A.M. Sreedharan, Kannur University Neeleswaram campus director, who compiled the dictionary, which contains Malayalam corresponding letters to the 49 Tulu letters, from 'Aa' to 'Lla'.
Tulu script is so close to that of Malayalam, and it has got many dialects of which prominent are spoken by Brahmins and by Mavila and Vettuva tribal community.
"I depended completely on field visits to trace out Tulu words and dialects. The dictionary is the fulfilment of four years of hard work," says Prof Sreedharan.
Tulu is the mother tongue of a large section of people in Kasargod district. Global Tulu conference, which expects the participation of 50,000 delegates, is being planned to revive the rich past of the language and its culture.
Four years back, Prof Sreedharan has published another dictionary, Byari-Malayalam. Byari is another scriptless language spoken in Kasargod-Mangalore area.
