Draft:Kolami
Kolami language
[edit]Kolami is an indigenous Dravidian language spoken by the Kolam tribe, a Scheduled Tribe and one of the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in India. The language is primarily spoken in the Adilabad district of northern Telangana and in adjoining areas of Maharashtra. Kolami has two recognized dialects: Hill Kolami and Plains Kolami.
Classification
[edit]Kolami belongs to the South-Central branch of the Dravidian languages family. It is closely related to the Naiki language and is part of the Kolami-Naiki subgroup. The ISO 639-3 code for Kolami is kfb.
Linguistic Features
[edit]Kolami has its own distinct phonology and grammatical structure. Although it does not have an officially standardized script, written Kolami uses the Telugu script in Telangana and the Devanagari script in Maharashtra for literacy and documentation purposes.
Speaker Population
[edit]As per the 2011 Indian Census, there are approximately 130,000 speakers of Kolami, though the number of fluent speakers is decreasing due to increasing bilingualism with Telugu and Marathi."2011 Census Data". Government of India. Retrieved 2025-06-02.
Endangerment and Revitalization
[edit]Kolami is classified as an endangered language by UNESCO due to the shrinking number of native speakers, especially among the younger generation. There have been limited efforts to preserve and revitalize the language. A few primers and educational materials have been developed in the Telugu script for tribal schools.Krishnamurti, Bhadriraju (2003). The Dravidian Languages. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521771115.
Cultural Significance
[edit]The Kolami language is deeply tied to the traditional knowledge systems, oral histories, and rituals of the Kolam tribe. Songs, stories, and folklore in Kolami form a key part of their cultural identity.