Citation link:
https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/taprobanian1887/0020
20
THE TAPROBANIAN.
[February, 1887.
Animals.
Meaning or derivation.
Track in forest
Attu-hena
branches clearing.
Tree
Honda )
Of. sonda, elephant’s
Hondeyi 5
trunk.
Water
Paedi
pd to drink, and
diya water.
Paehaeyiya
Clear. Of. paedi.
Honda
Verbs.
Ci. sondi a rock-pool;
and sondd a tavern.
Arise, from
Sun elagannawa
to throw down the
sleep
dust (the sleeper’s
cloth is laid under
his head).
Chop with an
Wadulanawa x
waduwa an axe and
axe
7*
lanawa to lay.
Waduranawa 3
Chew (betel, &?.)
Kotanawa
to chop, butt to
break, pound, cut.
Kota-banawa
bdnawd, to pass
down,- or perhaps
balanawaor from
\/ vdh to reject.
cannot
Issarata
words of negation or
denial must not be
used. Mata issa-
rata is explained as
meaning ‘ after a
while I can,’-—like
the motion to read
a bill “this day
six months” 1
Drink or eat
Balanawa
\/ bhri, and lanawd,
to take nourish-
ment.
Dig * Bindinawa2
bima ground, and
dina \/ ja to cut.
Go
Haerenawa
v. sara to go.
Go to the jungle Himala wadinawa to enter the moun-
(hunting, &c.) tains ?
Walwadinawa to enter the jungle.
Hold Band! naw A to tie.
Light a fire * Mahi-karanawa to make a light.
f Mahat-
I karana- i
Mend the fire * Ratta ■{ wa; bo [-to enlarge the fire,
j karana- j
(wa J
Meet with Haeppenawa sampat-wenawa to
Obtain become possessed
of.
Sleep * Boyi-karanawa ? bodhilcaranawd to
meditate.
Tie up an igu- * Mandaranawa mandala a circle, and
ana lanawa to place.
There can be little doubt that many of these
forms are very ancient;—that they are, in fact,
probably survivals from an ancient dialect which
was once spoken throughout a great part of the
island. Himi and Mas (as fish) are two words
which were in common use in inscriptions of the
early part of the 10th century. Kona made use
of an expression which was quite in keeping
with them when he said to another Wanniya
who was attempting to seize an iguana, “ Ussi
atagassa,” catch it with your hand, and lift it up.
While a few may be of more recent manufac-
ture (such as the names for ‘ gun’), some of the
other words are apparently very much older
than these. There is a village tank, Bolpanae-
wa, which derives its name from one of these
early words. The civet-cat, as I have noted, is
still eaten; but it is not surprising to find that
even in former times it was evidently not held
in high estimation as an article of food.
So far as this language is concerned, it may
be concluded that the Wanniyas are, as they
state, Sinhalese. Taking into consideration the
facts that they are found only on or near
the northern borders of the Kandian Kingdom,,
that they (or at any rate such of them as I have
met) speak Tamil, and that some of them have
Tamil names, and also remembering the parti-
culars which I have given regarding their
religion, it may further be inferred that, as
their name would seem to indicate, they form a
remnant of the ancient Sinhalese inhabitants of
what is now the Northern Province. Through-
out the whole of this district, extending, in fact,
within a few miles of Elephant’s Pass, there are
abundant proofs that it was once peopled
largely by Sinhalese; yet it is doubtful if any
othei’ distinct decendants of the former occu-
pants can now be found. The rest of the
Sinhalese population may perhaps have almost
completely died out, for the inhabitants of the
Sinhalese villages in the southern parts of the
Province are, with very few exceptions, com-
paratively recent settlers who have migrated
during this century from the North-Central
districts. The later Tamil invasions may have
driven many of the original residents to seek
their ‘means of livelihood’ in the forests; and,
if so, this would account for their retention
of the few expresssions, similar to those of the
inscriptions which their descendants still employ,
who, it is stated, repaired the dilapidated
buildings at the monastery which once existed
at the site. The date of the inscription is
uncertain ; but probably it belongs to about the
5th century. The employment of the palatal d
in its present form shows that a much earlier
date cannot be assigned to it, notwithstanding
a [Is it not rather Sinh, binda, to break ?—Ed.]
THE TAPROBANIAN.
[February, 1887.
Animals.
Meaning or derivation.
Track in forest
Attu-hena
branches clearing.
Tree
Honda )
Of. sonda, elephant’s
Hondeyi 5
trunk.
Water
Paedi
pd to drink, and
diya water.
Paehaeyiya
Clear. Of. paedi.
Honda
Verbs.
Ci. sondi a rock-pool;
and sondd a tavern.
Arise, from
Sun elagannawa
to throw down the
sleep
dust (the sleeper’s
cloth is laid under
his head).
Chop with an
Wadulanawa x
waduwa an axe and
axe
7*
lanawa to lay.
Waduranawa 3
Chew (betel, &?.)
Kotanawa
to chop, butt to
break, pound, cut.
Kota-banawa
bdnawd, to pass
down,- or perhaps
balanawaor from
\/ vdh to reject.
cannot
Issarata
words of negation or
denial must not be
used. Mata issa-
rata is explained as
meaning ‘ after a
while I can,’-—like
the motion to read
a bill “this day
six months” 1
Drink or eat
Balanawa
\/ bhri, and lanawd,
to take nourish-
ment.
Dig * Bindinawa2
bima ground, and
dina \/ ja to cut.
Go
Haerenawa
v. sara to go.
Go to the jungle Himala wadinawa to enter the moun-
(hunting, &c.) tains ?
Walwadinawa to enter the jungle.
Hold Band! naw A to tie.
Light a fire * Mahi-karanawa to make a light.
f Mahat-
I karana- i
Mend the fire * Ratta ■{ wa; bo [-to enlarge the fire,
j karana- j
(wa J
Meet with Haeppenawa sampat-wenawa to
Obtain become possessed
of.
Sleep * Boyi-karanawa ? bodhilcaranawd to
meditate.
Tie up an igu- * Mandaranawa mandala a circle, and
ana lanawa to place.
There can be little doubt that many of these
forms are very ancient;—that they are, in fact,
probably survivals from an ancient dialect which
was once spoken throughout a great part of the
island. Himi and Mas (as fish) are two words
which were in common use in inscriptions of the
early part of the 10th century. Kona made use
of an expression which was quite in keeping
with them when he said to another Wanniya
who was attempting to seize an iguana, “ Ussi
atagassa,” catch it with your hand, and lift it up.
While a few may be of more recent manufac-
ture (such as the names for ‘ gun’), some of the
other words are apparently very much older
than these. There is a village tank, Bolpanae-
wa, which derives its name from one of these
early words. The civet-cat, as I have noted, is
still eaten; but it is not surprising to find that
even in former times it was evidently not held
in high estimation as an article of food.
So far as this language is concerned, it may
be concluded that the Wanniyas are, as they
state, Sinhalese. Taking into consideration the
facts that they are found only on or near
the northern borders of the Kandian Kingdom,,
that they (or at any rate such of them as I have
met) speak Tamil, and that some of them have
Tamil names, and also remembering the parti-
culars which I have given regarding their
religion, it may further be inferred that, as
their name would seem to indicate, they form a
remnant of the ancient Sinhalese inhabitants of
what is now the Northern Province. Through-
out the whole of this district, extending, in fact,
within a few miles of Elephant’s Pass, there are
abundant proofs that it was once peopled
largely by Sinhalese; yet it is doubtful if any
othei’ distinct decendants of the former occu-
pants can now be found. The rest of the
Sinhalese population may perhaps have almost
completely died out, for the inhabitants of the
Sinhalese villages in the southern parts of the
Province are, with very few exceptions, com-
paratively recent settlers who have migrated
during this century from the North-Central
districts. The later Tamil invasions may have
driven many of the original residents to seek
their ‘means of livelihood’ in the forests; and,
if so, this would account for their retention
of the few expresssions, similar to those of the
inscriptions which their descendants still employ,
who, it is stated, repaired the dilapidated
buildings at the monastery which once existed
at the site. The date of the inscription is
uncertain ; but probably it belongs to about the
5th century. The employment of the palatal d
in its present form shows that a much earlier
date cannot be assigned to it, notwithstanding
a [Is it not rather Sinh, binda, to break ?—Ed.]