Bhadriraju Krishnamurti
Encyclopedia
Bhadriraju Krishnamurti; IAST
: ) (1928 - ) is an eminent Dravidianist
and the most respected Indian linguist of his generation. He was born in Ongole (Andhra Pradesh
) on June 19, 1928. He was a former Vice Chancellor of the Hyderabad Central University (1986–93) and was a professor of linguistics at the Department of Linguistics at the Osmania University
(1962–86), which he also founded. His magnum opus The Dravidian Languages is considered a landmark volume in the study of Dravidian linguistics. He was a student and a close associate of Murray Barnson Emeneau
.
. His thesis Telugu Verbal Bases (1961) is considered a milestone in the study of south-central Dravidian languages. His comprehensive grammar on or Kūbi is a monumental work in the area of non-literary Dravidian languages. His research was devoted to the central problems of phonology and morphology/syntax of Dravidian, and he made significant contributions in advancing our knowledge of comparative and historical Dravidian studies in the second half of the twentieth century. His Comparative Dravidian Linguistics: Current Perspectives is a collection of twenty-one important articles published during the period 1955–1998, which attempts to provide solutions to many outstanding problems of Dravidian linguistics.
Prof. Krishnamurti has also been associated with the study of South Indian languages in many western institutions, and has been a visiting professor of linguistics at several universities. He was the first Asian Fellow at ANU (1974), a Resident Fellow at the Centre for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford (1975–76), and Rama Watumaull Distinguished Indian Scholar at the University of Hawaii (1995).
He was a Visiting Professor at University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (1967), Cornell University, Ithaca (1967,
1970), Australian National University (1974), Tokyo University (1982), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (1983), University
of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (1986), University of Hawaii (1995), University of Texas at Arlington (1995).
Resident Fellow, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford (2000
–2001), Member, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton (1999–2000), Visiting Fellow,
Research Centre for Linguistic Typology, Institute for Advanced Study, La Trobe University, Melbourne
(2001), Visiting Scientist, Max Planck Institute in Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
(2003 September-November); He was also served as President of the Linguistic Society of India in 1970, and also as President of the Dravidian
Linguistics Association in 1980.
IAST
The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration is a transliteration scheme that allows a lossless romanization of Indic scripts as employed by the Sanskrit language.-Popularity:...
: ) (1928 - ) is an eminent Dravidianist
Dravidian languages
The Dravidian language family includes approximately 85 genetically related languages, spoken by about 217 million people. They are mainly spoken in southern India and parts of eastern and central India as well as in northeastern Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iran, and...
and the most respected Indian linguist of his generation. He was born in Ongole (Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
) on June 19, 1928. He was a former Vice Chancellor of the Hyderabad Central University (1986–93) and was a professor of linguistics at the Department of Linguistics at the Osmania University
Osmania University
Osmania University , , since 1918, is a public university located in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. It was established and named after the last Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Osman Ali Khan. It is one of the oldest modern universities in India. It is the first Indian University to have Urdu and...
(1962–86), which he also founded. His magnum opus The Dravidian Languages is considered a landmark volume in the study of Dravidian linguistics. He was a student and a close associate of Murray Barnson Emeneau
Murray Barnson Emeneau
Murray Barnson Emeneau was an emeritus professor and founder of the Department of Linguistics at the University of California, Berkeley.-Early life and education:...
.
Contribution to linguistics
Krishnamurti is considered one of the pioneers in the study of comparative linguistics of the Dravidian languagesDravidian languages
The Dravidian language family includes approximately 85 genetically related languages, spoken by about 217 million people. They are mainly spoken in southern India and parts of eastern and central India as well as in northeastern Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iran, and...
. His thesis Telugu Verbal Bases (1961) is considered a milestone in the study of south-central Dravidian languages. His comprehensive grammar on or Kūbi is a monumental work in the area of non-literary Dravidian languages. His research was devoted to the central problems of phonology and morphology/syntax of Dravidian, and he made significant contributions in advancing our knowledge of comparative and historical Dravidian studies in the second half of the twentieth century. His Comparative Dravidian Linguistics: Current Perspectives is a collection of twenty-one important articles published during the period 1955–1998, which attempts to provide solutions to many outstanding problems of Dravidian linguistics.
Positions held
Prof. Krishnamurti worked as a Lecturer in Telugu, Andhra University (1949–61); Reader in Telugu, S. V. U.(1961–62); Professor of Linguistics (1962–88), Osmania University, Dean, Faculty of Arts (1973–76), Member, Univ Syndicate (1971–75); Director, Southern Regional Centre, Indian Council of Social Science Research (1978–82); Vice-Chancellor, University of Hyderabad (1986–93), Honorary Professor, University of Hyderabad 1993-99; Andhra University 2003-.Prof. Krishnamurti has also been associated with the study of South Indian languages in many western institutions, and has been a visiting professor of linguistics at several universities. He was the first Asian Fellow at ANU (1974), a Resident Fellow at the Centre for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford (1975–76), and Rama Watumaull Distinguished Indian Scholar at the University of Hawaii (1995).
He was a Visiting Professor at University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (1967), Cornell University, Ithaca (1967,
1970), Australian National University (1974), Tokyo University (1982), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (1983), University
of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (1986), University of Hawaii (1995), University of Texas at Arlington (1995).
Resident Fellow, Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford (2000
–2001), Member, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton (1999–2000), Visiting Fellow,
Research Centre for Linguistic Typology, Institute for Advanced Study, La Trobe University, Melbourne
(2001), Visiting Scientist, Max Planck Institute in Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
(2003 September-November); He was also served as President of the Linguistic Society of India in 1970, and also as President of the Dravidian
Linguistics Association in 1980.
Awards
Prof. Krishnamurti was an elected Honorary Member of Linguistic Society of America in 1985. He was elected Corresponding Fellow of the prestigious Royal Society of Edinburgh, UK, in 2004. He had been an executive Member of Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, 1990-2002. He was conferred Hon DLitt by Sri Venkateswara University in 1998, and by Dravidian University in 2007. He was elected Fellow of Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, in 2004. He received Gidugu Ramamurti Award at the 15th TANA (Telugu Association of North America), Detroit, July, 2005. He was the first recipient of Telugu Bhaarati Award instituted by C.P.Brown Academy, Hyderabad (2008). He also received the Life-time Achievement Award at the 10th ATA (American Telugu Association), New Jersey, for significant contributions to Telugu and Dravidian lingusitics, July 3–5, 2008. He was presented Indian Linguistics, Vol. 70, as Festschrift by the Linguistic Society of India, on the occasion of his 80th birth year in 2009.English Books
- 1961. Telugu Verbal Bases: A Comparative and Descriptive Study (UCPL 24). Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press (reprinted 1972).
- 1968a. (Ed.) Studies in Indian Linguistics (Professor M. B. Emeneau ipūrti Volume). Poona and Annamalainagar: Centres of Advanced Study in Linguistics.
- 1968b. A Basic Course in Modern Telugu. Hyderabad: Department of Linguistics, Osmania University (co authored with P.Sivananda Sarma). 2006. Reprinted by Telugu Akademi, Himayatnagar, Hyderabad.
- 1969. or Kūbi: A Dravidian Language. Hyderabad: Tribal Cultural Research and Training Institute.
- 1977. A Short Outline of Telugu Phonetics. Calcutta: Indian Statistical Institute (co-authored with Djordje Kostic' and A. Mitter).
- 1984. Modernization of Indian Languages in News Media. (Ed. with Aditi Mukherji). Hyderabad: Department of Linguistics, Osmania University.
- 1985. A Grammar of Modern Telugu (co authored with J.P.L.Gwynn). New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
- 1986. (Ed.) South Asian Languages: Structure, Convergence, and Diglossia (Proceedings of the Second International Conference of the South Asian Languages and Linguistics) (Assoc. eds. C. P. Masica and A. K. Sinha). Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.
- 1992a. Dimensions of Sociolinguistics in South Asia (Papers in memory of Gerald Kelley).(Edited with Edward C. Dimock and Brah B.Kachru).Delhi: Oxford & IBH Publishing Co. P.Ltd.
- 1995. (co-authored with I. Ramabrahmam, C.R. Rao). Evaluation of Total Literacy Campaigns (Chittoor and Nizamabad Districts of Andhra Pradesh. Hyderabad: Book Links Corporation.
- 1998. Language, Education and Society. New Delhi: Sage India Private Ltd.
- 2001. Comparative Dravidian Linguistics: Current Perspectives. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- 2003. The Dravidian Languages (Cambridge Language Surveys). Cambridge University Press.
- 2004. (with Chaganti Vijayasree) eds. Gold Nuggets: An Anthology of Telugu Short Stories of the Post-Independence Period in Translation. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi.
- 2010. Studies in Telugu Linguistics. C P Brown Academy, Hyderabad.
Telugu Books
- 1962. (Ed. & Comp.) (A Telugu Dialect Dictionary of Occpational Vocabularies vol. I): Agriculture Vocabulary. Hyderabad: A.P. Sahitya Akademi. (Reprinted 1974).
- 1971. (Ed.) Tikkana padaprayōga kōśam (A Concordance of Tikkana's mahābhārata, a literary work of the 13th Century) (with A. Ramakrishna Rao & D.V. Avadhani), Vol.I. Hyderabad: A.P.Sahitya Akademi.
- 1972. (Ed. & Comp.) (A Telugu Dialect Dictionary of Occupational Vocabularies), Vol.II: Handloom Vocabulary. Hyderabad: A.P.Sahitya Akademi.
- 1974a. (Ed.) Tikkana padaprayōga kōśam (A Concordance of Tikkana's Māhābhārata, a literary work of the 13th Century) (with A. Ramakrishna Rao & D.V. Avadhani): Vol.II: Hyderabad: A.P. Sahitya Akademi.
- 1974b. (Ed.) Telugu bhāSā caritra (A History of the Telugu Language). Hyderabad: A.P. Sahitya Akademi. (2nd edition 1979; reprinted six times by Telugu University till 2006).
- 1977. (Ed.) Tikkana padaprayōga kōśam (A Concordance of Tikkana's Mahābhārata, a literary work of the 13th Century) (with A. Ramakrishna Rao & D.V. Avadhani), Vol.III: Hyderabad: A.P.Sahitya Akademi.
- 1980. janawācakam in 5 Vols (one primer and workbook, two readers and a teacher's guide for Telugu nonliterates) (co-authored with Eswara Reddy). Hyderabad: Director of Adult Education, Government of Andhra Pradesh.
- 1993. Tēlika telugu wācakam (Literacy Primer in Telugu, Parts I &II). Hyderabad: Visalandhra Publishers.
- 1996. Ed. Bhāratīya Sāhityam: Samakālika kathānikalu (Contemporary Indian Short Stories) [in English] (with Budaraju Radhakrishna). New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi.
- 1998. cinnanāTi padyālu (Poems of Younger Days). Hyderabad : Author.
- 1999. (Language, Society and Culture). Hyderabad : Nilkamal Publishers.