Keonthali dialect

Keonthali
क्योंथली
𑚊𑚮𑚣𑚝𑚥𑚦
Pronunciation	[kjoːn.tʰaː.li]
Native to	Himachal Pradesh
Region	Mahasu
Language family	Indo-European Indo-Iranian Indo-Aryan North-Western or Northern Western Pahari Mahasu Pahari Keonthali
Writing system	Takri
Language codes
ISO 639-3	–
Glottolog	maha1287
Approximate location of Keonthali speaking area
Coordinates: 31°05′14″N 77°09′10″E / 31.087282°N 77.152888°E / 31.087282; 77.152888

Keonthali (Takri:𑚊𑚮𑚣𑚝𑚥𑚦) is a dialect of Lower Mahasu Pahari belonging to the Western Pahari group of languages (as per Grierson). It is spoken in lower parts of Shimla district in the North Indian state of Himachal Pradesh.

Extent

Keonthali dialect got its name from former princely Keonthal state, the dialect is spoken usually in the areas which were parts of the then Keonthal state. Today some of these areas include Shimla, capital of Himachal Pradesh, Junga (former capital of Keonthal), Kasumpati, Mashobra, Sunni, Kufri, Chail, Shoghi, Ghanahatti, Jubbarhatti, Dhami, Khatnol, etc.

Script and specimen

Mahasu Pahari including Keonthali traditionally written in Takri, Pabuchi scripts. There are also some records of Mahasui written in Nastaliq script. Nowadays Devanagari script is usually used to write Mahasu Pahari which includes all its dialects as Keonthali.

Following is the specimen of Keonthali with its transliteration:

Phonology

Inventory of Phonemes:

There are 42 phonemes of which 37 are consonants and 5 are vowels.

Segmental Phonemes (Vowels)

Super segmental Phonemes:

• Length is a phoneme.
• Nasalization is a phoneme.

Consonants:

Grammar

Pronouns

The pronouns of Keonthali for different persons and numbers are as follows:

Adverbial Pronouns

Verb conjugation

Conjugation of the verb Lekh (लेख) to write, in all three tenses in Keonthali.

Further reading

• Thomas Grahame Bailey's : Languages of the Northern Himalayas (Sketch of the Keonthali).
• Colonel Sir Richard Temple : He has given several excellent examples of Keonthali poetry on pp. 367 ff. of Vol. I. of his Legends of the Punjab, to which he has prefixed a very useful vocabulary.
• Mr. H. A. Rose : He has published two Keonthali ballads (both Text and Translation), entitled, respectively, Subdi ki Nati, o Pahéri Love Song from Keonthal [Indian Antiquary, Vol. xxxviii (1909), p: 328], and Mohiye ki Har, or Bar [ib. Vol. xxxvii (1908), pp. 299 ff, and Vol. xxxviii (1909), pp. 40 ff., 69 ff.]

See also

• Keonthal State
• Baghati dialect
• Baghliani dialect
• Hinduri dialect

References

External links

• Himachali folk song "Banka Mulk", in Keonthali dialect of Mahasui, as a sample on YouTube