Re: "WARNING" what does it mean in telugu?
Bapa Rao (brao@tis.com)
Fri, 20 Feb 1998 10:37:14 -0800 (PST)
[ Pure guesswork follows, I will promptly repudiate all of the following
on the slightest challenge (paraphrasing Tom Lehrer; maybe I should
make that my signature line for future :-)) ]
There is something known as the Humpty-dumpty principle operating in
language development. It is stated as follows: "A word means exactly
what I want it to mean, nothing more, nothing less" (ref. Lewis
Carroll, Through the Looking Glass). This is also known as the
descriptive-overtakes-prescriptive principle.
So, even when the dictionaries have a certain meaning for a word, if
for a considerable length of time, it is used by a significant chunk
of users with another meaning, the other meaning will then co-exist
with the "original" meanings, and after a while may even "retire" the
original meanings in all except the most comprehensive dictionaries.
Coming to heccharika, I think it is time the dictionaries took note of
the current usage, if they haven't already done so. Anyway, it looks
like both the "aanandamu" meaning and the "warning" meaning are
alternative idiomatic interpretations of the root literal meaning,
which is "the act of raising or increasing". Thus, aanandamu would
come from interpreting this as "elation", whereas "warning" would come
from "escalation [of awareness]."
Are there any examples of literary/popular usage of heccarika in the
sense of aanandamu? Also, if that was the dominant meaning at one
time, who introduced the innovative usage of "warnign" and when?
Bapa Rao
> After reading BapaRaogaru's cute telugu word of the day i.e. RekamAnu, I
> thought of posting something that wonders me all the time.
>
> The word "Warning" usually translated as "heccarika" in telugu.
> (remember: pura prajalaku pOleesu vAri heccarika :-))
>
> But in pure telugu "heccarika" means "AnaMdamu" - happiness.
>
> Ref: (1) AMdhra nAma saMgrahamu - paiDipATi lakshmaNa maMtri (2) AMdhra
> TeekA vishEshamu - ADidam soorakavi (3) sAMbha nighaMTuvu. All these
> three put together published as a single book by Vavillavari press in
> 1929. These books basically explain the pure telugu word for its
> equalent.
>
> If you happen to read "AMdhra TeekA vishEshamu" by ADidaM sooorakavi,
> please refer 24th poem. There he says "heccarika" means "AnaMdamu".
>
> Regards, Madhava
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