The unique feature of Herman Gundert’s Bible translation and his Malayalam dictionary is that they are a rich storehouse containing the Malabar dialect of Malayalam, K Balakrishnan, former Press secretary to Leader of Opposition V S Achuthanandan has said. He was delivering the Herman Gundert commemorative speech at the Gundert statue unveiling ceremony held at the Pappinissery CSI Church on Sunday afternoon.
“Gundert learned Malayalam by listening to the oral communication of the toiling masses of the Malabar in the markets and fields and not through books. As serious efforts are being discussed now to preserve the rich vocabulary and identity of Malayalam, Gundert’s works attracts great significance. They are exhibition houses of the 200-years-old Malayalam that existed in the Kannur-Thalassery-Kozhikode region. During that period we had many poetic works in Malayalam but they were highly influenced by Sanskrit. But Gundert’s works played a significant role in preserving the language of the village folk and its unique flavour,” Balakrishnan said.
Gundert’s personality was deeply rooted in mysticism and that is best revealed in his poem August 12, Balakrishnan said. This is the first public function of K Balakrishnan after he was removed from the post of VS’ press secretary. The bust of Gundert, sculpted by artists Hareendran Chalode and K Sasikumar, was unveiled by Dr Sanjeev Laser.