An Introduction To Telugu
An Introduction To Telugu
An Introduction To Telugu
In spite of this love affair between the Telugu-speaking people and the
English language, linguistically, culturally and grammatically, Telugu
and English are as far apart as two languages can be. In a Telugu
sentence the subject, object and verb come in that order, whereas in
English the normal order is subject-verb-object. For an English
speaking person the word order in Telugu appears inverted. There are
other subtle differences – especially when it comes to past perfect
tense.
In Telugu pronouns and verbs play a key role. The more you learn
about verbs and the declensions of pronouns, the better your
command will be. If you cannot recall the correct verb form for a
thought you have in mind, do not hesitate to use the English verb and
the chances are the other person will understand. In fact, Telugu is so
forgiving and accommodating that you can insert entire English
phrases in the middle of a Telugu sentence and it will pass as Telugu.
Many Telugu people you interact with use more English than Telugu
when they talk to their grand mother!
Like many things Indian, there has never been a serious effort to
standardize the language. Indians are truly the world’s freedom-loving
people; they like to do the things their own way. Variations in the
language from region to region often lead to slight variations in
spelling. Unless you are reading a highly standardized book, there is
no guarantee that the spelling you see is standard spelling. Added to
these variations, proofreading, it appears, is a job toward which no
one seems to pay any attention. This makes it difficult to assess
whether an apparent spelling error is real or merely a variation in
dialect. So is the situation with pronunciation. Variations in
pronunciation from region to region and from the educated urbanite
to the un-educated villager are so much that people are used to
listening and understanding non-standard Telugu. For the beginner,
this fluidity indeed is a blessing. Any errors you make are likely to be
accepted as a variation from the standard. So do not be afraid to
speak. And speaking is the best way to learn a new language. This book
is only a prop, treat it as such.
You made a wise decision to buy this book in order to learn Telugu.
Modern brain research points toward the possibility that people with
bi-lingual or multi-lingual talents are less likely to fall victim to
debilitating brain diseases, such as Alzheimer’s. There is also
anecdotal evidence that people who learn a second language are less
likely to be dyslexic – a learning disorder. Just like we keep our physical
body fit by exercising, so can we keep our mental faculties fit by
constantly challenging them. Learning to speak another language is
being touted as one such exercise.