Ao stresses importance of mother tongue

NASHIK: Padma Shri awardee and senior Naga litterateur Temsula Ao on Friday said written words have gained a higher significance contrary to popular belief that speech is primary.
The author was speaking here at the Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University (YCMOU) that conferred on her the prestigious Kusumagraj National Literature Award for her contribution in the field of literature.Noted Marathi novelist Arun Sadhu handed the award to her.
Ao said, “It is difficult to speak about one’s writing, especially when one comes from a community that has no written literature to speak of. We exist within the ambit of our languages that give us the significance of being what we are. In this sense, I consider the term ‘orality’ to mean much more than the generally accepted notion as ‘opposed to writing’.”
Ao added that it was a fact that no classic works got the shape as written text directly. “They evolve through a process of telling and re-telling. When scripts were invented in the older civilisations, the oral form got written in order to prevent losses of the lore through memory lapses of the story tellers and singers. “The origins of many written literature of the world can be traced to stories and songs that were first commuted to memory and conveyed orally to the next generation. The great epics of our literature are the best examples,” she said.
“Without one’s mother tongue, one loses all essence of his or her culture. In that sense, language is not only the medium of a culture but it is an integral part of it. Many songs, stories and legends are being re-remembered in the works of writers from the northeast who draw inspiration not only to recreate the past but also to use the wisdom in the lore to raise questions about their identity and different-ness in a multi-cultural country like India,” she said.
Ao said the role of language in life was not merely for survival, but it was to give a true identity to the native speaker, to learn one’s history and above all to preserve and nurture one’s culture.
She said, “We can and do enjoy any work of literature if it carries the stamp of sincerity and simplicity of language.”
Sadhu, who presided as the chief guest of the function, said he agreed with Ao’s sentiments and added that the language and culture were inter-related. “It is same when it comes to Marathi language as well,” he added.
YCMOU vice-chancellor Manikrao Salunkhe said, “Ao is the first woman to get the award.”