Dingal

Dingal is an ancient Indian language written in Nagri script and having literature in prose as well as poetry. It is a language of very high tone and requires a specific style of speaking. Dingal was used in Rajasthan and adjoining areas including Gujarat, Kutch, Malwa, and Sindh. Most of Dingal literature is said to be composed by Charans. It was primarily used by Charans to motivate the troops in Rajput armies by praising the martial exploits of Rajput and Charan war heroes.

Dingal is a New Indo-Aryan (NIA) poetic language or style. It is called by various names such as Maru-Bhasha, Marwari, and Old Rajasthani. or Dingal is described as one of five “pre-modern Hindi literary dialects”, listed together with Braj, Avadhi, Sadhu Bhasa and Maithili. Dingal has also been called as the ancestor of Marwari and Gujarati.

Several Rajput kings wrote poems in Dingal, particularly Maharaja Man Singh Rathore (reign 1803-1843) of Marwar.

Origins and Antiquity of Dingal

The oldest mention of 'Dingal' is found in an 8th-century text Kuvalaya Mala, composed by Udhyotana Suri. Dingal is a western Indo-Aryan language. According to Dingal scholar Kaviya, Dingal came into existence by the 9th-century, derived from the Apabhramsa of Western Rajasthan, and became the literary language of the region and beyond.

The usage of the word 'Dingal' is also found in 'Udingal Nam Mala' by the Jain poet Kushalabh and in 'Naga Daman' by the saint-poet Sayanji Jhula, both written at the beginning of the 15th-century.

An interesting feature of Dingal is that it preserves archaic words from the early medieval period which are not found anywhere else. Owing to its geographical origin at Western Rajasthan, Dingal vocabulary consists of a lot of Sindhi, Persian, Punjabi, and Sanskrit words.

According to Jhaverchand Meghani, Dingal, the Charan tongue, was developed from Apbhramsha and Prakrit. Meghani considered Dingal both as a language and poetic medium which "flowed freely between Rajasthan and Suarashtra and conformed to the contours of other phonetic tongues like Sindhi and Kutchi".

Dingal & Maru Bhasha

Historically, the language of Western Rajasthan, was known as Dingal. The name Dingal was considered identical to Maru-Bhasha (otherwise called Marwari Bhasha, Marubhum Bhasha, etc.)

There are numerous historical examples of statements by Dingal writers which confirm the view that the spoken language of the region is also called Dingal. In Rukamani Mangal or Haraji ro Vyanwalo, late 15th-century Akhyan Kavya text, composed by Padam Bhagat is in the spoken language. A couplet found in one of the manuscripts says:

‘The language of my poem is Dingal. It does not know any metre or continuity. It consists of only divine contemplation’.

Charan saint Swarupdas in his Pandav Yashendu Chandrika, early 19th-century, says:

‘My language is a mixed one. It contains Dingal, Braj, and Sanskrit, so that all may understand. I beg apology of greater poets for this.’

Charans & Dingal

Although it is true that most of the Dingal literature was composed by the Charans, other castes also adopted it and made great contributions. In addition to the Charans, Dingal poetry is available in sufficient quantity by many poets of the Rajput, Pancholi, Motisar, Brahmin, Jain, Muhata, and Bhat communities.

Dingal Git

Git is an unique feature of Dingal and is considered to be a invention of Charans. There is an important distinction to be made about Dingal Gits. The notion that these songs were sung is misleading. Dingal Gits were recited by Charans in a way similar to Vedic hymns.

Dingal poetry

Dingal Poetry incorporates heroic writing on the heroes of Rajasthan, such as Prithviraj Chauhan and Prince Khoman of Mewar. It is an admixture of inter-regional languages. In Rajasthan such languages formed Pingal language (see below).

Thakur Nathu Singh Mahiyariya

He was born in a Charan family in princely state of Mewar. He wrote many books such as Veer Satsai, Hari Rani Shatak etc.

Babu Ramnarayan Dugar

Born in 1857 A.D. in an Oswal family, Babu Ramnarayan Dugar was a prominent authority on Pingal language and was a close associate of Kaviraj Shyamaldasji, the author or Vir Vinod, the official history of rulers of Mewar. In later days he was associated with M.M. Ojha. His most prominent work is Hindi translation of Nainsi's khyat from Dingal language to Hindi.

Ingal

Ingal is an ancient Indian language, a form of Prakrit popular in Sindh and nearby areas.

Pingal

Pingal is an ancient and now extinct Indian language, it was a form of Prakrit popular in Rajasthan and nearby areas. In contrast to Dingal, which was primarily a language of warlike tone, Pingal was a "language of love" and softspoken.

See also

• Charan

External links

• An article on BBC