While we know and understand this world of cell phones and satellites, we are not so well versed with words that were used just one or two generations ago!
We know a microwave but have no clue what a 'sagdi' is! We know a Washing machine but have no clue about what a 'sovlaach khaati' is!
What was 'sovla' ... Well, as far as I understood this concept
Soula was a custom of maintaining purity when worshiping God or cooking the food.
The woman or grandmother of the house would take bath and would wear a sari that was hung up near the ceiling with a bamboo stick called 'sovlaach khaati'.
This sari would be untouched by any hands other than hers!
Once she wore this, she would touch nobody in the house and in this hyper purity cook the food for the family on a 'sagdi'
Cooking on the sagdi was a process. It was a stove that had a deep cup, filled with coals.
The coal would be lit like a barbecue and food cooked on it. Very very tasty food too!
Anyway, here are just a few of those words which were common in that era!
Bethaach Kursi
बेताच कुर्सी
Meaning: Bamboo Chair
Sovlaach Khaati
सौव्लाच खाटी
Meaning: Stick used for Sovla
Sagdi
सगड़ी
Meaning: Coal stove
Kolasa
कोलसा
Meaning: Coal
Podsi
पोडसी
Meaning: When wearing a nine yard saree with Kaasota, the pleats in front would be rolled up to form a
packet. Women would keep money etc. in this packet called 'podsi'
Neerey
नीरे
Meaning: Pleats in a sari
Phadar
पदर
Meaning: Part of the sari that hangs over the left shoulder.
Nau Gajaach Lugda
नौ गजाच लुगड़ा
Meaning; Nine yards Sari
Kaant
कांट
border of the sari
Vitaalsi
विटाल्सी
Meaning: A woman in menses
Aachare
आचारे
Meaning: Pujari
Laankda
लांकड़ा
Meaning; Firewood
Unu Paanicha Handa
उनु पानीचा हंडा
Meaning: Container used to heat water for bath
Chool
चूल
Meaning; Stove
Chool Petive
चूल पेटीवे
Meaning : Light the Stove
we say SHEGADEE here...the word has been derived from the verb SHEK-nne ..shek means to give heat .so,shegadee means one that generates and hives heat.... we say sovalle ..it means the reshmi vastra ...a silk saree or a silk dhotee used by a lady or a gentleman...after bath ,of course...during religious poojas / weddings / festivals / or bhattjees ,the purohits during performance of poojas in temples or on behalf of their yajmaans...even during cooking for auspicious occasions the sovalla is worn...it is not to be touched by anyone without bath...and the sovallyachi kaathhi is a bamboo stick used to hang the sovalla garments exclusively...
ReplyDeleteWe say VETAACHEE KATHHEE....in konkann region ,they say bet...v changing to b ...chool is also chool here ...kollsaa singular and kollse is plural for charcoal...and dagdee kollsaa is for coal used in railway engines...the word caol has benn derived in english from our own kollsaa...lakud is sing and lakde plural for firewood...nikhara or ingal for the burning charcoal...dhoor for smoke...raakh for ashes...the round pipe the ladies used to blow the fire in the chool is called FOOKNNEE..fook is to blow !
ReplyDeletesarees..we call sadee or lugda...plural ..sadyaa...lugdee...sadee is generally 5 or 6 yards./gaj...whereas lugda is exclusively a nine yards one...kasota is a kasota..kaas...neeree is the fold done with ones thumb and little finger...neeryaa is plural...the collective fold in front is called pott-chi..pott is stomuck...pottlee is a bundle or a small cotton bag...kaanthh is the end...padar is the one end which goes from the right side over the left shoulder...a cover...reshmee is silk..and sootee is cotton ...soot is a thread/yarn..skt sutra ...
ReplyDeleteuun panyacha handaa is a hot water big vessel..also called deraa if it is earthen ....kallshi is a water container to fetch water from the wells...dorr ..is a rope used over the rahaat..a wheel..or chakra...gullka is a round knot to tei up the kallshi..kallshi ..kallas is also called ghaagar..ghada from skt ghat..paatele is a vessel for cooking..tambyaa is a small water container..next to ones dinig ...banglee or panchpatra is a small container used to drink water poured from tambyaa..taat is a thalee..plate..taatlee a smaller plate...ravlee or rovalee is a cane container used to drain rice...patraval is a leaf thalee..made of palaash tree leaves..palas...dronn is a small container in which sambhaar or amtti...is served...daav or daay is a serving palli..tawaa is a pan in which one roasts bhaakarees/chapatees/pollis..kadhai is a frying pan..deep frying..one zaaraa is a laddle used to remove poories from the hot oil in the kadhai..paataa and waravantaa is a duo one uses to grind chattnee...but ragadaa is the one ,that one uses to grind dough for making idlees /dossas ..its a round stone with a hole in the center for the dough..and the lady grinds with a waravanta a long culindrical stone..what else do you want to know ? shoot...
ReplyDeletenow ,we come to achare...it is skt AACHAARYa...like Shankarachaary..but not be confused with aachaaree here..it means a cook...in ancient times the cooks were experts so they were called AA CHAA REE s...it was some sort of a fegree..also nowadays one calls them swayam-paakee...or saypakee...paak=to cook..bhojan..but in Goa and Karwar...AA CHAA REE is a carpenter ...sutaar..in Goa it has shortened to CHAA REE ...
ReplyDeletesorry..its not fegree..as printed by mistake ..but degree..called padvee here..
ReplyDeletefinally..we come to this word..vitaallshee...as we call it...for M.C....but its a cheap word..so it is only used in anger...our ladies never refer to M.C. as this...they say `tee baherchee ahe `...= she is menstruating ...in her those days...normally such a lady used to stay in the maaz-ghar...the middle dark portion of ones house...her vessels..thaalee..taat waatees tambyaa ..were kept away..and nobody touched her during those 4 days..and she wd not cook or do any work..this was to give her complete rest...it was also politely called `teelaa kavllaa shivla ahe`...translates = she has been touched by a crow...may be one of your grannies remembers this ....
ReplyDeletebaherchee= from outside or she is not within.. notwithin here means out of kitchen,,,also i forgot to add...on the forth day early morning ,the lady wd get up v early and wd have a bath..a head bath...and after one more day..after another normal bath she wd enter her domain the kitchen...if she was nursing a child...the child wd be nursed by her but the child wd remain with her only..during those four days...and after an oil and warm water bath the child was back to the routine...one more v imp thing...in those old days there were NO sanitary napkins...the ladies used to wear torn old sarees...during those days...
ReplyDeleteI wish to inform you another word connected with this M.C....when a young girl has her v first experience of this M.C...it is called `tilaa nhaann ale ahe `...nhann here means M.C. as she`ll have to have a headbath after 3 full days/on the 4th morning ...hence NHANN ...another one als connected with this is the sanskrit word for M.C. is `Rajaswalaa`...raj=blood and swalaa is a word derived from skt. skhalan=to bleed. one more is about the menaupose ..the end of M.C....it is RAJO NIVRUTTI =Raj==blood and Nivrutti= retirement...in vernacular the ladies say` tichi palli aataa band zalli`...her M.C. routine is no more ! ..but this should not be mistaken with a pregnancy...because of which ,if the M.C. has halted for 9 months ,then it is said,` Telaa divas gelet ` ,meaning she is carrying..or tichi paalli chukle,meaning ,she is carrying...v. interesting...I do not know how this whole series of episodes are discussed by TDMs...although !
ReplyDeleteShri Sirdeshpande, thank you for your comments. From your observation , it looks like regarding "sovalle" we seem to have retained some of the original Marathi.
ReplyDeleteIn our weddings,(waraad) it is important for the 'navra' to be given a pair of silk 'sovalle' by the bride's parents.
Very interesting about the sovallyachi kaathhi! As we use the same.
We say 'lankda' and 'lankde' for firewood.
Dhoor, raakh is same FOOKNEE is new. WE do say FOONKE meaning blow air on the coals
Neere, neerya....We just dont seem to have grammar in our TM It is just NEERE for pleats in a sari :)
For Dronn, we say 'donna' (usually is a katori made of leaf)
Some of the words, I shall follow in a blog post. Thank you for reminding me of so many forgotten words!
This word still use in this part exept 2 or 3 word.
ReplyDeleteSpecially in village we use that word.
Like
Baithak kursi,kolsa,padar,nau ganj lugada,kaant,Achare,Laakda,Panyacha handa,Chool
Add to list...
ReplyDeletecharante- coir rope
aad- well
saynde- draw
paytiv- to ignite
maaku ghal/ makingu- to take bath/bath used in past tense
angoli/snaan- bath.......
Its sad to loose these words so many of these words...
Prathibha and Sri Sirdeshpande, You have both forgotten ZANTHA, which, was being used to make flours and Rava. This used to be two circular sones one ove anothe with a opening in the middle to put the grains and a wooden holder on one side. [some times if the Zantha was bi on two sides ] The bottom stone was very heavy, so as to keep it place, while the top will rotate, a person after putting the grain in center opening will rotate the the upper stone clock wise. The grain will get ground and fall out from between the the two stone, which will have to collected.This implement was used for making Flours Sooji, Thicket Meeet, Bhathach Pood and Meth koot.
ReplyDeleteThis Grinding done in the Zantha, was called DHALNA in TM.The stone used for grindig chutneys was called Phaata and Varavanta. The stone used for Dhirda and Idli was called Rub gund.
ReplyDeleteDear Lalita,I have NOT forgotten the Jaate..yes we call it JAA TE ! The word has its etymology in the sanskrit word Dant..= Teeth ! it has become Jaate in OUR MARATHI and DAANTHA in TM. my grandmother used to do all her grinding in the Jaate ![ before the advent of flour mills called GIRNIs in current Marathi.the word Girni is the corruption of GRIND ! the cotton mills in Mumbai are also called GIRNIs !Even today ,we DO HAVE Jaate in our house. There is a wooden version also,its also called Jaate and is used to remove the husk of Paddy..Paddy is called Bhaat in Marathi..after removing the husk..kondaa...its called Tandull ! and after cooking Tandull its called Bhaat ,AGAIN !
ReplyDeleteDear Lalita,I have NOT forgotten the Jaate..yes we call it JAA TE ! The word has its etymology in the sanskrit word Dant..= Teeth ! it has become Jaate in OUR MARATHI and DAANTHA in TM. my grandmother used to do all her grinding in the Jaate ![ before the advent of flour mills called GIRNIs in current Marathi.the word Girni is the corruption of GRIND ! the cotton mills in Mumbai are also called GIRNIs !Even today ,we DO HAVE Jaate in our house. There is a wooden version also,its also called Jaate and is used to remove the husk of Paddy..Paddy is called Bhaat in Marathi..after removing the husk..kondaa...its called Tandull ! and after cooking Tandull its called Bhaat ,AGAIN !
ReplyDeleteWE have PAATAA and Varvantaa also..for grinding chutneys and masalaas ! but the other version,also a stone one ,with a big stome with a central small ditch/well and another stone to grind,which has to be rotated is called RAGDAA here !
ReplyDeleteThank you all ..am adding all the words in a new blogpost.
ReplyDeleteAAD is also used along with VIHIR / BHAAV...for the well . Charante is v rarely used but DOR is v common for a rope .the verb SHENDNNE - to draw water from the well.the verb paytive,is used as paytav...to ignite.Makhu ghalnne- to bathe....its not used anymore ,here but it is used as nhavu mhakoo ghalnne .Angholl/Angholli is v much in use for bath !
ReplyDeleteDear SirDeshpande
ReplyDeleteRegarding your second comment, I dared to put the word 'vitaalshi' on the blog as it is one of the forgotten words, and my true aim is to reconnect back to our original language. Looking at them as mere words in a vocabulary, it is interesting that we also say 'baaher baslihe', and 'nhann' is used as also 'divas jhaal' or 'mahine jhaala'. Another very interesting word is the food craving that a pregnant woman has is called "Doley"!! Wonder where that came from? Is it used in SM?