If Francis Whyte Ellis, a European Tamil scholar, and collector of the Madras Presidency, did not meet an untimely death at the age of 41, his contribution to the Tamil language and literature would have been copious and gone beyond the horizon.
Coimbatore: Had Francis Whyte Ellis not met an untimely death at his age of 41, his contribution to Tamil language and literature would have been copious and gone beyond the horizon. The British collector of Madras presidency, who translated a section of Thirukural and accomplished the Herculean task of interpreting Tamil prosody in English, is said to have died after he accidentally drank poison in Ramnad (The present-day Ramanathapuram district).
“In the book Languages and Nations; The Dravidian Proof, I came across that Ellis preserved the manuscripts of his work titled Memorandum on Tamil Prosody, of which, two versions are at the OIOC (Oriental and India Office Collections) in the British library. And this piece of information led me to England to trace the European Tamil scholar’s work, get it photocopied and later publish it “says P. Marudanayagam, retired English professor of Pondicherry university and author.
It is surprising to learn that Ellis, after whom a road was named in Chennai, had mastered numerous pieces of Tamil classical literature. While interpreting the prosodic rules Ezhuthu, Asai, Seer, Thalai, Monai, Ethukai, Adi and Paattu (Letters, Syllables, Feet, Connection of feet, Alliteration, Rhyme, Verses composing stanza and The stanza composed of a certain number of verses) and so on, the European scholar illustrates the theory, citing poems from the nooks and corners of different classical Tamil works.
“Amazingly, the Englishman illustrates the Tamil prosodic rules, citing verses from Purananuru, Thirukural, Valayapathi Naladiyar, Pazhamozhi Nanuru, Ealathi, Aasara Kovai, Sirupanchamoolam, Thirumandhiram, Thiruvasagam, Thiruvilayadar Puranam, Periyapuranam, Eaer Ezhupathu, Thonnool Vilakkam and a numerous other classical works of Tamil. This list is quite enough to estimate the European Tamil scholar’s erudition in Tamil “avers Marudanayagam, who edited and published the book Elleesarin Thamizh Yaappilakanam. (The Tamil prosody of Francis Whyte Ellis).
Syllabification is the primer to be learned for composing verse in any language. But in Tamil it is unique, as it is done using the names of the native flora as Thema, Pulima, Karuvilam, Koovilam, and so on. However, Ellis interprets them in English, citing the kinds of European metrical feet as Spondee, Anapaest, Dactyl to explain the ones in Tamil as Ner Ner = Thema, Nirai Ner = Pulima and Ner Nirai= Koovilam respectively.
“Proving the presence of musical elements in each of the five traditional verses of Tamil - Asiriyappa, Kalippa, Venba, Vanjippa, and Marutpa in the ragas of Carnatic music, Ellis notes that the tune of Venba is appropriate to Sankaraparana, Asiriappa to Thodi, Kalippa to Panduvarali and so on “admires Marudanayagam.
With caste being a discriminatory element to be annihilated from the country, Ellis, while interpreting a chapter on a verse, cites the popular poem Saadhiyavathu Eathada Salam Thiranda Neeralo...from Sivavakkiyam, a work by the mystic Sivavakkiyar. Ellis renders the beautiful poem in English thus:
“What, O wretch, is caste? Is not water an accumulation of fluid particles?
Are not the five elements and five senses one?
Are not the several ornaments for the neck, the breasts, and the feet equally gold?
What then is the peculiar quality supposed to result from a difference in caste? “
“In the book Languages and Nations; The Dravidian Proof, I came across that Ellis preserved the manuscripts of his work titled Memorandum on Tamil Prosody, of which, two versions are at the OIOC (Oriental and India Office Collections) in the British library. And this piece of information led me to England to trace the European Tamil scholar’s work, get it photocopied and later publish it “says P. Marudanayagam, retired English professor of Pondicherry university and author.
It is surprising to learn that Ellis, after whom a road was named in Chennai, had mastered numerous pieces of Tamil classical literature. While interpreting the prosodic rules Ezhuthu, Asai, Seer, Thalai, Monai, Ethukai, Adi and Paattu (Letters, Syllables, Feet, Connection of feet, Alliteration, Rhyme, Verses composing stanza and The stanza composed of a certain number of verses) and so on, the European scholar illustrates the theory, citing poems from the nooks and corners of different classical Tamil works.
“Amazingly, the Englishman illustrates the Tamil prosodic rules, citing verses from Purananuru, Thirukural, Valayapathi Naladiyar, Pazhamozhi Nanuru, Ealathi, Aasara Kovai, Sirupanchamoolam, Thirumandhiram, Thiruvasagam, Thiruvilayadar Puranam, Periyapuranam, Eaer Ezhupathu, Thonnool Vilakkam and a numerous other classical works of Tamil. This list is quite enough to estimate the European Tamil scholar’s erudition in Tamil “avers Marudanayagam, who edited and published the book Elleesarin Thamizh Yaappilakanam. (The Tamil prosody of Francis Whyte Ellis).
Syllabification is the primer to be learned for composing verse in any language. But in Tamil it is unique, as it is done using the names of the native flora as Thema, Pulima, Karuvilam, Koovilam, and so on. However, Ellis interprets them in English, citing the kinds of European metrical feet as Spondee, Anapaest, Dactyl to explain the ones in Tamil as Ner Ner = Thema, Nirai Ner = Pulima and Ner Nirai= Koovilam respectively.
“Proving the presence of musical elements in each of the five traditional verses of Tamil - Asiriyappa, Kalippa, Venba, Vanjippa, and Marutpa in the ragas of Carnatic music, Ellis notes that the tune of Venba is appropriate to Sankaraparana, Asiriappa to Thodi, Kalippa to Panduvarali and so on “admires Marudanayagam.
With caste being a discriminatory element to be annihilated from the country, Ellis, while interpreting a chapter on a verse, cites the popular poem Saadhiyavathu Eathada Salam Thiranda Neeralo...from Sivavakkiyam, a work by the mystic Sivavakkiyar. Ellis renders the beautiful poem in English thus:
“What, O wretch, is caste? Is not water an accumulation of fluid particles?
Are not the five elements and five senses one?
Are not the several ornaments for the neck, the breasts, and the feet equally gold?
What then is the peculiar quality supposed to result from a difference in caste? “