There are not many Kannada male names in circulation. Most likely the names will become extinct in my next generation. Even in my generation one hardly comes across original Kannada names.
Generally in Kannada names, nouns work as adjectives. I'm afraid my English translations may not fully capture the imagination of Kannada parents of the past.
guNDappa -> The great round -> Well rounded man
mariyappa -> The great little one -> Darling man
cennappa -> The great good -> Healthy man
celuvappa -> The great beauty -> Handsome man
cinnappa-> The great gold -> Generous man
honnappa -> The great gold -> Generous man
baGgArappa -> The great gold -> Generous man
beLLiyappa -> The great silver -> Sparkling man
naJjappa -> The great envy -> Enviable man
maJjappa* -> The great mist -> Cool man
kALappa -> The great pulse -> Rich man
mAnappa** -> The great beauty -> Handsome man
bALappa -> The great life -> Zestful man
kaNNappa -> The great eye -> Eye candy man
hAlappa -> The great milk -> White man
That's an abysmally small list.
* Not to be confused with Indo-Aryan 'manju' which means charming. Dravidian 'manju' means dew, mist etc...
** 'maanu' is male name in Karnataka and female name in Tamil Nadu and Kerala as far as I know. It has survived as literary word only in Telugu (According to Dravidian Dictionary)
3 comments:
Both Maanakka(f)and Maani/ Maanesh(m) exist in Uttara Kannada.
Nanjappa could be a short form of Nanjundappa (after Lord Shiva who drank poison)and similarly Manjappa could be short form of Manjunatha.
Kaalappa could be a dark skinned man.
Ravi:
Yes, I know, not a very credible post. Thanks for the info. on Maanu. I hope all of them are mAnu and not mANu.
Also, maanu meaning beautiful is observed only in Telugu (According Dravidian dictionary)
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