Mangaluru
The Tulu-speaking community has reason to celebrate with the official launch of Tulu Wiktionary and Tulu Wikisource. Tulu Wiktionary, a valuable online dictionary created by the Wikimedia Foundation, is now available for the public to explore. Users can search, edit, and contribute to the dictionary, helping to enrich and expand this vital language resource. This milestone is the culmination of six years of hard work by the Karavali Wikimedians and Tulu Wikimedians.
Key contributors like Dr. Vishwanatha Badikana, Bharathesha Alasademajalu, Dr. Pavanaja, Dr. Kishore Kumar Rai Sheni, and Yakshitha played significant roles in this project, which began in August 2018 alongside the introduction of a Tulu postgraduate course at University College. The Tulu Wiktionary features over 3,000 pages organized by grammatical categories, providing an essential resource for the global Tulu community.
Wiktionary is a free, multilingual online dictionary offering definitions, etymologies, and pronunciations, collaboratively edited by volunteers worldwide. It will enhance understanding of Tulu words, including their usage and origins.
In addition, the Tulu Wikisource has launched, serving as a free digital library of public domain texts. This platform will preserve original Tulu documents, making them accessible to researchers, students, and those interested in Tulu’s literary heritage. The launch of these platforms significantly advances the promotion and preservation of Tulu language and culture for future generations.
