Editing Hermann Gundert

{{short description|German missionary, scholar, and linguist}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2018}}
{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix      = Dr.
| name        = Hermann Gundert
| image       = Hermann Gundert.png
| alt         = Photograph of Dr. Hermann Gundert
| birth_place = [[Stuttgart]], [[Kingdom of Württemberg|Württemberg]]
| birth_date  = {{Birth date|1814|02|4|df=y}}
| death_date  = {{Death date and age|1893|04|25|1814|02|4|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Calw]], [[Kingdom of Württemberg|Württemberg]], [[German Empire]]
| monuments   = Gundert Statue, Tellichery
| organization = [[Basel Mission]]
| known_for    = Proselytizing Christianity, Contributions to Malayalam language
| father       = Ludwig Gundert
| mother       = Christiana Enslin
| relatives  = [[Hermann Hesse]] (grandson)
}}

'''Hermann Gundert''' ([[Stuttgart]], 4 February 1814 &ndash; 25 April 1893) was a German missionary, scholar, and linguist, as well as the maternal grandfather of German novelist and [[Nobel laureate]] [[Hermann Hesse]]. Gundert is chiefly known for his contributions as an Indologist, and compiled a [[Malayalam]] grammar book, ''Malayalabhaasha Vyakaranam'' (1859), in which he developed and constricted the grammar spoken by the [[Malayalis]], nowadays; a [[Malayalam]]-English dictionary (1872), and contributed to work on [[Bible translations into Malayalam]]. He worked primarily at [[Thalassery|Tellicherry]] on the [[Malabar coast]], in present day [[Kerala]], India. Gundert also contributed to the fields of history, geography and astronomy.<ref>"Achatiyum Aadyakaala Pathramaasikakalum" (Printing, Early Newspapers and Magazines). ''Madhyamangalum Malayalasahithyavum (Media and Malayalam Literature)'' Kunhukrishnan, K. Sivasankaran, M.K et al. Thiruvananthapuram: State Institute of Languages, 2000.{{clarify|date=November 2010}}</ref> Gundert gave the famous epithet "God's own country" to Kerala seeing the beauty of the land while he traveled from Kunnamkulam to Mangalore on a boat.{{Cn|date=April 2025}}

==Early years==
Hermann Gundert was born to Ludwig Gundert and Christiana Enslin, and was the couple's third child.<ref name="KeralaCulturecite">{{cite web|url=http://www.keralaculture.org/hermann-gundert/638|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224054638/http://www.keralaculture.org/hermann-gundert/638|url-status=live|archive-date=24 February 2020|title=Dr. Hermann Gundert - lover of language and literature|access-date=24 November 2020}}</ref> His father was the secretary of the Bible Society and started a missionary magazine in 1823, which gave the young Gundert his first experiences in printing and publishing.<ref name=KeralaCulturecite/> At the age of five Hermann entered Latin school in [[Stuttgart]], joined the "Lower Seminary" at [[Maulbronn]] in 1827 and later entered the "higher [[seminary]]" – the Protestant ''[[Stift]]'' – at the [[University of Tübingen]]. In 1835 he obtained a doctoral degree in [[philology]] from [[Tübingen]] and successfully completed his theological studies. In the course of his education, Gundert mastered Hebrew, Latin, English, and French at a young age.<ref name=KeralaCulturecite/>

==Journey to India and marriage==
Having been engaged as a private tutor in [[Calcutta]], India, he prepared for this job in England. In April 1836 he left Bristol with the party of his employer. While travelling on the ship he concentrated on learning [[Bengali language|Bengali]], [[Hindustani language|Hindustani]] and [[Telugu language|Telugu]] and taught these languages to his fellow passengers.
Instead of Calcutta the party reached Madras ([[Chennai]]) in July 1836 and settled there. Gundert immediately started learning [[Tamil language|Tamil]]. Soon he was giving a duty in [[Tirunelveli]], and after some time in [[Chittoor]] (in nowadays [[Andhra Pradesh]]). There he married Julie Dubois in July 1838. She originated from [[French-speaking Switzerland]] and had come to India in the same party. After marriage, the two left for Tirunelveli, and on the way they were invited to join the [[Basel Mission]] in [[Mangalore]]. They accepted, and en route Gundert left Tamil drawing ups with a printer in Nagercoil. 
In Trivandrum ([[Thiruvananthapuram]]) Hermann Gundert had an audience with [[Sree Swathi Thirunal|His Highness Sree Swathi Thirunal]] Maharaja, the ruler of [[Travancore]]. Most probably it was here he heard [[Malayalam language|Malayalam]] for the first time.

==In Kerala==
In November 1838 Gundert and his wife reached [[Mangalore]]. From there he visited Cannanore (Kannur), [[Thalassery|Tellicherry]] (Thalassery) and the cinnamon plantation near Anjarakandy. He lived in [[Thalassery]] for around 20 years. He learned the language from well-established local teachers [[Uracheri Gurukkanmar]] from Chokli, a village near [[Thalassery]] and consulted them in his works. He also translated the Bible into Malayalam.<ref>[http://www.pressacademy.org/content/herman-gundert Herman Gundert | Kerala Press Academy] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514003031/http://pressacademy.org/content/herman-gundert |date=14 May 2013 }}. Pressacademy.org. Retrieved 28 July 2013.</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TDCKdPpbFPAC |title=Land and people of Indian states and union territories |page=289 |quote=This Bungalow in Tellicherry ... was the residence of Dr Herman Gundert. He lived here for 20 years |author=S. C. Bhatt and Gopal K. Bhargava |isbn=978-81-7835-370-8 |year=2005 |publisher=Gyan Publishing House |access-date=15 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160527102140/https://books.google.com/books?id=TDCKdPpbFPAC |archive-date=27 May 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> T. L. Strange, a British judge, offered his bungalow on Illikkunnu near Tellicherry to the Basel Mission on condition that a mission station will be established over there. The Gunderts moved there and took up work in April 1839. In August 1839, Gundert stated that he had studied Malayalam intensively and that he had established the first Malayalam school on the veranda of the bungalow in May. At the same time, his wife started the first girls' institute with boarding. In the following months, Gundert opened Malayalam schools in Kadirur, Thalassery Fort, Mahe, and Dharmadam. Regularly he visited all these schools and invited the teachers to Illikkunnu for further education.
At times Gundert had five Pandits in his house, discussing old Indian history, philosophy and religion and studying classical Indian literature.
At his numerous visits to the villages around Tellicherry, Gundert got in close contact with the people, collected as many words, phrases and proverbs as possible and spread the Gospel. During this period, he published around thirteen books in Malayalam. Many of the material – old Malayalam documents and scriptures from Tellicherry and other places in Malabar – which Gundert had collected he later gave to the University of Tübingen.

In the beginning of 1857, the government appointed Gundert as the first Inspector of Schools in Malabar and Canara – from Calicut (Kozhikode) in the South till [[Hubli]] in the North. He appointed teachers, wrote textbooks for schools, colleges and the newly established [[Madras University]] and also compiled examination papers.
In Kerala, Gundert is venerated for his deep interest in the local culture as well as the development of the Malayalam language, for compiling grammatical books for school starters as well as for the University level. These grammars were the prominent non-Sanskrit-based approaches to real Indian grammar. 
Gundert is held in high regard to this day among linguistic experts in Kerala for the high scholastic aptitude exhibited in his work.

==Scholarly work==

[[File:തലശ്ശേരിയിലെ ഗുണ്ടർട്ട് സ്മാരക പ്രതിമ.jpg|thumb|Gundert's statue near [[Thalassery Stadium]]]]

During his stay in Illikunnu near Tellicherry (Thalassery), he published around thirteen books in [[Malayalam language|Malayalam]] including a translation of the Bible, Old Testament from Hebrew and New Testament from Greek.<ref name="gundert">Malayalam-English Dictionary, by Dr. Herman Gundert, 1872. Ed. 3, Published by Sahythia Pravarthaka Sahakarana Sangham, Kerala, 2000. Biography. Pages 7-11</ref> The archives of information he collected from Tellicherry are kept in the University of Tübingen and were collected and compiled by the scholar Dr. Scaria Zacharia as ''Thalassery Rekhakal''.<ref>{{cite book|title=Thalassery Rekhakal|editor=Skaria Zakharia|location=Kottayam|publisher=DC Books}}</ref>

In Kerala, he took a deep interest in the local culture and the Malayalam language, attempting a systematic grammar of the language. This was one of the prominent non-[[Sanskrit]]-based approaches to Indic grammar.  Gundert considered Malayalam to have diverged from Proto-Tamil–Malayalam, or [[Proto-Dravidian]].  Apart from the early inscriptions found on copper and stone, Gundert traced Malayalam to the Rāma Charitam, a poem predating the Sanskrit alphabet.<ref>{{cite book|last=Gundert|first=Hermann|title=A Malayalam and English Dictionary|url=https://archive.org/details/amalayalamanden00gundgoog|year=1872|publisher=C. Stolz for Basel Mission Book Tract Depository|location=Mangalore|page=[https://archive.org/details/amalayalamanden00gundgoog/page/n50 14]}}</ref>

Gundert is highly regarded among linguistic experts and his dictionary has been described as "monumental" in a review of the work on [[Dravidian languages]].<ref>p. 18, [[Bhadriraju Krishnamurti]]. 2003. ''The Dravidian Languages.'' Cambridge University Press. {{ISBN|0-521-77111-0}}.</ref>

==Publications==

{| class="wikitable"
!Year published !! Title !! Description
|-
| 1843 || ''Keralolpathi'' || Origin of [[Kerala]], translation from Malayalam [[Keralolpathi]].
|-
| 1845 || ''Pazhancholmala'' ||  String of Malayalam proverbs for Christian theological idioms.<ref>{{cite book |title=Pazhancholmala by Hermann Gundert |date=1845 |publisher=Tübingen University Library |url=https://archive.org/details/pazhancholmala_gundert_1845/page/n3 |access-date=15 October 2018}}</ref>
|-
| 1851 || ''Malayala Bhasha Viyakaranam'' || Malayalam Grammar
|-
| 1860  || ''Paathamala'' || First textbook in Malayalam
|-
| 1868 || ''[[Kerala]] pazhama'' ||33 years of Malayali history, from [[Vasco da Gama]]'s arrival in 1498 (an English translation has been published by [[T Madhava Menon]] in 2003)
|-
| 1868 || [https://archive.org/details/1868_Malayalam_New_Testament_Hermann_Gundert/ ''New Testament''] || Translation of the New Testament in Malayalam
|-
| 1870 || [https://archive.org/details/1870_School_Dictionary_English_And_Malayalam/ ''School Dictionary] || 
|-
| 1872 || [https://archive.org/details/amalayalamanden00gundgoog/ ''Malayalam-English Dictionary''] ||
|- 
| 1879 || ''Malayalarajyam'' || The land of Malayalam
|- 
| 1847 June ||   ''[[Rajyasamacharam]]'' (''News of the Kingdom'')  || Newspaper<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pressacademy.org/content/herman-gundert|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514003031/http://pressacademy.org/content/herman-gundert|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 May 2013|title=Herman Gundert - Kerala Press Academy|date=14 May 2013|access-date=5 April 2018}}</ref>
|- 
| 1847 October || ''Paschimodayam'' || "Rise of the West" or "Dawn of the West", a magazine
|- 
| 1881 || [https://archive.org/details/dli.mal.GaXXXIV5a ''Sankeerthanangal''] || "The Book of Psalms" translated by Gundert
|}

==Other contributions==

* He was the one who introduced the [[punctuation]] marks – [[full stop]], comma, [[semicolon]], [[colon (punctuation)|colon]], and question mark – into the Malayalam language.
* ''Malayalam-English Dictionary''. He returned to Germany in 1859. There he took ten more years to complete the dictionary. (1872)<ref name="gundert"/> A number of words in this dictionary are not in use these days. But this is a priceless treasure for those who study the development of Malayalam.

==Years in Germany==
Due to poor health Gundert had to leave India in 1859. In [[Calw]], the [[Black Forest]], he joined the Calw Publishing House and became its director in 1862. He published many books and articles as well as several magazines, including a children’s magazine.
Julie Gundert died in Calw on 18 September 1885, and Hermann Gundert on 25 April 1893. Both were buried in the Calw cemetery, where the family grave still exists.<ref name="gundert"/> The Nobel laureate, [[Hermann Hesse]] was his grandson through his daughter, Marie Gundert (1842-1902).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://hesse.projects.gss.ucsb.edu/life/jennifer.html|title = Hermann Hesse}}</ref>

Though Gundert came to Kerala as a missionary, he is remembered today mainly for his literary contributions. In the city of [[Thalassery]] (Tellicherry), he has been honored with a statue. The bungalow in which he used to live remained the home of the [[Nettur Technical Training Foundation]] (NTTF) for many years.{{citation needed|date=July 2018}} In 2022 The Tourism Department of Kerala converted the Gundert Bungalow into a museum that sheds light on the life and contributions of Hermann Gundert.<ref>{{cite news |title=Gundert Museum opened in Thalassery |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/gundert-museum-opened-in-thalassery/article65394261.ece |newspaper=The Hindu |date=8 May 2022 |publisher=Hindu Daily |access-date=15 November 2022}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Volbrecht Nagel]]
* [[Ferdinand Kittel]]
* [[Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University]]
* [[Njattyela Sreedharan]]
* [[Gundert Museum]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
*{{cite conference|author=Frenz, Albrecht|year=1979|title=Hermann Gundert: A Biography|book-title=IX All India Conference of Dravidian Linguists|pages=9–15|location=Calicut}}
*{{citation|author=Frenz, Albrecht|year=1993|contribution=Gundert as a Man|editor=K. K. N. Kurup |editor2=K. J. John|title=Legacy of Basel Mission and Hermann Gundert in Malabar|pages=9–32|location=Calicut}}
*{{cite book|author=Frenz, Albrecht and Scaria Zacharia|year=1993|title=Dr. Hermann Gundert and Malayalam Language|location=Kottayam|publisher=Centre for Kerala Studies}}
*{{citation|author=Jenkins, Paul|year=1998|contribution=Gundert, Hermann|title=Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions|editor=Gerald Anderson|pages=270–271|location=New York|publisher=Simon & Schuster Macmillan}}
*''Malayalam-English Dictionary'', by Dr. Herman Gundert, 1872. Ed. 3, Published by Sahythia Pravarthaka Sahakarana Sangham, Kerala, 2000. Biography.

==External links==
* [http://www.hermann-gundert-gesellschaft.de/english.html  Hermann Gundert Society (in English)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131223110830/http://www.hermann-gundert-gesellschaft.de/english.html |date=23 December 2013 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120606161101/http://cs.nyu.edu/kandathi/gundert.html Hermann Gundert]

{{Protestant missions to India}}
{{Malayalam Literature |state=collapsed}}
{{Christianity in Kerala}}
{{Hermann Hesse}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gundert, Hermann}}
[[Category:1814 births]]
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[[Category:19th-century German writers]]
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[[Category:19th-century German linguists]]
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