Old Kannada

Old Kannada (Kannada: ಹಳೆಗನ್ನಡ, romanized: haḷegannaḍa) is the earliest attested stage of the Kannada language, known primarily from the inscriptional record going back to the 4th-5th century CE in Halmidi inscription from the reign of the Kadambas of Banavasi. The earliest known literary work in Kannada is the Kavirājamārga (9th century CE). This work describes Kannada poetics as well as grammar to some extent, citing earlier authorities and forms of the language. The Śabdamaṇidarpaṇa of Kēśirāja, dating to the 12th century CE, is the earliest systematic grammar of Kannada, which remains authoritative today.

Sanskrit grammars of Kannada also exist, drawing on the Sanskrit tradition of Pāṇinī. These include the Karṇāṭakabhāṣābhūṣaṇa of Nagavarma II, composed prior to Kēśirāja (12th century CE), and the Karṇāṭaka Śabdānuśāsana of Bhaṭṭākalaṅka Dēva was composed in the 16th century CE. Later commentaries on Śabdamaṇidarpaṇa include the 16th century Sūtrānvayaratnamāle of Liṅgaṇārādhya and the 18th century commentary by Niṣṭhūra (or Niṭṭūru) Nañjayya. Despite being called "Old Kannada", this stage of Kannada was frequently revived in courtly literature, as the Śabdamaṇidarpaṇa was the standard for literary Kannada well into the early modern period. Even while Middle Kannada emerged, court poets would continue to use the morphology and style of Old Kannada to generate a "classical" style.

From Wikipedia · Old Kannada · CC BY-SA 4.0