Kolami [1] (ISO 639-3: kfb) is a South-Central Dravidian language spoken by the Kolami tribal community in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, India. The Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) documents Kolami as a member of the South-Central Dravidian branch — the same broad grouping as Telugu, Gondi, Koya and Kui. This branch is distinguished from Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada by its position in the Dravidian family tree.

The Kolami Alphabet — South-Central Dravidian Language of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh

Q: Where is Kolami spoken?

Kolami [2] is spoken primarily in the Yavatmal, Wardha and Nanded districts of Maharashtra, and in adjacent areas of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The Endangered Languages Project records Kolami speaker communities across these three Indian states. Like many tribal languages, Kolami is spoken in rural and forest communities that historically practised agriculture and forest-based livelihoods in the Vidarbha region.

Q: What language family is Kolami?

Kolami [1] belongs to the South-Central Dravidian branch of the Dravidian language family. The CIIL classifies South-Central Dravidian as a subgroup that includes Telugu (the major literary language), Gondi, Koya, Kui and Kolami, among others. This branch is distinct from the South Dravidian branch (Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada) and from the North Dravidian branch (Kurukh, Malto, Brahui). Within South-Central Dravidian, Kolami is most closely related to Naiki — a very small language also spoken in the same region of Maharashtra.

Q: Is Kolami related to Gondi?

Kolami [1] and Gondi are both South-Central Dravidian languages and share a common genetic ancestor within the Dravidian family. The CIIL documents them in the same South-Central Dravidian branch alongside Telugu, Koya and Kui. However, Kolami and Gondi are separate languages that are not mutually intelligible. The two communities have distinct histories, territories and cultural practices, though they share geographic proximity in the tribal belt of central and eastern India.

Q: Is Kolami written in a script?

Kolami [1] is documented in academic literature using Latin-script transcription with IPA diacritics (ṭ, ḍ, ṇ, ḷ) for retroflex consonants. There is no traditional indigenous script historically used for Kolami. Some community materials use the Devanagari script, reflecting the proximity of Kolami communities to Marathi-speaking areas of Maharashtra. The CIIL uses standardised Latin transcription in its linguistic documentation of Kolami phonology, grammar and vocabulary.

Q: Is Kolami endangered?

Kolami [1] faces pressure from Marathi, Telugu and Hindi across its three-state area. The CIIL documents Kolami as a minority language of the tribal areas of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. In many Kolami communities, younger generations are shifting toward Marathi or Telugu as their primary language for education and economic activity. This places the long-term intergenerational transmission of Kolami under significant pressure.

Q: What are the phonological features of Kolami?

Kolami [1] has an 8-vowel system with four short/long pairs (a/aa, i/ii, u/uu) and mid vowels e and o, and 22 consonants including the Dravidian retroflex series (ṭ, ḍ, ṇ, ḷ). Vowel length is phonemically distinctive — changing a vowel's length can change the meaning of a word. The retroflex consonants and length distinctions are among the most diagnostic features distinguishing Dravidian languages from the surrounding Indo-Aryan languages of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.

Q: Who are the Kolami people?

The Kolami people [1] are a Scheduled Tribe community of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, historically associated with agriculture and forest-based livelihoods in the Vidarbha region and adjacent areas. Like many South-Central Dravidian communities, the Kolami share a geographic zone with Gondi-speaking communities and have historically practised shifting cultivation and forest-gathering alongside settled agriculture. The CIIL documents the Kolami as a tribal community whose language preserves important South-Central Dravidian linguistic heritage.

Kolami Alphabet at a Glance

Kolami ^[1] (ISO 639-3: kfb) is a South-Central Dravidian language spoken in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, India. The Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) documents Kolami as one of the South-Central Dravidian languages — a branch that includes Telugu and Gondi alongside smaller tribal languages like Kolami
The Kolami phonological system ^[1] features a typical Dravidian consonant inventory with retroflex stops (ṭ, ḍ), retroflex nasals (ṇ) and retroflex laterals (ḷ). These retroflex sounds — produced with the tongue curled back to touch the roof of the mouth — are a defining feature of Dravidian languages that distinguish them from Indo-Aryan languages
The Endangered Languages Project ^[2] records Kolami as a language of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana with a community of speakers in tribal areas. Like many small Dravidian languages, Kolami faces pressure from the surrounding dominant languages — Marathi, Telugu and Hindi
Kolami vowels ^[1] include a simple system of short and long pairs: a/aa, i/ii, u/uu, e and o. This vowel system, with its length distinction, is typical of Dravidian languages and contrasts with the more complex vowel systems of neighbouring Indo-Aryan languages
Kolami ^[1] is typically transcribed using the Latin alphabet in linguistic literature, with diacritics such as dots below letters (ṭ, ḍ, ṇ, ḷ) to represent retroflex sounds. This academic transcription system follows the conventions established for Indian language documentation
CIIL Mysore ^[1] and the Endangered Languages Project ^[2] together document Kolami as a South-Central Dravidian language of the tribal communities of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh

Kolami (ISO 639-3: kfb) is a South-Central Dravidian language spoken in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, India. The Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) ^[1] documents Kolami as a South-Central Dravidian language with characteristic Dravidian phonological features including retroflex consonants. The Endangered Languages Project ^[2] records Kolami speaker communities across these three states.

[a]

[aː]

[i]

[iː]

[u]

[uː]

[e]

[o]

Kolami Consonants

Kolami has 22 consonants ^[1], including the characteristic Dravidian retroflex series (ṭ, ḍ, ṇ, ḷ). The retroflex lateral ḷ and retroflex nasal ṇ are particularly diagnostic of Dravidian phonology. The CIIL documents these consonants as core features of the Kolami phonological system.

The Endangered Languages Project ^[2] records Kolami as part of the South-Central Dravidian branch, genetically related to Telugu and other languages of the region.

[p]

[b]

[t]

[d]

ṭ

[ʈ]

ḍ

[ɖ]

[k]

[g]

[tʃ]

[dʒ]

[m]

[n]

ṇ

[ɳ]

[ŋ]

[r]

[l]

ḷ

[ɭ]

[j]

[v]

[s]

[h]

[w]

[p]

Voiceless bilabial stop

[b]

Voiced bilabial stop

[t]

Dental voiceless stop

[d]

Dental voiced stop

ṭ

[ʈ]

Retroflex voiceless stop, tongue curled back

ḍ

[ɖ]

Retroflex voiced stop, tongue curled back

[k]

Voiceless velar stop

[g]

Voiced velar stop

[tʃ]

Voiceless palatal affricate

[dʒ]

Voiced palatal affricate

[m]

Bilabial nasal

[n]

Dental/alveolar nasal

ṇ

[ɳ]

Retroflex nasal

[ŋ]

Velar nasal

[r]

Alveolar trill or flap

[l]

Lateral approximant

ḷ

[ɭ]

Retroflex lateral approximant

[j]

Palatal approximant

[v]

Labiodental fricative

[s]

Alveolar fricative

[h]

Glottal fricative

[w]

Labial-velar approximant

[length]

[nasal]

[glottal]

[aspiration]

[pause]

[sunna]

[okku]

[irandu]

[muundu]

[naalu]

[aidu]

[aaru]

[edu]

[enimidi]

[tombodi]

[a]

[aː]

[b]

[tʃ]

[d]

ḍ

[ɖ]

[e]

[g]

[h]

[i]

[iː]

[dʒ]

[k]

[l]

ḷ

[ɭ]

[m]

[n]

ṇ

[ɳ]

[ŋ]

[o]

[p]

[r]

[s]

[t]

ṭ

[ʈ]

[u]

[uː]

[v]

[w]

[j]

Expand All Collapse All

What is Kolami?

Where is Kolami spoken?

What language family is Kolami?

Is Kolami related to Gondi?

Is Kolami written in a script?

Is Kolami endangered?

What are the phonological features of Kolami?

Who are the Kolami people?

References:

[1] Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL), Mysuru, India (Ministry of Education, Government of India). "Kolami Language" — CIIL documents Kolami (ISO 639-3: kfb), a South-Central Dravidian language spoken in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, India. Retrieved from Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL)
[2] Endangered Languages Project, Google.org. "Kolami Language" — the Endangered Languages Project records Kolami (ISO 639-3: kfb), a South-Central Dravidian language of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Retrieved from Endangered Languages Project