Manuscript, Print and Memory: Relics of the Cankam in Tamilnadu

Eva Maria Wilden

Published by De Gruyter 2014

Manuscript, Print and Memory

Relics of the Cankam in Tamilnadu

Eva Maria Wilden

Volume 3 in the series Studies in Manuscript Cultures

https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110352764

Overview
Contents

About this book

The ancient Tamil poetic corpus of the Caṅam ("The Academy") is a national treasure for Tamilians and a battle-ground for linguists and historians of politics, culture and literature. Going back to oral predecessors probably dating back to the beginning of the first millennium, it has had an extremely rich and variegated history. Collected into anthologies and endowed with literary theories and voluminous commentaries, it became the centre-piece of the Tamil literary canon, associated with the royal court of the Pandya dynasty in Madurai. Its decline began in the late middle ages, and by the late 17th century it had fallen into near oblivion, before being rediscovered at the beginning of the print era. The present study traces the complex historical process of its transmission over some 2000 years, using and documenting a wide range of sources, in particular surviving manuscripts, the early prints, the commentaries of the literary and grammatical traditions and a vast range of later literature that creates a web of inter-textual references and quotations.

Author / Editor information

Eva Wilden, Ecole Française d'Extrême-Orient, Paris, France.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	I
Preface Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	VII
List of Abbreviations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	IX
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	XIII
I. Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
II. The Manuscripts Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	42
III. Transmissional History
III.1 The Invocation Stanzas (kaṭavuḷ vāḻttu) Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	146
III.2 Traditional Colophons Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	160
III.3 Mnemonic Stanzas Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	177
III.4 The Caṅkam Legends Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	216
III. 5 Reception in the Grammatical Tradition Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	295
III.6 Summary: The Rise and Fall of a Canon Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	354
IV The Editing Process Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	359
V Conclusion: The Restitution of a Canon Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	412
Literature Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	418
List of Acknowledgements for the Illustrations Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	433
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	434

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: De Gruyter
Audience: Academics, institutions, libraries
Pages
- Front matter: 15
- Main content: 445
Illustrations
- Illustrations: 17
- Coloured Illustrations: 3
- Tables: 34
Keywords: Indian history of literature; indian poetry; oral tradition

eBook

Published: November 10, 2014
ISBN: 9783110352764

Hardcover

Published: October 27, 2014
ISBN: 9783110340891