Telugu literature 2

All the Telugu alphabet (known as Akshara mala) written using Telugu script are carved out of a circle. There are 56 Telugu letters that are currently in use. The vowels in Telugu are called Ach/Achchulu or Swaraalu and the consonants in Telugu are called Hal/Hallulu or Vyanjanamulu.

Literary Telugu has complete set of letters which follows scientific system to express sounds.[7] It is highly conducive for Phonetics. It has more letters than any Indian language. Some of them are introduced to express fine shades of difference in sounds.[7]

Telugu has full-Zero or anusvāra (ం ), half-zero or arthanusvāra or Chandrabindu (ఁ) and Visarga to convey various shades of nasal sounds. la and La, ra and Ra are differentiated.[7]

Avagraha (ఽ) is used for extra length with long vowels.

Telugu has (.C) and (.J) which are found in Kashmiri and Marathi but not represented in Sanskrit.[7]

Telugu script can reproduce the full range of Sanskrit phonetics without losing any of the text's originality.[7] Telugu has made its letters expressive of all the sounds and hence it has to deal with significant borrowings from Sanskrit, and Hindustani.[7]

Sources[edit]
There are various sources available for information on early Telugu writers. Among these are the prologues to their poems, which followed the Sanskrit model by customarily giving a brief description of the writer, a history of the king to whom the book is dedicated, and a chronological list of the books he published.

 In addition, historical information is available from inscriptions that can be co-related with the poems; there are several grammars, treatises and anthologies that provide illustrative stanzas; and there is also information available from the lives of the poets and the traditions that they followed.[8]



Early Telugu literature is predominantly religious in subject matter. Poets and scholars drew most of their material from, and spent most of their time translating epics, such as Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bhagavata and the Puranas, all of which are considered to be storehouses of Indian culture.[9]

From sixteenth century onwards, rarely known episodes from the Puranas are made basis for kavyas.


Literary works drawn from episodes of the Puranas under the name Akhyana or Khanda became popular along with fortunes of single hero under the title of Charitra, Vijaya, Vilasa and Abhyudaya became most common subject matter of poetry.[9]

In eighteenth century, marriages of heroes under the title Parinaya, Kalyana and Vivāha became popular.[9]

Religious literature consisted of biographies of the founders of religion, their teachings (Sara) and commentaries (bhashya).[9]

The sciences such as astrology, law, grammar, ballets, moral aphorisms, devotional psalms are characteristics of most popular literature.[9]

Forms
The various forms of literature found in Telugu are:

Prabandham: Stories in verse form with a tight metrical structure and they have three forms mentioned below.

Prakhyātam: Famous story.

Utpadyam: Purely fictional story.

Mishramam: Mixed story.

Champu: Mixture of prose and poetry.

Kāvyam: Poem which usually begin with a short prayer called a Prarthana, containing initial auspicious letter "Shri" which invokes the blessings of the god.[10] The occasion and circumstances under which the work is undertaken is next stated.[10]

Padya kāvyam: Metrical poetry.

Gadya kāvyam: prose poetry.

Khanda kāvyam: Short poems

Kavita: Poetry

Śatakam (anthology): Shatakam is a literary piece of art. The name derives from Shata, which means a hundred in Sanskrit. Shatakam comprises a hundred poems. Hence, a Shatakam is a volume (book) of hundred poems. Shatakams are usually devotional, philosophical or convey morals.

DaŚaka (anthology): Dasakam or Dashakam comprises ten poems.

Avadhānam: Avadhanam involves the partial improvisation of poems using specific themes, metres, forms, or words.[11]

Navala: Navala is a written, fictional, prose narrative normally longer than a short story.

Katha : Style of religious storytelling.

Nātakam: Drama.

Ashtadiggajas have written in all three of the Prabandham genres during the Prabandha yugam.[12]