Kaliram Medhi
Kaliram Medhi | |
---|---|
Born |
Ramdia village, Kamrup district, Assam | 18 October 1880
Died |
24 January 1954 73) Guwahati, Assam | (aged
Occupation | Administrative officer, writer, essayist |
Language | Assamese |
Nationality | Indian |
Education | MA in physics |
Alma mater | Calcutta University |
Kaliram Medhi (Assamese: কালিৰাম মেধি; October 18, 1880 – January 24, 1954) was an prominent writer and essayist from Assam who wrote in both the Assamese and English languages in the early part of modern Assamese literature. He was the third president of the Asom Sahitya Sabha in 1919 held at Barpeta.[1][2] He was honoured with the Rai Bahadur title in 1946.
Early life
Medhi was born on 18 October 1880 at Ramdia village near Hajo of Kamrup district to Bhukali Medhi and Sontara Medhi. After primary education at his village he did his higher education at Guwahati and City College of Calcutta. In 1897 Medhi passed the entrance examination from Guwahati Government Seminary securing highest marks in Sanskrit. He obtained the Eliotee Scholarship amounting to Rs 20 constituted by Charles Eliot, chief commissioner of Assam. Medhi passed FA in 1899 and BA with honours in chemistry and physical science in 1902. Within a year, Medhi passed his MA in physics (natural and physical science) and thus became the third Assamese after Radhanath Phukan and Annada Charan Bhattacharyya to obtain an MA degree from Calcutta University.[3]
Career
After returning home, the government offered him the post of SDC at Guwahati in 1904. After serving in various capacities like assistant settlement officer of Dibrugarh, SDC of Nagaon and Dhing, EAC of Tura, Goalpara, Golaghat, SDO (civil) of Mangaldoi and Goalpara, Medhi became the deputy commissioner of Nagaon in 1936 and then he went on superannuation. The Government of Assam re-employed him as special magistrate for about ten years. He retired from active government service finally on 1 January 1946. He died in Panbazar, Guwahati on 24 January 1954.[3] His son Surendra Nath Medhi (1930-2011) became a famous Assamese writer under the pseudonym Saurabh Kumar Chaliha and was awarded Sahitya Academy Award in Assamese in 1974.
Literary works
- In Assamese
- Asomiya Bhasar Mul (অসমীয়া ভাষাৰ মূল) (1918),
- Asomiya Byakoron aru Bhasatatta (অসমীয়া ব্যকৰণ আৰু ভাষাতত্ত্ব) (1936),
- Mahapurush Sankardevar Bani (1949)
- Ankawali (Part-I) (অঙ্কাৱলী) (১ম ভাগ) (1950),[4]
- Prahlad charitra (প্ৰহ্লাদ চৰিত্ৰ) (1913) and more.
- In English
- The Kalitas,
- Brajavali Literature of Assam,
- Philosophic Aspects of the Assamese Brajavali Literature,
- Origin of Assamese Drama,
- Studies in the Vaishnav Literature and Culture of Assam.[5]
- Assamese Grammar and Origin of the Assamese Language.[6]
See also
- List of Asam Sahitya Sabha
- History of Assamese literature
- List of Assamese writers with their pen names
References
- ↑ TI Trade (2009-10-22). "Birth anniversary of Pandit Kaliram Medhi observed". Assamtribune.com. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
- ↑ "Assam Sahitya Sabha is the foremost and the most popular organization of Assam". Vedanti.com. Retrieved 2013-04-27.
- 1 2 Dr. G. C. Sharma Thakur. "Remembering Pundit Kaliram Medhi". Assamtribune.com. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
- ↑ Aṅkāwalī - Kaliram Medhi - Google Books. Books.google.co.in. 2006-01-01. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
- ↑ Studies in the Vaiṣṇava Literature & Culture of Assam - Kaliram Medhi - Google Books. Books.google.co.in. 1995-01-01. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
- ↑ "A Selected Bibliography on Assamese Language and Literature | Assam Portal". Assam.org. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
External links
- Assamese Grammar and Origin of the Assamese Language, (1988) a book by Kaliram Medhi.
- A statue of Kaliram Medhi at Ambari, Guwahati, Assam.
- Books by Kaliram Medhi at Open Library website.
- Books at Worldcat.org.