The users of the Sinhala language had been extremely conscious of formulating a methodology that could serve the formation of words - both nouns and verbs - and enriching the language, without diluting its intelligibility and marring its inimitable qualities. A language is closely interwoven with the thought-process of its users. More particularly a language that has developed through the ages to commit its people’s subtle nuances to writing, should, for certain, develop a methodology to coin words to help convey specific feelings and emotions, as well as, formal expressions, based on new discoveries and experiences.

Ingenuity in word-coinage

The Buddhist doctrine with its abstruse and knotty philosophical concepts, the advanced state of engineering and irrigation technology, sculpture and architecture, and even the medical science that existed at the time, to mention only a few of the nation’s more advanced industries, demanded a rich vocabulary both to express ideas, keep the momentum of the activities, spread the knowledge to the future generations, as well as to preserve such knowledge for posterity. All these industries were the products of the people of the soil, and therefore, they were created, planned and executed through the vernacular, which was none other than Sinhala.

Reliance on local parlance

Our native physicians are fully aware of the efficacy of the medicinal plant ‘isjs /is m,q’ or ‘yS/iaim,q’. It is often used for making medicines for breakages and fractures. ‘Vitis quadrangularis’, is its botanical term. It is a climbing plant, edible when tender, having four-winged stems. Our ancients named this plant based on the three words used in their parlance ‘isjs’, ‘/is’ and ‘m,q’. They neither sought the assistance of Sanskrit lexicons nor lexicographers, for that matter. Isn’t it a shame, therefore, to coin a different technical term for ‘quadrangle’ as ‘p;=ri%h’ or ‘p;=rN+ch’, when our surroundings provide a word ‘isjs /ish’ which is quite close to our hearts.

Dependence on native lexicons

The Sinhala language in its stages of development and enrichment had the fortune of possessing quite a number of lexicons. ‘‘rejkau,a ks>Kagqj’ or ‘kdur;ak ud,dj’ is one such lexicon. In giving alternatives to the meaning ‘ksYap,,’ (not shaking, motionless, still, steady, settled, calm or tranquil), the word ‘ou;a ‘ had been provided in the above lexicon. Professor Vinnie Vitharana in compiling a glossary of geographical terms (N+f.da, jsoHd YnsofldaIh) made use of ‘ou;a’, and coined ‘ou;alv’ for the geographical term ‘doldrums’. It means ‘the equatorial low-pressure belt’. The term provided for this phenomenon in the Composite Glossary of Geographical Technical Terms (Glossary published by the Department of Official languages, in 1962) had been ‘fvda,av%us ;Srh’. One needs no explanation to choose ‘ou;alv’ which is self-explanatory and akin to the Sinhala-tongue. The word ‘ou;s’ appears in Gurulugomi’s ‘Amavatura’, of the Polonnaruwa period, to connote the meaning ‘tamed/ controlled’. (taming of demon Alawaka). Hence, the word goes beyond the period of the Ruwanmal Nighantuwa.

Rendering of Computer Terminology into Sinhala

The lid of the issue of coinage of "Sinhala" technical terms was opened especially with the compilation of the Glossary of Technical Terms in Computer Science, published by the Education Publications Department in 1991. Several scholars challenged the suitability of the words coined by a panel of experts including several professors proficient in the Sinhala language and computer science.

The main criticisms against this glossary were based on

a) Inconsistency in the coinage of words
b) Inability to maintain economy in the usage of words
c) Inability to provide the different shades of meanings related to computers

The glossary under reference has only added additional words as adjectives to the common term ‘mrs.Klh’ without visualising the flexibility needed in using the term in different contexts. The glossary is silent on such shades of meanings as Computable, Computant, Computational, Computative, Computator, Compute, Computerization, and Computerize.

The Cumaratunga-Concept of Word-Coinage

The late scholar, Cumaratunga Munidasa, expresses , in the Subasa journal, his concept of coining of technical terms, in the following manner:

"The language is the most valuable possession of a nation. It should fully portray the character of the nation. Just because immensely coarse and rough words are found in Sanskrit or Wanga or Hindi, it is unbecoming of the nation to borrow such coarse and rough words in the same manner, without taking into consideration the character of both the Sinhala people and their language. It is necessary to deeply study whether we possess or not words that are quite akin to us."

(Volume 2, Issue No. 22, of 24th March, 1941)

Following this Cumaratunga-Concept of Word-Coinage, Kalasuri D. V. Richard de Silva, in his exposition on Coining of Technical Terms, presented at the Silver Jubilee of the Hela Havula, in 1966 (9th July) spelt out the three ways we should follow in attempt to coin words, viz.,

1. Coining of words taking cognisance of both the morphology and the meaning of the foreign word. Examples:

‘frfojsj’ for radio

‘;,nukh’ for turbine

‘lusgqj’ for committee

‘;,nKqj’ for telephone

2. Coining of words taking cognisance of the meaning of the foreign word. Examples:

‘ osh l=uqoqj’ for submarine

‘mysk m; ’ for post-card

‘mdmqjrej’ for foot-board

3. Sinhalizing the foreign word by making the word look like a Sinhala word. Examples:

‘nexl=j’ for bank

‘f,drsh’ for lorry

Philology

The above exposition would lucidly explain that any attempt made to render foreign words into a language should, as an initial activity, study the philology of that language. It is such a study that reveals the history and development of words in that particular language. Unlike most modern western languages, eastern languages, including Sinhala, have their unique word formations. It is such features that maintain the character and nature (unique personality) of each such language. Hence, any attempt made, sans such a study, would result in coining words that act as foreign bodies in the eye.

Technical terms in their proper sense, are not only confined to words relating to modern science and technology. The country has had a history of an advanced irrigation technology, architectural and sculptural technology, as well an advanced agricultural technology, medicine and astrology. Moreover, the advent of Buddhism entailed a planned coinage of terms and phrases capable of rendering its philosophy in its pure and serene form. Buddhism demanded exactitude in the usage of words and phrases so as to connote the quality of being very accurate.

The Sinhala language could, therefore, be described as a veritable palimpsest (an inscription in which the former records are found in the layers beneath the current surface) revealing the nation’s history, its technological advances, vastness of its civilization, richness of its literature and exhaustiveness of its vocabulary. Hence, to ignore such a repertoire of a nation’s wealth is, in fact, a heinous crime.

Overshadowing of language by Sanskritization

A study of the language, and more specifically the attempts made to render new knowledge into Sinhala, would reveal that for the last several years the process had led to deforming the character / characteristics of the nation’s most valued possession. In short it has been a steady process of ‘sanskritization’ of the language.

The language-sanskritization-process is not only confined to the Sinhala language. Short-sighted consultants, translators, and incompetent people had sought refuge in the Sanskrit language, and more specifically, Sanskrit roots of verbs and nouns to render borrowed knowledge into the Tamil language. The process of rendering knowledge of foreign sources, in fact, had commenced in South India much earlier, that is, as early as 1940s.

This is what a memorandum submitted by the ‘Committee of Educationists to the Government of Madras’, stated, as far back as 1941, on the coining of technical terms:

"Though a common terminology may be possible in Northern India where Hindustani and Sanskrit have mingled together very much and local languages have been greatly modified by them, such a terminology would be unsuited to the Tamil area where Tamils have preserved the purity of their language. Words coined must have Tamil roots and suffixes to make them intelligible to the Tamils."

Language planning, Standardization and coinage of technical terms

The Department of Swabhasha (1956), and subsequently, the Department of Official Languages (1962) were established initially to meet the urgent needs of the implementation of the Official Languages Act. However, it needs to be admitted that such hurried acts have affected the development of the language, as the executors had not been able to identify the salient characteristics of the language, and how an unplanned exercise would affect the future of the language. What is heard over the electronic media, as well as in the printed media, provide ample evidence of this debacle.

The Sinhala language possesses the desired efficacy, strength, prowess, flexibility, methodology and an exhaustive vocabulary to meet any demand made on the language as described above. As such, our language should not be made a vassalage of Sanskrit or any other language

(The writer is Manager, Training and Publications, Postgraduate Institute of Management, Member. Central Committee, Hela Havula)