# Kodava speakers seek official language tag after centuries 2026-08-12T15:41:05+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet The Codava National Council and the Karnataka Kodava Sahitya Akademi are pressing for Kodava to be added to the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, which recognises 22 official languages. The language, spoken by 17 communities in Kodagu district, has unique words and a separate script called thirke, derived from South Indian Grantha. Linguistic scholars consider Kodava older than Malayalam but younger than Tamil and Kannada. The 2001 and 2011 censuses recorded a sharp drop in speakers, driven by low birth rates and voluntary shift to Kannada or Malayalam. Field Marshal K.M. Cariappa, actor Rashmika Mandanna, and Gulshan Devaiah are among prominent Kodava speakers. The earliest known Kodava word in an inscription dates to 888 CE. Despite scholarly recognition as a distinct Dravidian language since the 19th century, many still treat it as a Kannada dialect. ## Coverage - frontline.thehindu.com Tags: Dravidian languages, Eighth Schedule, Karnataka, Kodagu, Kodava language, linguistic diversity Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/kodava-speakers-seek-official-language-tag-after-centuries/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/kodava-speakers-seek-official-language-tag-after-centuries/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.