SATARA

Language often serves as a representation of a region’s rich history and cultural heritage. Satara, a district known for its multi-community nature, is home to numerous languages. Yet, owing to its roots of warrior heritage and being a mainstay of the Maratha empire in the 16th century, Marathi is significantly the most prominent language in Satara. However, the ‘deshi’ Marathi in Satara doesn’t merely mimic that of Pune. Through alteration in phrases, pronunciation, and structure, the Marathi spoken in Satara creates a separate identity for itself. The informality of this Marathi variation, locals say, exemplifies the close-knit and familial character of Satara.

According to the 2011 Census of India, Satara district had a total population of 30,03,741. Marathi was the most widely reported mother tongue, spoken by 93.05% of the population. Other reported languages included Hindi (3.62%), Urdu (0.90%), Kannada (0.67%), and Telugu (0.31%). Other languages, including Gujarati, Vadari, Marwari, and Lamani/Lambadi, are spoken by smaller communities, collectively making up a fraction of the population.

Satara and Pune make up the Desh region in Maharashtra. Thus, it is said that the Marathi they speak is of the ‘Deshi’ variety. Satara served as one of the seats of the Maratha empire under Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Since Marathi developed under Maratha rule from Maharashtri Prakrit, along with local Dravidian substratum influences, the ‘deshi’ Marathi spoken here came to be regarded as the standard form of Marathi.

Even though both Satara and Pune speak the ‘deshi’ Marathi, the Marathi variant spoken in Satara is characterized by locals to be more ‘informal’. The linguistic variety in Satara is known to be distinctly recognizable upon listening. It has its own traits and variations in pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar that distinguish it from the Deshi Marathi of Pune.

Several characteristic sound changes occur in Satara’s Deshi Marathi:

Firstly, the letter ण [ɳ] (retroflex nasal), common in Puneri Marathi, is largely replaced with न [n] (dental nasal). For example:

• पाणी (pani) [paːɳi] (water) becomes पानी (pani) [paːni]

Secondly, the consonant व [v] is often replaced with य [j]:

• वेगळं (vegalam) [vegəɭəm] (different) transforms into यगळं (yagalam) [jəgəɭəm]

Vowel omission occurs frequently, with emphasis on अ [ə] to create words that are more efficient in everyday usage:

• भाकरी (bhakri) [bʰaːkri] (local bread) becomes भाकर (bhakar) [bʰaːkər]
• चहा (chaha) [tʃəhaː] (tea) becomes चा (cha) [tʃaː]
• आहे (aahe) [aːhe] (is) becomes हाय (hay) [haːj]
• नाही (nahi) [naːhi] (no/not) becomes नाय (nay) [naːj]
• चालेल (chalel) [tʃaːlel] (will work) becomes चालल (chalal) [tʃaːləl]
• दिवस (divas) [divəs] (day) becomes दीस (dis) [diːs]

Additionally, the ‘r’ and ‘h’ sounds are pronounced with greater intensity, while the consonants “t” and “d” are pronounced with increased aspiration giving it a breathy quality. English loanwords undergo phonological adaptation, such as:

• “mutton” pronounced as मटान (matan) [məʈaːn]

The word की (ki) [ki] appears frequently in daily speech in phrases like:

• झालय की (zhalay ki) [dʒʰaːləj ki] (it is done)
• जावा की (java ki) [dʒaːvaː ki] (go)

Instead of सकाळ (sakal) [səkaːɭ] (morning), the metaphorical phrase तांबड फुटलं (tambad phutlam) [taːmbəɖ pʰuʈləm] (red has arisen/exploded) is used.

Locals note that formal speech is rarely used in everyday Satara Marathi. Even personal names undergo transformation, typically using only the first half of the name and adding specific suffixes: an "e-" sounding suffix for female names and a "ya-" suffix for male names. For example:

• प्रकाश (Prakash) [prəkaːʃ] [male name] becomes पकया (Pakya) [pəkja]
• कांता (Kanta) [kaːntaː] [female name] becomes कांते (Kante) [kaːnte]

Instead of saying शौचालय (shauchalay) [ʃəutʃaːləj] meaning 'toilet', more direct terms like हागायला (hagayla) [haːgaːjlaː] meaning 'defecating' and मुथायला (muthayla) [mutʰaːjlaː] meaning 'urinating' are commonly used, reflecting the informal nature of the dialect. More of such variations in words include:

Intonation is a technical term that refers to the rise and fall of pitch in spoken language, shaping meaning, emotion, and emphasis in communication. In Deshi Marathi of Satara, locals note a distinct intonation pattern. When spoken, the Satara variant exhibits a characteristic हेळ (hel) or pitch modulation, typically descending from a higher to a lower pitch within sentences. They point out that this intonation pattern contrasts notably with other variants of Marathi such as Kolhapuri.

These linguistic features contribute to the unique identity of Satara’s Marathi, reflecting the region’s cultural heritage and communal character. This distinct variation has shaped a rich linguistic tradition that remains integral to the identity of the region and continues to evolve over time.