Gourt Home::Gourt :: Dakshina Kannada
Dakshina Kannada, also called South Kannada, South Kanara, or South Canara, is a coastal district of India's Karnataka state. It is bordered by the districts of Udupi to the north, Chikkamagaluru to the northeast, Hassan District to the east, Kodagu to the southeast, and Kasaragod in Kerala to the south. The Arabian Sea bounds it on the west. Mangalore is the capital and chief city of the district.
The population of the district was 1,897,730 of which 38.43% is urban as of 2001. * The population of the district increased 14.51% from 1991 to 2001, and 15.98% in the 1981-1991 period.
The district is divided into five talukas, Mangalore, Bantwal, Puttur, Sullia, and Belthangady.It used to include three northern talukas, Udupi, Kundapur and Karkal, but these were separated in August 1997 to form Udupi district. Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts are often called Tulu Nadu, as Tulu is the majority language in the region. However, Tulu language and people have been closely associated with Kannada language as Tulu itself has been written in Kannada script for a long time. The Alupas rulers who ruled this region between 8th-14th century CE ecncouraged and made Kannada their official language. It is for this reason that the Tulu speaking districts are a part of Karnataka state.
Background
Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada districts were together called Kannada district before independence. Until 1860, Canara, South and North were under a single administration. In that year, the British split the area into South Canara and North Canara, the former being retained in the Madras Presidency, while the later was made a part of Bombay Province in 1862. Coondapur taluka was earlier included in North Canara, but was re-included in South Canara later. Kasaragod taluka was transferred to Cannanore District when the States were reorganized in 1956.
The mainstream Kannada speakers are a minority in these districts. However, three dialects of Kannada, namely Havyaka, Kundapura kannada and Are Bhashe are spoken along with majority Tulu and Konkani languages. Also, a sizeable population of Muslims, the Bearys, who speak their own language.
Some Malayali literature describe the region stretching from Chandragiri River in Kasaragod District of Kerala to Gokarna in Uttara Kannada as Tulu Nadu. However, present day Tulu cultural boundary is limited to Udupi taluk of Udupi district.
"Dakshina Kannada"