Jump to content

G. N. Devy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Padma Shri

Ganesh Narayandas Devy
Born(1950-08-01)1 August 1950(age 73)
Bhor,Pune District,
Bombay State(nowMaharashtra),India
OccupationCritic, thinker, editor, educator, cultural activist
NationalityIndian
GenreLiterary Criticism
Notable awards

Ganesh Narayandas Devy(born 1 August 1950)[1]is an Indian cultural activist, literary critic and former professor of English. He is known for thePeople's Linguistic Survey of India[2]and the Adivasi Academy created by him.[3]He is credited with starting the Bhaashaa research and Publication Centre.[4]He writes in three languages—Marathi, Gujarati and English. His first full-length book in English isAfter Amnesia(1992).[5]He has written and edited close to ninety books in areas including Literary Criticism, Anthropology, Education, Linguistics and Philosophy.[6]

Biography[edit]

G. N. Devy was educated atShivaji University,Kolhapurand theUniversity of Leeds,UK.Among his many academic assignments, he held fellowships atLeeds UniversityandYale Universityand has been THB Symons Fellow (1991–92) andJawaharlal Nehru Fellow(1994–96). He was a Professor of English at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda from 1980 to 96. In 1996, he gave up his academic career in order to initiate work with the Denotified and Nomadic Tribes (DNT) and Adivasis. During this work, he created the Bhasha Research and Publication Centre at Baroda, the Adivasis Academy at Tejgadh, the DNT-Rights Action Group and several other initiatives. Later he initiated the largest-ever survey of languages in history, carried out with the help of nearly 3000 volunteers and published in 50 multilingual volumes. Devy has continued to combine his academic work with his work for the marginalised communities and cultures. After creating the Adivasi Academy, Devy worked as Professor of Humanities at the Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information Technology (2003-2014), Gandhinagar, Honorary Professor at the Centre for Multidisciplinary Development Research, Dharwad( 2015-18), Obaid Siddiqi Chair Professor at the National Centre for Biological Sciences—TIFR, Bangalore (2022-23) and is currently Professor of Eminence and Director, school of Civilisation at the Somaiya Vidyavihar University, Bombay.

Dakshinayan[edit]

In response to the growing intolerance and murders of several intellectuals in India, he launched the Dakshinayan (Southward) movement of artists, writers, and intellectuals. In order to lead this movement, he moved toDharwadin 2016. The Dakshinayan movement follows the ideas ofMahatma Gandhiand Dr.Babasaheb Ambedkar.

Awards[edit]

G. N. Devy has received several Lifetime Achievement Awards. He was awardedPadma Shrion 26 January 2014 in recognition of his work with denotified andnomadic tribesand endangered languages.[7]He was awarded theSahitya Akademi Award(1993) forAfter Amnesia,and theSAARCWriters’ Foundation Award (2001) for his work with denotified tribals. He was given the reputedPrince Claus Award(2003) for his work for the conservation of tribal arts and craft. His Marathi bookVanaprasthreceived eight awards including theDurga BhagwatMemorial Award and the Maharashtra Foundation Award. Along withLaxman GaikwadandMahashweta Devi,he was one of the founders of The Denotified and Nomadic Tribes Rights Action Group (DNT-RAG). He won the 2011Linguapax Prizefor his work for the preservation of linguistic diversity.[8]

Works[edit]

  • Critical Thought(1987)
  • After Amnesia(1992)[9]
  • Of Many Heroes(1997)[10]
  • India Between Tradition and Modernity(co-edited, 1997)
  • In Another Tongue(1992)
  • Indian Literary Criticism: Theory & Interpretation(2002).[11]
  • Painted Words: An Anthology of Tribal Literature(editor, 2002).
  • A Nomad Called Thief(2006)[12]
  • Keywords: Truth(contributor, date unknown)
  • Vaanprastha(in Marathi, date unknown)
  • Adivasi Jane Che(Tribal People Knows,in Gujarati, date unknown).
  • The G. N. Devy Reader(2009)[13]
  • The Being of Bhasha (2014)
  • Samvad ( in Gujarati, 2016)
  • The Crisis Within: On Knowledge and Education in India (2017)[14]
  • Trijyaa (in Marathi, 2018)
  • The question of Silence (2019)
  • Countering Violence (2019)
  • Being Adivasi: Existence, Entitlements, Exclusion (co-edited; 2022)[15]
  • Mahabharata: The Epic and the Nation (2022)[16]
  • Badalata Bharat

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^"Sahitya Akademi: Who's Who of Indian Writers".Sahitya Akademi.Archived fromthe originalon 8 December 2015.Retrieved24 March2019.
  2. ^Rana, Ratika (28 April 2022)."Settling The Language Debate: Here's How Hindi Is Far From Becoming India's National Language".thelogicalindian.
  3. ^Kaushik, Martand (1 July 2018)."How GN Devy challenges our concept of knowledge".The Caravan.Retrieved7 December2019.
  4. ^"Baroda NGO - Bhasha Research and Publication Centre".baroda.Retrieved16 April2019.
  5. ^Devy, G. N. (1 January 1992).After Amnesia.Orient Longman.ISBN9780863112676.
  6. ^"The Centre Cannot Hold: How G. N. Devy Challenges Our Concept of Knowledge".vikalpsangam.org.23 July 2018.Retrieved26 February2021.
  7. ^"Print Release".22 February 2014. Archived fromthe originalon 22 February 2014.Retrieved30 December2018.
  8. ^"Devy gets Linguapax Award - Times of India".The Times of India.7 June 2011.Retrieved30 December2018.
  9. ^Rayan, Krishna (1993). "Review: THE CASE FOR NATIVISM".Indian Literature.36(4 (156)): 188–191.JSTOR44295534.
  10. ^Mund, Subhendu (2002). "Reviewed Work: Of Many Heroes: An Indian Essay in Literary Historiography by G.N. Devy".Indian Literature.46(1 (207)): 188–191.JSTOR23344554.
  11. ^Perry, John Oliver; Devy, G. N. (2003). "Reviewed Work: Indian Literary Criticism: Theory and Interpretation by G. N. Devy".World Literature Today.77(1): 95–96.doi:10.2307/40157830.JSTOR40157830.
  12. ^Heredia, Rudolf C. (2006). "Review: Redeeming the Silence".Economic and Political Weekly.41(42): 4437–4438.JSTOR4418832.
  13. ^Devy, G. N. (2009).The G N Devy Reader.Orient Blackswan.ISBN9788125036937.
  14. ^Devy, G. N. (2017).The Crisis Within: On Knowledge and Education in India.Aleph Book Company.ISBN9789383064106.
  15. ^Being Adivasi: Existence, Entitlements, Exclusion.Penguin Random House. 2022.ISBN9780670093007.
  16. ^Devy, G. N. (2022).Mahabharata: The Epic and the Nation.RUPA.ISBN9789390652907.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=G._N._Devy&oldid=1225014319"