"Gaudasaraswatha" brahmins speaking Konkani

[Madhav Deshpande]

The word gauDa is used both in a narrow and and a wide sense.  In its narrow sense it refers to Bengal, but in its wider sense it refers to the whole of north India (north of Narmada river to be exact) in the concept of panca-gauDa brahmins.  This is also true of the word draviDa.  In its narrow sense, the word is used to refer to Tamils, but in its wider sense, it covers south India, but also includes Gujarat, in the concept of Panca draviDa.
 
Madhav Deshpande

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From: Indology on behalf of jkirk
Sent: Wed 11/24/2004 4:24 PM
To: INDOLOGY at liverpool.ac.uk
Subject: Re: "Gaudasaraswatha" brahmins speaking Konkani



But wasn't Gauda in Bengal?????? how could it be northern then?
Joanna K.

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The GSB claim, in part on the basis of certain chapters of the
Sahyadrikhanda (see my article mentioned in the previous email), that
Parasurama found that the local Brahmins in the Marathi/Konkani regions,
namely the Chitpavans and the Karhade (=karahataka) turned out to be
unworthy, and that he finally brought a community of northern (gauda)
brahmins to the region of Konkan.

Madhav Deshpande