pandal

[Maheswaran Nair]

Hello,
The word pantal - the t is voiced - is still used as such in Malayalam  
in the sense of "a temporary roof, a shed, booth, shelter,
  or triumphal arch, esp. for temporary use (at a festival, etc.); a marquee;
a tent or booth for a marriage." Thanneerpantal wherefrom water is  
supplied especially in summer, is famous in Tamilnadu.
K.Maheswaran Nair
University of Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram

Quoting George Hart <glhart at BERKELEY.EDU>:

> The word pantal (or pantar) -- the t is voiced -- occurs many times in
> Sangam literature, 1-3rd CE.  It is definitely a Dravidian word.  DED
> 3299 lists cognates, with almost the same meaning, in almost every
> central and southern Dravidian language.  That means it probably goes
> back 3000 or more years, to before these languages separated --
> especially as the cognates do not seem to be borrowings.  Emeneau once
> told me that of all the Indo-Aryan languages, Bengali and its close
> relatives seem most affected by a Dravidian substratum, so it's
> scarcely surprising that a Dravidian word crops up in Bengali.  George
> Hart
>
> On Nov 5, 2007, at 9:03 AM, Richard Salomon wrote:
>
>> If my memory is correct, this term is also used in Bengal in   
>> reference to the elaborate displays which are erected each year for  
>>  Durga-puja. So perhaps not Dravidian, or at least not exclusively  
>> so.
>>
>> Richard Salomon
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ute Huesken"   
>> <ute.huesken at URZ.UNI-HEIDELBERG.DE>
>> To: <INDOLOGY at liverpool.ac.uk>
>> Sent: Saturday, November 03, 2007 3:09 PM
>> Subject: pandal
>>
>>
>> Dear list members,
>>
>> I need some help with the etymology and usage of the term "pandal" (or
>> pantal, in Tamil).
>>
>> "pandal" is usually rendered as "a temporary roof, a shed, booth, shelter,
>> or triumphal arch, esp. for temporary use (at a festival, etc.); a marquee;
>> a tent or booth for a marriage."
>>
>> The Madras Tamil Dictionary says:
>> pantalpirittal the ceremony of removing the pandal erected for   
>> marriage, etc.
>> pantalvaricai money presented to the bride and bridegroom at the   
>> marriage pandal
>>
>> From Northern Tamil Nadu I am familiar with the ritual "pantalkal", the
>> worship of the first pole of a pandal at an auspicious moment, before the
>> pandal is erected. Moreover, here the term pandal seems not to be restricted
>> to marriage tents or -marquees, but to all temporary roofs erected at any
>> auspicious occasion; not only for domestic rituals, but also for temple
>> festivals.
>>
>> Regards,
>> Ute Huesken