[INDOLOGY] Date of the Tolkappiyam

[Jean-Luc Chevillard]

Dear Herman,

I do not see what is /ad hominem/ in my statement.

Jan's sentence is ambiguous.

It could mean

(A) the most generally accepted etymogy of Tolkāppiyam [AMONG THOSE WHO 
HAVE STUDIED THAT TREATISE] is "old Kāvya"

or

(B) the most generally accepted etymogy of Tolkāppiyam [AMONG 
INDOLOGISTS IN GENERAL] is "old Kāvya"

What I am saying is that (B) may be true but that I believe (A) is not true.

Best wishes

-- Jean-Luc

https://univ-paris-diderot.academia.edu/JeanLucChevillard

https://twitter.com/JLC1956




On 07/05/2018 17:02, Tieken, H.J.H. wrote:
> I always thought that on this list ad hominem remarks are not permitted. Therefore I am amazed that Jean-Luc Chevillard's mail has passed the moderators. I refer to the sentence "It is indeed an opinion current among those who have not read Tolkāppiyam", by which Jan Houben is set aside and disqualified to express an idea about the origin of the title Tolkāppiyam. All this, only to get rid of the word kāvya in the name Tolkāppiyam. Strictly speaking this move is not even necessary, that is, unnecessary for those who claim an early date of Caṅkam poetry, as the word kāvya is almost certainly older than the 9th century; see Stephanie Jamison, The Rig Veda Between Two Worlds, p. 144.
> The type of argument used by Chevillard is typical of many Tamil scholars: about me (and not only about me but also to my face, in Pondichery and at JNU) they say that I do not know Tamil, for if I knew I would not date Caṅkam that late.
> Here I stop, this is my last mail in this particular thread.
> Herman
> 
> Herman Tieken
> Stationsweg 58
> 2515 BP Den Haag
> The Netherlands
> 00 31 (0)70 2208127
> website: hermantieken.com
> 
> ________________________________________
> Van: INDOLOGY [indology-bounces at list.indology.info] namens Jean-Luc Chevillard via INDOLOGY [indology at list.indology.info]
> Verzonden: maandag 7 mei 2018 16:03
> Aan: indology at list.indology.info
> Onderwerp: Re: [INDOLOGY] Date of the Tolkappiyam
> 
> Dear Jan,
> 
> I don't believe wwhat you say is true.
> 
> However, it is indeed an opinion current among those who have not read
> the Tolkāppiyam.
> 
> But if one reads the Tolkāppiyam, one will not find this explanation to
> make much sense.
> 
> My preferred explanation is the traditional explanation, current among
> native Tamil scholars, which derives the name from தொல்காப்பியக்குடி
> [tolkāppiyakkuṭi] which is the name of a clan (or gotra? or village?).
> 
> However,
> life being short
> and this topic having already been discussed on this very mailing list,
> NINE years ago (in April 2009),
> I shall leave it at that.
> 
> அன்புடன் [aṉpuṭaṉ]
> 
> -- Jean-Luc
> 
> https://univ-paris-diderot.academia.edu/JeanLucChevillard
> 
> https://twitter.com/JLC1956
> 
> 
> 
> On 07/05/2018 11:40, Jan E.M. Houben via INDOLOGY wrote:
>> the most generally accepted etymogy of Tolkāppiyam is "old Kāvya"
> 
> 
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