127. Ancient proper names

What is in a name? Yes, but the style and pattern of names have changed drastically in Tulunadu over the years. Older generation of Tulu people carried names that now remain exclusively with illiterate tribes; or are in the process of getting obsolete. Many of the names are generally unintelligible. Do you have meanings for these names especially those in the boldface? The symbol (f) denotes female names.

(Possible logical meanings have been added as running updates.)


aNNu [=boy,brother]
biyalu'
bileyecchi(f) [=very fair lady.'Bili'=white,fair; 'ecchi'=1.more 2.trance 3.shiver 4.form]
bommi (f) [= from bomma <. brahma]
chennu(f) [= beauty]
choma [= <.Soma,moon]
choukaru [?]
dabbu =1.useless fellow,dullard .2.Coin/money (Telugu)3.Force,energy?
Dangu =Bent or hunchbacked ? ;2.announcement as in 'Dangura'?
deyi [=lady]
dooma ?= Smoky?
dugga [=<.'durga',fort]
duggu(f) [=<.'durga',fort, the Goddess Durga]
Gail-akka (f) =graceful?,shrew?
haniya [=<.taniya, shani,saturn]
hukra [=<.tukra, shukra. venus]
kāmpara [= a tribal,>.'gāmpa',dull fellow?]
kanDu(f)
kargi (f)[=dark lady]
kariya [dark man]
kepu [=red or reddish?]
koira=Kokila , Koyil > Koira, i.e. cukoo?
koraga [= Man,tribal type]
korapoLu(f)[= Woman,tribal type]
koregedi(f)[= Woman,tribal type]
kunji(f) [=child]
kurumbila= one with curly hair.
kuTTi[=child]
mābu= short form of Mahabala?
madara=sturdy man?
madaru (f)=fertile lady?
māda = from Mahadev?
mādi (f)
mayire(f)= [ from mayuri,'mayura'-peacock]
māyila [=1.mother. 'Mayi' from Buddhism? 2.cf. 'māya']
Mecchu (f)=favorite
meNku(f)[=shining,star]
monTa [short fellow?]
monTi (f)[short woman]
mudara
munDa [=leader,man; a tribal group]
muTTi
narsi (f)[=from Narsu, female of Narasimha?]
natu : corrupt form of 1) Nath or 2) Nataraj ? 3) a grand child ( Marathi.)
niTToNi= nitt (straight) + Oni (lane ) , a upright and tall person (?)
ODi=sorcerer?
pakira= nomadic
pāncha
piletti (f)
sooru=valiant
taniya [=shani,saturn]
tanni-māniga(f)[=sister,>'tangi';respectable(lady}]
toma [=soma,moon]

Other Planetary proper names:
Aita, Aite(f) Choma/Toma, Angare, Booda, Guruva, Tukra/Hukra, Taniya/Taniyaru(f).
(Planets representing the days of the week from Sun [Aita.< Aditya] to Saturn[Shani>Tani-ya}
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Narayana T.Shetty adds some more such older names:

baikle
bekku [=cat]
bermu [=bermer]
biTTu(f)
biyālu(f)
boLe [=fair man]
bUche= from 'Bhoja/e'? 2. 'boochi'= a plug
challe
chungle=
donbe [a tribal, street player 'domba']
dogu
doye
dUje=sharp-witted fellow.
jāku (f)
giriyamme (f)[ =hilly woman,Parvati 'giriamma']
jāru
kāDye [=Naga]
kanboLi [woolen blanket]
kanki (f)['kanka/kanki'? a tribal name- cf. place name:'KankanāDi']
kattoDi
kOchu
kOtu [=from 'Kota', a tribal]
kuDpe [=Naga? One who 'shivers' or 'stings'?]
kuppe [=stocky man?]
kUsu [=a tribal man,'Koosa'.'Kosar' in Tamil Sangam, later meaning 'a child']
munglie [='munguli',mangoose]
nātu
pakire [=wanderer,nomadic]
pUnke
pOnkre=prankster, related to pokri/ponkri?
sankri (f)[=Parvati, from 'Shankara']
sUru (f) [=sun,'soorya']
tātu (f)
tungu (f)[=Tunga, river?]
Uvayye [='hoovayya',floral man]
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Hosabettu Viswanath has added some useful notes on sarcastic tinges in the ancient proper names:

Most of the names are adjectives, highlighting the types of physique, physical/mental abilities or defects, generally coming under the word: 'idiosyncrasies', and therefore, invariably sarcastic.

Bittu/Bitte = small. Hence a person with short constitution.
Biyalu' (Woman walking like a galloping horse, i.e. 'vaihali'?)
Challe = A man with bent or afflicted legs. (Ashtavakra), one who walks unsteadily.
Pincha/e = A man with twisted body
Cheenkre/Seenkre = a man with thin and delicate body
Bikle/Bikkele = A man talking with gasping or a stammerer
Duje = a man with needle-like smartness
POnkre = A dirty and dull man
PUnk = 1.from Pooki (dirty gas coming out of ass) or 2. Mould. Therefore, meaning a dirty man with bad odour/smell.
Mudar = Fertile soil. Mudarmuttu = attaining puberty. So, Mudara may mean a sturdy/robust/vigorous/manly person and mudari = a woman with fertility.


Some houses take names of such old-fashioned names of ancestors (Tankalthil, i.e. my house, Deralthil, Baddalthil, Mayilthil, Bontalthil, Montalthil, Keppalthil, Panchalthil, Konikalthil, etc. - all in Hosabettu) (... + alta + il)

Kurumbila = A kind of weed growing in paddy field. Hence, a despicable person
Kurumbile = a man with curly and dishevelled hair. A man with 'African' curly hair?
KOchu = Koche, Kochappa (Gumma). Angular,thin person?
ODi = a tall person(?)
Nodakka = a good looking woman (?)
Bayakka = a loud-mouthed woman? Or from 'Bāyi',lady.
Achchumakka = A well-shaped woman?
Derakka = ?
Chillakka = ?
Poovanni/Poovanne =Person having the qualities (smoothness/delicacy/fragrance) of a flower
Abbayakka = From 'Abbaga' = a star.
Dareyakka = Daramakka = Taramakka (Tarame) = A woman shining like Star.

Mangura
Mangura/Mangure = a deceitful person (?). Mangu is a kind of insect (resembling the shape of a tortoise or lice), living/hiding inside the loose soil/sand by burrowing tiny cylindrical pit at undisturbed places. It is supposed that this insect is at the tip of that cone below but it lives away from that point. In childhood, it was a competitive game for us to find out as many 'mangus' as possible. Because of the deceitful nature of hiding, 'Mangu' is identified with deceit/cheating (eg. Mangu pattavuni = to cheat)
'Mangu' also means a she cat. Hence applied to a girl of silly and docile nature.

natu : 1) Nath (Lord) gets corrupted to Natu as an endearment; 2) Nataraj is shortened to Natu as a pet name and 3) Natu, a grand child (?), as in Marathi.
Koira - As Mayoor is to Maira/e, could Kokila mean Koyil > Koira, i.e. cukoo?
Dangu: Bent or hunchbacked woman.
Dabbu: Worthless coin, hence a good for nothing fellow/dullard
Mabu: Short form of Mahabala
NittOni: nitt (straight) + Oni (lane or line or is it Aeni (Ladder), hence a upright and tall person ( ? ).
Chungle
= A sticky/troublesome person whom one finds it difficult to avoid. Alternatively, an obscure person.
Chungu = Dunchi = Sungu = Kuchchi. It means a pointed/protruding tip/shaggy or thorny edge of grass, hay, fabric/cloth, hair, shoe , etc. It sticks to clothes or pinches fleshy parts of our body. Study this wise-cracker in Tulu: 'Poddare salo, Poddeppuda ulayina/da chungu'. This saying advises a person not to take loan from father-in-law or relatives. Such loans are as pricking as a thorn in a blanket.
Chungudi = small changes/coins, hence a worthless thing or unimportant thing.
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