Odia is a classical Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the official language in Odisha, where native speakers make up 82% of the population, and it is also spoken in parts of West Bengal, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. Odia is one of the many official languages of India; it is the official language of Odisha and the second official language of Jharkhand. The Odia language has various dialects varieties, including the Baleswari Odia, Kataki, Ganjami Odia, Sundargadi Odia, Sambalpuri, Desia and Tribal Community dialects who spoken by the tribals groups in Odisha who adopted the Odia language.
Sarala Dasa was a 15th-century poet and scholar of Odia literature. Best known for three Odia books — Sarala Mahabharata, Vilanka Ramayana and Chandi Purana — he was the first scholar to write in Odia and his revered as the Adi Kabi of Odia literature. As an originator of Odia literature, his work has formed an enduring source of information for succeeding generations.
Sambalpur University is a public research university located in Burla town, of district Sambalpur, India, in the state of Odisha. Popularly known as Jyoti Vihar, it offers courses at the undergraduate, post-graduate and doctoral (Ph.D.) levels. The governor of Odisha is the chancellor of the university. The campus is located 15 km away from Sambalpur.
Odia literature is literature written in the Odia language, mostly from the Indian state of Odisha. The modern Odia language is mostly formed from Tadbhava words with significant Sanskrit (Tatsama) influences, along with loanwords from Desaja, English, Hindustani (Hindi/Urdu), Persian, and Arabic. Its earliest written texts date from around 1000 CE. The earliest Odia newspaper was Utkala Deepika, first published on August 4, 1866.
Kabi SamrataUpendra Bhanja, Odia:[upend̪ɾɔbʰɔɲd͡ʒɔ] ) was a 17th-century Odia poet-composer of classical Odissi music. He is most known for his Odissi songs and kabyas written in the Odia language, primarily Baidehisa Bilasa, Labanyabati & Koti Brahmanda Sundari.
Odisha is one of the 28 states of India, located on the eastern coast. It is surrounded by the states of West Bengal to the northeast, Jharkhand to the north, Chhattisgarh to the west and northwest, and Andhra Pradesh to the south and southwest. Odia is the official and most widely spoken language, spoken by 33.2 million according to the 2001 Census. The modern state of Odisha was established on 1 April 1936, as a province in British India, and consisted predominantly of Odia-speaking regions. April 1 is celebrated as Odisha Day.
Sambalpuri is an Indo-Aryan language variety spoken in western Odisha, India. It is alternatively known as Western Odia, and as Kosali, a recently popularised but controversial term, which draws on an association with the historical region of Dakshina Kosala, whose territories also included the present-day Sambalpur region.
Gangadhar Meher University, Amruta Vihar, formerly Sambalpur College and Gangadhar Meher College, is a state university situated in Sambalpur, Odisha, India. It is named after the Odia poet, Gangadhar Meher. N. Nagaraju is the current vice-chancellor, while Smt. Jugaleswari Dash is the registrar and Uma Charan Pati is the deputy registrar.
Dr. Haldhar Nag born 31 March 1950) is a Sambalpuri poet and writer from Bargarh, Odisha, India. Popularly known as "Lok Kabi Ratna", meaning "folk poet gem"). He was awarded Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award of India by Government of India in 2016.
Kosalananda Kavyam is a Sanskrit work written on a palm-leaf manuscript in Odia script, in 1663 CE by Pandit Gangadhara Mishra. The work is an important epic of Sanskrit literature about the history of Chauhan rule in Western Odisha region. Pandit Mishra was the court poet of Sambalpur King Baliarsingh Deva. He was born at Biraramchandrapur sasana of Puri and was the descendant of Sambhukara and Vidyakara, scholars and poets of Puri.
Sambalpur, in Western Odisha, is a region that has a distinct cultural identity. The songs, clothing, dances, language, Food and festivals celebrated in Sambalpur and Western Odisha are unique. This distinct cultural identity arises from the strong association of the tribal and folk communities which have been coexisting in Sambalpur and Other Districts Of Western Odisha Region for centuries.
Brajanath Ratha was an Indian poet who wrote in Odia. Brajanath Ratha is internationally recognised and is the recipient of many prestigious awards like the Odisha Sahitya Academy Award, Vishuba Award, Gokarnika Award, First Shudramuni Sahitya Award and Honoured by South Korea's Ambassador, from Global Cooperation Society International, Seol, Republic of Korea for Contribution in World welfare, Cooperation and Services.
Pandit Nilakantha Das (1884-1967) was one of the most illustrious sons of Odisha, who appeared both in its political and literary arena at the most crucial period of its history, when Odisha had no political identity in the map of India, and Odia as a language was about to be extinct. He worked relentlessly for Odisha's recognition both politically and linguistically, and helped bring to fruition the dreams of Utkala Gaurab Madhusudan Das, Utkalamani Gopabandhu Das and all other Odia loving people.
The Jagamohana Ramayana also known as the Dandi Ramayana popularly across Odisha is an epic poem composed by the 15th-century poet Balarama Dasa. This work is a retelling of the Ramayana, though not a direct translation.
Abhimanyu Samanta Singhara was an 18th-century Odia poet born in Balia, Jajpur best known as the writer of the kabya Bidagdha Chintamani. Abhimanyu was one of the important musician-poets in the tradition of Odissi music in the 18th century, composing mainly in the Chhānda style. He has also written many Odia folk songs like Bagha Gita, Chadhei Gita. He has written many poems about the love between Radha and Krishna.
Balarama Dasa was an Odia poet and litterateur. He was one of the 5 great poets in Odia literature, the Panchasakha named Sri Ananta Dasa, Sri Jagannatha Dasa, Sri Jasobanta Dasa and Sri Achyutananda Dasa during the Bhakti age of literature. He was the eldest of the Pancha sakha. He wrote the Jagamohana Ramayana also known as Dandi Ramayana.
Gangadhar National Award For Poetry is a literary award given in the field of literature for poetry by Sambalpur University. It is named after Gangadhar Meher. First award was given to Ali Sardar Jafri in the year 1991. 31 poets have been awarded on various Indian languages until now.
Pandit Laxminarayan Mishra was an Indian Nationalist, Educationist, politician and writer from Odisha, India. He was one of the most active nationalists of Western Odisha. Being a staunch nationalist and a follower of the Indian Independence movement, he left school and joined the movement. He spent his years preaching ideas of revolution and in time was spent 17 years in prison. In prison he spent a considerable amount time learning many languages such as Gujarati, Persian, and Urdu, as well as religious readings. This earned him the title of Pandit from many other freedom fighters. His descendants live in Sambalpur.
Hussain Rabi Gandhi was an Indian Odia writer of the late-twentieth century, a politician, a public intellectual and a cultural activist hailing from the Indian state of Odisha. Being a founder member of Biju Janata Dal, he served as the general secretary of the party from upon its formation in 1998 till 2005. In 1994 the title of Biplabi Loka Kabi was conferred upon him by the Mayor of Cuttack. He was also awarded with the title of Utkala Jyoti in 1996 by the then Deputy chief minister of Odisha, Basant Kumar Biswal on the behalf of Freedom Fighter's Organisation. Gandhi primarily wrote in Odia language and was bestowed with the Secular India Harmony Award in 1993 by the former President of India, Giani Zail Singh and with the Gangadhar Meher Kabita award in 2015 for his notable contributions to the field of Odia poetry. Hussain served as the President of Odisha Sahitya Akademi (2008–2010). He was famously known as the Gandhi of Korei and was regarded as a bridge between Western Odisha and Coastal Odisha. He also served as Lead Member of Smt. Nandini Satpathy Memorial Trust (SNSMT).
