L. Vishwanatha Ramaswami Iyer (25 October 1895 – 31 January 1948), popularly known as L. V. R, was an Indian linguist who specialized in

Dravidian languages The Dravidian languages (or sometimes Dravidic) are a family of languages spoken by 250 million people, mainly in southern India, north-east Sri Lanka, and south-west Pakistan. Since the colonial era, there have been small but significant ...

. He is remembered as a pioneer of Malayalam and Tulu linguistics.

Personal life

Ramaswami Iyer was born in Trichur to L. R. Vishwanatha Iyer, a retired Inspector of schools with the Department of Public Instruction, Cochin State. Ramaswami Iyer had his early schooling in Trichur and completed his intermediate from the Maharajah's College, Ernakulam in first class. Iyer graduated in

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ea ...

from the

Presidency College, Madras Presidency College is an art, commerce, and science college in the city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu, India. On 16 October 1840, this school was established as the Madras Preparatory School before being repurposed as a high school, and then a gra ...

in 1914 and in law from the

Madras Law College Dr. Ambedkar Government Law College, commonly known by its former name Madras Law College, is a law school, located in Chennai (Madras), Tamil Nadu, India. It is also referred to as Government Law College or GLC, Chennai. It was established in ...

in 1916. Iyer practised as a lawyer at Trichur and Ernakulam before joining the Education Department of the Cochin service and worked as a school teacher at

Kunnamkulam Kunnamkulam is a municipal town situated in the Thrissur District of Kerala in India, spread over an area of 34.18 km2. It is an old commercial town, with an ancient history, famous for its printing and book binding industry. In the past, ...

and Ernakulam. In 1922, Iyer completed his master's degree in English and joined the faculty of Maharajah's College, Ernakulam as professor.He taught for 25 years at Maharajah's College in Ernakulam. In December 1947, in deteriorating health, he took sick leave and succumbed to

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

on 31 January 1948.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Iyer, L. V. Ramaswami 1895 births 1948 deaths 20th-century Indian linguists Presidency College, Chennai alumni