Fr. Pratap Naik, S.J. (real name Carvalho) is a

Mangalorean Catholic Mangalorean Catholics ( kok, Kōdiyālcheñ Kathōlikā) are an ethno-religious community of Latin Catholics in India typically residing in the Diocese of Mangalore in the erstwhile South Canara area, by the southwestern coast of present-day K ...

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

from

Kundapur Kundapur, also called Kundapura, is a coastal town situated in the Udupi district of the state of Karnataka, India. This town was known as Coondapoor while it was part of the erstwhile South Canara district (1862–1947) of the Madras Pre ...

, India. He was the director of the

Thomas Stephens Konkkni Kendr Thomas Stephens Konknni Kendr (TSKK) is a Jesuit research-institute working on issues related to the Konkani language, literature, culture and education. It is based in Alto Porvorim, on the outskirts of the state capital of Goa, India. Aim Th ...

(TSKK), a research institute working on issues related to the

Konkani language Konkani () is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Konkani people, primarily in the Konkan region, along the western coast of India. It is one of the 22 scheduled languages mentioned in the Indian Constitution, and the official language of ...

, literature, culture and education. The institute is based in Alto Porvorim, on the outskirts of the state capital of

Panaji Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...

, Goa.

Founding of the TSKK

Naik was one of the proponents for founding the TSKK. The proposal to do so was brought up before the provincial congregation (one of the official bodies of the Jesuits) in 1978. "We wanted to start a school, in the European sense. An institute of higher learning to teach Konkani to Jesuits (primarily and to others too)," according to Naik, who was then a young scholastic trained to take up this work. TSKK is named after Thomas Stephens, the 16th century

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

Jesuit

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

who came to Goa in 1579 and lived in the region till his death. Stevens authored the ''

Arte da lingoa Canarim The ''Arte da Lingoa Canarim'', the grammar of the Konkani language, was composed by the 16th-century English Jesuit priest Father Thomas Stephens, thus making Konkani the first among the modern Indian languages to have its grammar codified and d ...

'', which was written in Portuguese, and was the first printed grammar of what is now called the Konkani language In 1982 TSKK was registered as a society, and it commenced operation in January 1986 from its former premises at Loyola Hall in Miramar, Goa. Miramar itself is a centre for training young men wanting to become Jesuit priests.

On the activities of the TSKK

The TSKK focuses on education and research of the Konkani language, literature and culture. Speaking about the professional activities of the TSKK, Pratap Naik has said, "We are not limiting ourselves only to Goa, but wherever Konkani is spoken. Shortly, we are going to study Siddi Konkani, spoken by a community of former slaves who were once located in Goa, and are now based in Yellapur in Konkani ic For this we are collaborating with two Brazilian professors." A large number of

expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...

s whose

mother tongue A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...

was once Konkani are located outside of the Konkani-speaking regions of India. Regarding the creation of opportunities to educate members of such expatriate communities, Naik says: "It's a bit difficult. Distance education is more for information. Learning certain language skills has to be done through intensive contact programs. Short courses could be offered to attain language proficiency."

Training for scholastics

Since 1986, Jesuit scholastics training to become priests were sent for a one-month training in Konkani. In 2003, a Konkani

postgraduate Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate ( bachelor's) degree. The organization and stru ...

diploma course was proposed.

Roman script issue

In 2006, Naik was involved a campaign to get official recognition for the

Roman script The Latin script, also known as Roman script, is an alphabetic writing system based on the letters of the classical Latin alphabet, derived from a form of the Greek alphabet which was in use in the ancient Greek city of Cumae, in southern Italy ...

of Konkani, along with the

Devanagari Devanagari ( ; , , Sanskrit pronunciation: ), also called Nagari (),Kathleen Kuiper (2010), The Culture of India, New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, , page 83 is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental Writing systems#Segmental syste ...

script, which is the sole officially recognized script for Konkani in Goa.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Naik, Pratap Living people 20th-century Indian Jesuits Scholars from Goa 21st-century Indian Jesuits Konkani people Year of birth missing (living people)