Hermann Friedrich Mögling (1811–1881), also spelt Herrmann Friedrich Moegling, was a German missionary from the
Basel Mission who spent most of his career in the western regions of the state of
Karnataka
Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
, India. He is credited as the publisher of the first ever newspaper in the
Kannada language
Kannada () is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, an ...
called as ''
Mangalooru Samachara'' in 1843.
[Hermann Mögling's contribution to the Kannada literature is mentioned by ] He was awarded a doctorate for his literary work in
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
called as ''Bibliotheca Carnataca''. He also translated
Kannada literature into German.
Mögling is acknowledged by Kannada writers and linguists as the first modern Kannada writer, as he produced nearly 36 literary works, considered to be ground-breaking and exceptional Kannada literature, in a short period of 20 years.
He was the founder-principal of BEM Theological Seminary, later renamed as
Karnataka Theological College. He and his wife Pauline(
Nee Bacmeister) laid the foundations for the
Evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...
parish and Anandapur, a village made out of jungle in the interior of Karnataka.
Early life
Hermann Mögling was born in 1811 in the town of
Brackenheim in the
Kingdom of Württemberg, Germany.
[The birth place and lifetime of Hermann Mögling is mentioned by ] He studied theology at the
University of Tübingen
The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (; ), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
The University of Tübingen is one of eleven German Excellenc ...
and joined the
Basel Mission. He came to the city of
Mangalore
Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the st ...
in Karnataka as a missionary of
Basel Mission in 1836. In 7 years, in 1843, Mögling had mastered Kannada, and went on to start the first Kannada newspaper - Mangalura Samachara.
Career
Mögling, being a Christian missionary, was involved in missionary related work in
Mangalore
Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the st ...
but he also learnt the native
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
language and contributed significantly to Kannada literature. One of his pioneering works was the publication of the first
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
newspaper, ''Mangalooru Samachara'' (meaning ''Mangalore News'').
Newspaper publishing
In the days of Mögling's career at
Mangalore
Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the st ...
, there was no simple way of communicating news and other items to the general public because of non-existence of a medium like radio and of a newspaper in the native language. He decided to publish a
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
newspaper with the intention of spreading news items to the public. He decided to name it as ''
Mangaluura samaachaara'' and its first issue rolled out on 1 July 1843.
Thereafter it was published fortnightly and contained 4 pages. The paper was printed using stone slabs.
[A history of Kannada newspapers is provided by ] Some of the news items covered were local Mangalore-related news, Indian population, news related to the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...
and its laws and regulations. Even songs of
Purandaradasa and moral stories were also printed.
There are conflicting reports on whether this newspaper was used by Mögling as a tool for
proselytisation or not.
The newspaper became popular and it was decided to shift its publication to the city of
Bellary where it was renamed as ''Karnataka Samachara''. ''Karnataka Samachara'' was first released on 1 May 1844 and in fact it was the 15th issue of ''
Mangalooru Samachara''. ''Karnataka Samachara'' was the first Kannada newspaper to be printed using
movable type
Movable type (US English; moveable type in British English) is the system and technology of printing and typography that uses movable Sort (typesetting), components to reproduce the elements of a document (usually individual alphanumeric charac ...
.
Unfortunately, only three issues of ''Karnataka Samachara'' were released. Mögling is credited to be one of the visionaries for a
unified Karnataka. In his times, not much communication used to happen between the north and south regions of present-day
Karnataka
Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
though the people in these two regions spoke the same language,
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
. In the last issue of ''Karnataka Samachara'', he talks of a ''Samagra Karnataka'' (''Unified Karnataka'') which is essentially a union of these different regions.
Proselytisation
Mögling's main job as a missionary of Basel Mission was the spread of Christianity. One of his converts by name Anandaraya Kaundinya and his family have exchanged letters with Mögling which he has published under the title ''Iraaru patragalu'' (Twelve letters). This was the first collection of letters ever published in
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
.
Even during his stay in
Kodagu
Kodagu district () (also known by its former name Coorg) is an administrative List of districts of Karnataka, district in the Karnataka state of India. Before 1956, it was an administratively separate Coorg State at which point it was merged ...
district during the years (1853–1858) he spent much of his time on
proselytisation. He also published a German book titled ''Das Kurgland'' which mainly deals with his activities related to Christianity.
Literature
In 1848, Mögling started dealing with
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
literature by publishing a list of more than 3000
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
proverbs.
He also composed about 20 poems (along with Weigle who was his cousin brother and a fellow Basel Missionary) in modern Kannada poetical form. This makes him a pioneer of modern Kannada poetry.
But his most important contribution to the
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
literature is regarded as the ''Bibliotheca Carnataca'', a six-volume collection of traditional Kannada literary texts, including the songs of
Basavanna, an early
Lingayat poet;
''Bibliotheca Carnataca'' as a collection of
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
classics was edited and published by him between the period 1848–1853.
Mögling was helped in this venture by a philanthropist, ''J Casamajor'' who was a retired judge from
Chennai
Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...
and settled in
Nilgiris.
With an exchange of letters, the two discussed on ways to collect
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
manuscripts, select the important ones among them for publishing and identifying skilled people who would be needed to complete this activity. Casamajor agreed to bear all the expenses required for this venture and was very particular that his name should not be mentioned in any of the publications. A total of eight titles were brought out, the first one being the ''Ravana digvijaya – Yakshagana Prasanga'' (the victory of
Ravana
According to the Mahakavya, Hindu epic, ''Ramayana'', Ravana was a kingJustin W. Henry, ''Ravana's Kingdom: The Ramayana and Sri Lankan History from Below'', Oxford University Press, p.3 of the island of Lanka, in which he is the chief antag ...
, based on a scene from
Yakshagana
Yakshagana is a traditional theatre, found in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Kasaragod district and Uttara Kannada, Shimoga and western parts of Chikmagalur district, Chikmagalur districts, in the state of Karnataka and in Kasaragod district in Keral ...
). The largest published title running 760 pages was the
Basava Purana and the smallest one was
Kanakadasa's ''Haribhaktasara''.
Other titles published as a part of ''Bibliotheca Carnataca'' were ''Dasara Padagalu'' (a collection of 170
Haridasa songs) and
Lakshmisha's ''Jaimini Bharata''. This venture met an abrupt end due to the sudden demise of Casamajor and Mögling's return to Germany.
During his stay in
Kodagu
Kodagu district () (also known by its former name Coorg) is an administrative List of districts of Karnataka, district in the Karnataka state of India. Before 1956, it was an administratively separate Coorg State at which point it was merged ...
, Mögling also published the German book ''Das Kurgland'' and also a
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
book titled ''Raajendranaame'' at the behest of the
Kodagu
Kodagu district () (also known by its former name Coorg) is an administrative List of districts of Karnataka, district in the Karnataka state of India. Before 1956, it was an administratively separate Coorg State at which point it was merged ...
king, Senior Virarajendra. The whole book ''Raajendraname'' was printed using a simpler orthographic form invented by Mögling himself.
The
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
language uses
double consonants frequently, which Mögling felt was difficult for children to learn easily and also to print (since a blank line between two print lines was necessitated to print the double consonant). Mögling devised a scheme of accommodating the double consonant in the same single line by breaking the double consonant into a half consonant wherever possible. After getting an approval for his scheme from the
Madras
Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
Province's Education Department, Mögling published this entire book in his devised orthography.
He also published a book called ''Coorg Memoirs'' which is supposedly one of the earliest history books on
Karnataka
Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
. In this book, he has described the social life of
Kodavas and their customs as well.
On his return to Germany, he translated 24 songs of
Kanakadasa and
Purandaradasa to the German language which were published by
Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft
The ''Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft'' () is a peer-reviewed academic journal
An academic journal (or scholarly journal or scientific journal) is a periodical publication in which Scholarly method, scholarship relatin ...
, an
Oriental society in Germany. In 1870, he also translated the first two chapters (67 verses) of ''Bibliotheca Carnatacas ''Jaimini Bharata'' into German.
Pilgrims Progress was published in Kannada by Moegling and Weigle in 1848
[Wholeness in Christ: the legacy of the Basel Mission in India G. Shiri, Karnataka Theological Research Institute – 1985 – p358]
BEM Theological Seminary
Hermann Moegling was the founder-principal of the BEM Theological Seminary, established in 1847 by the
Basel Evangelical Missionary Society. This seminary was established to train Pastors for the
Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
churches in
Karnataka
Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
and
Malabar areas. In 1965, BEM Theological Seminary was merged with Union Kanarese Seminary at
Tumkur and renamed as present
Karnataka Theological College.
Mission in Coorg
In 1852, Rev. Mögling was getting ready to go back to Germany, when he was met by Alamanda Somayya from
Coorg, who wanted to convert to Christianity and also invited him to Coorg, offering his land for construction of a church in Coorg. Rev. Mögling cancelled his plans to return to Germany, and instead moved to Coorg along with his junior Rev. Anand Rao Kaundinya in 1853. On 6 January 1853, Alamanda Somayya was baptised into Christianity, taking up the name of Stephanas Somayya. A modest church was built on Somayya's land. The then Chief Commissioner of Coorg,
Lt Col
Mark Cubbon, helped Rev. Mögling to set up Coorg's first Protestant church and a school in
Mercara in 1855. Further in 1857, the British administration granted Rev. Mögling 97 acres land to establish a church and a coffee estate settlement.
In spite of his busy schedule in Coorg, Rev. Mögling managed to write two books on Coorg. One in German, called Das Kurgland, detailing evangelical work in Coorg, and the other in English, called Coorg Memoirs, an in depth study of the history of Coorg. Rev. Mögling was very much fond of Coorg and used to call it his second home. He left Coorg in 1860, to be with his ailing wife in Germany.
Late years
When his cousin
Gottfried Weigle died in 1855, Mögling (at a late age of 45) married Weigle's wife Pauline. This marriage also gave Mögling four stepchildren from Pauline's earlier marriage. One last contribution to
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
from him was his interest in coming up with a
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
– English dictionary. He motivated the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
in this project and also suggested the name of
Ferdinand Kittel as the ideal person to head the project. Mögling died in 1881 and his memorial is in
Esslingen.
Recognition
* At the recommendation of
Rudolph Roth (a reputed
Indologist), Mögling's alma mater; the University of Tübingen awarded Mögling an honorary doctorate in 1858 for his work, ''Bibliotheca Carnataca''.
* The Mögling Institute of German Language which is in
Mangalore
Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the st ...
and affiliated to
Mangalore University is named after him.
[Silver jubilee celebrations of the Mögling Institute of German Language is mentioned by ]
* 1 July (the day when the first issue of ''Mangalooru Samachara'' was released) is celebrated as ''Kannada Press Day'' in
Karnataka
Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...
.
[Kannada press day events are mentioned by ]
* Mögling's 200th birthday was celebrated in 2011, by unveiling his bust at the
Karnataka Theological College,
Mangalore
Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the st ...
See also
*
Ferdinand Kittel
*
Mangaluru Samachara
*
Thomas Hodson
*
William Reeve
Notes
External links
Hindu – Dr. Hermann Moegling was ahead of his timeArticle with pictures of Moegling's Kin Attending Bicentenary Birthday Celebration
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mogling, Hermann
1811 births
1881 deaths
People from Brackenheim
People from the Kingdom of Württemberg
Kannada-language writers
German Protestant missionaries
History of Mangalore
Christian clergy from Mangalore
Translators of the Bible into Kannada
19th-century German translators
Protestant missionaries in India
German expatriates in India
German missionary linguists
19th-century German linguists