Dharanidhar Koirala
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Dharanidhar Koirala (;1893–1980; also known as Dharanidhar Sharma Koirala) was a Nepali poet sometimes known as Pandit-ji.


Biography

Dharanidhar Koirala was born in 1893 in what is now
Sindhuli District Sindhuli District (), a part of the Bagmati Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal, a landlocked country located in South Asia. The district, with Sindhulimadhi Kamalamai as its headquarters, covers an area of . As per the 20 ...
into a Hindu Brahmin family. He studied
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...
and English from
Banaras Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world.* * * * The city has a syncretic tradition of I ...
,
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
. In Banaras, he saw Indian people promoting their
mother tongue A first language (L1), native language, native tongue, or mother tongue is the first language a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongue'' refers ...
which inspired him to "think about
Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
and the
Nepali language Nepali (; , ), or ''Gorkhali'' is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language native to the Himalayas region of South Asia. It is the official and most widely spoken Languages of Nepal, language of Nepal, where it also serves as a ''lingua fr ...
". In 1918, he was exiled to India, where Koirala,
Surya Bikram Gyawali Surya Bikram Gyawali (; born 10 June 1898 – 1 December 1985) was a Nepali historian. He wrote biographies for numerous people including King Prithvi Narayan Shah and writer Bhanubhakta Acharya. Gyawali also served as a head teacher in Darjeeli ...
, and
Parasmani Pradhan Parasmani Pradhan () (1 January 1898 – 2 February 1986) was an Indian Gorkha, Indian Nepali language, Nepali-language writer, poet, translator, grammarian, educator and publisher. He published multiple Nepali language textbooks and played an im ...
became known as "SuDhaPa". In 1924, Koirala with
Surya Bikram Gyawali Surya Bikram Gyawali (; born 10 June 1898 – 1 December 1985) was a Nepali historian. He wrote biographies for numerous people including King Prithvi Narayan Shah and writer Bhanubhakta Acharya. Gyawali also served as a head teacher in Darjeeli ...
,
Parasmani Pradhan Parasmani Pradhan () (1 January 1898 – 2 February 1986) was an Indian Gorkha, Indian Nepali language, Nepali-language writer, poet, translator, grammarian, educator and publisher. He published multiple Nepali language textbooks and played an im ...
, Hari Prasad Pradhan, and others established the Nepali Sahitya Sammelan in
Darjeeling Darjeeling (, , ) is a city in the northernmost region of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of West Bengal. Located in the Eastern Himalayas, it has an average elevation of . To the west of Darjeeling lies the Koshi Pr ...
,
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
. The establishment of this organisation was seen as a major event in Nepali literature's history. Koirala was a key advisor to Sir
Ralph Lilley Turner Sir Ralph Lilley Turner (5 October 1888 – 22 April 1983) was a British philologist of Indian languages and a university administrator. He is notable for composing an Indo-Aryan comparative dictionary. He is also the author of some publicati ...
who published ''Comparative and Etymological Dictionary of the Nepali Language'' in 1931. He wrote poems about social reforms. In 1978, Koirala was awarded a
Doctor of Letters Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or '), also termed Doctor of Literature in some countries, is a terminal degree in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. In the United States, at universities such as Drew University, the degree ...
degree by
Tribhuvan University Tribhuvan University (TU; ) is a public university located in Kirtipur, Kathmandu Valley, Kathmandu, Nepal. Established in 1959, TU is the oldest and the largest university in Nepal. It offers 1,000 undergraduate and 500 postgraduate programs a ...
. He was also awarded Tribhuvan Pragya Award by
Nepal Academy The Nepal Academy () formerly Royal Nepal Academy () is a national institution of Nepal for promotion of the languages, literature, culture, philosophy and social sciences of Nepal. The academy commissions research and aims to promote the develop ...
for his contributions to Nepali literature. Koirala died in 1980. In 1994, the
Government of Nepal The Government of Nepal () is the central executive authority of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal. The government is led by the Prime Minister of Nepal, prime minister (K. P. Sharma Oli, K.P. Oli since 15 July 2024) who selects all the o ...
issued postage stamps featuring Koirala.


Works

* ''Naibedya'' (1920) * ''Jaga Jaga'' * ''Asha'' *''Spandhana''


References


Citations

*< * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Koirala, Dharanidhar 1893 births 1980 deaths Nepalese male poets Nepali-language writers People from Sindhuli District 20th-century Nepalese poets Nepalese Hindus Nepali language movement activists Nepali-language poets Nepalese expatriates in India