The Konkani language agitations were a series of protests and demonstrations in India, concerning the uncertain future and the official status of the Konkani language. They were held by Goans in the then union territory of Goa, Damaon & Diu under the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party. The protests involved citizen journalism, student activism and political demonstrations.
History
Pre-Portuguese Goa
Historically, Konkani was neither the official nor the administrative language of the pre-Portuguese rulers. Under the Kadambas (c. 960 – 1310), the court language was Kannada. When under Muslim rule (1312 - 1370 and 1469 - 1510), the official and cultural language was Persian. Various stones in the Archaeological Museum and Portrait Gallery from the period are inscribed in Kannada and Persian. During the period in between the two periods of Muslim rule, the Vijayanagara Empire, which had control of the state, mandated the use of Kannada and Telugu.
Portuguese Goa
Konkani language had originally been studied and Roman Konkani promoted by Catholic missionaries in Goa (e.g. Thomas Stephens) as a communication medium during the 16th century. The Maratha threat was compounded by their attacks on native Catholics and destruction of local churches during their repeated attacks on Goa in the 17th century. This led the Portuguese government to initiate a positive programme for the suppression of Konkani in Goa, in order to make native Catholic Goans identify fully with the Portuguese Empire. As a result, Konkani was suppressed and rendered unprivileged in Goa by the enforcement of Portuguese. Urged by the Franciscans, the Portuguese viceroy forbade the use of Konkani on 27 June 1684 and further decreed that within three years, the local people in general would speak the Portuguese language and use it in all their contacts and contracts made in Portuguese territories. The penalties for violation would be imprisonment. The decree was confirmed by the king on 17 March 1687. However, according to the Inquisitor António Amaral Coutinho's letter to the Portuguese monarch João V in 1731, these draconian measures were unsuccessful.
The fall of the "Province of the North" (which included Bassein, Chaul and Salsette) in 1739 led to the suppression of Konkani gaining new strength. On 21 November 1745, the Archbishop of Goa, Lourenço de Santa Maria e Melo (O.F.M.), decreed that fluency in Portuguese was mandatory for the Goan applicants to the priesthood, and also for all their immediate relatives (men as well as women). This language fluency would be confirmed via rigorous examinations by ordained priests. Furthermore, the Bamonns and Chardos were required to learn Portuguese within six months, failing which they would be denied the right to marriage. The Jesuits, who had historically been the greatest advocates of Konkani, were expelled from Goa by the Marquis of Pombal in 1759. In 1812, the Archbishop decreed that children should be prohibited from speaking Konkani in parochial schools. In 1847, this rule was extended to seminaries. In 1869, Konkani was completely banned also in state-run schools until Portugal became a Republic in 1910.
The result of this linguistic displacement was that Hindu and Catholic elites turned to Marathi and Portuguese, respectively. Konkani in Goa became the língua de criados (language of the servants). However, Konkani continued to have some support among Portuguese government officials. Joaquim Heliodoro da Cunha Rivara believed that the Portuguese language could be better diffused in Goa by using the local languages, Konkani and Marathi in particular, as mediums of public instruction. Soon after his arrival in Goa, he asserted this belief in an inaugural conference of the Escola Normal of Nova Goa (Panjim), on 1 October 1856. The text of this speech may be found in the Boletim do Governo, n.º 78.
Considering Konkani in looming danger of being sidelined, Vāman Vardē Śeṇai Vaḷavalikār, popularly known as Śeṇai Goyẽbāb (or Shenoi Goembab) gave a clarion call for the revival of Konkani in the early 20th century. Under his guidance, a steady movement was built up to rejuvenate Konkani language and heritage, by means of establishing a common cultural identity among the Konkani people.