Charles Edward Gover | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1835 (1835) |
| Died | 18 September 1872(1872-09-18) (aged 36–37) |
| Occupation | Folklorist |
| Known for | One of the earliest translators ofTirukkural into English |
| Spouse | Clara Gertrude Taylor |
| Children | 5 |
| Father | Thomas Gover |
Charles Edward Gover (1835–1872) was aBritishfolklorist in Madras (present-dayChennai),India.[1] He was one of the earliest translators of theTirukkural into English.
Gover was the son of Thomas Gover ofPoplar,Middlesex. In 1864, he was appointed principal and secretary of the Madras Military Male Orphan Asylum atEgmore,Chennai. In 1868, he became a member of theRoyal Asiatic Society, but withdrew in 1871–1872. He was a member of the Society of Arts and a fellow of the Anthropological Society.[2]
Gover married Clara Gertrude Taylor in 1863 and had five children with her.[3] Gover died of ahaemorrhage on 18 September 1872 in Madras, and was buried atSt Andrew's Church there.
Gover wrote a pamphlet on "Indian Weights and Measures, their condition and remedy" (Madras, 1865). During 1866, he communicated to the Asiatic Society a paper on "The Pongol Festival in Southern India" (Journal, new ser. v. 91–118), where he asserted without proof that the festival was a remnant of primitiveAryan life. Another contribution was an account of the moral condition and religious views of thecaste system insouthern India, mainly based on a collection of popular songs in ancientCanarese, of which he gave specimens in a poetical English version.[2]
Gover also wrote essays on Indian folklore for theCornhill Magazine. Under the titleThe Folk-Songs of Southern India, he collected his essays in 1872.[4] In this book, he translated select couplets of theTirukkural into English in verse and published it under the title "Odes from the Kural". He was the fourth translator of the Kural text into English, afterNathaniel Edward Kindersley,Francis Whyte Ellis, andWilliam Henry Drew.[5]
Philologists have discredited his hypothesis that, driven into the extreme south of India, and cut off from intercourse with other peoples, theDravidian nations have preserved their original vocabulary, and that true Dravidian roots, common to the three major branches,Tamil,Telugu, andCanarese, are pureAryan.[2][6]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| People | |
| Other | |
