Language
The Kudumbis speak their own dialect of the Konkani language, which closely resembles original Goan Konkani. Kudumbis colloquially refer to Konkani as Kudumbi Bhaash (mother tongue of the Kudumbi). The older generation still prefer to speak this pure "Kudumbi Bhaash". Many among older generation can sing folk songs in Kudumbi Bhaash dedicated to Kurumba-Bhagavathy. Due to prolonged socio-economic pressures to maintain a bi-lingual format for verbal communication, Konkani has shifted towards the Malayalam language. This change is more pronounced among Kudumbis. For many decades there was no unified official script for Konkani until 1987 when it was declared the official language of Goa with Devanagiri as its official script. As a result many Kudumbi prefer Malayalam over Konkani for written and oral communication. There are a number of scholars in the community who have contributed significantly to Konkani literature in Kerala while Kudumbi Seva Sanghom has regularly participated in all India conferences, forums organised by Akhil Bharat Konkani Parishad, Goa and similar organisations. To nurture the Konkani language among Konkani-speaking communities, in 2009 teaching in Konkani began in three government schools located around the Western Ernakulam district where there is a sizable Kudumbi population. Many students participate in Konkani poetry recitations during annual cultural competitions organised by Kudumbi Seva Sanghom. Kudumbis living around Vypeen, Kodungallor, North Paravoor and the Trichur district speak the purest form of Konkani compared to other localities in southern Kerala. Konkani is regarded as the Amma Bhaash (mother language) and Malayalam as the Pootah Bhaash meaning the language by which one earns a livelihood.Kerala Government has recently initiated steps to recognise Konkani speaking community as a Linguistic minority in kerala. As a pioneering step taken by Kerala Govt, Kerala Konkani Sahitya Academy was formed in Kochi in Oct-2012.It comprises of 21 nominated members from various konkani speaking socio-cultural groups in kerala.It also includes the nominees from kudumbi community.
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