NEW DELHI // Eager to preserve their language, Keralites have eagerly responded to Wikipedia's request for submissions in their native language Malayalam.
The campaign to expand Wikipedia offerings in Indian languages is aimed at boosting the website's exposure in India, which, when compared to the rest of the world, remains relatively small.
Of the scores of regional languages in India, Nepali and Hindi speakers have posted the most articles on Wikipedia in these languages. But an active online community of expatriate Keralites has made Malayalam the fastest growing regional language version of Wikipedia.
Keralites are proud of their language and culture. That devotion is driven partly by the Indian government's efforts to promote Hindi, a North Indian language, as the lingua franca of India.
In December last year, there were 90 active editors for the Malayalam-language website. There are now 564. Many joined when Wikipedia launched a campaign dubbed, "Malayalam loves Wikipedia" that solicited articles and photos from Keralites.
Wikipedia hopes the campaign could become a model to garner similar responses from other regional language speakers in India.
Many of these new editors for the Malayalam Wikimedia site came from Gulf countries such as the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. More than 15 per cent of all photo and text contributions came from Keralites based in the Gulf, such as Simy Nazarath, a software sales manager in Dubai. "You do it so that the language does not die," he said.
Wikipedia is the fifth most visited site in the world, where content is generated by 90,000 readers from across the world. Despite the global popularity of Wikipedia, the site remains relatively unknown in India. Every month, 400 million people visit the site, but only 14 million are from India.
"The potential in India is enormous," said Hisham Mundol, a consultant for Wikimedia Foundation's India programmes. The Wikimedia Foundation is a non-profit organisation that pays to operate Wikipedia.
Despite India's potential, getting Indians to read or write articles in their native language is difficult. "It is a case of the chicken or the egg," said Mr Mundol. "People don't write because there are not enough readers but people don't read because they think pages in their regional language don't exist."
But Malayalam Wikipedia is bucking the trend. It is the most rapidly growing regional language site in India. That is driven partly by the fact that Kerala has the highest literacy rate in the country — 93.9 per cent, according to the 2011 Census of India. English is the language of instruction in most private schools, while the government school courses are taught primarily in Malayalam.
Mr Nazarath finds the process of creating articles deeply rewarding. "It is quite fulfilling because if you look at it, not even the best of encyclopedias in the Malayalam language available in India has this many articles."
The Kerala government spent the last 20 years working on an encyclopaedia in Malayalam, but has managed to produce only 3,300 articles. In contrast, Malayalam Wikipedia now has more than 20,000. The state government has eagerly embraced the efforts of the Wikipedians, opening its archives to the website's amateur historians.
Mr Nazarath is one of the longest serving editors of Malayalam Wikipedia. He has written more than 400 articles since he began in 2006.
Mr Nazarath's areas of interest is Indian and Keralite history, especially medieval and ancient history. He both translates from English pages and writes new entries from references in Malayalam history books.
Now, Wikimedia is trying to engage India's elderly to preserve mythology or artists to write about folklore or interest groups to contribute more about fabric and craft techniques. "The opportunities are huge, but the question is how do we identify which ones to pursue," said Mr Mundol.
Mr Mundol said that the success of Malayalam Wikipedia could prove to be a benchmark for future efforts by the Wikimedia Foundation in India.
"With the Malayalam projects, the emphasis was on community building, on getting new editors."
sbhattacharya@thenational.ae
Company%20Profile
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Essentials
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Delhi from about Dh950 return including taxes.
The hotels
Double rooms at Tijara Fort-Palace cost from 6,670 rupees (Dh377), including breakfast.
Doubles at Fort Bishangarh cost from 29,030 rupees (Dh1,641), including breakfast. Doubles at Narendra Bhawan cost from 15,360 rupees (Dh869). Doubles at Chanoud Garh cost from 19,840 rupees (Dh1,122), full board. Doubles at Fort Begu cost from 10,000 rupees (Dh565), including breakfast.
The tours
Amar Grover travelled with Wild Frontiers. A tailor-made, nine-day itinerary via New Delhi, with one night in Tijara and two nights in each of the remaining properties, including car/driver, costs from £1,445 (Dh6,968) per person.
SCHEDULE
Saturday, April 20: 11am to 7pm - Abu Dhabi World Jiu-Jitsu Festival and Para jiu-jitsu.
Sunday, April 21: 11am to 6pm - Abu Dhabi World Youth (female) Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Monday, April 22: 11am to 6pm - Abu Dhabi World Youth (male) Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Tuesday, April 23: 11am-6pm Abu Dhabi World Masters Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Wednesday, April 24: 11am-6pm Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Thursday, April 25: 11am-5pm Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Friday, April 26: 3pm to 6pm Finals of the Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Saturday, April 27: 4pm and 8pm awards ceremony.
Company%C2%A0profile
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder turbo
Transmission: CVT
Power: 170bhp
Torque: 220Nm
Price: Dh98,900
Kandahar%20
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City's slump
L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1
Important questions to consider
1. Where on the plane does my pet travel?
There are different types of travel available for pets:
- Manifest cargo
- Excess luggage in the hold
- Excess luggage in the cabin
Each option is safe. The feasibility of each option is based on the size and breed of your pet, the airline they are traveling on and country they are travelling to.
2. What is the difference between my pet traveling as manifest cargo or as excess luggage?
If traveling as manifest cargo, your pet is traveling in the front hold of the plane and can travel with or without you being on the same plane. The cost of your pets travel is based on volumetric weight, in other words, the size of their travel crate.
If traveling as excess luggage, your pet will be in the rear hold of the plane and must be traveling under the ticket of a human passenger. The cost of your pets travel is based on the actual (combined) weight of your pet in their crate.
3. What happens when my pet arrives in the country they are traveling to?
As soon as the flight arrives, your pet will be taken from the plane straight to the airport terminal.
If your pet is traveling as excess luggage, they will taken to the oversized luggage area in the arrival hall. Once you clear passport control, you will be able to collect them at the same time as your normal luggage. As you exit the airport via the ‘something to declare’ customs channel you will be asked to present your pets travel paperwork to the customs official and / or the vet on duty.
If your pet is traveling as manifest cargo, they will be taken to the Animal Reception Centre. There, their documentation will be reviewed by the staff of the ARC to ensure all is in order. At the same time, relevant customs formalities will be completed by staff based at the arriving airport.
4. How long does the travel paperwork and other travel preparations take?
This depends entirely on the location that your pet is traveling to. Your pet relocation compnay will provide you with an accurate timeline of how long the relevant preparations will take and at what point in the process the various steps must be taken.
In some cases they can get your pet ‘travel ready’ in a few days. In others it can be up to six months or more.
5. What vaccinations does my pet need to travel?
Regardless of where your pet is traveling, they will need certain vaccinations. The exact vaccinations they need are entirely dependent on the location they are traveling to. The one vaccination that is mandatory for every country your pet may travel to is a rabies vaccination.
Other vaccinations may also be necessary. These will be advised to you as relevant. In every situation, it is essential to keep your vaccinations current and to not miss a due date, even by one day. To do so could severely hinder your pets travel plans.
Source: Pawsome Pets UAE
Ticket prices
- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
- Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
- Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
- Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
- Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
- Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
MATCH INFO
Qalandars 112-4 (10 ovs)
Banton 53 no
Northern Warriors 46 all out (9 ovs)
Kumara 3-10, Garton 3-10, Jordan 2-2, Prasanna 2-7
Qalandars win by six wickets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Veil (Object Lessons)
Rafia Zakaria
Bloomsbury Academic
SPECS
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