Dravidian
[druh-vid-ee-uh n]
- a family of languages, wholly distinct from Indo-European, spoken mostly in southern India and Sri Lanka and including Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and, in Pakistan, Brahui.
- a member of the aboriginal population occupying much of southern India and parts of Sri Lanka.
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- Also Dra·vid·ic. of or relating to this people or their language.
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Origin of Dravidian
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for dravidian
Historical Examples
Tanjore and Madura are the seats of the Dravidian temples which we visited.
A Tour of the MissionsAugustus Hopkins Strong
In many ways like this, the Aryan and the Dravidian united to form the Hindu.
A Tour of the MissionsAugustus Hopkins Strong
It has been usual to set these down as earlier than Dravidian.
Castes and Tribes of Southern IndiaEdgar Thurston
They are undoubtedly a mixed Dravidian race, with much Aryan blood.
It proceeded from a hideous worship of monstrous Dravidian divinities.
Needlework As ArtMarian Alford
Dravidian
- a family of languages spoken in S and central India and Sri Lanka, including Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Kannada, and Gondi
- a member of one of the aboriginal races of India, pushed south by the Indo-Europeans and now mixed with them
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- denoting, belonging to, or relating to this family of languages or these peoples
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for dravidian
Dravidian
adj.
1856, "pertaining to the race in southern India or the languages spoken by them," from Sanskrit Dravidah, name of a region in southern India, + -ian.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper