Water is വെള്ളം until a headline calls it ജലം. This class explains why Malayalam has two words for so many things. English has cow and beef, ask and inquire: a plain layer and a formal layer from French and Latin. Malayalam has the same split, and its prestige layer is Sanskrit, absorbed more deeply than in any other Dravidian language. You learn മണിപ്രവാളം, the 'gem and coral' name for the mixed literary style, and four signals that mark a Sanskrit word by ear and by eye: aspirated consonants, the sibilants and ഹ, the vowel ഋ with heavy clusters, and the neuter ending -അം. Words and phrases in this class: വെള്ളം (vellam) – water (everyday) ജലം (jalam) – water (formal) മീൻ (meen) – fish (everyday) മത്സ്യം (mathsyam) – fish (formal) പൂവ് (poovu) – flower (everyday) പുഷ്പം (pushpam) – flower (literary) മണിപ്രവാളം (manipravaalam) – gem and coral: the mixed literary style ഭാഷ (bhaasha) – language ഖേദം (khedam) – sorrow, regret സന്തോഷം (santhosham) – happiness ഹൃദയം (hrudayam) – heart വൃക്ഷം (vruksham) – tree (formal) കൃഷി (krushi) – cultivation, farming In this class: • Everyday and formal pairs: വെള്ളം and ജലം, മീൻ and മത്സ്യം • How English's Norman French layer works the same way • മണിപ്രവാളം: gem and coral threaded on one string • Four signals that tell you a word is Sanskrit Quizzes below. Dr. Reshmi R Nair — SpeakMalayalam.