Tipra or Twipra

Some of our brothers and sisters have coined/discovered new terminology/word Twipra/TwiPrasa for our identity which will definitely in near future alienate the indigenous Tripuri people in their own mother land, and I foresee that day is not very far. We have been misguided by many of our so called leaders in the past and still being misguided by many educated leaders. This new Terminology in long run would be counter productive, against the interest of us and will have dangerous consequences; for our future progeny, because it will reduce us to a refugee or immigrant status both the name and identity in our historical mother land. Already we have been reduced o minority status. What else do we want to be in our mother land, my fellow Tripuri, just think it over!

Why are we taking the new identity of Twipra/Twiprasa and on what interest? What way it will help us? I, frankly speaking do not understand it. Why are we corrupting our own identity as well as our states name! And in that way it is alienating our selves and our mother land.

I understand that Tripura is Indo-Aryan word, but friends not the word Tipra and Tiprasa. It is purely kokborok word and its derivatives, why is there so much hatred and aversion to these words? I just can not understand it. 

 Some people would say that 'we will change the name of Tripura to TwiPra.' Forget about such fanciful and childish imagination, where as we could not change even a name of our village where we are majority, how can we think of changing name of Tripura! For example we have not been able to change Mandai to Mandwi, rather we are more comfortable and love to pronounce as Mandai.

Regarding the root word or originality of Tripura, none is proved beyond the doubt and unanimously accepted. The much talked hypothesis put by Kailash Chandra Singha regarding the origin of Tripura as Twi+pra is not sustainable with historical and geographical facts and evidence available with us. Bupra means bifurcation of a branch of tree, so TwiPra would mean bifurcation of river or stream. In whole of the north east there is no river which got bifurcated into two in the course of its flow. Can any one name such river? The only river which bifurcated is Ganga near Farrakka. But there is not a single evidence of Tripura people living there at any period of time. So this hypothesis is totally false, baseless and fanciful imagination of some of our fellow people.

I have some historical documents to prove that Tripura has originated from the word kiratipura, means kirataland; Rajmala also mentioned that Tripura was earlier known as kirata desa. This word kiratipura>kartripura, mentioned in Ashoka pillar than to >tripura.

We are all intelligent enough and educated people. My humble submission to all is-do not believe in any one's opinion unless proofs are provided about it or you think that it is logically explainable and rational. Believe in your brain, rely on your judgment. Just do not believe me, analyze your self with various examples and other circumstantial evidences, if you are satisfied than believe me, other wise don't.

Any way, even if some one does not believe this theory that Tripura derived from kiratipura>kartirpura>tripura, and presuming that it has derived from two words Twi+pra TwiPra is not explainable and not sustainable as per kokborok grammatical rule. TwiPra word is grammatically WRONG.

Whether Tipra or Twipra?

Kokborok Grammatical rules:

Here are some examples, just think over it:  

In these cases both pre and post words changes and forms new words.

Now take other examples:

 In these cases both the pre and post words do not change, and forms new words just by joining adjacent:

Take other examples:

There is no changes in both pre and post words. Two words are just join together, so it will not be Tikormo , Tisindrai or Tithaiplok.

If this kokborok grammatical rule is to be applied than it has to be Twi+Bupra=TwiBupra not TwiPra, as one can not change, delete part of the pre or post words.  

Pronouncing or writing as TwiPra breaks the kokborok grammatical rules, it is grammatically wrong. No one can make his own rule for a particular word. Why it happens no one knows it is kokborok grammar rule, it happened since our ancestors' time!

So who had coined new words Twipra and TwiPrasa breaking the kokborok grammatical rule a wrong kokborok word and on what interest? Just think it over?

Similar examples exist even with many other languages like English, Hindi, Sanskrit, and Bengali alike.

Just one example: Octus+pedus =Octopus, we can not make Octuspus or Octuspedus

And there are lakhs of such examples.

Whether Tipra or Tripura? International Examples:

It is 100% true that Tripura & Tripuri are not kokborok words, but Tipra is! In most of the cases in the world, country/states & people have two sort of identity, one by their own language and another by the outer world's languages, whether it is a big country/race or small states/ races.  

 And the list goes on, almost all the country/races have such double identity, so why not we Tiprasa?

Historical evidences:

We, the Tripuri never used to pronounce as TwiPra to our mother land, so also not as TwiPrasa. We used to and still pronounce as Tipra and Tiprasa. This was pronounced after modification as Tippera or Tipperah by the British. I can give provide several evidences from the writing of Sir Alexander Mackenzie, Sir E.F. Sandys, Rev. James Long, Sir Grierson, Political agents of Tripura state, viz. A.W.B. Power, Captain Lillington, Captain W.L. Samuel, T.E. Coxhead, C.W. Bolton, F. Jones, G. Toynbee, J.A. Hopkins, S.S. Jones, R. T. Greer, J.E. Webster, Mr. Campbell, and many more, they all had termed as Tippera or Tipperah to our kingdom in the past, not as Twippera or Twipperah! Even our last king Bir Bikram Manikya when used to communicate with British India govt, he would address his kingdom as Tippera. But latter under the presser of Tripura kings the British India's  governor general accepted the name of Tripura in 1920 AD and since than British people also addressed our state as Tripura.

We do not know whether Tripura is the modified form of Tipra or Tipra is the modified form of Tripura as happens like Krishna is pronounced as Kisno among Tripuri people. But it certain that we Tripuri people utter our mother land as Tipra not as TwiPra.

Just think, analyze, introspect over it and decide about the issue. 

 Source:   1. Administrative report of the political Agency, Hill Tipperah Vol-I &II

2. Tripura state eastern boundary dispute By S.B.K. Dev Burman.

3. The history of Tripura, by E.F. Sandys

4. Rajmala or Chronicle of Tripura by Rev. James Long.

5. Tripura State Gazette Sangkalan.