annada is the official language southern India's Karnataka state. A community member claims that one of the first Kannada speakers arrived in New York in 1960, and the number has since grown in Queens neighborhoods like Lefrak City, Jackson Heights, Elmhurst, Flushing, Woodside, Jamaica, and Forest Hills. Many speakers also live on Long Island, spread out through Nassau (and to some extent Suffolk) county. Though census data shows 622 Kannada speakers in the city, locals estimate that the population is well into the thousands. Like many South Indian communities, Kannada people (also known as "Kannadigas") worship at Flushing's Hindu Temple Society. Ever since they first organized a Ganesh Pooja festival in 1971, the Kannada Koota ("assembly") has also served as a focal point of Kannada culture in New York, before which Kannada people resorted to Tamil-organized events. The koota focuses specifically on Kannada language maintenance and practice for younger generations.