Death by other means: Neo-vernacularization of South Asian languages (original) (raw)

Language conflicts, dominance and linguistic minorities in India

Dominated Languages in the 21st Century: Papers from the International Conference on Minority Languages XIV, 2015

The present paper deals with the status of linguistic minorities in India and tries to give an overview of the problems plaguing Indian language policy regarding minority languages. India represents a unique case in the current global linguistic scenario, as it is the only country in the world with 23 official languages (2 official cross-regional languages and 21 official regional languages). Despite this fact, minority languages in India cannot be regarded as well protected, as obvious from the high number of languages listed as ‘endangered’ by UNESCO. The paper looks into the various forms of domination and subordination that dictate the language policy and influence the various language communities in India, including linguistic minorities. Moreover, it undertakes an analysis of the various kinds of language conflicts prevalent in the Indian linguistic situation and examines whether the language conflicts emanate from group-specific dominance and unequal status ascriptions, and secondly, whether language is simply a secondary feature in conflicts that are mainly socially, economically and politically motivated. Lastly, the paper addresses the aspect which it sees as a highly questionable part of Indian language policy, i.e. the principle of ‘rationalization’, a method developed by the Government of India to take account of the number of ‘languages’ in India, but which has been widely criticized as a ‘reductionist’ policy because through the process of ‘rationalization’, smaller and minority languages are categorized as ‘dialects’ or ‘variants’ of the so-called major languages and are thus deprived of their own independent status and identity.

Language policies and lesser-known languages in India

[first published in 2012 with the French version] This article makes a case against treating lesser-known languages as points on a scale that ranges from the neediest communities to the least needy. My argument refers to factors that become salient during the transition form a modern order of nation-states to an unsettled dynamism involving heterogeneous spaces. Under the exigencies and anxieties of globalization, the experiences become traumatic and call for urgent efforts to formulate and address what are experienced as vital issues on the ground. For clarity, I briefly present first the view I oppose, calling it ARSA (the Aid Recipient Spectrum Approach). I then outline the alternative I advocate, ILCEA (the Inter-Local Community Empowerment Approach). Once these have been introduced, the Language Policies in India section situates the problem with respect to India; the ARSA section discusses how the consensus both in India and elsewhere has swung towards ARSA; the final section focuses on ILCEA, considers some reasons for wishing to turn the tide and proposes ways of bringing this about. The article situates issues of indigenous peoples in the context of the subnationalisms associated with the major languages of India. A French version of this article appeared in _Droit et Cultures_ 63:143-160 in 2012 ('La politique linguistique et les langues indiennes moins répandues'). It is available online at https://journals.openedition.org/droitcultures/2955

United by a "Foreign" Language: The Evolution of English in Multilingual India

English Studies in India, 2018

Partha Sarathi Nandi's paper deals with the introduction of the English language in India. Most postcolonial critics tend to perceive English language as a "notorious" implement of India's colonial legacy that is still perpetuating colonialism in this era. And this suspicion towards the language persists among many Indians even today. But in doing so, they often discard the cultural interactions that occurred in this process. While some immersed themselves in the imported culture to become "more English than the English", others rejected this alien language, clinging on to their orthodox ideas. However, some accommodated both these trends, leading to the development of a hybrid culture which was an energetic mix of vernacular and English. Though it is undeniable that the "centre" introduced us to the English language, institutionalised it and valorised it among the elite intellectuals in colonial India, it is equally true that over time, the language has been absorbed, appropriated, modified and naturalised by the natives in such a way that it has now become a lingua franca for the people of multilingual nations like India. The paper discusses how English has travelled through time and space and has become a common language of interaction, uniting the multilingual population of India and the world.

Is Language extinction a myth, reality or fear? The Indian Context

Is Language Extinction: A Myth, Reality or Fear ? The Indian context *Dr.V.Jagannadha Reddy In recent times surging debates and discussions about languages are creating some kind awareness one side and some kind of apprehension and fear among the speakers of all languages in Asia especially in a country like India where divergent languages and cultures co-exist. This phenomenon is being supposed to be accelerated by various reasons and issues. This argument has gained more impetus with the globalization in all walks of life. As such globalization is an opportunity for every nation to mutually get benefitted with its self reliance and ability to sustain the competition worldwide. But unfortunately some Asian countries like India are facing many turbulent issues which are supposed to be believed by public as the cascading effects of globalization. Among such turbulent issues language extinction is also a very important issue. Strategically also Asia represents a wide variety of languages which belong to different linguistic families like Astro-Asiatic, Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, Sino-Indian, and Indo- Tibetan etc. As far as India is concerned it also has a great tradition of being a home for many vibrant languages and over a period of time some of which were either became extinct or transformed into new languages. For example Pali, Prakruth were supposed to be evolved from classical Sanskrit and later on became base for the Apabramsa which in turn became Hindi language. Under such situations now also there is a big debate about the language extinction again amidst the increasing influence of globalization. Language extinction literally mean the death of a language which practically appears to be an illusion. Because language cannot die or become extinct unless all the speakers of it die. But it happens some times and in a faster way just because of some other factors and reasons. The following factors may be supposed to be the accelerators for this lesser usage of native language phenomenon which in turn may lead to language extinction in long run. The present paper examines such issues and reasons in a detailed fashion. The possible f actors affecting or leading to language extinction are 1-Shrinkage of domains of usage 2-employability opportunities 3-Media 4- Blind imitation of other cultures 5-Language policies of Governments 6-Advancement of technology, 7-Adaptabity issues of ICT DrVJREDDY, Dept. of Hindi, Annamalai University,email: vij72reddy@rediffmail.com 09442424331

3. Ahom and Tangsa: Case studies of language maintenance and loss in North East India

2014

is probably the most linguistically diverse area on the Indian subcontinent, with long established communities speaking languages of four different families-Austroasiatic, Indo-European, Tai-Kadai and Tibeto-Burman. Comparing Tai Ahom, language of the rulers of a kingdom that consisted of what is now Assam, with the very diverse Tangsa varieties spoken on the India-Myanmar border, we will discuss factors of language decline and language maintenance. Tai Ahom has not been spoken as a mother tongue for 200 years, but survives in the large body of manuscripts, and in the language used in religious rituals. While both of these features have been necessary foundations of the ongoing revival of the language, neither was able to maintain the language in its spoken form. At least 35 different Tangsa sub-tribes are found in India, with more in Myanmar. Each has a distinct linguistic variety, many of which are mutually intelligible while others are not. Despite having no writing until very recently, each variety is still healthy. Since many Tangsas are now Christians, Bible translations are underway, and many Tangsa of all religions are interested in orthography and literacy development. This may lead to standardisation, which would 1. INTRODUCTION. This paper will contrast the situation of two languages/ language groups that are geographically in close proximity, but with very different histories. One, Tai Ahom, once the language of a powerful kingdom,