Disclaimer: My name is "irrelevant" and I am not a fundamentalist. Neither am I a supporter of linguistic jingoism nor any sort of regionalism.
Ask any young working professional today to write a paragraph on anything in their mother- tongue and you will realise the abysmal knowledge of their own mother-tongues. They will unconsciously end up using at-least 2-to-3 words of English, in each of their sentences. This number raises to an alarming level of 3-to-4, when it comes to speaking in their respective native tongues.
As we Indians revel in the great success story of our country, and move towards prosperity, most Indians today have understood the importance of English. And as we have moved along accepting it as our very own, we still quarrel over our linguistic ethnicities. In India, English has conveniently avoided or rather "escaped" the criticism, that it is facing today in Europe and Asia-Pacific. I have to admit that this is very fortunate and English will play a major role in national integration in India. But at what cost?
The common observation being that, today's young generation in India have conveniently forgotten what it is to be an Indian. Many do not know the counterparts of English words that they easily substitute, while talking in their bhasha. And this change is happening at an alarming rate in cities, and I expect this to catch up in the villages, as role of English in any Indian's life increases exponentially. Right from packaging of items to billboards, signposts and advertisements in our cities are mostly and many-a-times, only in English. India's linguistic diversity naturally makes English a link language across all states. But in this process of coming together, I think we are unconsciously losing something that makes us all unique. Something that makes us inherently, Indian.
No! Before jumping to conclusions, let me say that I am not opposing English in India. Quite contrary to that. I want knowledge of English to be mandatory. But I also think it is extremely important for everyone to be equally competent in their respective mother tongues, to say the least. (Let me repeat... "equally competent"). Incessant usage of English words instead of the original ones, that is ruthlessly followed today, not only sends some negative vibes about our linguistic capabilities, but is also playing a crucial role in killing other languages.
There are some arguments opposing this, which I shall counter herewith...
Some idealists think that doing any such a thing is a hindrance to development of languages. They give arguments of how Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, etc. evolved from Sanskrit and Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam evolved from Tamil.
I do not necessarily think that was a really great thing to happen. All these languages came into picture to simplify the original languages. But I believe that could happen even inside the language instead of mixing it with other languages. Mind you, that I am not opposed to idea of borrowing words, as-it-is, from say English, into our languages. But it will be extremely harmful for the language when you substitute usual words with English counterparts. Hinglish or Tinglish or Kanglish or whatever shit that we spit from our mouths, might seem all modernish and cool. But the more we use them, the more we out-date and kill all other languages that defines us as Indians, and end up using a single language everywhere.
So what if a language dies? How does it matter? Language is just another means of communication and serves no other purpose. Let it die...
Sadly my friend, language in today's world is not just a means of direct communication alone. Language is a science in itself, but usage of words in a language is an art. Many a times we say something, while actually meaning the entire opposite of that. And the listener understands the intentions only because he is well versed with the culture inherent to that language. Different languages have unique traits that others lack. Some have words that just have one meaning, some with words that have multiple meanings, and some even have words with both equal and opposite meanings. And all of these words blend together as unique m'elange, giving rise to valuable attributes like rhetoric, irony, sarcasm, etc. These are the things that makes conversations lovable and interesting. Language is an inherent symbol of culture. And as the world starts globalising, we increasingly see linguistic barriers being broken. That is a good thing for everyone. But having simply one language all over the world is not at all a good option, for a variety of reasons, that I need not point out here. Like every human being is unique, so are people from different regions/societies. Their daily usage of language not only allows them to communicate but also defines them as a culture and finally gifts the world with a different outlook on life. That is why the world is like a mosaic made up of different colored tiles, that come together to give the big picture. That is what makes this Earth an interesting place. All of its different beliefs, culture, traditions, etc., are unequivocally connected to each other with their respective languages. We lose the connection, and we will end up losing the rest too.
But you are stopping development ! Nothing remains constant...
Simply BS. People today think any change in life is modern and foolishly think it is for their good, without even thinking twice. Many times, while accepting changes, we lose something in the process that defined us. That might be good or bad. I also know that only thing constant in this world is change. Somewhere down the line, one thing will lead to another. But that is besides the point I am making. Hasn't Europe developed itself, while keeping its languages and culture intact? The rate of growth of English language today, has the power to eradicate all languages, and most imminently in the Indian subcontinent. Never in history were the world's languages in as much danger of being wiped out, as they are today. Progress of English as a world language might have done many wonders for humankind, in science, technology, research and business, among other things. But should we allow it to replace our own identities as Indian? Should we do so at the cost of losing all our linguistic diversity? Should we remain the same, or become just another America or Middle East or China ?
Today, linguists estimate that almost 2-3 languages in the world die every day! Europe and many other countries have already realised the innocuous threat posed by English, and have started acting by supporting their languages. Not by opposing English, which is the right way forward. But it saddens me that nobody in our "country of languages" is doing anything about it. Sadly, if this continues, India runs the risk of being monolingual, and threaten everything that India stands for today. The Chinese have imposed Mandarin/Cantonese and have monolingualised their entire nation to preserve their communism and they have already started paying the price for it. Analogously, we in India are unknowingly imposing English everywhere (instead of using our native languages for spheres such as history and literature, and most importantly, daily communication) and are murdering our already struggling languages.
My point here is not to stop any development. My point is to develop our Indian languages on par with leading languages of the world. If something in the language is inherently difficult, then change it... If we do not have a word, then take it directly from others. I am not asking Indians to act like the French and convert or invent laughable and unusable words for our languages. The aim should be to preserve our language in the same way we would like to preserve our historical monuments, traditions, music, and literature. The aim is to be perfectly bilingual in some sense. The aim is to hold on to our roots like the kite's thread, while we keep rising higher and higher in the sky...
P.S. Do you have a differing opinion on this issue? If not, please join the cause and support regular and proper usage of your respective mother-tongues. And if you are one of those Indians who do not agree on this at all, then try talking for a paltry 5 minutes continuously in your mother-tongue, avoiding all English words that already exist in your language. You will then know what I mean...
12 comments:
I think this is the first time I am going to over-overwhelmingly agree with you on any issue. :P Amazing post.
Btw, a small correction: Telugu - I speak for it, is a derivative of Sanskrit. Some words have been borrowed from Tamil.
This apart, extending a step further, I think- many may differ; one of the reasons for Chinese being one of the intelligent species (the other ones being Indians) in the world is because of their fundamental training in their mother tongue. Again restricting myself to science and technology, if Indians do it in their mother tongue- without looking down upon it (i mean the current system of mother-tongue medium restricted to schools is becoming a practical failure)- then I think the productivity from Indians will go unparalleled.
1. Thanks buddy... It will be good if you get more people to read it by sharing it or publicising it the Jimmy way :)
2. Point noted regarding Telugu. Today's telugu resembles Sanskrit much more than Tamil... But nobody knows for sure if it is a heavily sanskritised Tamil (like Kannada, which shares the similar script) or heavily tamilsed Sanskrit. But point is it comes under Dravidian language category and not the Indo-European language category. Debate still rages among linguists, which I do not want to enter.
3. I agree that people have found that teaching in mother tongue stimulates the brain much more than if taught in some other language. That is why I advocated it in the post. But I will not agree that Chinese and Indians are intelligent species of the world. Coz, the most of the west teaches in their mother tongue, i.e. English or French. Would you include them in your intelligent species list too? :P
OK think of it this way. At the cost of bragging abt Indians, the west even after getting educated in their mother-tongues, have managed to be less intelligent than the Indians. So, my point was think of the situation when the Indians are provided with similar opportunity!
I made that point because, though we are considered intelligent, our productivity is far less compared to Germans, Chinese, Americans etc. We have the resources, talent; in other words, there is potential. There should be a way to milk it out. I think education in mother-tongue will be a good way to get started.
Also, I am completely aware of the fact that first-of-all the linguists and scientists should come together and make these languages too as an inteface for learning science. When the Chinese can study Quantum Mechanics in Mandarin, even I should be able to do so in Telugu, or Hindi
Regarding publicizing, well I'll do it :)
I don't think that is going to be a great idea. They can afford to do so in China because they have only one language there. They do everything in Chinese there. Whereas, in Europe, all research and business fields that are kinda international are done in English, with rest being in the local tongue. I think that is the right way to go forward. But yes, at least till high school, we need to emphasise the importance of mother tongue and popularise its usage in academics.
For starters, we should ask all English medium schools to teach at least subjects like History-Civics, General Knowledge and Moral Science in the mother tongue, apart from the language class. This reminds me of a certain amusing but harsh incident in my English medium school where the principal had imposed a rule of speaking only in English during school hours, except during the Hindi language class. Whoever used Hindi was supposed to pay Rs.1 to the class fund :P
After high school, English is kind of necessary for uniformity and simplicity of all fields across the country, given the amount of confusion it will create for students even moving across India.
Basic point: We should not be fundamentalist like Chinese and convert everything to our mother tongues, but be preservist in nature and use our languages "properly" in daily life...
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Your article brings to the surface a very important topic in linguistics: How does language shape our identity? There have been countless research articles written on how the language we speak influences our identity, our way of being and interacting with others. Speaking English or Hindi isn’t just speaking English or Hindi. When one speaks in one’s mother tongue, the speaker tends to be at ease if in a socially accepting environment. But the user is likely to switch languages if the social environment prefers another language, all to comfort the speaker. Languages allow us to adopt new personas. In the case of your article, language allows us to adopt identities most fitting with the social norm or dominant culture — dominant in the sense of social prestige.
As you mentioned, as a Hindi speaker, for example, continuous to incorporate English words, which has a Hindi counterpart, the speaker is making an unconscious choice to bring forth their English speaking identity. These swapping choices most often happen at an unconscious level, and increase as one interacts with other peers who do the same.
Language is not just words or a mode of expression. Language gives us identity, it links us to our mother culture, and it comforts us. Language is powerful. When a language dies, so does its culture and its history. As Santosh mentioned, language provides us with a “different outlook on life.” There are currently about 6,000 + languages in the world and each language provides a different outlook. Like no two people would describe the same sunset in the same fashion, no two languages view the world exactly the same.
When a nation does not take an active role in preserving their national language, the best method to preserve a language is by having individuals speak their mother tongue more frequently. We must think of our connection with out culture and language, our family and brothers. We are linked to identities far stronger than the detrimental effects of the English language. We can preserve our languages, but we must act daily. When we speak, we make an active choice to preserve one language over another.
In response to Jimmy: I think what you are referring to is how social norms and culture affect the priorities of a nation and individual. What does the West prioritize far greater than intelligence? Money, power, and individuality. The United States is a prime example, and it illustrates how social norms and culture influence individual choices. For example, a PhD is nuclear physics is outstanding and far more socially prestigious than a PhD in Medieval Spanish Literature. But PhD’s in any field are far less socially prestigious than professional athlete careers which equates to fortunate and fame in the U.S. Would India be an intelligent powerhouse if it had similar social norms and culture as the U.S.?
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