South India, particularly TamilNadu is the bastion of opposing imposition of Hindi.This Hindi opposition movement has a long tradition and history in Tamilnadu(TN).
Some History:
In 1937, Hindhi was made a compulsory subject in TN schools by C.Rajagopalachari,then CM of TN.Tamilians under the stewardship of periyar and Maraimalai adigal broke that attempt.Two tamilians thalamuthu and natarajan, died in that epic struggle.
After Independence Hindi and english were made the national languages of India.In 1965, after a 15 year gap, english was removed from that list and only hindi was declared as the solitary national language of India.This led to violent protests in TN and so many deaths of tamilians.To end this struggle, Jawaharlal Nehru promised that Hindhi will not be forced on tamilians, as long as they dont want it. DMK came to power in 1967 because of this epic struggle.
In 1980’s central government started navodaya schools all over the country.But in these schools, Hindi was a compulsory language.MGR,then CM of TN,asked that this should be scrapped.But central government refused to do so.So MGR denied permission for navodaya schools to be started in TN.Till now we dont have navodaya schools in TN.Till now central government has not removed this descriminatory rule.
TN opposed All India radio, being renamed as akash vani.After protests,akash vani is still called( in TN only) as AIR( All India radio).This protest of TN was a sign of of protest for naming all institutions of central government only in Hindi.
But still indirect attempts are made to force Hindi on tamils.I will talk about it as I proceed to the next sections of my article.
TN’s stand on Hindi:
1. Tamilians are proud to call themselves as Indians.Tamils are no less patriots than any Indian in any other part of India.we have given patriots and freedom fighters to our nation like Kamaraj, Abdul kalam and Rajaji.In rest of India,a misconception prevails that tamils dont accept hindi because they are unpatriotic.I would like to call that as baseless premise.Among tamilians,some extreme fringe elements who ask for seperate TN still exist,but they don’t even command 0.5% of public support.
2. Tamils don’t oppose Hindi, but we only oppose imposition of Hindi. This opposition is based on our freedom of speech. Our mother tongue is Tamil. We don’t have any aversion to a person learning any language,be it spanish, French, english, Hindi, maratha, oriya etc. We dont discourage anybody from learning any language. But we totally detest a language being forced on us.How will north Indians feel if Tamil is made compulsary language in schools?How will they feel if doordarshan is called as pothigai channel and runs its program’s in tamil? It is the same feeling which we get when we see doordarshan and when Hindi is made compulsory in schools.
What are our demands:
1.Tamils should not be forced to learn Hindi.Now in many competitive exams run by central government, knowing hindi is made a necessary qualification. In some exams,you can take them only in Hindi or english.This puts rural tamils in a disadvantage,just like how competitive exams being conducted only in english puts rural north indians in disadvantage.
2.In central government banks in TN, officers are ordered that they should sign only in Hindi.Why should a tamilian employee, working in Tamilnadu forced to sign in Hindi , in an Indian government bank? Is this fair?At times central government gives orders like “All banks must buy only hindi newspapers”.This certainly irritates us.
3.Tamil employees of banks are forced to learn hindi, because they might be transferred to North India.But north indian employees of banks, who come to work in TN are not forced to learn tamil.They speak in Hindi and english, which is not understood by rural tamils.If tamil employees speak only tamil and english in North India, they are frowned.But here in TN, North indian employees expect Tamil customers to know hindi.This double standards should stop.
Further different ministries of central government slowly and steadily shift all their work to Hindi from English.This happens year by year.Many ministries and departments now are functioning entirely in Hindi.
If the reason for all this is that Hindi is our national language,then we expect tamil also to be made the national language of India.Either revert back to english or tamil.Not Hindi.
Instead of making tamils to learn english, hindi and tamil, it would be better if we all learn english and our mother tongue.
I hope that people across India will agree to our right to freedom of speech in the language of our choice.We dont hate any language.But we love or language.
vande matharam.
Jai Hind.
21 Comments:
well...the same opportunist DMK which opposed AIR being renamed as AKASHVANI ...remain mute spectator when DoT was renamed as BHARAT SANCHAR NIGAM
Worst and worst...a DMK family member headed the ministry later !!!
An idiot sent a comment with abusive words.It was rejected.If you don't know to debate in a civil way, learn it first.Then you can come to debate
Hi,
Why only Tamils face an issue learning Hindi.No other state in India opposes Hindi,neither do they demand that their regional language,whatever ,may be:Bengali,Marathi,Telugu,Malayalam,Gujarati,Punjabi etc. be made the national language.Even the rural folks of all other states respect Hindi,they never think that Hindi is forced upon them.All other states also have rich cultural heritage and ample text of the regional language.
At least,Tamilians should understand that National highways,central govt. offices,post offices should not be marked in Tamil alone.In any case,national pride comes first instead of a narrow approach of regional pride.
Amit,
This is a free country, isn't it? Why would you expect us to learn your mother tongue and be surprised if we don't learn it? It's our freedom of speech brother. We don't need Hindi, so we don't learn it period. How many languages do you expect us to learn brother? English, Tamil and then Hindi? We don't want to burden our children with 3 languages in schools. English and Tamil are sufficient. We don't prevent anybody who wants to learn Hindi by his/her choice.There are lots of Hindi prachar shabas in Tamilnadu. Many Tamils learn it by choice. Nobody stops them.
We Tamils are as patriotic as any other race in India. Tamilnadu has made immense contribution to independence movement in India.Till date Tamilnadu raised largest amount of contribution to Indian soldiers who sacrificed their life in Kargil.So do not think that we are unpatriotic because we refuse to learn a language which we don't need.
I have not been in Tamilnadu for years. So I don't know whether name boards in Tamilnadu are only in Tamil.If that is true, then I certainly don't support it.I hope that government institutions all over India use regional languages and English for the convenience of people.
I am a human being first, Indian next and Tamilian after that.India is my country and Tamil is my mother tongue. I do respect Hindi as an important language of our country and I consider north Indians as my brothers. But I do not see any necessity to learn Hindi just like you guys do not see any necessity to learn Kannada or Telugu.
There is no point in learning a language which you don't need, is there?
Have a great day
Hi,
I am living in chennai for last 3 years, and i would like to add some thing here, as you have said, we all have freedom of speech agreed,but why there is a compulsion over people to learn only Tamil and English. I know many friends are there working in my office who are interested to learn Hindi but they could not as it is not available in school.And going for a specific learning program is difficult rather than having it directly in to school. Every body loves their mother tongue. I am a Bengali and i love Bengali. But i also respect other languages.If we can learn English that is a foreign language then what is wrong to learn our own country language Hindi. You are talking about over burdening your kids with one more language, is not it showing to show less respect to your own country language over a foreign language? If your kid grows up and go for studies or job to out side of TN will not be helpful for him or her to mingle with the localite easily? I have seen in abroad that tamilians only mingle with tamilians. The reason is they might not feel comfortable to mingle with somebody else who does not speak in Tamil. Yes English is still an option but outside your own country and speaking in your country language always gives you more homeliness. I have learnt basic of tamil. Because i feel learning more languages are always good, i have many tamil friends here as i could learn the language. Loving your own language is good, But respecting what the whole nation follows is also required.
Mome
//I am living in chennai for last 3 years, and i would like to add some thing here, as you have said, we all have freedom of speech agreed,but why there is a compulsion over people to learn only Tamil and English. //
Nobody compels you to learn "only" tamil and english.You can learn any language you want.
//I know many friends are there working in my office who are interested to learn Hindi but they could not as it is not available in school//
As far as I know, many schools and college have hindi as an optional subject.If some schools dont have it, it might be because there is not enough demand for hindi in that school.
//I am a Bengali and i love Bengali. But i also respect other languages.If we can learn English that is a foreign language then what is wrong to learn our own country language Hindi. //
There is nothing wrong in learning hindi.Anybody who wants to learn hindi can learn it as an optional subject.Nobody said that you cannot learn hindi.
//You are talking about over burdening your kids with one more language, is not it showing to show less respect to your own country language over a foreign language? //
This makes no sense.If I dont learn a language i am disrespecting it or what?.Do you know telugu, malayalam, tamil, urudu, manipuri, assamese?All these languages are our countriy's languages.Since you dont know them and know english, are you disrespecting these languages?
//If your kid grows up and go for studies or job to out side of TN will not be helpful for him or her to mingle with the localite easily?//
My kid can learn hindi if such a situation arises.Did you learn tamil when you were a kid at school or what?You dint.You must have picked up that language in past 3 years.My kid too can pick it up if such a need arises.
But anyway, my kid is a US citizen and she would never need hindi in her life.
//I have seen in abroad that tamilians only mingle with tamilians.The reason is they might not feel comfortable to mingle with somebody else who does not speak in Tamil. //
this is not correct.I am a tamil and my cellphone contact list has atleast 30 americans and north indians.Many tamils I know mix with everybody.A couple of them have married foreigners.
//es English is still an option but outside your own country and speaking in your country language always gives you more homeliness.//
This is purely your perception.I don't think this is a big issue.I speak to everybody in english, and I dont feel unhomely or whatever.If you are comfortable speaking in Hindi,go ahead and speak.Nobody stops you.
//Loving your own language is good, But respecting what the whole nation follows is also required.//
I don't disrespect Hindi.But I have no need to learn it.If you equate not learning a language with disrespect it, that's your problem.Not mine.
"Nobody compels you to learn "only" Tamil and English.You can learn any language you want."
True enough,i never meant anybody learning some other language will be killed in TN. I was just trying to portray that the official language is not given much importance in TN.
"As far as I know, many schools and college have hindi as an optional subject.If some schools dont have it, it might be because there is not enough demand for hindi in that school."
Thanks for the information, then unfortunately whoever i have interacted with they are not from these schools.
"
This makes no sense.If I dont learn a language i am disrespecting it or what?.Do you know telugu, malayalam, tamil, urudu, manipuri, assamese?All these languages are our countriy's languages.Since you dont know them and know english, are you disrespecting these languages?
"
Actually "telugu, malayalam, tamil, urudu, manipuri, assamese" either of these languages are not official language of India. you cannot make all the languages to a official language of a country and expect all people learn it. We can keep on arguing about it. i have no problem if Tamil is being the official language and i learn it from my childhood.But some language (any Indian language) has to be made a official one that all country should follow. If today all the states speak the same way that they do not want to follow Hindi mainly as their official language and just learn their own language and say "We don't stop anybody learning Hindi" i cant even imagine the mess all around.
"My kid can learn Hindi if such a situation arises.Did you learn tamil when you were a kid at school or what?You dint.You must have picked up that language in past 3 years.My kid too can pick it up if such a need arises."
I take back my words, You kids are born with privilege, as they are in US, no need for them even to learn Tamil or any other Indian language.
I suffered a lot when i came in chennai, by time i picked up some what, if i learned tamil from my child hood it would have been easy for me here. But Hindi is understood in many states of India.So that covers more state you need not know Marathi, bengali, Odiya, Telugu, Kannada to live in these respective states If somebody knows Hindi.
"this is not correct.I am a tamil and my cellphone contact list has atleast 30 americans and north indians.Many tamils I know mix with everybody.A couple of them have married foreigners."
I must say you are an exception.
"This is purely your perception.I don't think this is a big issue.I speak to everybody in english, and I dont feel unhomely or whatever.If you are comfortable speaking in Hindi,go ahead and speak.Nobody stops you."
True, Here you and i both are talking according to our perception and understanding only.
"I don't disrespect Hindi.But I have no need to learn it.If you equate not learning a language with disrespect it, that's your problem.Not mine."
Good to know that you respect Hindi even if you feel it is not required to learn and even if it is the official language of India. Again i should not comment because its your perception so its really not my problem.
//True enough,i never meant anybody learning some other language will be killed in TN. I was just trying to portray that the official language is not given much importance in TN.//
Official language means the language in which central government conducts its business. So officials should learn it. It is not required that people should learn it.
//Thanks for the information, then unfortunately whoever i have interacted with they are not from these schools.//
I would consider it unfortunate if Hindi or even Bengali is not offered as an optional language in TN schools.One should be given the opportunity to learn any language of his/her choice.I come from coimbatore and there many schools have malayalam, sanskrit,arabic, hindi, urudu, french as optional languages.Hence what you say is surprising.If that is true, then that problem should be removed.But many schools in TN are private schools and if there is demand,they will certainly offer hindi.
//Actually "telugu, malayalam, tamil, urudu, manipuri, assamese" either of these languages are not official language of India. you cannot make all the languages to a official language of a country and expect all people learn it. We can keep on arguing about it. i have no problem if Tamil is being the official language and i learn it from my childhood.But some language (any Indian language) has to be made a official one that all country should follow. If today all the states speak the same way that they do not want to follow Hindi mainly as their official language and just learn their own language and say "We don't stop anybody learning Hindi" i cant even imagine the mess all around.//
"An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration"
Wikipedia. Source OFFICIAL LANGUAGE", Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language, Ed. Tom McArthur, Oxford University Press, 1998
Official language is the language that is used by government officials.It is the language in which government conducts its business.There is no requirement that people should learn that language.Many Indian states have two official languages.UP has hindi and urudu as official languages.It doesn't mean that every uttar predeshi should learn both hindi and urudu.It only means that UP government will use these two languages in its official documents and government offices.
//I take back my words, You kids are born with privilege, as they are in US, no need for them even to learn Tamil or any other Indian language.//
They do learn Tamil to maintain ties to their motherland.
//I suffered a lot when i came in chennai, by time i picked up some what, if i learned tamil from my child hood it would have been easy for me here. But Hindi is understood in many states of India.So that covers more state you need not know Marathi, bengali, Odiya, Telugu, Kannada to live in these respective states If somebody knows Hindi.//
That should be left to individual choice.If anybody thinks that their kids have a chance of going to North India, they can enroll them in Hindi classes.As far as I know, many tamils I know think so and enroll their kids in hindi classes.Some even teach their kids arabic, french, italian, and so on.I don't think it makes sense to expect that everybody would expect their children to go to north india and enroll their kids in hindi classes.My parents never expected me to go to north india and they were correct.Your parents never expected you to go to tamilnadu and they were wrong.In any decision one makes there are bound to be mistakes.But matter of fact is in 3 years you picked up tamil.Nowadays people can learn a language real fast with 30 day courses and what not.
//I must say you are an exception.//
I'm not.I am friends with tamils who married foreigners.Anyhow, You want to survive outside your home state, you learn to broaden your outlook.Learning a language helps, but again you can't learn all languages. Anybody in north America knows English and it defies logic to think that an Oriyan and tamil can better interact in Hindi than through English.I mostly talk to my kids in English.It did not affect our relationship in any way.Many Indian friends I know talk to their kids in English.If you and the other person are fluent in a language, interaction won't be an issue.English is great language, and a great global communication tool.
//Good to know that you respect Hindi even if you feel it is not required to learn and even if it is the official language of India. Again i should not comment because its your perception so its really not my problem.//
It is not required that non-officials learn official languages. English is also an official language and to understand central govt communications, English is enough.
I agree with most of your points but I don't agree with the following comment that somebody posted below -
"Official language means the language in which central government conducts its business. So officials should learn it. It is not required that people should learn it."
How can you differentiate between officials and people? Government is of the people, by the people and for the people...or did you miss the class when they were teaching democracy.
--
Before I start, I just wanna say that I don't doubt the patriotism of any Tamilian. I have a lot of Tamilian friends and they all are very patriotic.
Anyhow, personally I don't think Hindi should be forced upon everyone, but it should definitely be taught in every school and offered as a second language.
I still feel that people should make an effort to learn Hindi. I don't understand why Indians stress on learning English so much. The white babus have long gone but they have left a remarkable status quo complex among the Indians. We immediately form an opinion about a person based on whether he/she knows English or not. (sorry for deviating off the topic).
I think there is a very important reason why Indians should atleast try to learn conversational Hindi..if not written.
If you are only planning to live in TN, sure, all you need to know is Tamilian. But as soon as you move out, believe me, English won't help you. This is a BIG reason why Tamilians generally find it hard to move around the country. I have seen Malayalis, Biharis, Assamese, Kashmiris, Gujaratis, etc live and well settled in various parts of the country...but I have never seen any Tamilian living above Karnataka region.
I have lived in India, Middle East and US. I made a lot of Tamil friends in the middle east. English definitely helped bridge the gap but I still noticed that Tamilians generally stuck together. It used to be like the rest of Indians(including other south indians) + bangladeshis and pakistanis in one group and tamilians in their own separate group. Not sure why, but I feel it was because we all used to converse in English/Hindi combined and they just did not have the same level of comfort.
Personally, I really wish that Sanskrit was still popular and offered in more schools. I never got a chance to learn it but I feel that it's a very important part of our history and culture and that we should atleast know it's basics.
Lol, I know half my comment isn't really related to the debate, but I just thought I would give my 2 cents.
How can I differentiate between officials and people? well..by the fact that government servants are servants of people and not masters. Servants exist to serve us, we the people. Masters don't need to learn servant's language. Servants need to learns master's language and communicate in such a way that they can serve their masters well.
So it is the duty of the government to learn people's language be it tamil, kannada and Hindi.Not the other way around.
And Hindi is taught in most schools in TN. Due to infrastructure and no demand from public it might not have been taught at every school. But I certainly do hope that tamil students get a choice to learn other languages.Again the key word is choice. Other than that hindi prachar shabas freely exist and teach hindi to any willing student in TN.
It's up to Tamil people to decide where they move and which languages they want to learn. I don't know Hindi, live in US and never had to regret not knowing Hindi.We have a vibrant north Indian community over here and I have many good north Indian friends. English is sufficient for our relationship. I do have friends from Bulgaria, Romania, Ethiopia, France, Korea..I don't know those languages. That did not stop me or them from having a good friendship.
English is a global language.I have no issues or inferiority complex about learning English.I earn my livelihood through English language and English speaking people.I have noticed that some Tamils stick around themselves. Usually they are first generation graduates and are not used to mixing around with ethnically diverse populations. In a generation or two that problem will be solved. I have also noticed many NRI tamils being very successful in their local communities abroad and raising to high positions.
I am not against anybody learning Hindi voluntarily. But personally I don't need it and wont teach it to my kids also. It's not because I hate Hindi. It is just because I don't need it. English and my mother tongue Tamil are sufficient to me. Tamil too is a language of God and has many divine verses and I fell close to god when I chant alwar pasurams and thevaram.I respect Sanskrit and Hindi but don't feel that I need to learn them.
How can I differentiate between officials and people? well..by the fact that government servants are servants of people and not masters. Servants exist to serve us, we the people. Masters don't need to learn servant's language. Servants need to learns master's language and communicate in such a way that they can serve their masters well.
So it is the duty of the government to learn people's language be it tamil, kannada and Hindi.Not the other way around.
And Hindi is taught in most schools in TN. Due to infrastructure and no demand from public it might not have been taught at every school. But I certainly do hope that tamil students get a choice to learn other languages.Again the key word is choice. Other than that hindi prachar shabas freely exist and teach hindi to any willing student in TN.
It's up to Tamil people to decide where they move and which languages they want to learn. I don't know Hindi, live in US and never had to regret not knowing Hindi.We have a vibrant north Indian community over here and I have many good north Indian friends. English is sufficient for our relationship. I do have friends from Bulgaria, Romania, Ethiopia, France, Korea..I don't know those languages. That did not stop me or them from having a good friendship.
English is a global language.I have no issues or inferiority complex about learning English.I earn my livelihood through English language and English speaking people.I have noticed that some Tamils stick around themselves. Usually they are first generation graduates and are not used to mixing around with ethnically diverse populations. In a generation or two that problem will be solved. I have also noticed many NRI tamils being very successful in their local communities abroad and raising to high positions.
I am not against anybody learning Hindi voluntarily. But personally I don't need it and wont teach it to my kids also. It's not because I hate Hindi. It is just because I don't need it. English and my mother tongue Tamil are sufficient to me. Tamil too is a language of God and has many divine verses and I fell close to god when I chant alwar pasurams and thevaram.I respect Sanskrit and Hindi but don't feel that I need to learn them.
\How can I differentiate between officials and people? well..by the fact that government servants are servants of people and not masters. Servants exist to serve us, we the people. Masters don't need to learn servant's language. Servants need to learns master's language and communicate in such a way that they can serve their masters well./
Ok, for starters, that's the worst analogy you could have ever given.
There is no servant-master relation between the government and public. Government workers, politicians, bureaucrats are not 'servants'. We are not masters. You need to get your understanding of the functioning of the government straight. WE are the government, WE, as voters, elect our representatives in the central body. That does not mean that the elected officials are our "servants". That sounds extremely derogatory. They are there to make decisions and form policies "on our behalf", not serve us in any way. They are as much like us as we are like them. If a government fails to do a good job, it not only represents the government body but also us, the voters, because it was us who chose them in the first place.
Now moving on to the actual topic - If you did not notice, I was actually supporting most of your views and just added a few points to it.
\It's up to Tamil people to decide where they move and which languages they want to learn./
Yeah absolutely. But for the sake of argument, let's limit our discussions to people currently living in India and moving within the borders. Don't you think that learning a language that the majority speaks would be beneficial? Just by learning basic conversational Hindi, you can easily get by through almost every state in India... Especially in this age, when people work across borders and travel so much.
\ I don't know Hindi, live in US and never had to regret not knowing Hindi.We have a vibrant north Indian community over here and I have many good north Indian friends. English is sufficient for our relationship. I do have friends from Bulgaria, Romania, Ethiopia, France, Korea..I don't know those languages. That did not stop me or them from having a good friendship.
English is a global language.I have no issues or inferiority complex about learning English.I earn my livelihood through English language and English speaking people.I have noticed that some Tamils stick around themselves. Usually they are first generation graduates and are not used to mixing around with ethnically diverse populations. In a generation or two that problem will be solved. I have also noticed many NRI tamils being very successful in their local communities abroad and raising to high positions./
I wasn't attacking you personally when I was talking about English. I was mentioning our society in general.
You need to understand that I am not talking about Indians abroad. I know that you are speaking from personal experience. That's great and I am sure that most Indians in US have the same experience as you do...even I have the same experience as you.I have friends from a lot of places here. I am currently doing an internship at a company where my team consists of people from 10 different countries and I have a great relation with everyone of them.
After rereading your comment, it seems to me that you are mostly referring to why you don't need to learn Hindi but I was talking in more general terms about people who live in India.
There is nothing derogatory in calling politicians as public servants. They exist to serve the people. We the people are masters. They need to listen to us and obey our commands. At least that's how the system is supposed to work. It is they who need to communicate us, their masters, in OUR language.
I do not deny that you agreed with my view points. I am happy that you did not call for compulsory Hindi education to us Tamils. I narrated my personal experience to answer your point about Tamils sticking around themselves abroad.
//Yeah absolutely. But for the sake of argument, let's limit our discussions to people currently living in India and moving within the borders. Don't you think that learning a language that the majority speaks would be beneficial? Just by learning basic conversational Hindi, you can easily get by through almost every state in India... Especially in this age, when people work across borders and travel so much.//
Many tamils move across state borders and work in Karnataka, kerala and Andhra. These are the three states where you will find huge number of minority tamil communities. I think that it would be beneficial for such tamils to learn kannada, malayalam or telugu than Hindi. There are tamil communities in Mumbai and Delhi. They can learn Marathi and Hindi respectively. For people who get frequently transferred across multiple North Indian states, learning Hindi provides an advantage. But as India gets more globalized, you only need English to live in India. You can survive with English in Chennai and other big cities of Tamilnadu. Many north Indian transferees who live here don't know one single word in Tamil. It all boils down to education level of a state.
It is my dream that whole India knows English and people can live anywhere in India by just knowing English and their mother tongue. With education such a state of affairs is possible.
\There is nothing derogatory in calling politicians as public servants. They exist to serve the people. We the people are masters. They need to listen to us and obey our commands. At least that's how the system is supposed to work. It is they who need to communicate us, their masters, in OUR language./
I still don't agree with you on this. We are not the government's masters..and neither are they our masters. It's more like working side-by-side(for the lack of a better word). We elect our representatives in the government so that they form and implement the policies that we as a collective whole (including them) feel is right for the country. I am a part of the government, you are a part of the government, every citizen of India is a part of the government and the political process. The decisions taken by the government are the reflection of the decisions that we take at the local level.
\It all boils down to education level of a state.
It is my dream that whole India knows English and people can live anywhere in India by just knowing English and their mother tongue. With education such a state of affairs is possible./
This is what I was referring to when I was talking about people judging others based on their knowledge of English. There's a big difference between a person's knowledge of a language and that person's level of "education".
My dream is not that everyone in India speaks English. I couldn't care less about everyone in India speaking English. I care about people being educated.
Quoting from wikipedia -
"Education in the largest sense is any act or experience that has a formative effect on the mind, character or physical ability of an individual. In its technical sense, education is the process by which society deliberately transmits its accumulated knowledge, skills and values from one generation to another."
I don't care which language the Indians get their education in as long as they get good education.
and I agree that this is a global world and a lot of people move to US and UK and what not. But I would rather that we Indians stay back in India and try to improve our country and build a future. I for one definitely plan to go back and work in India after completing my education.
One last thing, I remember you mentioning that English is a "great language". It's a very practical language in the sense that the majority of the world speaks it (British colonialism) but it's in no way a 'great' language. Classical Latin, Sanskrit, Tamil, Mandarin are great languages because they are near-complete languages with extremely sophisticated structures. Even French is a much better language than English.
I do think that government and politicians are public servants in a democracy. This would inject some humility in their mind. Now they think that they are our masters. I want it the other way around. Politicians and government derive their power from people. They exist to serve us. If you want to, let us agree to disagree on this.
English is a compulsory language in all schools and colleges in TN. I don't know about other states but in TN if you are a graduate your medium of instruction is English Unless you graduate in languages).I guess that the situation is the same in other states. So it is safe to say that higher a person's education, higher is his/her level of knowledge of English. As education level spreads and more and more people graduate higher is their English knowledge.
English opens new avenues and opportunities like no other language does. Sanskrit, Mandarin and Tamil are also great classical languages but their usage is limited in scope.
haha sure, I can agree to disagree. Look, I am not denying that politicians are not corrupt or they think that they are our masters. That's the ground level truth.
I was just talking about the political "system". Basically the system that our forefather created and the system that's defined by the constitution. I totally agree that the politicians today consider themselves about us.
Also, when talking about the languages, I was referring to the technicality and structure involved in a language..and not the opportunities.
and no, English is not a compulsory language in the government school in India (not sure about TN). It's compulsory in most of the private schools but not the public schools.
Most Non-Tamilians don't understand how difficult it is for Tamilians to learn Hindi since Tamil and Hindi are linguistically VERY different. If a Punjabi wants to learn Hindi and has to put X amount of effort, a Marathi would probably have to put 2X effort. A Kannadiga has to probably put 6X effort and a Tamilian has to put about 15X effort easily..no kidding! This is because the further down south you go in India, the farther you get separated from Sanskrit and other proto-Indo European root language influences. It's just geography!
I'm Tamilian and I grew up in Chennai learning Hindi, Sanskrit in school and Tamil at home. I'm now fluent in Tamil, Hindi and English and I'm learning Punjabi now. I'm very linguistically inclined and have the ability to learn multiple languages easily. I have a great passion for learning new languages.
But everyone need not be this way. Most people are comfortable with their native language plus the languages they have to learn for business.
So Non-Tamilians may find it easy to say "Why can't Tamilians also learn Hindi as a third language?" or "What harm does it do to them?" or "Learning more languages makes you smarter" or "All other states learn Hindi". But I think they should understand that it is an extremely difficult task. (Remember my Punjabi-X, Tamilian-15X comparison)
Since it's so hard for Tamilians to learn Hindi compared to even other South Indians, I think it should be left to their own discretion whether they want to learn it or not.
I love learning new languages. After I'm done with Punjabi, I'm planning to learn Bengali. But who am I to say that this is how everyone should function?
See my point?
The Tamil language have legends that their ancient history extends up to regarding 10 thousand years, ocean swallowing up their lands twice and kings establishing new capitals and fostering Tamil in 3 successive academies. The legend is 1st mentioned within the commentary of kaLavijal, that is assigned to regarding eighth century AD. This legend is one in every of the reasons- one in every of the excuses- for connecting up the Tamil civilization with some prehistoric ancient civilizations, whose identity and continuity poses special issues.
more than 180 language in india, but most of the language dies bye hindhi in north india, unfortunatly we save our tamil by hindhi aginusation, and we also hate the north indian ppls, becoz they are in hindu veda mind, they called tamils are soothras, even high court give 1 judgement, all south indian ppls are soothra, but we are not soothra, we r the 1 who originol inhabits of the india, we r the 1 who made the harappa, indus, mohanjadaro civiliatiation, most of the north indian's after only came, and we are the early ppl in the world, our tamil is one of the old language in the world, how many indian's know abuut tamil tradition, american scintist says, tamil is the 1st language in the world, how many north indian ppls know this issue, and morth than 1 lakh tamil ppl killed by sinhala, and indian army, then how can i love india, and indian ppl, how many indian ppl worry about tamill ppls dies, basiccaly no 1 gives respect to tamil, every human respect to tamil becoz, tamil is the 1s language in the world, human 1 speacks language is tamil.
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