INDIAN INFLUENCE ON ENGLISH LANGUAGE

 

 

English language has travelled to many countries across the globe, adopting countless linguistic and cultural traits along the way. But it was Britain’s presence in India that gave the English lexicon a surprising boost as colonial travellers witnessed new civilizations and cultural practices that were simply unheard of in Britain at the time. The British East India Company seized control of large parts of the Indian subcontinent and ruled from 1757 until 1858. Then the rule was then passed to the Crown until India’s independence in 1947.

Language assimilation often occurs when two cultures are exposed to each other over a long period of time – words from one culture are subsequently assimilated into another. This could be in the form of words completely being absorbed into another culture’s language or words being altered to fit the linguistic limitations of the recipient language. India’s influence has seen words from Sanskrit, Hindi, Urdu, Malayalam and Tamil all make their way into the English Language once the East India Company arrived in India and traded with local and surrounding territories.

There are as many as 1,000 words of Indian origin in the English language, and still counting! Atoll, avatar, bandana, bangle, bhelpuri, blighty, bungalow, calico, cashmere, catamaran, cheetah, cheroot, chintz, chit, choky, churidar, chutney, coir, cot, cowrie, cummerbund, cushy, curry, dal, dinghy, dharma, doolally, dungarees, godown, gymkhana, gunny, guru, jodhpurs, jungle, jute, karma, kedgeree, khaki,loot, Mogul, Maharaja, mantra, masala, nirvana, Pashmina, punch, Pandit, pajama, pukka, raita, roti, shampoo, teepoy, thug, tickety-boo, toddy, typhoon, veranda and yaar are just a few examples.

The English language has absorbed words from cultures the world over but the linguistic association with India is special. The following is a list of some English words whose origins lie in the Hindi, Urdu or Sanskrit languages spoken in India, Pakistan and other countries. These words have entered English through a variety of routes, but the presence of many dates back to the days of the Raj, when India was occupied by the British.

1. Avatar [Hindi / Sanskrit]
In Hinduism, an avatar is the manifestation in human or animal form of a god, especially Vishnu. The word first appeared in English in the 18th century and derives ultimately from the Sanskrit word avatara meaning descent.

More recently the word has gained additional senses, for example to refer to a computer user’s visual representation within a game, on a forum etc.

2. Bangle [Hindi]
A rigid ornamental bracelet worn around the wrist (or ankle). Its appearance in English dates back to the 18th century. It derives from the Hindi word bangri meaning a glass ring or bracelet.

3. Bungalow [Hindi]
A one-storied house. Derives from the Hindi word bangla meaning, literally, in the style of or belonging to Bengal. The word bungalow in English dates back to the 17th century when it was used to refer to a type of cottage built in Bengal for early European settlers.

4. Bandana from Bandhnu [Hindi]

The method of dyeing fabric by tying it in multiple places is known as bandhnu in Hindi, which is where the large, colourful handkerchiefs/bandanas get their name from.

5. Bandobast [Hindi / Urdu]

A relatively new entrant to the English language bandobast is from Urdu and Hindi and it means preparation or an arrangement for dealing with something. The police bandobast was very effective.

6. Candy < Sucre Candi [French] < Qandi [Persian] < Khanda [Sanskrit]

Sweet-enthusiasts munching down on crystallized sugar might never know that that candy has travelled a long way, in terms of the roots of its origin. Starting from the Sanskrit khanda, another word for sugar, it journeyed to Persia where it became qandi, meaning cane sugar. Making its way to France, old French refers to sugar candy as sucre candi, which then became candy in English.

7. Cashmere from Kashmir [Hindi / Urdu]

Those soft, smooth shawls with intricate designs in various colours find their name dating back to the 1680s, christened by the old spelling of the Himalayan state Kashmir, where wool for this garment came from long-haired goats.

8. Chit from Chitthi [Hindi]

All those who spent more time in attempts to waste time rather than paying attention in class have encountered the word chit before, referring to note-passing. The Hindi word chitthi, meaning letter, gifts chit its name.

9. Cummerbund from kamarband [Urdu]

Men dressed in the best will be incomplete without the thick band wrapped around their waists known as a kummerband, whose source can be traced back to Urdu’s qamarband.

10. Cheetah [Hindi]
A long-legged big cat from Africa, the fastest land animal on Earth. Its black spots provide the clue to the origins of its name, which derives from the Hindi word chitti, meaning speckled or variegated.

11. Chutney [Hindi]
A thick, pickled condiment made from fruit, vinegar, spices and sugar. This word entered the English language in the 19th century and derives from the Hindi word chatni, whose meaning is more or less the same as the English word.

12. Cot [Hindi]
This word has several meanings, but in the sense of a portable bed or a high-sided child’s bed, it derives from the Hindi word khat, meaning a bedstead or hammock. It arrived in the English language during the 17th century.

13. Dacoit [Hindi]

Originally from Hindi word daku, meaning a member of a class of criminals who engage in organized robbery and murder. Hence also dacoity (banditry)

14. Guru [Hindi / Sanskrit / Gurmukhi]
Originally a Hindu or Sikh spiritual guide, guru entered English in the 17th century, where it now also means any important and respected intellectual guide or mentor. The original word in the Hindi and Sanskrit, also guru, means venerable.

15. Gymkhana  from Gedkhana [Hindi] or Gendkhana [Urdu]

Hindustani languages referred to English ball-courts quite literally, calling them ball [ged or gend] houses [khana], and that’s where gymkhanas derive their name from, first used in the 1870s.

16. Juggernaut [Hindi]
In English, a juggernaut is an unstoppable force or movement that sweeps aside or destroys anything in its path. In the UK it is also used to refer to very large lorries (trucks). The word arrived in English in the 19th century and derives from the word Jagannath, a form of the Hindu deity Vishnu.

17. Jungle [Hindi]
An area of dense vegetation or, by extension, any challenging or hostile environment. It derives from the Hindi word jangal meaning a forest and began to be used in English during the 18th century.

18. Jodhpurs [Hindi]

Full-length trousers, worn for horseback riding, that are close-fitting below the knee, flared and roomy at the thigh, and have reinforced patches on the inside of the leg. These are named after Jodhpur, where similar garments are worn by Indian men as part of everyday dress.

19. Khaki [Khaki Urdu / Khak Persian]

First introduced in uniforms of British cavalry in India, as well as adopted as camouflage fabric in the Boer Wars, khaki is a well-known cloth around the world. Deriving its name from the Urdu word khaki meaning dust-coloured cloth, it originally comes from khak, meaning dust in Persian.

20. Loot [Hindi]
Loot is both a noun and a verb. As a verb it means to ransack, to steal from someone or something, often in a violent way. The noun means whatever is stolen by the act of looting or, simply, any money. The word derives from the Hindi verb lut, meaning to plunder or steal.

21. Mongoose from Mangus [Marathi]

The term used to describe the carnivorous animal known for its ability to kill venomous snakes can be traced back to mangus, the Marathi word for the same creature.

22. Mango [Tamil]

‘Mango’, commonly known as ‘aam’ in Hindi, also followed the same route. While Malayalam and Tamil languages used the word ‘mangai’, it entered into Portuguese as ‘manga’, where the British later added the word ‘mango’ into English.

23. Nirvana [Sanskrit]

From one of the world’s most sensational bands to the attainment of inner peace and realization or perfect bliss, the word nirvana is engrained in the English language since the 1890s, with its roots in the Sanskrit word nirvana meaning disappearance (of the individual soul into the universal).

24. Punch from Pancha [Sanskrit]

Cups of the fruity mixture popularly called fruit punch derives its name from Sanskrit’s pancha meaning five, in reference to the five ingredients used in this concoction.

25. Pyjamas/Pajamas [Hindi]
A set of loose-fitting sleeping clothes, consisting of a jacket and trousers. The pajama spelling is used in North America. The word entered English in the 19th century. It derives from the Hindi word payjamah, meaning leg (pay) and clothing (jamah).

26. Shampoo [Hindi]
A soapy liquid for washing the hair (or other things such as carpets). It arrived in English in the 18th century and derives from the Hindi word champo, meaning to squeeze, knead or massage.

27. Thug [Hindi]
A brutal or violent person, it derives ultimately from the Hindi word thag meaning a thief or a cheat. It entered the English language early in the 19th century.

28. Typhoon [Urdu]

This is from a Urdu word ‘toofaan’ which means cyclone

29. Veranda/Verandah [Bengali / Hindi]
A sheltered gallery or terrace attached to a house or some other building. The word began to appear in the English language early in the 18th century. In Hindi, the word varanda has a similar meaning and in Bengali it is ‘baranda’. This is not the source of the word, however, as it is thought to derive from the Portuguese word varanda meaning a balcony.

30. Yoga [Sanskrit / Hindi]
This was originally a Sanskrit word meaning yoking or union. It refers to a system of Hindu philosophy concerned with achieving reunion with the divine. A part of this discipline involves meditation, breath control and the adoption of certain postures, which is how the word came to have the sense of a system of physical exercise. It entered English in the 19th century.

There are more than 1000 words in English language which are borrowed from or they owe their origin to Indian languages. Two centuries of association and the cultural, diplomatic and social blending that followed our independence helped in enriching the English language. Authors like V.S. Naipaul, Anita Desai, Salman Rushdie, Arundhati Roy, Rohinton Mistry, Kiran Desai, Indra Sinha, Arvind Adiga, Amitav Ghosh and Jeet Thayil have contributed towards this effort and even won the Booker Prize! Today English is spoken by far more Indians than Englishmen and India is second only to the United States when English speakers are counted!

ALVIDA DILIP SAHIB!

 

                                             (11 December 1922 – 7 July 2021)

An era in our celluloid history has come to a sad end today. The one and only Dilip Kumar is no more! The man who in his professional reel life was a purist par excellence and in personal real life was so sophisticated and refined that three generations of film lovers were in awe of him died today morning in Mumbai’s Hinduja Hospital. He attained the ripe age of 98 and was away from public life for quite some time but the fact that he was around was a huge consolation. He was the pulse of our entertainment industry and perhaps the strongest symbol of our soft power.

Born Mohammed Yusuf Khan in Peshawar, Pakistan, Dilip Kumar debuted as an actor in the film Jwar Bhata (1944). In a career spanning over five decades he worked in over 65 films. He lived in each of his roles, whether it was the romantic in Andaz (1949), or the swashbuckling in Aan (1952), or in the social drama Daag (1952), or the dramatic tragedy in Devdas (1955), or the comical in Azaad (1955), or the epic historical Mughal-e-Azam (1960), or the social dacoit crime drama Gunga Jamuna (1961), and the comedy Ram Aur Shyam (1967) he did unparalleled justice to all. Later, as he graduated to character roles, ''Shakti'' and ''Karma" it did not matter because people would flock to the cinema hall to see him and the rest of the cast had to struggle hard to be noticed and remembered!

Dilip Kumar was an institution, a timeless actor and a legend who will continue to inspire generations to come. Chapters could be written on the cadence of each line he spoke and his dialogues and the gravity with which he delivered them will remain etched in our memory as timeless art and priceless jewels. In Sangdil (1952) he said “Duniya mein asli shaanti kisi ke sachche pyaar mein hi mil sakti hai, uske bagair duniya jise shanti kehti hai, woh shanti ek thakaan hai, shikast ya maut ka doosra naam hai”. This was a message as if the newly independent country was giving to the world! Who can forget his character in Mughle Azam (1960) and his inimitable style “Taqdeerein badal jaati hain, zamana badal jaata hai, mulkon ki taarikh badal jaati hai, shahenshah badal jaate hain, magar iss badalti hui duniya mein mohabbat jis insaan ka daaman thaam leti hai, woh insaan nahi badalta”!

Dilip Kumar was fluent in Urdu, Hindi, Hindko (his first language), Punjabi, Marathi, English, Bengali, Gujarati, Pashto, Persian and the Awadhi and Bhojpuri dialects. He was also a great music enthusiast and learnt how to play the sitar for a film. He loved cricket and played it often. He was appointed Sheriff of Mumbai (an honorary position) in 1980. He was nominated as a member of the Rajya Sabha, by the Indian National Congress for the period 2000–2006 from Maharashtra and he utilized a significant portion of his MPLAD fund towards the construction and improvement of the Bandstand Promenade and the gardens at Bandra Fort at Lands End in Bandra.

Dilip Kumar was nominated 19 times for the annual Filmfare award and won it on 8 occasions! He was decorated with Filmfare’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 1993. The thespian was honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 1991, Dadasaheb Phalke award in 1994 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2015 for his contribution to Indian cinema. The Government of Pakistan conferred Kumar with Nishan-e-Imtiaz, the highest civilian award in Pakistan, in 1998. His autobiography The Substance and the Shadow as narrated to Udayatara Nayar was published in 2014 by Hay House Publishers (India) Pvt. Ltd.

He is survived by his loving wife Saira Bano and countless of fans like me who feel a strange emptiness in their lives, now that he is no more!

Alvida Dilip sahib!

ENGLISH - IN THE HAND OF COLONIES

 

Once upon a time the sun would never set on the British Empire and there were English colonies in all continents and in islands in all oceans. Naturally English was the spoken language of the rulers and that left indelible impression on these colonies. The French, Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese too had their colonies all over the world and so these languages too are spoken in different parts of the world, but nothing matches the popularity of English.

 

English is recognized as an official language in 67 different countries, and every one of these countries puts its own spin on the lingua franca. According to Wikipedia the U.S has the largest English speaking population 307,170,460 and 92.79% of the population speaks English. India comes second  with 194,086,968 English speakers and only 14.18% of Indians speak English. Nigeria is third most popular English speaking country with 178,198,040 people speaking the language and that makes 86.42% of the population. The U.K is only 5^th in the list, even behind Philippines with only 62,912,000 people, 98.3% of their population being English speakers.

There are many different English speaking countries. Although the language is essentially the same, there are some aspects of the language that are different in different places.

1.      The pronunciation is different. There are many reasons for this. It could be that the accent affects the pronunciation or in some cases, the pronunciation can also be affected by other languages spoken in that area. So you have to listen carefully.

2.      The spelling and grammar is different. For example: In British English, you would say: “colour or programme”. Whereas, in American English you would say: “color or program”.

3.      There can also be a difference in vocabulary. There are instances where common objects are called different things. In British English, you would say: “I live in a flat”. Whereas, in American English you would say: “I live in an apartment”.

Since the English speaking countries are so different. There are even different local ways of greeting. Here are a few examples:

Austrailia – “ G’day”
Ireland – “Hows the form?”
New Zealand – Kia ora
South Africa – Howzit
United Kingdom – Alright?
United States of America – Whassup?

 

Do you recognize any of them?

 

Even when Brexit occurred from these colonies the language stayed back and the Empire wrote back with full force. Words and phrases were added to the Queen’s English by each of these colonies and English gradually became a very interesting language, very different from what was once spoken by the Englishmen and women.

 

Today I am going to discuss some unique Canadian words and phrases which I picked up while visiting friends in Canada and going out in long road trips.

1. Loonies and toonies: Canadians don’t have $1 and $2 bills, but they do have coins of the same denominations. The $1 coin was introduced in 1987, and it has an image of a common loon, a Canadian bird, on it, which is why Canadians started calling it a Loonie. In 1996, the first $2 coins started circulating too. Over time, the words “two” and “Loonie” merged into a single term - Toonie - that became the name of the $2 coin.

 

2. Hang a Larry/ Hang a Roger: Asking for directions in Canada can be quite confusing. For example, a Canadian can tell you to “hang a Larry after three blocks to get to the restaurant.” This is Canadian for “turn left!” So if Larry for Left, Roger for Right! Now that can’t be difficult, can it?

 

3. Klick: Still not leaving the road, if someone tells you that your destination is "about three klicks away," you need not be puzzled. Klick is just another word for a kilometer in Canadian English. So your destination is just 3 kilometers away.

 

4. Parkade: No, it has nothing to do with arcades, parks, or entertainment, and it has everything to do with boring-old parking. In Canada, a parkade is a word used to describe any large (usually multi-storied) indoor parking garage.

 

5. Dart: Again nothing to do dart games. Dart is just a popular slang word for “cigarette.”

 

6. Toque: The word toque (or tuque) is pronounced “too-uk” or “tuke,” and it refers to any winter hat, usually a woven ski hat or a beanie. “It is cold tonight, I should have packed my tuque,” The term is actually derived from the Arabic word taqia, which is a cap with no brim or a very small brim. In the 15th century, medieval French borrowed this word, and it was adopted into Canadian English through French in the 18th century. After all French is the second language spoken in Canada!

 

7. Washroom: If you think about it, the word restroom isn’t the most logical way to refer to a bathroom. After all, most people get most of their daily rest in the bedroom or living room. The Canadian word for the restroom, which is washroom, gets much closer to describing the activities that are actually conducted in a bathroom.

 

8. Pencil crayon: Now this may be a funny name for coloured pencils, but that’s exactly what many Canadians call them. This is likely due to French too. In French, colored pencils are known as crayon de couleur.

 

9. Keener: A keener is either a person who tries way too hard to please others or another word for “geek” in Canadian English. It shouldn’t be confused with Irish keeners, who were historical funeral wailers hired to mourn over someone who passed away (the Hindi equivalent is ‘rudali’).

 

10. Timbits: Timbits are the Canadian equivalent of donut holes. Interestingly, this version of donuts is significantly more popular than traditional donuts in Canada.

 

11. Head’r Head’r: This one is difficult; it actually means “to leave” or “to head out” in New Brunswick slang. So, you could say something like "I guess I'd better head'r," when you’re about to leave from your current location.

 

12. Two-four and mickey: If a Canadian friend calls you and asks you to pick up a two-four before on your way to his or her house, they want you to buy a 24-pack of beer. The word Mickie is also related to alcohol - it’s a 375 ml bottle of liquor that can easily fit in a bag or big pocket.

 

13. What you sayin? When you meet a Canadian acquaintance and they ask “What you sayin’?” they’re not asking you to clarify your statement. It can be misleading, but “What you sayin’?” is actually more similar to “What are you up to?” So, a person can call you and ask, “Hi! What you sayin’ tonight? I wanted to invite you over for dinner.”

 

14. Double-double: A double-double refers to a coffee with two portions of cream and two sugars. The term originated at Tim Horton’s, Canada’s most popular restaurant chain, but it eventually became so popular that now you can go to any coffee shop, ask for a double-double, and you will get the right beverage. Canadian English can be quite fun, eh?

 

15. Eh: Now this does not have a meaning. All you have to do is make a statement like “It is a very nice day out today.” If you add “eh” to the end of that statement, you can turn it into a question that will require a friendly reply from the person you are talking to. “Yes it is” is what it requires.

 

16. Molson Muscle: Here’s another great Canadian phrase for you, the Molson Muscle. It’s what Canadians call a beer belly developed by drinking Molson Canadian Beer.

 

17. Hydro: Here’s a word distinctly Canadian. They are the only people in the world who call their electricity Hydro. Canadians pay a lot for hydro even though we live next door to Niagara Falls.

 

18. Knapsack: This is what we Canadians call our Backpack or Rucksack. To Canadians a backpack is often called a knapsack, especially for school aged kids.

 

19. May 2-4 Weekend: A Canadian’s favourite holiday is Queen Victoria’s Birthday on May 24th. Not because it is the Queen’s birthday but because it is a holiday to celebrate the long weekend with great Canadian Beer.

 

20. Chinook: Chinook is a warm wind that comes over the mountain in the dead of winter and instantly melts the snow and raises the temperature.

 

We will continue this discussion on how the colonies are talking back in our subsequent blogs when we explore their contribution to the English language in our subsequent blogs.