On Friday 13 Jul 2012 10:56:58 pm Thaths wrote: > Sanskrit and Arabic might have been studied (by a minority who could afford > education) for liturgical purposes. But weren't the language of the bazaars > the likes of Urdu, Hindustani, Bhojpuri, Awadhi, etc.?
Oh absolutely. But there was a system of education in India that, in retrospect was as elitist as it is now. All the texts containing knowledge for Hindus was in Sanskrit, which they studied. All that was required to be studies by Muslims was in Arabic. For centuries before Macaulay both Hindu and Muslim kings has subsidzed education in both Arabic and Sanskrit (at least that is what Macaulay said). Initially the Brits continued these subsidies in the areas they got involved in. What Macaulay did was to stop Britidh subsidies for Sanskrit and Arabic education and introduced English. So what we have now is that the vast mass of Indians speak Indian languages , but the few elite educated (who used to be Sanskrit/Arabic scholars) are now English speakers. Democratization of education does not seem to have existed in old times and still does not exist. You learn an elite language to become elite and take on the mannerisms and attitudes that the elite language brings with it. shiv
