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Title: The
Oldest Grammar
of Hindustani: Contact, Communication and Colonial
Legacy
Where
& When: February 24, 2009
341 Eggers Hall
12.30 pm
Type
of Activity: Speaker
Speaking: Tej
Bhatia, Professor, Languages, Literature and Linguistics
Summary:
Contrary to the widely held belief by historians of Hind?
grammar, the first grammar of Hind? was written neither in
English nor in one of the other Indian languages. Its
creator was neither an Englishman nor an Indian. The
pioneering grammarian was neither a missionary nor someone
with expertise in linguistics or languages. Who was he? Why
did he write the grammar? What were the circumstances which
inspired him to undertake this challenging work? What was it
like writing a vernacular grammar in the era of the
discovery of India? What was its nature and organization? I
attempt to answer these questions based on Jean Josua
Ketelaar’s unpublished Dutch manuscript, which dates
back to 1698.
Sponsorship:
The South Asia Center;
