	Excerpts from my journal--all about language
Home Constructed Hierarchy Economic Colonialism Orientalism Religion Geographic and Social Borders	August 3, taking Anay to school All day I have been trying my hand at constructing sentences in Marathi, and Deepa keeps bringing me down, “no that is not correct”. I want to be able to communicate a bit, not just stupid phrases that are barely in use that I always say because its all I know. I’m just afraid that I’ll never get to participate in conversations. Today was a wake-up call. I stayed at home all day and realized how much Marathi is surrounding me when I don’t leave and hang out with the other American students. I dropped Anay off at this pretty, white ‘colonial master’ big bungalow of a school. It looked like a school straight out of Britain, but with palm trees surrounding it. I am so impressed by that little boy. He came home with these pictures of grapes and a chicken that he colored, and reciting the multiplication tables 1,2,3,10,11, and he’s not even 5! The boy is such an attention hog. He must announce his presence, so he holds out his hand and diplomatically asks “may I come in?” when he wants to enter my room. August 20, Linguistic-religious communities? At dinner one night in Ellora, I asked Subhan something about language, and he told me he speaks Hindi at home. When I asked why, he replied that he’s a Muslim. There are often communication rifts in my conversations with Subhan, but I can’t imagine he didn’t understand my question in Marathi, it was simple enough translated directly as “why do you speak Hindi”. He went on that his family is from Karnataka so he did not originally speak Marathi. But South India is not a place for Hindi, so I don’t understand. Later I brought it up with Jonathon who reminded me that Hindi is closely related to Urdu, the Muslim Indian language. When we stopped at a water mill built by Muslims over two centuries ago, he read from the plaque in Urdu. Do most Indian Muslims speak Hindi rather than the regional dialect, tying them to the umma rather than their region? This was running through my mind as we visited the bibi-ka-maqbara in Aurangabad, the city and the ‘mini-Taj’ both in disrepair. The Hindu government just does not seem to care about taking care of this traditionally Muslim town and its impressive homage to Mourid invasion and rule. The pillars of the mausoleum and an archway in town displayed past majesty that has fallen to chipped paint and broken stone. Last week at Radika’s house warming puja, her grandpa asked me if I was going to cure the rift between Muslims and Hindus in India when I told him about my plans to study Partition. I said of course not, I’m a mere American college student. But is he asking a relevant question? Is it really currently a problem? back to language
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Excerpts from my journal--all about language

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August 3, taking Anay to school

All day I have been trying my hand at constructing sentences in Marathi, and Deepa keeps bringing me down, “no that is not correct”. I want to be able to communicate a bit, not just stupid phrases that are barely in use that I always say because its all I know. I’m just afraid that I’ll never get to participate in conversations.

Today was a wake-up call. I stayed at home all day and realized how much Marathi is surrounding me when I don’t leave and hang out with the other American students. I dropped Anay off at this pretty, white ‘colonial master’ big bungalow of a school. It looked like a school straight out of Britain, but with palm trees surrounding it. I am so impressed by that little boy. He came home with these pictures of grapes and a chicken that he colored, and reciting the multiplication tables 1,2,3,10,11, and he’s not even 5!

The boy is such an attention hog. He must announce his presence, so he holds out his hand and diplomatically asks “may I come in?” when he wants to enter my room.

August 20, Linguistic-religious communities?

At dinner one night in Ellora, I asked Subhan something about language, and he told me he speaks Hindi at home. When I asked why, he replied that he’s a Muslim. There are often communication rifts in my conversations with Subhan, but I can’t imagine he didn’t understand my question in Marathi, it was simple enough translated directly as “why do you speak Hindi”. He went on that his family is from Karnataka so he did not originally speak Marathi. But South India is not a place for Hindi, so I don’t understand.

Later I brought it up with Jonathon who reminded me that Hindi is closely related to Urdu, the Muslim Indian language. When we stopped at a water mill built by Muslims over two centuries ago, he read from the plaque in Urdu.
Do most Indian Muslims speak Hindi rather than the regional dialect, tying them to the umma rather than their region?

This was running through my mind as we visited the bibi-ka-maqbara in Aurangabad, the city and the ‘mini-Taj’ both in disrepair. The Hindu government just does not seem to care about taking care of this traditionally Muslim town and its impressive homage to Mourid invasion and rule. The pillars of the mausoleum and an archway in town displayed past majesty that has fallen to chipped paint and broken stone.

Last week at Radika’s house warming puja, her grandpa asked me if I was going to cure the rift between Muslims and Hindus in India when I told him about my plans to study Partition. I said of course not, I’m a mere American college student. But is he asking a relevant question? Is it really currently a problem?

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