RACE

• Our present day population is a conglomeration of people belonging to different racial groups with different backgrounds
• These people entered India from different parts of the world, at different points in time, adopting various land and water routes
• Almost all the major races of the world are visible in India, as a result of which the country is said to have a varied and diverse ethnic composition

Racial groups, from which the present day population of the country has been derived

1. The Negritos
   • According to the Geographers, these were the earliestoccupants of India
     • Also, they have expressed their view that Negroid people migrated to India from Africaand established their language on the soil of India
   • These features are met with particularly amongst the Andaman islanders, the Uralis of Nilgiri Hills, Kadors of Kochi, Pullayans of Palni Hills, etc.
     • The tribeslike the Angami Nagas in the North-East, and Badgis in Rajmahal Hills in Jharkhand possess their traits
   • The race is characterized by short stature, dark chocolate brown skin, woolly hair, bulbous forehead, broad flat nose and slightly protruding jaws
2. The Proto-Australoids
   • These are believed to have come to India from the East Mediterranean area(Palestine), soon after the Negritos
   • Presently, they constitute the bulk of the population in many isolated parts of central and southern India
   • The Veddahs, Irulas and Sholagas are their true representatives
     • The Bhils, Kols, Badagas, Korwas, Mundas, Bhumjis of the highlands of the Central India and the Chenchus, Kurumbas, Malayans and Yeruvas of South India may all be treated as their representatives as well
   • According to some Anthropologists, these people on their arrival pushed, displaced and supplanted the Negritos to shift to more inaccessible, remote and less hospitable areas, where they are found even today
   • In physical appearance, they more or less resemble the Negritos with the exception of woolly hair
     • Their other physical characteristics are bulbous forehead, broad flat nose and slightly protruding jaws

3. The Mongoloid
   • It is believed that China is the homeland of the Mongoloid race, from where they were pushed southward into the Malaya Peninsula and Indonesia
   • They entered India through the passes in the northern and eastern mountains
   • Presently, they occupy large areas in Ladakh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and other parts of East India
   • Their physical characteristics include a round and broad head, face with very high cheek bones and a long flat nose, with little or no hair on the face and the body
   • The tribes of Garo, Khasi, Jaintia, Lipchas, Chakmas, Naga belong to this race

They are further classified as:

• • Paleo-Mongoloids–

• They were the first of the Mongoloids who came to India.
• These people are settled mainly in the border areas of the Himalayas.
• They are found mostly in Assam and the adjacent states

• • Tibeto-Mongoloids– These people came from Tibet and are settled mainly in Bhutan, Sikkim, areas of north-western Himalayas and beyond the Himalayas in which Ladakh and Baltistan are included.

4. The Mediterraneans
   • This racial stock came to India from eastern Mediterranean region or South West Asia
   • They are believed to have migrated during the third and second millennium BC
   • Their physical characteristics include medium stature, dark skin and long head
   • In all probability, they first settled in North-western India and started practicing agriculture there; post which they were pushed into central and southern India by subsequent immigrants
   • Presently, they form the bulk of population of south India and a considerable proportion in northern India
   • The Mediterranean were the chief architect of the Indus Valley civilizationas is evident from the excavations of Mohenjo Daro and Harappa
5. The Brachycephals
   • These are characterized by Broad heads
   • Coorgis and Parsis are their representatives in India
   • These are further sub-divided into three major groups:
     • Alpinoids, who came to India along the route passing through Baluchistan, Sind, Kathiawar, Gujarat, Maharashtra,, Karnataka and Tamilnadu
     • Dinarics, who followed the Ganga Valley and its delta as their route to enter India
     • Armenoids, who came through Chitral, Gilgit, Kashmir and Nepal to enter India

6. The Nordics
   • They spoke the Aryan language and migrated to India sometime during the second millennium BC
   • The main concentration of these people is in the north-western part of the country
     • They are a predominant type in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan
   • The main characteristics of this race are long head, fair complexion, well developed nose and a well-built strong body

ARTS

• It is an expression of human emotions expressed through various art forms.
• This expression is expressed through music, dance, theatre, painting, sculpture, etc.
• Initially, these art forms were used to spread religion and social reforms, with music and dance being incorporated to gain popularity.
• Gradually these performing art forms became a medium for expression and entertainment across the world.

Origin and Evolution of Performing Arts

• Bharatmuni’s Natyashashtrais the earliest text related to performing arts.
• In Matanga’s Brihaddesiragas were named and discussed.
• Performing arts were also patronized by various rulers such as Samudragupta, King Bhoja of Dhara, Akbar, etc.
• Ibrahim Adil Shah II wrote Kitabe Navraswhich is a collection of songs in praise of Hindu deities and Muslim saints.
• During the initial phases of the emergence of performing arts, these were used for the propagation of religion and for various other socio-religious purposes.
• Performing arts became means for generating awareness among the masses during Vedic, medieval periods.
• For instance, in Vedas rules were given for chanting hymns.

Categories of Performing Arts

Performing Arts have been recognised in the following categories:

Music

• It is a performing art form where different types of musical instruments, styles are used to produce various genres of music.
• Music has been India’s most popular art form since time immemorial.
• The origins of Indian music can be traced back to the Sama Veda, which contained the slokas that were set to music.
• Religious rituals still include the chanting of Vedic hymns with prescribed pitch and accent.
• Jayadeva of Orissa created the most brilliant raga kavya, the Gita Govinda, in the twelfth century, with each song set in a raga and composed on the theme of Radha and Krishna’s love.
• Abhinavabharati by Abhinavagupta (993-1055) contains useful information about music.
• Tamil music contains a number of terms and concepts that are similar to those found in Sanskrit texts.
• Psalms (poems) were also set to music by the Saivite Nayanars and Vaishnavite Alvars.
• Similarly, Sufi and Bhakti saints encouraged music during the medieval period.
• Qawwalis were performed in Sufi khanqahs, and devotional music such as kirtan and bhajan became popular among Bhakti saints.

Indian music during medieval times was divided into

Hindustani Classical Music

• Hindustani classical music can be traced back to the Delhi Sultanate and Amir Khusrau (AD 1253-1325), who encouraged musical performance with specific instruments.
• He is credited with inventing the sitar and tabla, as well as introducing new ragas.
• Tansen is the ancestor of the majority of Hindustani musicians.
• Dhrupad, Dhamar, Thumri, Khayal, and Tappa are Hindustani music styles.
• Some of the popular ragas are – Bahar, Bhairavi, Sindhu Bhairavi, Bhim Palasi, Darbari, Desh, Hamsadhwani, Jai Jayanti, Megha Malhar, Todi, Yaman, Pilu, Shyam Kalyan, and Khambaj.
• India also has a wide range of musical instruments of various types.
• Hindustani classical musicians are usually associated with a gharana or a specific style of music.
• Gharanas are hereditary musical linkages that represent the core of the style and distinguish it from others.
• Gharanas work in guru shishya parampara, which means that disciples learning under a specific guru and transmitting his musical knowledge and style will belong to the same gharana.
• Gwalior gharana, Kirana gharana, and Jaipur gharana are some well-known gharanas.

Carnatic Music

• Carnatic music compositions can be attributed to three composers who lived between AD 1700 and 1850. They were – Shyam Shastri, Thyagaraja, and Mutthuswami Dikshitar.
• Purandardasa was another great Carnatic composer.
• Thyagaraja is revered as a saint as well as an artist, and he embodies the essence of Carnatic music.
• The main compositions, known as kriti, are devotional in nature.
• Maha Vaidyanath Ayyar (1844-93), Patnam Subrahmanya Ayyar (l854-1902) and Ramnad Srinivasa Lyengar were among the notable musicians of this era (1860-1919).
• Carnatic music is accompanied by instruments such as the flute, veena, nadaswaram, mridangam, and ghatam.
• Despite the differences between Hindustani and Carnatic music, some similarities can be found.
  • For example,
  • The Carnatic alapana is similar to the alap in Hindustani classical music.
  • Tilana in Carnatic architecture is similar to Tarana in Hindustani architecture. Both put emphasis on tala or talam.

Folk Music

• Aside from classical music, India has a rich folk or popular music tradition.
• This music embodies the feelings of the masses.
• The simple songs are written to commemorate every event in life.
• It could be a festival, the start of a new season, a marriage, or the birth of a child.
• Rajasthani folk songs such as Mand and Bhatiali of Bengal are well-known throughout India. Ragini is a popular Haryana folk song style.
• Folk songs have unique meanings or messages.
• They frequently describe historical events and significant rituals.
• Gulraj from Kashmir is folklore, and Pandyani from Madhya Pradesh is a story set to music.
• During Muharram, Muslims sing Sojkhwani, or mournful songs, and Christmas carols and choral music are sung in groups on festive occasions.

Dances

• The Rig Veda refers to dance (nrti) and a danseuse (nrtu), and compares the brilliant dawn (usas) to a brightly attrived danseuse.
• Dance and music are mentioned together in the Brahmanas by Jaiminiya and Kausitaki.
• The Epics are rife with references to earthly and heavenly dances.
• Indian dance, like music, has a rich classical tradition. It has a great deal of expressive and emotional power when telling a story.
• The art of dancing can be traced back to the Harappan culture in India.
• The discovery of a bronze statue of a dancing girl demonstrates that some women in Harappa danced.

• Dance served as a symbolic expression of religious ideas in traditional Indian culture.
• The figure of Lord Shiva as Nataraja represents the cosmic cycle’s creation and destruction.
• There isn’t a single temple in the country, at least not in the south, that doesn’t have sculptures of dancers in various poses.
• In fact, classical dance forms such as Kathakali, Bharatnatyam, Kathak, Manipuri, Kuchi pudi, and Odishi are important components of our cultural heritage.

Some of the Popular Dance Forms in India are:

• Kathak – Famous dancers include Pt. Birju Maharaj, Pt. Shambhu Maharaj, Sitara Devi, etc.
• Bharatanatyam – Famous dancers include Saroja Vaidyanathan, Padma Subhramaniam, etc.
• Odissi – Famous dancers include Kelucharan Mahapatra, Sanjukta Panigrahi, etc.
• Kuchipudi – Famous dancers include Swapna Sundari, Satya Narayan Sarma, etc

Drama/Theatre

• The origins of Indian drama can be traced back to the Vedas, according to indigenous tradition and modern research.
• The Ramayana mentions female drama troupes, while Kautilya’s Arthshastra mentions musicians, dancers, and dramatic performances.
• Drama is a performing art that has been practised since the dawn of time.
• Since ancient times, mythological stories of war between the gods, goddesses, and devils have been told.
• Bharata penned Natyashastra and the plays Asura Parajaya and Amrit Manthan.
• Natyashastra is one of the most important texts in the history of drama and other performing arts.
• The next epoch is that of the great Bhasa, who wrote plays based on the stories of Udayana, the Ramayana, and the Mahabharata, his masterpiece being Swapana Vasabdatta.
• Patanjali’s Mahabhasya, written in the second century B.C., refers to several aspects of drama, including the actors, music, stage, and rasa in the performances known as Kamsavadha and Balibandha.
• In the context of drama, two types emerged: classic drama, which featured intricate themes and subtle nuances of dramatic traits, and folk theatre. It was impromptu and on the spur of the moment.
• Local dialect was used in folk theatre, and as a result, many different types of folk theatres developed in different provinces.
• Acting with music and dance accompaniment was a common practice.
• In various provinces, various forms of folk theatre were given various names, such as:
  • Bengal – Jatra, Kirtania Natak
  • Bihar – Bideshia
  • Rajasthan – Raas, Jhumar, Dhola Maru
  • Uttar Pradesh – Raas, Nautanki, Svaang, Bhaand
  • Gujarat – Bhawaii
  • Maharashtra – Larite, Tamasha
  • Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka – Kathakali, Yakshagana
• Some props used in folk theatre included dhol, kartal, manjira, and khanjira instruments.
• Although the mediaeval period was rich in music and dance, theatre did not receive much attention.
• Wajid Ali Shah, a great patron of the arts, was also a major supporter of drama. He encouraged and supported artists to participate in theatre.
• The arrival of the British altered the character of the society. An Englishman founded a theatre in Calcutta in the eighteenth century.
• Horasim Lebedev, a Russian, founded a Bengali theatre, which marked the beginning of modern Indian theatre in India.
• Shakespeare’s English drama, in particular, influenced Indian drama.

Some of the popular forms of drama in India are:

• Stage theatre
• Radio theatre
• Nukkar or street plays
• Mono drama (one-man show)
• Musical theatre
• Short skits

Importance of Performing Arts

• It helps in the development of the overall personality of an individual.
• It promotes tolerance and love for all.
• It helps spread awareness about cultures, traditions among present and future generations.
• It makes an individual confident and adaptable.

LANGUAGE

• The writings of the human beings during the entire era of history have reflected the culture, lifestyle, society and the polity of contemporary society.
• In this process, each culture evolved its own language and created a huge
  literary base.
• This enormous base of literature provides us a glimpse of the evolution of each of its languages and culture through the span of centuries.
• Language in its literary meaning is a system of communication through speech, a collection of sounds that a group of people understand to have the same meaning.
• A language familyincludes individual languages related through a common ancestor that existed before the recorded history.
• Dialect is a form of language spoken in a local area. It is noteworthy that several dialects can be derived from a particular language.

• • If two related kinds of speech are so close that speakers can have a conversation and understand each other, they are dialects of a single language.
  • If comprehension is difficult to impossible, they are distinct languages.

• The languages spoken around the various corners of India belong to several language families, where most of them belong to theIndo-Aryan Group of Languages.
• This Indo-Aryan Group has been born out of the Indo-European Family.
• However, there are some language groups which are indigenous to the Indian sub-continent.

Classification of Indian Languages

Broadly the Indian languages can be put into six major sub-groups. These are:

1. Indo-Aryan Group
2. Dravidian Group
3. Sino-Tibetan Group
4. Negroid Group
5. Austric Group
6. Others

• These languages have interacted on one another through the centuries and have produced the major linguistic divisions of modern India.
• The Indo-Aryan and the Dravidian are the dominant groupsand together comprises all the major languages of India.
• They have influenced each other and have, in turn, been influenced by the Austric and SinoTibetan tongues.

Indo-Aryan Group of Languages

• It is part of theIndo-European family of languages, which came to India with the Aryans.
• It is the biggest of the language groups in India and accounts for about 74%of the total Indian population.
• It comprises of all the principal languages of northern and western Indiasuch as Hindi, Bengali, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi, Sindhi, Rajasthani, Assamese, Oriya, Pahari, Bihari, Kashmiri, Urdu and Sanskrit.
• This language group is again sub-divided into three groupsdepending upon the time period of their origin. There are:
  • Old Indo-Aryan Group
  • Middle Indo-Aryan Group
  • Modern Indo-Aryan Group

Old Indo-Aryan Group (1500-300 BCE)

• This group had its development around 1500 BCE and Sanskrit was born out of this group.
• The earliest proof of Sanskrit is Vedic Sanskritfound in the Vedas, the foundational stone of Hinduism.
• It is the most ancient language of our country and is one of the22 languages listed in the Constitution.

Development of Sanskrit

• The development of Sanskrit grammar began with Panini in the 4th century BCE, with his book Asthadhyayiin which the Language was codified and standardized.
• Evolution of Sanskrit primarily took place in two stages: 
• Vedic Sanskrit and
• Classical Sanskrit.
• Some of the Buddhist literature belonging to Mahayana and the Hinayana school are even written in Sanskrit language.
  • The book Mahavastu of the Hinayan schoolis a treasure of stories.
  • Lalitavistara, the most sacred Hinayana textwas also written in Sanskrit language.

• Sanskrit is the only language that transcended the barriers of region and boundaries.
• From north to south and from east to west, there is no part in India that has not contributed to or been affected by the Sanskrit language.
• The chaste form of Sanskrit developed in between 300BCE to 200BCE.
• It was refined version of Vedic Sanskrit.
• The first evidence of the use of Sanskrit can be found in the inscriptions of Rudradamana at Junagarh in the present Southern Gujarat region.
• However, it was Gupta period when the use of Sanskrit in poetries can be traced.
• This is totally a period of creation of pure literature which is evident in the works as Mahakavyas (epics) and Khandakavyas (semiepics).

Middle Indo-Aryan Languages

• The Middle Indo-Aryan stage in the evolution of Indo-Aryan languages is thought to have spanned more than a millennium between 600 BCE and 1000 CE, and is often divided into three major subdivisions.
• The early stage is represented by the Edicts of Ashoka (c. 250 BCE) and by Pali (used by Theravada Buddhists) and Ardha Magadhi (used in Jainism).

• Pali is the best attested of the Middle Indo-Aryan languages because of the extensive writings of early Buddhists.
• These include canonical texts, canonical developments such as Abhidhamma, and a thriving commentarial tradition associated with figures such as Buddhaghosa.

• The middle stage is represented by the various literary Prakrits, especially the Shauraseni language and Maharashtri and Magadhi Prakrits.

• Prakrit and Ardha-Magadhilanguage were used in the Jain ‘Agamas’.
• The termPrakrit is also often applied to Middle Indo-Aryan languages.
• Prakrit includes:
  • Pali:
  • It was widely spoken in Magadha.
  • It was popular during 5th–1st century BC.
  • It is closely related to Sanskrit, and the texts in Pali were written generally in Brahmi script.
  • The Tripitaka of Buddhism were also written in Pali.
  • It serves as the lingua franca of Theravada Buddhism.
  • It is believed that Buddha himself did not speak in Pali but gave his preachings in Ardha-Magadhi language.
  • Magadhi Prakrit or Ardha-Magadhi:
  • It is the most important kind of Prakrit.
  • Its literary use increased after the decline of Sanskrit and Pali.
  • Buddha and Mahavira perhaps spoke in Ardha-Magadhi.
  • It was the court language of few Mahajanapadas and also the Mauryan dynasty.
  • Several Jain texts and Rock edicts of Ashoka were also written in Ardha-Magadhi.
  • It later evolved into many languages of Eastern India namely Bengali, Assamese, Odia, Maithili, Bhojpuri, etc.

• Shauraseni:
• It was widely used to write dramas in the medieval India.
• It is also called Dramatic Prakrit.
• It was the predecessor to Northern Indian languages.
• Jain monks wrote mainly using this version of Prakrit.
• The oldest text of Digambara Jains, ‘Shatkhandgama’ is written in Shauraseni.
• Maharashtri Prakrit:
• Spoken till 9th century AD, it was the predecessor to Marathi and Konkani.
• It was used widely in Western and Southern India.
• It was the official language of Satavahana Dynasty.
• Several dramas were written in it like ‘Gaha Kosha’ by King Hala, ‘Gaudavaho’ (slaying of the King of Gauda) by Vakpati.
• Elu: Ancient form of modern Sinhala Language of Sri Lanka (it is similar to Pali).
• Paishachi:
• It is also called ‘Bhuta-Bhasa’ (dead language).
• Often regarded as Prakrit, it is considered as an unimportant dialect.
• Gunadhya’s Brihatkatha, an ancient epic is written in Paishachi.

• The late stage is represented by the Apabhra as of the 6th century and later that preceded early Modern Indo-Aryan languages.
• The apabhramsa language developed from Prakrits.

• Patanjali was the first to use apabhramsa in his Mahabhasya (200 BCE).
• Major texts and writers are: Pushpadanta’s Mahapurana (Digambara Jain text), Dhanapala’s Bhavisayattakaha, etc.
• The term is derived from the Sanskrit word Apabhrasta, means a corrupted form of Sanskrit.
• Mostly Jain religious language and spiritual literature of Siddhaswas composed in Apabhramsa language.

Modern Indo-Aryan Languages

• The languages belonging to this group are Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujrati, Marathi, Punjabi, Rajasthani, Sindhi, Odia, Urdu etc.
• The languages under this sub group developed after 1000 CE.
• These languages are mainly spoken in the northern, western and eastern parts of India.

Dravidian Group

• This group comprises mainly of languages spoken in the Southern India.
• The Dravidian language came into India centuries before the Indo-Aryan.
• It covers about 25% of the Indian population. 
• Proto-Dravidian gave rise to 21 Dravidian Languages.
• They can be broadly classified into three groups: Northern group, Central group, and Southern group of Dravidian languages.

• The Northern group consists of three languages i.e. Brahui, Malto and Kudukh. Brahui is spoken in Baluchistan, Malto spoken in Bengal and Odisha, while Kurukh is spoken in Bengal, Odisha, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.
• The Central group consists of eleven languages viz., Gondi, Khond, Kui, Manda, Parji, Gadaba, Kolami, Pengo, Naiki, Kuvi and Telugu. Out of these, only Telugu became a civilized languageand the rest remained tribal languages.
• The southern group consists of seven languages viz., Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Tulu, Kodagu, Toda and Kota.

• However, Among these 21 languages of the Dravidian Group, the major languages of the Dravidian group are:

• Telugu (numerically the biggest of the Dravidian languages),
• Tamil (oldest and purest language of the Dravidian family),
• Kannada

• • Malayalam (smallest and the youngest of the Dravidian family).

Sino-Tibetan Group

• The Sino-Tibetan or Mongoloid speech family has a considerably vast expanse in India and stretches all over the sub-Himalayan tracts, covering North Bihar, North Bengal, Assam up to the north-eastern frontiers of the country.
• These languages are considered to be older than the Indo-Aryan languages and are referred to in the oldest Sanskrit literature as Kiratas.
• Around 0.6% of the Indian population speaks languages belonging to this group.
• The Sino-Tibetan group is further divided into two subgroups:

• • Tibeto-Burman
  • Siamese-Chinese

Tibeto-Burman

• The Tibeto-Burman languages are divided into four broad groups,

• • Tibetan: Sikkimese, Bhotia, Balti, Sherpa, Lahuli and Ladakhi,
  • Himalayan: Kinnauri and Limbu
  • North-Assam: Abor (Adi), Miri, Aka, Dafla and Mishmi
  • Assam-Burmese: It is again sub-divided into four main sub-groups, viz. Kuki-Chin, Mikir, Bodo and Naga. Manipuri or Meithi is the most important language of the Kuki-Chin sub-group.

Siamese-Chinese

• Ahom is one of the languages belonging to this group.
• However this language has now been extinct from the Indian sub-continent.

Austric Group

• The Austric languages of India belong to the Austro-Asiatic sub-family, which are represented by languages of the Munda or Kol Group, spoken in the central, eastern and north-eastern India and languages of the Mon-Khmer group like Khasi and Nicobarese.
• These are very ancient languages which have been in existence much before the advent of Aryans and were referred in ancient Sanskrit literature as Nisadas.
• The most important language of the Austric group is Santhali, which is spoken by over 5 million Santhals and is the largest spoken among the Adivasi languages.
• Mundari, spoken by about a million Mundas, is another important language of this group.

Others

• There are several Dravidian adivasi languages like Gondi, Oraon or Kurukh, Mal-Pahariya, Khond and Parji which are very distinct and cannot be classified in the groups mentioned above.

Difference between Indo-Aryan Group and the Dravidian Group of Languages:

• The root words in the two language families are different. There is a different grammatical structure in the two groups.
• Grammatical structure of Dravidian Family is agglutinative, i.e. the combinations in which root words are united results in little or no change of form or loss of words.
• The grammatical structure of Indo-Aryan Group is inflected, i.e. a word’s ending or its spelling changes according to its grammatical function in a sentence.

Official Languages of India

• Part 17 of the constitution of India (Articles 343 to Article 351) makes elaborate provisions dealing with the official language of the Republic of India. Hindi written in Devanagari script is the Official Language of the Union.
• “Unless Parliament decided otherwise, the use of English for official purposes was to cease 15 years after the Constitution came into effect”, i.e. on 26 January.
• It means over a period of 15 years since the commencement of the Indian Constitution, Hindi will replace English as the official language.
• Parliament can decide, if English can be used as official language. 
• This clause led to protests across the nation by the non-Hindi speaking communities against the change in official language from English to Hindi.
• The protest resulted in the enactment of The Official Languages Act, 1963.
• This Act declares Hindi in Devanagari script as the official language of the Union.
• English has been given the status of “subsidiary official language” of the Union.
• The Constitution of India has also made a provision for each of the Indian States to choose their own official language for communications at the State level. 
• There are many languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution which may be used by the States for official purpose.
• Initially, the following fourteen languages were selected under the Eighth Schedule.

• • Assamese
  • Hindi
  • Malayalam
  • Punjabi
  • Telugu
  • Bengali
  • Kannada
  • Marathi
  • Sanskrit
  • Urdu
  • Gujarati
  • Kashmiri
  • Odia
  • Tamil

• Later Sindhi was added as the 15th language through 21st Amendment Act of 1967.
• Three more languages were added by 71st Amendment Act, 1992. They are Konkani, Manipuri, and Nepali.
• 92nd Amendment Act, 2003 added four more languages to the Eighth Schedule. They are Bodo, Maithili, Dogri and Santhali.
• Thus, at present there are 22 languages in total listed under the eighth schedule of the Indian Constitution.

• • Assamese
  • Bodo
  • Gujarati
  • Kannada
  • Konkari
  • Malayalam
  • Marathi
  • Odia
  • Sanskrit
  • Sindhi
  • Telugu
  • Bengali
  • Dogri
  • Hindi
  • Kashmiri
  • Maithili
  • Manipuri
  • Nepali
  • Punjabi
  • Santhali
  • Tamil
  • Urdu

Official Languages in States

• Though Hindi is the official language of India, the states may by law adopt any one or more of the languages in use in the state or Hindi as the language or languages to be used for all or any of the official purposes of that state.

Language of communication between Union and States

• As per Article 346, the official languages for communication between one state and another or between a state and the union are as follows:

• • For the time being the official language of communication of Union i.e. English.
  • If two or more states agree that the Hindi language should be the official language for communication between such states, that language may be used for such communication.

Language of Courts

• According to the Article 348, language to be used in the Supreme Court and in high courts and for bills acts etc will be in in the English language until parliament by law provides otherwise.

Special directive for promotion of Hindi

• Article 351 says that it shall be the duty of the Union to promote the spread of the Hindi language, to develop it so that it may serve as a medium of expression for all the elements of the composite culture of India and to secure its enrichment by assimilating without interfering with its genius, the forms, style and expressions used in Hindustani and in the other languages of India specified in the Eighth Schedule, and by drawing, wherever necessary or desirable, for its vocabulary, primarily on Sanskrit and secondarily on other languages.

First Official Language Commission

• The first official language commission was appointed in 1955 with B.G.Kher as chairman and it submitted its report in 1956 which was presented to parliament in 1957 and examined by a joint parliamentary committee.

Note:

• There is no national language of India. Hindi is not a national language. Neither the Constitution nor any Act defines the word ‘national language’.
• The Constitution does not specify official language for States for conduct of their official functions.
• States are free to adopt an official language.
• The language to be adopted by the States need not be one of those listed in the Eighth Schedule.
• Several States have adopted an official language which is not listed in Eighth Schedule.

Examples:

• • • Tripura-Kokborok (belongs to Sino-Tibetan Family)
    • Puducherry – French
    • Mizoram-Mizo

• English is not in the list of 22 scheduled languages as per the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.
• Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland are the only states which have English as their only official language.

Status of Classical Language

Calls for Classical Languages

• The first call for a classical language was given by Tamil academicians.
• They claimed that the Sangam anthologies should be considered as classical languages.
• It’s an ancient language and the old Tamil is the prototype of the Dravidian family of languages.
• The government took a note and then consulted the experts of the Sahitya Academy. 
• Later a committee was established and some criteria were established to grant the status of Classical Languages.

Criteria for Classical Languages in India

• The government of India currently follows the following criteria to determine the eligibility of language to be considered for classification as “classical language”:

• • High antiquity of its early texts/ recorded history over a period of 1500-2000 years.
  • A body of ancient literature/ texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers.
  • The literary tradition be original and not borrowed from another speech community.
  • The classical language and literature being distinct from modern, there may also be a discontinuity between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots.

Current Classical Languages

1. Tamil(in the year 2004)
2. Sanskrit(in the year 2005)
3. Kannada(in the year 2008)
4. Telugu(in the year 2008)
5. Malayalam(in the year 2013)
6. Odia(in the year 2014)

Benefits of the Status

• Government of India’s resolution states that the following benefits will accrue to a language declared as a “Classical Language”:

• Two major annual international awardsfor scholars of eminence in Classical language.
• A ‘Centre of Excellence for Studies in Classical Languages’ can be set up.
• The University Grants Commission can be requested to create, to start with at least in Central Universities, a certain number of professional chairs for classical languagesfor scholars of eminence in Classical Indian Languages.

National Translation Mission

• National Translation Mission (NTM) is a Government of India scheme to establish translation as an industry in general and, to facilitate higher education by making knowledge texts accessible to students and academics in Indian languages in particular.
• The vision is to create a knowledge society by transcending language barriers.
• NTM aims to disseminate knowledge in all Indian languages listed in the VIII schedule of the Constitution through translation.
• A combination of efforts is made to orient translators, encourage publishers to publish translations, maintain databases of published translations from, into and between Indian languages and to become a clearing house of information on translation.
• Through these efforts, NTM seeks to establish translation as an industry in India.
• It is expected to facilitate the modernization of languages by developing new terminologies and discourse styles through translation. 
• Translators would play a significant role in the modernisation process, especially, of the academic discourse in Indian languages.
• Knowledge text translation is the first step towards the goal of establishing translation as an industry. 
• All textual materials meant for the dissemination of knowledge constitute the corpus of Knowledge Texts for NTM.
• At present, NTM is engaged in the translation of all pedagogic materials related to higher education in 22 Indian languages. 
• NTM aims to open up the vast body of knowledge by translating the higher education texts, available mostly in English, into Indian languages.
• It is expected that this process will eventually pave the way for the constitution of an inclusive knowledge society.

Linguistic Diversity Index

• Greenberg’s Diversity Index (LDI) is the probability that two people selected from the population at random will have different mother tongues; it therefore ranges from 0 (everyone has the same mother tongue) to 1 (no two people have the same mother tongue).
• The ILD measures how the LDI has changed over time; a global ILD of 0.8 indicates a 20% loss of diversity since 1970, but ratios above 1 are possible, and have appeared in regional indexes.
• The computation of the diversity index is based on the population of each language as a proportion of the total population.
• The index cannot fully account for the vitality of languages. Also, the distinction between a language and a dialect is fluid and often political.
• A great number of languages are considered to be dialects of another language by some experts and separate languages by others.
• The index does not consider how different the languages are from each other, nor does it account for second language usage; it considers only the total number of distinct languages, and their relative frequency as mother tongues.

Lingua Franca

• A lingua franca, also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language or vehicular language, is a language or dialect systematically used to make communication possible between persons not sharing a native language or dialect, in particular when it is a third language, distinct from both native languages.
• Lingua franca have been developed around the world throughout human history, sometimes for commercial reasons but also for cultural, religious, diplomatic and administrative convenience, and as a means of exchanging information between scientists and other scholars of different nationalities.
• The best example is English.

RELIGION IN INDIA

• The Indian Government is not bound by a particular religious belief system.
• There are a large number of different religions in India.
• There is the presence of innumerable different faiths and sects.
• History rich in different cultures and civilisations have added to this number.
• Followers of various religions have diverse social compositions.
• Hinduism is the major religion practised by 80% population.

Types of Religion in India

• Certain religions emerged due to the protest against dominant Hinduism, these included Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism.
• Religious belief systems formed due to conquest or colonization included Islam and Christianity.
• Migrant religious groups were Jews, Zoroastrians and the followers of Bahai faith.

Hinduism

• Hinduism is one of the most popular religions in the country, but it encompasses a wide range of cults and sects.
• Hinduism is derived from the word ‘Hindu,’ which was intended to refer to people who lived in the geographical area surrounding the Indus River.
• At its most fundamental level, Hinduism borrows fundamental principles from pre-Vedic and Vedic religious philosophies.
• The origin of Hinduism was seen during 2000 BC when Aryans settled along the banks of the river Indus river.
• “Hindu” traces its origin from the river Indus which flows through northern India.
• The Indus River was known as ‘Sindhu’ in earlier times.
• However, Persians who migrated to India called the river Indus as ‘Hindu’, it’s land ‘Hindustan’, and its inhabitants as Hindus.
• Therefore, followers of this religion came to be known as Hindus.

Brahmo Samaj

• It started with Raja Rammohan Roy, who wanted to question Hinduism’s problems.
• In order to address these issues and discover the truth of Vedanta, he founded the Brahmo Samaj in 1828.
• It was opposed to iconography and the worship of any kind of imagery.
• It spoke out against Sati’s evil practices, which were later abolished after years of campaigning.
• Two schools were established by him to bring education to the masses.

Arya Samaj / Shramana

• Swami Dayanand Saraswati founded it with the goal of reviving Hinduism from within.
• They believed in the Vedas’ supremacy and claimed that they were the repository of all values and knowledge.
• One of their main policies was to work for the good of humanity.
• They believed in the importance of education for the masses and established a large number of schools.
• They practised iconoclasm and sought to convert non-Hindus to Hinduism.
• He initiated the Suddhi, or purification, movement, which enabled the conversion to take place.

Jainism

• The term ‘Jain’ is derived from the word jina or jaina, which means ‘Conqueror.’
• They believe that their religion is made up of people who have conquered and controlled their desires.
• Jainism does not have a single founder; rather, the truth is brought to the world in difficult and varied times by a teacher who shows the way, known as a Tirthankara.
• Before Mahavira, the Jain religion had 23 Tirthankaras, or great-learned men.
• It is commonly assumed that Mahavira was the founder of Jainism; however, he was the 24th and final tirthankara.
• He would achieve his spiritual goal and teach others how to achieve moksha, or liberation.
• Jainism, like Buddhism, rejects Vedic authority.
• However, it believes in the existence of a soul (atman). The soul is the central and primary focus of Jain philosophy.
• It is the soul that experiences existence and gains knowledge, not the mind or the body, which are both thought to be a mass of matter.
• Jainism preached compassion and love for all forms of life.
• Most of the preachings of Jainism were done in the language of common masses.
• They rejected the use of Sanskrit, a Brahminic language.

Buddhism

• It is one of the world’s major religions that originated in the Indian subcontinent and has since spread to large parts of South-east Asia.
• The storey of Siddhartha, who became known as Buddha, is linked to the origins of Buddhism.
• Buddhism’s traditions, beliefs, and practises are all attributed to Buddha.
• After Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism, it is the world’s fourth largest religion.
• Buddhism is practised by approximately 7% of the world’s population.
• Buddhists account for 0.7 percent of India’s population, or 8.4 million people, with the majority living in Maharashtra.
• It is based on a system of philosophy and a code of morality.
• Its basic philosophy consists of four noble truths given by Buddha.
• Buddhism grew rapidly when it was patronized by Emperor Asoka.

Sikhism

• Sikhism’s history begins with Guru Nanak’s life, times, and teachings (1469-1539).
• He was a nonconformist with a different point of view. He waged a concerted campaign against Hinduism.
• He not only criticised the existing way of life for the people of Punjab, but he also provided an alternative method of socio-religious organisation for his followers.
• He regulated his followers’ community life by introducing congregational worship in a dharamsala and communal dining to bring people together.
• Guru Nanak did not simply criticise or condemn the existing social order; he proposed an alternative.
• The supreme purpose of human existence, according to him, is salvation, which can be attained by being freed from the endless cycles of birth and rebirth.

Islam

• Islam emerged in the Arabian Peninsula in the seventh century AD and spread throughout the world via a vast empire.
• The word “Islam” means “submission” to God
• Muslims are those who submit to God and follow the teachings of Prophet Muhammad.
• Prophet Muhammad was the last of God’s messengers on Earth, following in the footsteps of Abraham, Moses, and others.
• Abraham is a common ancestor for both Christians and Muslims.
• Islam has two main sects called Sunni and Shia Muslims with various other minor sects.

Christianity

• Christianity, one of the world’s largest religions, has a sizable following in India.
• It was founded by Jesus Christ in Jerusalem, and after his trial and resurrection three days later, it grew in popularity.
• After a while, it became the Roman Empire’s official religion and spread rapidly. 
• Vatican City became the foundation of Roman Catholic Christianity.
• After a while, there were several reform movements in Christianity, and sects such as Protestants, Methodists, and so on became popular.
• The central tenet of Christianity is the existence of a single God who created the universe.
• When it is necessary, God sends messengers or messiah(s) to assist his creation.

Zoroastrianism

• This religion was founded in Persia around 6-7 BCE by the prophet Zarathustra.
• They are a monotheistic religion that believes in one eternal god, Ahura Mazda, who is the epitome of justice and goodness.
• Angra Mainyu is the name of a spirit of malice and bad behaviour.
• These two continue to fight each other in an eternal battle, and one day, good will triumph over evil, and that will be the last day.
• The Zoroastrians first made contact with India in 936 AD, when they fled Iran due to Islamic invasions.
• They are commonly referred to as Parsis and are currently one of India’s smallest (and rapidly shrinking) communities.
• They primarily reside in Mumbai, Goa, and Ahmedabad.
• Their fire temples, known as Atash Bahram, are extremely rare, with only eight known temples in the entire country.

Judaism

• It is one of the oldest religions, yet it has been the most persecuted.
• Jews are adherents of Judaism, and they have been targeted by several empires.
• The worst example was Hitler, who slaughtered and tortured millions of Jews in Germany.
• This, too, is a monotheistic religion that believes in a single God.
• Their religion predates Christianity and Islam, and both have borrowed heavily from Judaic philosophies.
• The Jews believe in Yahweh, or the one and only true God, who was established by Abraham.

Sufism

• Sufism is Islam’s mystical branch. Sufis represent the innermost tenets of Islam (tasawwuf).
• It emphasises self-awareness, tolerance, righteousness, and universal love for all.
• The word derives from the Arabic word for wool (suf), which refers to the rough wool garments worn by ascetics and even prophets.
• Sufism is sometimes traced back to the root word saf, which means purity in Arabic.
• Due to the increasing materialism of the Caliphate, some religious people in Persia turned to asceticism at the beginning of 12 AD. They became known as ‘Sufis.’