In Search of a National Language: Literary Nationalism, Script Controversy and Nationalist Discourse in Colonial Northern India

Abstract

There is a general consensus among historians that Languagesdo notevolve naturally. Rather,it is constructed, protected and promoted by particular groups of individuals with the aim of keeping their socio-cultural identities alive. This in turn help them in projecting themselves as a unique and distinct community. Certainly, as languages cannot remain alive for greater length of time, unless they are in particular written forms. Thus, languagesacquire a new fixity only when it is printed through a particular script. The development of nationalism in late nineteenth centuryNorthern India also brought to the centre stage of national discussion the question of national language. Thus, the paper highlights how the search of national language promoted the language nationalism and controversy between two languages”Hindi andUrdu, and their script. While Hindi and Urdueventually became the representatives of Hindus and Muslimsrespectively,Hindi took a lead because of its wide base and politicalsupport.  The paper also mentions how Kaithi, an equally popular and prominent script, was side-lined and ignored in the whole debate on the language nationalism in India.