Indian words are Accepted by Oxford

After almost three centuries of British rule, and two centuries of European colonization before that, India has the dubious distinction of being one of the biggest Jewels in the Empire’s crown. Of course, close to a hundred years have [passed since the sun set on the British Empire, but the effect of colonization has still not worn off from India, and neither has the magic of the Raj completely died down in Britain. Many a young British still dreams of being a burra sahib with a chota peg.

Coming to the present conditions, over the last few decades, the British Isles have received a steady stream of migrants from Asian countries, particularly India and her neighbors. The result is that entire localities in London or other parts of the country have almost entirely Indian neighborhoods. Ignoring the Indian Diaspora or the effect it has on the local culture is no longer possible, what with all kinds of forays being made into the cultural scene, Britain, according to some estimates, is the world’s largest buyer of take home `curries’, no not Scot or Welsh dishes, but good old tandoori chicken concept … straight from India.

If food s conquered, can language be far behind? After all these are the two most important scales on which cosmopolitization of a city can be based. So as Indian words made gradual forays into the colloquial English, we have now come to a situation where Hindi or Indian words have found place in the prestigious Macmillan and Concise Oxford Dictionary. Over the years, these new words are being added to every new edition.

This year, the new words that have gained entry into The Oxford Dictionary are:
Bhagwan (God, here, Indian God), `bhakti' (devotional worship directed to a supreme deity), `bhajan' (a devotional song), bhang (cannabis) and `adda' (informal conversation). Of course, as with anything to do with Indian culture, there are controversies, when people from Bengal stand up to say that `adda’ is a Bengali word, taken to mean a get together for gossip, an extremely Calcutta concept. But most people do not delve deep into the meaning of words before claiming any kind of ownership. It may help to know that adda is a word refereeing to any kind of gathering in Hindi, not only for gossip, it could refer to Airport (Hawai-adda where people and planes gather), but station (where buses travel to and from) or even a gangsters’ den. So the debate goes on.

In its latest edition, the Oxford dictionary has already included Angrez (English person, or generally, a white skinned person), Badmash (naughty, or sometimes, more towards criminal), to name a few. It would seem interesting to note that these words are both in the Persian –Sanskrit offspring dialect, Urdu, the language of the poets.

These words have already found their place but many more are to follow, if usage is any indication of acceptability. Aloo (potato – essentially a Portuguese word taken into Hindi), Chaddi (underwear), filmi (related to films and essentially meaning melodramatic), Desi (local, in Indian, meant to mean country bumpkin), Gora (again, white man or a pucca sahib), jangli (a [person from the jungles, or an uncivilized, uncultured person), and Yaar (an informal addressal to a friend, meaning my friend) and 'chamcha', the commonly used word to describe hangers on, as an obsequious person.

The 2002 Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners has also taken this step forward, by already including certain readily used words of Hindi in English conversation. Words like baba (old man, saintly old man), roti (unleavened bread), chunni (woman’s veil covering) and paan (betel leaf). No other Dictionary has yet got to these words.

Throwing political correctness to the winds, the Oxford Dictionary has also included politically explosive words like Hindutva (said to mean, a very strong sense of Hindu identity), s a bad r good word in Indian politics, depending on which political party is in power. Another such word is Swadeshi (meaning made in India since the times of the freedom struggle.) The word was coined by Gandhiji to toss into the political arena of British government versus his non-violent agitators. Surely, including Swadeshi in Britain’s’ prestigious chronicle of acceptable Indian words, has given the concept a stamp of British approval, even if after a century since it was coined.

Some other words featuring in these dictionaries are:
Chota -- Small or unimportant.
Jati -- A caste or division of a caste.
Tamasha -- A grand show, performance, or celebration, especially one involving dance.
Dharna -- A mode of compelling payment or compliance, by sitting at the debtor's or offender's door until the demand is complied with. (this is more used by political agitators than by debtors or debtees now.)
Izzat -- Honour, reputation, or prestige.
Shabash -- Well done!
Yatra -- A procession or pilgrimage, especially one with a religious purpose.

So on and so forth goes the gradual and begrudging acceptance of the huge effect Indian culture and languages are having on the once pristine columns of the Queen’s language, but now there’s no looking back.