Students flock to study Indian languages, culture in US

As India takes a more central position on the global stage, the study of India and the importance of Indian Studies have never been as prominent. As relationships between the United States and India are explored more and greater opportunities in law, business, technology, and engineering develop in South East Asia, an understanding of South Asian Culture is paramount. By better understanding linguistics, religions and other customs of South Asia, people will be able to succeed by better empathising with those in other parts of the world.

Just as those in the East have adopted many western traditions and customs, such as even speaking English as a primary language of business, it is important in this era that students in the United Sates grow with the times and begin adopting eastern traditions and understanding of eastern culture. In the past decades, more and more Indian students have come to American universities, although the amount of American students attending Indian Universities will only increase as well.

“As simplistic as it may sound, my obsession with Slumdog Millionaire led me to watch City of Joy, which compelled me to watch Marigold, which interested me in a documentary narrated by Chris Rock that explained that India’s largest export is human hair! Imagine that! All of these “exposures” to Indian culture made us want to learn more, that is, what makes India so uniquely transcendent? My fascination with Indian culture leads me to language class.  From my layperson’s perspective, India’s culture is magnificent, yet it is somewhat disparaged by the fact that almost half of its population lives in abject poverty,”said Christopher Farkouh, a first year student.

“India’s people are beautiful and inherently brilliant, yet many cannot afford a college education. India is home to the most polluted city in the world, New Delhi, and more than half the homes in India don’t have toilets. Yet, when I call for technical assistance for my computer, or if my parents call to make a payment on their mortgage, the call is re-routed half way around the world to India,” he added“Last but not least, despite all the enlightenment that’s come from the scholarly minds of India, the country has the largest modern slavery population in the world. How is that possible in this technological age? Taking language and culture class seemed the best way for me to satisfy my curiosity, my fascination. I want to learn India’s language(s), as so many people of India have learned mine and something of the culture as well,” Farkouh said.  

Exploring India

“I am taking language because I want to be able to explore India and the Indian culture when I’m out of college. I have dreamt of travelling there since I was young, but I want to be a competent and knowledgeable traveller when I do go. 

“I want to be able to communicate with others and read signs and such, especially because I have no Indian family members that would be able to teach me or guide me when I’m there. I love Indian movies, Indian food, and a lot of Indian people! I generally find the culture and languages to be really interesting, so I’m happy to be able to learn more about it,” said Katie Marcus.

By having a basic understanding of language, individuals can better assimilate into a culture, and have a deeper and more meaningful experience with people of that culture. Aditya Gaddipati, another first year student said, “The reason I decided to take a language is because I wanted to become culturally and linguistically more proficient. I feel that learning a language in general helps individuals become more worldly, and it also allows them to resonate with a particular culture. I am taking Hindi because I wanted to become closer to my Indian heritage and take on a more active role in the Indian community.”

“I chose to take Hindi because I have always found Hindi to be such a beautiful language because of its elegance in both sound and writing. In addition, I have always thought that the songs were very melodic and beautiful, unlike some of the very fast-paced American songs that I do not enjoy as much. These are my reasons for wanting to learn how to speak and write in Hindi,” said Rachana Vemireddy, another student.

The world is such a big place and people are so different around the world, yet so similar. “I want to study language and culture because I want exposure to different ways of life than my own”, said Divya Velury. “I enjoy taking language and culture courses because my view of the world changes every time I sit in a lecture. I want to learn more about these similarities and differences. I also am really interested in travelling and want to visit all the continents.

“By studying culture and language, one can understand other people around the world better, which is important while travelling. I am fascinated with all sides of India and I want to be immersed in it as fully as possible,” said Maddie Helm, who had no exposure in language and culture before coming to this class.

Knowing language and culture always help people to understand more than direct translation and give a deeper sense of popular phrases, underlying sentiments, and colloquialisms to establish true understanding between people speaking different languages. The language itself reveals patterns of understanding and cultural perspective, which is socially and historically constructed. Overall, this is an interesting and great trend to see as the spread of culture helps open people’s minds and broadens perspectives.  

(The author is a linguist and teaches at the Washington University in St Louis, USA)