Upholding the use of Urdu signboard on Patur Municipal Council Building in Akola district of Maharashtra, the Supreme Court on Tuesday sent a strong messange against language chauvinism as it held that when we criticise Urdu, we are in a way also criticising Hindi, as, according to linguists and literary scholars, Urdu and Hindi are not two languages, but one language.
A former councillor had filed a petition challenging the use of Urdu [Hindi in Arabo-Persian Script] on the signboard of the Patur Municipal Council building in Akola district of Maharashtra.
Writing for the bench, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia elaborated on the court’s views on the misconceptions about Hindi and Urdu, the artificial schism between them and languages in general.
Hindi, Urdu, Hindustani
The court noted that the language debate started even before Independence. “It was accepted by a large number of Indians that the language which is a product of amalgamation of various Indian languages such as Hindi, Urdu and Punjabi, is what is known as ‘Hindustani’ [non-Sanskritized Hindi], which a large mass of this country speaks,” it said.
Jawaharlal Nehru “acknowledged that Hindustani is bound to become the all-India medium of communication, since it is spoken by a large number of people in the country. At the same time, he recognised the importance of provincial languages by emphasising that the intention was not to replace provincial languages with Hindustani. Thus, he put forward the idea of Hindustani as a compulsory second language”, the court said.
“It is clear that the country was moving forward to accept Hindustani [non-Sanskritized Hindi] as its national language during our struggle for Independence”, but that did not happen. “It is now clear that the main reason behind this was the Partition of the nation in 1947 and adoption of Urdu [Hindi in Arbo-Persian Scipt] by Pakistan as its national language. The ultimate victim was Hindustani,” it said.
“Hindi and Urdu met a roadblock in the form of the puritans on both sides and Hindi became more Sanskritised and Urdu more Persianized. A schism exploited by the colonial powers in dividing the two languages on religion. Hindi [in Devnagari Script] was now understood to be the language of Hindus and Urdu [in Arbo-Persian Script] of the Muslims, which is such a pitiable digression from reality; from unity in diversity; and the concept of universal brotherhood,” it said.
The court said that “under Article 343 of the Constitution, Hindi [Sanskritized Hindi in Devnagari Script] is the official language, while the use of English was made permissible for official purposes for a period of 15 years”. “But this does not mean that Hindustani and Urdu have become extinct. This was never the intention of the framers of the Constitution,” it said.
“Even today, the language used by the common people of the country is replete with words of the Urdu language, even if one is not aware of it. It would not be incorrect to say that one cannot have a day-to-day conversation in Hindi without using words of Urdu or words derived from Urdu. The word ‘Hindi’ itself comes from the Persian word ‘Hindavi’. This exchange of vocabulary flows both ways because Urdu also has many words borrowed from other Indian languages, including Sanskrit,” it said.
“Urdu words have a heavy influence on Court parlance, both in criminal and civil law. From adalat to halafnama to peshi, the influence of Urdu is writ large in the language of the Indian Courts. For that matter, even though the official language of the Supreme Court and the High Courts as per Article 348 of the Constitution is English, yet many Urdu words continue to be used in this Court till date. These include vakalatnama, dasti, etc,” it said.
“Our misconceptions, perhaps even our prejudices against a language, have to be courageously and truthfully tested against the reality, which is this great diversity of our nation: our strength can never be our weakness. Let us make friends with Urdu and every language,” the SC said.
“Language is not religion. Language does not even represent religion. Language belongs to a community, to a region, to a people; and not to a religion,” said the judgment.
“Language is culture. Language is the yardstick to measure the civilisational march of a community and its people. So is the case of Urdu [non-Sanskritied Hindi in Arbo-Persian Script], which is the finest specimen of Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb, or the Hindustani tehzeeb, which is the composite cultural ethos of the plains of northern and central India,” it said.
According to Article 51A(f) of the Constitution of India, it is fundamental duty of every citizen of India “to value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture”.
“Before language became a tool for learning, its earliest and primary purpose will always remain communication,” Justice Dhulia said. “The purpose here for the use of Urdu is merely communication. All the municipal council wanted to do was to make an effective communication. This is the primary purpose of a language, which the Bombay High Court has laid emphasis on,” the court said.
“We must respect and rejoice in our diversity, including our many languages. India has more than hundred major languages. Then there are other languages known as dialects or ‘mother tongues’ which also run into hundreds. According to the 2001 Census, India had a total of 122 major languages including the 22 scheduled languages, and a total of 234 mother tongues. Urdu was the sixth most spoken scheduled language of India. In fact, it is spoken by at least a part of the population in all States and Union Territories, except perhaps in our North-Eastern States,” it said.
“In the 2011 Census, the number of mother tongues increased to 270. However, it is to be noted that this number was also arrived at by taking into consideration only those mother tongues which had more than 10,000 speakers. Thus, it would not be wrong to say that the actual number of mother tongues in India would run into thousands. Such is the immense linguistic diversity of India,” it said.
“The prejudice against Urdu stems from the misconception that Urdu is alien to India. This opinion, we are afraid, is incorrect as Urdu, like Marathi and Hindi, is an Indo-Aryan language. It is a language which was born in this land. Urdu developed and flourished in India due to the need of people belonging to different cultural milieus who wanted to exchange ideas and communicate amongst themselves. Over the centuries, it attained… greater refinement and became the language of choice for many acclaimed poets,” it said.
Brief Introduction of Hindi Language (Naming of Hindi): By Dr. Vasudev Nandan Prasad
According to Dr Vasudev Nandan Prasad, retired Professor of Hindi Language in Magadh University, Bodh Gaya, Bihar, “Hindi, Hindu and Hindustan- these words are not from Sanskrit but from Persian”.
In Adhunik Hindi Vyakaran aur Rachna, he writes that though Hindi language was born in North India, but it was named by Iranians, Arabs and Indian Muslims. It is like a child being born in our house but named by our neighbour. In fact, Hindi is not the language of any sect or religion, everyone has equal rights on it. There is a very interesting story behind the naming of ‘Hindi’. Its description is as follows-
From the eighth century till today, ‘Hindi’ has been used in three senses –
- In a broad sense,
- In a general sense and
- In a specific sense.
Hindi in Broad Sense: As a Nationality & Languages of India
Until the Muslims came to India, the word ‘Hindi’ continued to be used in a broad sense. In a broad sense, Hindi was used for any person or thing related to “Hind” or India and any Aryan, Dravidian or other Indian languages spoken in Hind or India.
The words “Hindi”, “Hindu” etc. are found in the oldest religious book of the Iranians, “Avesta”. In medieval Iran, the word “Hindik” and then “Hindig” were formed by adding the adjective suffix “ik” to “Hindu”. Over time, the last consonant disappeared and the word “Hindi” became popular as an adjective for “Hind”. Initially, the word “Hindi” was a country-speaker. Some people relate “Hindi” to “Sindhi”, because the Iranians pronounced “s” like “h”. Till the eighth century, the word “Hindi” was used in this way by the Iranians. From Iran itself, the words “Hind” and “Hindi” reached Arabia, Egypt, Syria and other countries.
But the word “Hindi” is longer widely used in this ancient broad sense now. However, many Arab nations and people still use it to refer to the people of India regardless of their religous belief. The Indian Constitution adopted this word ‘Hindi’ as the official language of the Indian Union. However, this Hindi got highly sanskritized and written in Devnagari script (Article 351) as opposed to medieval Hindi which was not highly sanskritized but colloquial and liberal in borrowing from different langauges including Arabic and Persian and it was mostly written in Arbo-Persian Script but Devnagari was also used. The words ‘Hindi’, ‘Hind’ and ‘Hindu’ are not used in the ancient texts of India.
Zaban-e-Hindi: The Great Amalgamation
The use of the word ‘Zaban-e-Hindi’ in the general sense of the language is found in medieval Persian and Arabic literature. The court poet of the sixth century king Nausheravas referred to ‘Panchatantra’ as Zaban-e-Hindi. The language of the Indian people has been called ‘Zabaan-e-Hindi’. This use of ‘Hindi’ has been done for all the languages of India – Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit, Apabhramsha. It is clear that the word Hindi has been used in two meanings outside the country – one, in the meaning of the country and the other, in the meaning of Indian languages. Today both these meanings have become outdated and have lost their importance.
The word ‘Hindi’ in the sense of language has not been used in any ancient Indian Aryan language like Sanskrit, Prakrit, Apabhramsha etc. In the medieval period, the poets of the Indian tradition have often called the language of their poetry as ‘Bhasha’ or ‘Bhakha’ in comparison to the ancient languages. Kabir says, ‘Sanskrit is well water, language is flowing water.’
Tulsidas said – ‘What is Sanskrit for language, love is truth.’ But, the poets and scholars of the Muslim tradition have often addressed the medieval common language of North India as ‘Hindvi’. In the thirteenth century, the Persian poet of India, Aufi (1228) first used the word ‘Hindvi’ for the native language of Hind. Similarly, other Muslim poets – Masood, Abul Hasan, Amir Khusro etc. have also named the native language as ‘Hindi’ or ‘Hindvi’ or ‘Hindui’. Khusro has written- “Turk-Hindustaniday I have given the answer to Hindvi.
There are some poems in Hindi and also in the country of Najjar.” In Khusro’s ‘Khalikbari’, the word ‘Hindvi’ has been used 30 times and the word ‘Hindi’ has been used 5 times for the native language. Sixteenth century Muslim poet Malik Muhammad Jayasi has also used ‘Hindvi’ as well as Raskhan.
Turki, Arabi, Hindvi, Bhasha Teti Aahi, Jaame Marag Prem ka, Sabe Sarahain Taahi (Translation: Turkish, Arabic & Hindi are your Languages, But whosoever’s path is of love, is to be praised by all)
It seems that the native language from Delhi to Awadh had started being known as ‘Hindi’ or ‘Hindvi‘. Akbar’s court poet Rahim has been called a ‘Hindi’ poet. It is believed that in the medieval period, the words ‘Bhakha’, ‘Hindi’ and ‘Hindvi’ had become synonymous in the meaning of native language.
The Muslim poets of the sixteenth-seventeenth century of the south (who are called the poets of Dakhni Hindi) have also used the word ‘Hindi’ a lot. Shahi Miraji says- ‘Looking at the Hindi words, they are measured.’ In the seventeenth century, the famous poet of the south, Mulla Wajhi, has used the word ‘Hindi’ in the preface of his ‘Sabras’. Dr. Dhirendra Verma is of the opinion that till the seventeenth century, the words ‘Hindi’ and ‘Hindvi’ were synonymous and were generally used for the language of Madhyadesh.
It is clear from the above discussion that Hindi was not named by the Hindus of India, but by the Muslims who came from Iran and Arabia and settled in this country. But, instead of adopting the various dialects spread in the Hindi-region, the Muslims gave more patronage to the dialect of Delhi and Meerut, ‘Khariboli’. On the contrary, the Hindus composed more in Brajbhasha, Awadhi and other native languages. Later, these people also followed the path of the Muslims. Accrding to Dr. Vasudev Nandan, “This proves that the meaning in which the Muslims of the country accepted the native language (Khariboli) was the right direction for Hindi. Today, Hindi is understood to mean Khariboli or the literature written in it. This Hindi is called the Hindi language”. Our saints and sages had spread it in different parts of the country. Hence, it gradually spread all over the country.
Division of Hindi into Hindi and Urdu
Initially, Hindi was written in both Persian and Devanagari scripts. Before the ascendence of the British, almost all Rulers from North to South and Muslim and non-Muslim scholars alike generally propagated the style of ‘Hindi’ or ‘Hindvi’, whose tradition was present around Delhi in Persian script and pronunciation. It’s traces can still be found in letters, coins, royal firmans and stone inscriptions of Rajputana, Mysore, etc. Muslim poets of Dakhni Hindi moulded Hindi in a specific style, which later came to be considered a thing of Urdu. As the political opposition between Hindus and Muslims increased, Hindi started moving away from Muslims and a new language ‘Urdu’ was coined in its place, which later came to be accepted as a style of Hindi. The result of political and communal opposition was that the Muslim poets of India moulded Hindi in the Persian mold and gave it a new name ‘Rekhta’ and Urdu. This unfortunate schism happened in the latter half of the 18th century. Now Hindi started flourishing in the Persian style as Urdu.
When the British came to India, they started calling Hindi as ‘Hindustani’ from 1800 onwards and thus, a new confusion regarding language was created. But, Hindi has been established in its true form. If the name of India is ‘Hind’, then the name of the national language of this country will be ‘Hindi’ only. The name of our country cannot be Hindustan; because this country does not belong only to Hindus. In such a situation, the national language of the country cannot be called ‘Hindustani’. In the words of Dr. Sunitikumar Chatterjee, ‘Hindi is a great communication language.’ The wise men of Bengal also recognized its glory and dignity. In 1875, Babu Keshavchandra Sen wrote – ‘Hindi language is popular almost everywhere.’ Babu Bankim Chandra Chatterjee wrote in ‘Bangadarshan’ in 1876 – ‘If Hindi is not taught, no order will follow.’
According to Dr. Vasudev Nandan, the conclusion is that Hindi is the language of the common people of India, it is the connecting language for the unity of the country, it is the language of saints and sages and it is the central power of the country. Such a developed language cannot have a ‘limited area’.
From Me alone arise the varieties of qualities in humans, such as intellect, knowledge, clarity of thought, forgiveness, truthfulness, control over the senses and mind, joy and sorrow, birth and death, fear and courage, non-violence, equanimity, contentment, austerity, charity, fame, and infamy. Bhagavad Gita 10:4-5
And one of His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the diversity of your languages and colours. Surely in this are signs for those of ˹sound˺ knowledge: Quran Karim 30:22
Sources–
- Mrs. Varshatai v State of Maharashtra 2025 INSC 486
- Dr. Vasudeo Nandan Prasad, Adhunik Hindi Vyakaran aur Rachna
- Hindi-literature dictionary, part-2, 50 888.
- A Comparative Grammar of the Modern Aryan Language of India, Prelace, pp 31-33
- Hindi Sahityakosha, Part-1, page 887.
Awesome