Dr. Claire Maes

SAN 506: First-Year I

“Vālmīki converses with the sage Nārada” Seventeenth century Mewar manuscript of the Rāmāyaṇa (British Library)

Svāgatam! स्वागतम् | Welcome!

Course Objectives and Outcomes This course is the first semester of complete introduction to the Sanskrit language. You will learn many essentials of Sanskrit grammar including present and past tense verbs, nominal declensions, participles, infinitives, gerunds, and compounds. You will also learn Devanāgarī (a script in which Sanskrit, as well as other South Asian languages, is commonly written). You will learn to recite Sanskrit verses, compose simple sentences, and you will discover the many different types of literary production that are written in Sanskrit (for example, law codes, ritual manuals, medical treatises, and love poems), as well as learn about the cultural contexts that produced them. You will also begin to translate original Sanskrit literature. Some say Sanskrit is a “dead” language, but through this course you will find that this ancient language is very much alive in music, literature, drama, politics, yoga studios, popular culture and in everyday life in South Asia and beyond.

Textbooks (required): A.M. Ruppel. The Cambridge Introduction to Sanskrit. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017. Supplies: 1 package of 4x6 blank notecards

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Grading 10% Attendance and Participation 20% Homework 5% Small vocabulary quizzes (16, five lowest scores will be dropped) 25% Quizzes (5, lowest score dropped) 2.5% Paradigm and Verse Recitations 2.5% Final Verse Recitation and Presentation 15% Midterm 20% Final

Grading Scale

93–100: A. 90–92: A-. 87–89: B+. 83–86: B. 80–82: B-. 77–79: C+. 73–76: C. 70–72 C- etc.

Extra Credit Opportunities

Over the course of the term, I will alert you to extra-credit opportunities. These will often involve participation in South Asia Institute talks or outreach projects, in the Dept. of Asian Studies’ Rāmāyaṇa Colloquium, or other South Asia-related campus events.

Mental Health Resources

Mental health concerns such as anxiety, stress, and depression are very common among college students. If you are struggling with any of these or other mental health concerns, you are not alone! I encourage you to seek help and to encourage others who need help to do so. There is a 24/7 Crisis Line for UT students: 512-471-CALL (2255). Additionally, the UT Counseling and Mental Health Center (CMHC) can be reached at 512-471-3515 during regular hours. There are a variety of self-care programs (MindBody Labs, etc.) available to students in addition to more traditional counseling services.

University Policies:

Honor Code: The core values of UT Austin are learning, discovery, freedom, leadership, individual opportunity, and responsibility. Each member of the university is expected to uphold these values through integrity, honesty, trust, fairness, and respect toward peers and community.

Scholastic Dishonesty and Academic Integrity: Any work submitted by a student in this course for academic credit will be the student's own work. Students who violate University rules on academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. “Scholastic dishonesty” includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, collusion, falsifying academic records, and any act designed to give unfair academic advantage to the student (such as, but not limited to, submission of essentially the same written assignment for two courses without the prior permission of the instructor, providing false or misleading information in an effort

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Documented Disability Statement: UT Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact Services for Students with Disabilities at 471-6259 (voice) or 232-2937 (video phone) or http://ddce.utexas.edu/disability/.

Religious Holidays: By UT Austin policy, you must notify me of your pending absence at least fourteen days prior to the date of observance of a religious holy day. If you must miss a class, an examination, a work assignment, or a project in order to observe a religious holy day, you will be given an opportunity to complete the missed work within a reasonable time after the absence.

Class Schedule

The instructor reserves the right to modify this syllabus during the semester.

HOMEWORK IS LISTED UNDER THE DAY IT IS ASSIGNED, NOT THE DAY IT IS DUE. UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED, ALL HOMEWORK IS DUE THE FOLLOWING CLASS MEETING.

Week 1 (8/28-8/29) Intro & Phonology Reading: Chapter 2 Aug. 28 – Introduction to the Sanskrit Language Aug. 29 – Phonology & Roman transliteration

Week 2 (9/2-9/6) The Devanāgarī Script Reading: Chapter 1 Sept. 2 – LABOR DAY HOLIDAY Sept. 3 – The Devanāgarī Script: and Post-consonantal vowels Sept. 4 – The Devanāgarī Script: Consonants Sept. 5 – The Devanāgarī Script: Conjunct characters

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Week 3 (9/9-9/13) Verbs Reading: Chapter 3 & 4 Sep. 9 – The Devanāgarī Script: review and in-class practice Sep. 10 – Verb Road Map (Chapter 3) / QUIZ 1 (alphabet + क with vowels) Sep. 11– Review: Verb HW & Transliteration Sep.12 – Voc. quiz chapters 3 and 4. The Present Tense (Chapter 4)

Week 4 (9/16-9/20) Present Tense & Nominal a-Stems Reading: Chapter 5 & 6 Sep. 16 – Present Tense Review and Practice Sep. 17 – Voc. quiz chapter 5. Nominals: Nouns, Pronouns, Adjectives and Participles Sep. 18 –Review: HW Sep. 19–a-Stems (Chapter 6)

Week 5 (9/23-9/27): Gradation, Causatives, Culture Days Reading: Chapter 7 Sep. 23 – Voc. quiz chapters 6 and 7. Review: HW, Intro to Vowel Gradation Sep. 24 – Vowel Gradation & Causatives (Chapter 7) QUIZ 2 Sep. 25 – Review HW Sep. 26 – Culture Day

Week 6 (9/30-10/4) -ta, -tvā, -tum Reading: Chapter 8 & Chapter 9 Sep. 30 – Review HW, Internal Sandhi Intro Oct. 1 – Voc. quiz chapter 8. Absolutives, ta-Participles, and Infinitives Oct. 2 – Review: HW & Introduce senā Oct. 3 – Voc. quiz chapter 9. -Stems

Week 7 (10/7-10/11) Review + Midterm Reading: Review Chapters 1-9 Oct. 7 – Review: HW + Superlatives and Comparatives Oct. 8 – Review – Bring Questions! Oct. 9 – MIDTERM EXAM Oct. 10 – Culture Day

Week 8 (10/14-10/18) Prepositions, Preverbs, and Sandhi Reading: Chapter 10 & 11 Oct. 14 –Midterm Review Oct. 15 – Voc. quiz chapter 10. Prepositions and Preverbs Oct. 16 – Review: HW + Sandhi Intro Oct. 17 – External Sandhi & Consonant Sandhi

Week 9 (10/21-10/26) Imperfect Indicative and Present Potential Reading: Chapter 12 Oct. 21 – Review HW + More Sandhi Practice

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Oct. 22 – Voc. quiz chapter 12. Imperfect Indicative and Present Potential Oct. 23 – Review HW Oct. 24 – Culture Day

Week 10 (10/28-11/1) ī and ū stems, Sandhi Reading: Chapter 13 Oct. 28 – Review HW Oct. 29 – ī and ū-stems Oct. 30 – QUIZ 3 Oct. 31 – Voc. quiz chapter 13. Visarga Sandhi

Week 11 (11/4-11/8) Compounds Reading: Chapter 14 & Chapter 15 Nov. 4 – Review HW Nov. 5 – Voc. quiz chapter 14. Compounds Nov. 6 – Review HW Nov. 7 – Voc. quiz chapter 15. Compounds Cont. + Consonant Stems (Chapter 15)

Week 12 (11/11-11/15) Vowel Sandhi Reading: Chapter 16 Nov. 11 – HW & Compound Review Nov. 12 – Voc. quiz chapter 16. Vowel Sandhi (in class exercise 16.1; 16.2 #a-z) Nov. 13 – QUIZ 4 Nov. 14 – Culture Day

Week 13 (11/18-11/22) Noun Formation and Athematic Verbs Reading: Chapter 17 and 18 Nov. 18 – HW Review Nov. 19 – Voc. quiz chapter 17. Noun Formation Nov. 20 – HW Review Nov. 21 –Athematic Verbs

Week 14 (11/25-11/29) Athematic Verbs Continued Reading: Chapter 18 continued and Chapter 19

Nov. 25 – HW Review Nov. 26 – Athematic Verbs Nov. 27 – Thanksgiving Holiday – No Class Nov. 28 – Thanksgiving – No Class

Week 15 (12/2-12/6) Pronouns and Final Presentations Reading: Chapter 20

Dec. 2 – Voc. quiz chapters 18 and 19. HW Review Dec. 3 – Pronouns

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Homework: make paradigm cards for saḥ, sā, tad, ayam, idam Dec. 4 – QUIZ 5 Dec. 5 – Verse Recital and Presentations

Week 16 (12/9) Dec. 9 – Review for Final, Translation Fun Final Exam – DATE/TIME TBD BY UNIVERSITY. There are no make-up exams or alternative arrangements except where necessary for students with documented disabilities. In the latter case, arrangements must be made in advance together with the instructor on or before Nov. 14 (end of Week 12).

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