A sociolinguistic survey on the Sansi ()

Nithin Saju Clinton George Praison Cherian Blesson N. Kochumon

New Life Computer Institute (NLCI) September 2019

Preface

This sociolinguistic survey among the Sansi was conducted by the Finish Line Project (FLP) survey team; FLP is a collaborative network between the New Life Computer Institute (NLCI) and the Last Command Initiative (LCI). The fieldwork was done from 3rd September to 19th September 2019. We would like to thank all the people who helped us before and during our planning and fieldwork. We are thankful to all our leaders of NLCI. We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the people who helped the South team by giving valuable suggestions during the Fieldwork. We are so thankful to the people of the Sansi community for their warm welcome and hospitality throughout our fieldwork.

With Regards FLP Survey Team, South Zone (NLCI)

Abstract

This report describes a sociolinguistic survey conducted among the Sansi-speaking community of Rajasthan and (). The main research goal was to explore the basic sociolinguistic situation and the need for Sansi language development activities in LCI South and West Zone of India. The findings indicate that Sansi is a distinct language that does not have many linguistic affinities with either Marwadi, or with Bhatu. The Sansi language seems to be very vital with the Sansi people having highly positive attitudes towards their language.

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Table of contents

Preface...... i Abstract ...... ii Table of contents ...... iii 1. Introduction ...... 4 2. Geography, people and language ...... 4 3. Purpose and goals of the survey...... 4 4. Previous research ...... 5 5. Methodology ...... 5 5.1. Language use, attitude and vitality questionnaires ...... 5 5.2. Wordlist...... 5 5.3. Dialect mapping ...... 6 5.4. Informal questionnaires and observations on bilinguisme...... 6 5.5. Observation and informal interviews ...... 6 6. Results and analysis ...... 6 6.1. Language use, attitude and vitality ...... 6 6.1.1. Language use patterns ...... 6 6.1.2. Language attitudes ...... 7 6.1.3. Language vitality ...... 8 6.2. Dialect mapping ...... 9 6.3. Wordlist analysis ...... 9 6.4. Observation and Informal Interviews ...... 10 7. EGIDS status of Sansi ...... 10 8. Bilingual proficiency of the Sansi community (informal) ...... 10 9. Conclusions ...... 10 Consulted readings ...... 12

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1. Introduction

This report describes a sociolinguistic survey conducted among the Sansi-speaking community of Rajasthan and Haryana (India); the ISO code for Sansi is [ssi]. The survey was requested by the New Life Computer Institute (NLCI), the Finish Line Project (FLP) survey team, and the Last Command Initiative (LCI). The main research goal was to explore the basic sociolinguistic situation and the need for Sansi language development activities in LCI South and West Zone of India. The survey was carried out by Clinton George, Blesson N. Kochumon, Praison Cherian, and Nithin Saju. from September 3rd-19th, 2019. The following locations were visited: Kamana, Jandwali, New Khunja, Nurpura, Ganganagar, and Sangaria in Rajasthan for the fieldwork. 2. Geography, people and language

The Sansi speakers live in the western region of Rajasthan, , Haryana and Uttar . But the survey team only visited Rajasthan and Haryana, because the previous survey report says that Sansi in the Punjab has already shifted to Punjabi. In , there are a few Sansi people from Rajasthan who went to Uttar Pradesh for a job Table 1: Place of Sansi settlements Village name District name Jandawali Kamana Hanumangarh New Khunja Hanumangarh Nurpura Ganaganagar Ganganagar Ganaganagar Beawar Sangaria Sangaria

The Sansi communities live in the plain areas. Most of them live in the interior villages of Rajasthan and some in town areas. These regions are known for very high temperatures during the summer and for little rainfall. The Sansi are a wandering tribe and do not have any special habitat, nor any permanent interests or connections anywhere. The (Eberhard et al.) classifies Sansi as Indo-European, Indo-Iranian, Indo-, Western Hindi, Hindustani, Sansi. Alternative names for Sansi are Bhilki and Sansiboli. 3. Purpose and goals of the survey

The overall purpose of this survey was to explore the basic sociolinguistic aspects of the Sansi language community. More specifically, the study had three research goals: 1. Goal: To find out the dialectical differences in the Sansi language (if any). Research questions: Q 1: What are the different dialects of the Sansi Language? Q 2: Which is the standard dialect in the Sansi Language? Tools: Dialect Mapping, Dialectical area Questionnaire, and Wordlist

2. Goal: To investigate the language use patterns, language attitudes, language vitality, bilingualism and domains of language use of the Sansi. Research questions:

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Q 1: Does this community have proper language use, a positive attitude, and enough vitality in their tongue? Q 2: What are the domains of language use and bilingual ability of this community? Tools: LUAV Questionnaire, Domains of Language Use (DLU), Bilingualism tool

3. Goal: Investigate the lexical similarity within Sansi varieties and its neighboring Research question: Q 1: What is the lexical similarity of Sansi with other neighbouring Rajasthani languages? Q 2: What is the lexical similarity within Sansi varieties? Tools: Wordlist 4. Previous research

According to the sociolinguistic field study of Benson George and Symon George from February to April 2009, 80% of the Sansi people in the Punjab have completely switched over to Punjabi and they cannot speak Sansi anymore. In Rajasthan, they actively use their language called Sansiboli or Bhahadu Boli, at home and in their village for regular communication. Children continue to learn the mother tongue as a . Since they are a nomadic tribe and travel for business outside the village regularly, only less than 5% of their children go to school. Only 5% are literate. Researchers recommended that:  Social development from slum lifestyle is a great need.  Education and Literacy efforts should accompany this simultaneously.  Further research is recommended to assess the language use, attitude, vitality and Standard Dialect of Sansi. 5. Methodology

To achieve the purpose, the survey team used tools like LUAV Questionnaire, Wordlist, dialect mapping and observation and informal interviews. 5.1. Language use, attitude and vitality questionnaires

A LUAV questionnaire is a list of questions asked of many people of the targeted linguistic survey area. LUAV is a linguistic questionnaire consisting of twenty-one questions developed with the following objectives: To determine:  The use of the Sansi language.  The attitudes towards the Sansi language.  The people’s perspective of the Sansi language’s vitality. 5.2. Wordlist

A wordlist is a sociolinguistic tool which helps to assess language variation or the dialect variations of languages. The wordlist is lists of words systematically arranged to find out the relation/difference between dialects or languages. The list can change depending on the survey but are always ordinary words found in everyday life. The wordlist will be written in IPA for lexical similarity checking and will be analyzed according to the guidelines established by Blair (1990). 6

5.3. Dialect mapping

The major objective of the Dialect Mapping tool is to assist speakers of the specific dialect/language to discuss the information which they already know about the dialects/languages and the level of comprehension between dialects/languages. It also helps them think about which varieties of their language could be used as a single set of written or oral materials to be used as a standard dialect. 5.4. Informal questionnaires and observations on bilinguisme

The researchers had conversations with the community in an informal way to find out their use of a . They had meetings with the people, asking several questions regarding how well they were able to speak the , inquiring about their language use, and also observing where they used another language apart from their mother tongue. 5.5. Observation and informal interviews

The researchers had personal interviews for informal dialogues seeking answers to research questions. Interviews may have a of purposes, such as learning about dialect areas or inquiring about language development efforts. The researchers asked relevant questions and followed up with additional questions throughout the conversation, based on its flow and context. Observation notes are taken for the researchers to understand the situation of language and lifestyle of the particular people. 6. Results and analysis

Below are the analysis and findings of linguistic tools executed in the field survey of the Sansi community. 6.1. Language use, attitude and vitality

In the LUAV questionnaires, the researcher asked different questions related use, attitude and vitality. Analyzing the answers will help to find out the different aspects of mother tongue use, attitude towards MT and Vitality of MT. The research team has collected 65 LUAV questionnaires from the Sansi community. 6.1.1. Language use patterns

The Sansi language is very well used by the people in all their domains irrespective of age and gender. They use their mother tongue for religious activities and children use their language while playing. According to the community, there is no one in the community who cannot speak their mother tongue. Even though they are using their mother tongue extensively, they are a multilingual community, who can easily use Hindi too. Table 2 shows the responses of the 65 subjects regarding language use patterns, language attitudes and Sansi vitality throughout the Sansi community. Table 2: Language use Questions Sub Questions Languages Subjects Responses What language Parents / children / Sansi 65 100% do speak at grand children Rajasthani/Marwadi 0 --- home with Hindi 0 --- your … Spouse / siblings Sansi 65 100% Rajasthani/Marwadi 0 --- 7

Questions Sub Questions Languages Subjects Responses Hindi 0 --- With villagers Sansi 0 --- Sansi/ Hindi 65 100% What language Playing with other Sansi 65 100% do your children Rajasthani/Marwadi 0 --- children speak Hindi 0 --- while … Talking with neighbors Sansi 0 --- Sansi/ Hindi 65 100% At school Sansi 0 --- Hindi 65 100% Can your children speak as the elders Yes 65 100% speak No 0 --- How often do Your mother tongue Every day 65 100% you use … Rarely 0 --- Never 0 --- Other tongues Every day 0 --- Rarely 65 100% Never 0 --- Which languages do you speak when the Hindi 64 98.46% speakers of other languages visit you at Hindi/ 1 1.53% home? Which language do you use to pray to Sansi 65 100% God? Hindi 0 --- Which Village meeting Sansi 65 100% language do Rajasthani/Marwadi 0 --- you speak in Hindi 0 --- … Marriage in village Sansi 65 100% Rajasthani/Marwadi 0 --- Hindi 0 --- Festival / celebrations Sansi 65 100% Rajasthani/Marwadi 0 --- Hindi 0 --- Office Sansi 0 --- Hindi 65 100% Is there any person in your village who Yes 0 --- does not speak MT? No 65 100%

6.1.2. Language attitudes

They have a positive attitude towards their MT and they feel it is prestigious to speak it in front of other language speakers. They feel good when the young people speak their MT and they feel bad if they ’t, but they are not willing to send their children to a Sansi medium school if there is one , because they think it is important for the children to learn the regional language. They feel high esteem in identifying themselves as Sansi speakers. 8

Table 3 summarizes the responses of the 65 subjects concerning their language attitudes. Table 3: Language attitudes Questions Languages Subjects Responses Do your young people like to speak your Yes 65 100% language? No 0 --- How do you feel if Do speak your language Good 65 100% the young people in Bad 0 --- your village… Do not speak your language Good 0 --- Bad 65 100% How would you feel if your / daughter married Good 0 --- someone who does not know your language? Bad 65 100% Indifferent 0 --- If there is a Sansi medium and a Gujarati/Hindi Sansi 0 --- medium school, to which would you send your Hindi 65 100% children? What is your favorite language? Sansi 65 100% Hindi 0 --- How do you feel if you speak your mother tongue Prestigious 65 100% in front of others? Indifferent 0 --- Embarrassed 0 --- Would you like to be known as a Sansi speaking Yes 65 100% person? No 0 ---

6.1.3. Language vitality

Their children can speak Sansi to the same extent as their old people and they are using their language strongly in their daily activities. According to the data, almost all the subjects commented that their language will still be spoken after 50 years. This shows that the Sansi language is vital in Rajasthan and there is no possibility of a language shift shortly. Table 4 presents an overview of the 65 subjects’ responses regarding Sansi language vitality. Table 4: Language vitality Questions Language Subjects Responses Would you like your children to read and Yes 65 100% write your mother tongue? No 0 --- What language do most parents speak with Sansi 65 100% their children? Hindi 0 --- Do young people in your village speak MT Yes 65 100% as well as old people do? No 0 --- Do you think that the language spoken by Yes 15 23% you is different from your grandparents’? No 50 77% Do you think Sansi will be spoken after fifty Yes 65 100% years? No 0 --- 9

Questions Language Subjects Responses Do you think the Sansi language needs to be Yes 65 100% developed in the future? Why? No 0 ---

6.2. Dialect mapping

During this fieldwork, the surveyors held seven dialect mapping sessions in the Hanumangarh, Ganaganagar, Ajmer and districts of Rajasthan and Sangaria (Haryana), in the villages of Jandawali, Kamana, New Khunja, Nurpura, Ganganagar, and Beawar, and one dialect mapping session in Sangaria of Haryana (see Table 5). Through the Dialect mapping, the survey team concluded that the New Khunja of Hanumangarh variety is the standard dialect, and even Sangaria of Haryana people choose Hanumangarh variety as the standard variety of Sansi. Table 5: Sites selected for Dialect Mapping Language name Village name District name Sansi Jandawali Hanumangarh Kamana Hanumangarh New Khunja Hanumangarh Nurpura Ganaganagar Ganganagar Ganaganagar Beawar Ajmer Sangaria Sangaria 6.3. Wordlist analysis

The researchers collected four Sansi wordlists from Rajasthan and one from Sangaria (Haryana). In addition, wordlist data collected during earlier surveys were included in the analysis: one Marwadi, one Hindi, one and one Bhatu wordlist. The lexical similarity of the Sansi language is compared within the Sansi varieties with Marwadi, Hindi, Urdu and Bhatu. Figure 1: Wordlist analysis Sansi/New Khunja/Hanumangarh/Rajasthan 88 Sansi/Ganganagar/Rajasthan 86 83 Sansi/Sangaria/Haryana 85 82 76 Sansi/Nurpura/Hanumangarh/Rajasthan 78 77 71 72 Sansi/Beawar/Rajasthan 48 44 43 43 45 Marwadi//Rajasthan 44 44 41 43 43 33 Hindi 36 35 33 35 32 28 50 Urdu 42 40 36 39 40 39 50 33 Bhatu/ Colony/Uttar Pradesh

According to the wordlist analysis data, all the varieties of the Sansi language show 71% to 88% lexical similarity. Overall, there is not much dialect variation across the Sansi varieties. The exception is Beawar which shares a somewhat lower degree of lexical similarity with the other Sansi varieties; this finding is corroborated by reports from interviewed community members and the surveyors’ observations. 10

The lexical similarity of Sansi with Marwadi is 44% to 48%, with Hindi 33% to 46%, with Bhatu 40% to 43% and with Urdu 32% to 36%. This shows that Sansi is a distinct language from all these languages. According to the Sansi interviewees from Rajasthan, Bhatu is an alternative name for Sansi; hence the survey team collected a wordlist from Bhatu in Uttar Pradesh. The lexical similarity of Sansi with Bhatu is rather low, however, with only 36% to 42%. These findings suggest that there is no notable linguistic relatedness between the Sansi varieties and the Bhatu language of Uttar Pradesh. Table 6: Lexical similarity Speech variety Lexical range Within Sansi varieties 71% – 88% Sansi with Marwadi 43% – 48% Sansi with Hindi 41% – 44% Sansi with Urdu 32% – 36% Sansi with Bhatu 36% – 42%

6.4. Observation and Informal Interviews

Through their research, researchers understood that the Sansi language is vital and people use the language in all of their domains. They have a positive attitude towards their language and culture. All the respondents commented that the Sansi language will be spoken after 50 years, and the community shows interest in developing their language in the coming years. That shows the language is vital, so all kinds of translation and literacy work can be initiated in the Sansi language. 7. EGIDS status of Sansi

According to Ethnologue (Eberhard et al. 2020), the EGIDS level of the Sansi language is ‘7 shifting’, with only the childbearing generation being able to use the language. However, the survey team found that the Sansi language in Rajasthan is vital, that the community uses their language in all of their primary domains and that they are transferring their language to their children as well, so the researchers categorized the language based on the Expanded Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale, and the Sansi language can be considered on the scale as “6a- vigorous.” For this status, the primary focus is the state of daily face-to-face use and intergenerational transmission of the language. In the case of the Sansi language, all generations of the Sansi community are actively using the language, and through the informal questions, the survey team understood that the Sansi language is the first language learned by the children of the community. The older generation of the community is passing the language on to its younger generation well. The use of Sansi in their major domains such as home, village, etc., confirms their daily face-to-face use of language. 8. Bilingual proficiency of the Sansi community (informal)

According to the research, the Sansi people are very fluent and proficient in Hindi, regardless of age, gender, and education. Although they are using their mother tongue in their main domains, Hindi is also used on many occasions. 9. Conclusions

Sansi is a separate language and does not have many linguistic affinities with either Marwadi, Hindi or with Bhatu. The Sansi form an indigenous community, separate from other neighboring tribes. 11

The Sansi language seems to be very vital. The survey findings indicate that the language is used by all generations, in all domains and is being passed on to the younger generation. The Sansi people have a highly positive attitude towards their language.

Consulted readings

Anonymous. 2020a. Sansi (Hindu) traditions in India. Colorado Springs: Joshua Project. Online version: https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/18019/IN (accessed on 11 May 2020). Anonymous. 2020b. Sansi. Colorado Springs: Joshua Project. Online version: https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/21498 (accessed on 11 May 2020). Anonymous. 2020c. South Peoples. . Colorado Springs: Joshua Project. Online version: https://www.southasiapeoples.org/listing (accessed on 11 May 2020). Blair, Frank. 1990. Survey on a shoestring: A manual for small-scale language surveys (Summer Institute of and The University of at Arlington Publications in Linguistics 9). Dallas: Summer Institute of Linguistics; University of Texas at Arlington. Chacko, Sajayan and Liahey Ngwazah. 2012. Sociolinguistic survey of selected Rajasthani speech varieties of Rajasthan, India, Volume 6: Marwari, Merwari, and Godwari. SIL Electronic Survey Reports 2012-034. Online version: https://www.sil.org/resources/publications/entry/50815. Eberhard, David M., Gary F. Simons, and Charles D. Fennig, eds.. 2020. Ethnologue: Languages of the World. Twenty-third edition. Dallas: SIL International. Online version: http://www.ethnologue.com. George, Benson and Symon George. 2019. Sansi: Initial findings. Rajasthan: New Life Computer Institute. Gusain, Lakhan. .: A case study of Sansiboli. Language in India 2(9). Online version: Languageinindia.com/dec2002/sansi.html (accessed on 11 May 2020). contributors. 2020. . Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Online version: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rajasthani_language&oldid=946953093 (accessed on 11 May 2020).

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