THE HISTORY OF THE BENGALI LANGUAGE THE HISTORY OF THE BENGALI LANGUAGE BY BIJAYCHANDRA MAZUMDAR, LBCTUBEB IN THF; DEPARTMENTS OF COMPARATIVE PHILOLOGY, ANTHROPOLOGY AND INDIAN VERNACULARS, CALCUTTA UNIVERSITY PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF CALCUTTA 19:20 PRINTED BY ATULCHANDRA BHATTACHARYYA AT THE CALCUTTA UNIVERSITY PRESS, SENATE HOUSE, CALCUTTA PREFACE The following lectures on the History of the Bengali Language are intended to give a sketch, in broad outline, of the origins of that language and the various influences, linguistic, ethnic, social, that shaped and moulded its earlier history. One essential requirement of a scientific procedure of this I in an investigation sort, have steadily kept in view. The ethnic as well as the social history of a people or group of peoples must corroborate and light up the linguistic history, if the latter is to be rescued from the realm of prehistoric romance to which the story of philo- logical origins, as so often told, must be however reluctantly assigned by the critical or scientific historian of to-day. One or two incidental results of my application of this anthropological test may be here mentioned. I have had no occasion to invent different Aryan belts for the imaginary migratory movements of some unknowable patois-speaking hordes, to account for the distinctive and peculiar pheno- mena of the provincial languages or dialects, e.g., those of Bengal : they are fitly explained by the successive ethnic contacts and mixtures with neighbouring or surrounding indigenous peoples. Similarly I have had no hesitation in recognizing within proper limits, the principle of miscege- nation in the growth of language, as of race, provided that the organic accretions from outside grow to the living radicle or nucleus which persists as an independent or individual entity. In this way I have sought to explain many of the phenomena, regarding the grafting of Dravi- dian structural and syntactical elements, on some languages or dialects of so-called Aryan stock (including those of Bengal). One interesting example of this is to be seen in vi PHI the accent systems of the different Bengali dialects, which naturally >h<\v traces of that ethnic 1 miscegenation to which tlie anthropological history of the people, bears an unmis- takable testimony, the more so ue and aecent are among what may be called tertian racial characters of speech, and in their deep working predispositions, and relative stability, supply til material for experimental variations of th ! s sort. In the course of these lectures, I have dealt with the more important topics relating to the origins of the Bengali language, explaining my own views and conclusions, rather than combating the theories that hold the Held, and I have used the illustrative material briefly and sugges- tively, rather than exhaustively. A few words may be necessary to explain the occasion of the present publication. It was in 1909 that I first gave a definite shape to the results of my study of the Bengali language and its history, but certain eye trouble* which began at about that time, interfered with the im- mediate completion of my plans. Three or four years later, after those troubles had ceased with the total loss of eye-sight, I turned to my materials again, and worked at them, till in 1917, not knowing what to do with these unpublished papers, I sent them at the instance of a friend, to the Hon'ble Sir Asutosh Mukerjee, President of the Council of Post-Graduate Teaching in Arts in the Uni- versity of Calcutta to see if any use could be made of them in connection with that scientific study of the Vernacular, which had long been one of Sir Asutosh's cherished projects in his scheme of University reconstruction and extension. To my great surprise, not unmixed with thankfulness, I found myself called upon, months later, to deliver a course of lectures on the History of the Bengali Language, in the Post-Graduate Department in the Universitv of Calcutta. PREFACE vii I took the advantage of the opportunity so generously afforded, to revise my original papers, in view of a number of facts, that had been since brought to light. I have to thankfully acknowledge, that when revising these papers, I was very much benefited by some highly valuable sug- scholar gestions, which my friend, the eminent Dr. Brojen- dranath Seal very generously offered. Having had to use an amanuensis, and being without the means of inspecting either the manuscripts or the printed proofs, I am afraid, the following pages must contain numerous errors and misprints, for which the reader will, I know, excuse me. I am thankful to my young friend and colleague Babu Hemantakumar Sarkar, M.A., who has prepared the iudexical contents and has brought several serious misprints to my notice. I cannot end these prefatory words, without giving an to the expression, however feeble and halting, feeling of deep gratitude which overpowers me, when I think of the opportunity, which Sir Asutosh as the presiding genius of University education in Bengal, has opened to one circum- stanced like me, an opportunity not only of that active self- expression, which has now become the staff of my life, but also of the fruition of my life's studies and constructive endeavours in one important direction. B. C. MAZUMDAR INDEXICAL CONTENTS LECTIRK I I \TKOIM CTIOX \. Pn-tiiininiri/. How Philology is related to Ethno- logy pp. l-~ : the unscientific methods of Philologists cri- 1 Karl ticise* l>y Pearson, pp. 2, .'3; Grierson's theory, about of 's the origin Indian Dialects, pp. -\, 4; Risky explanation, (' and not a dialect p. ; Grammar vocabulary which give> its character, p. 6. B. Preparatory. Bengali-speaking 8 called a sanskritic tracts, pp. 7, ; Bengali loosely 8 a better 8 language, p. ; Aryan vernacular, name, p. ; term has no ethnic 8 structure the Aryan significance, p. ; and accent system are great factors in a language, p. 8 : for derivation of words sound suggestions are misleading, 9 to as a p. ; subjects necessary discuss, preparatory measure : (1) Geographical limits of Ancient Vanga or Bengal and the character of the Pre- Aryan tribes of Bengal, (-1) The form of Aryan speech first intro- duced in Bengal, (]) The Aryan or Aryanized and the non-Aryan hordes which made inroads into Bengal from the earliest known time to the end of the 12th 1) A. some stated : century 1)., p. ; important propositions (1) Linguistic miscegenation Kcane's view struc- ture may be influenced to some extent by foreign influence the mixture of vocabularies is not of much conse- quence The example of Urdu pp. 10-11. (2) AVhen a new structure is gradually built with new elements on a fresh basis, a new lan^nngc is evolved; The natural and organised mode of thinking of a people never be 12. pan radically changed, p. INDEXICAL CONTENTS ix (3) What is called a patois or vulgar speech is never a separate language Isolation and want of culture about 12 Phonetic and bring deformities, p. ; peculiarities the 13 anatomical structure of the vocal organs, p. ; How pronunciation may at times be wholly due to the education at times of the ear, p. 13. Difference in pronunciation may be explained by climatic conditions as well as by the social life of ease cr 15 Racial character of difficulty, pp. 14, ; inheri- speech, p. 15; Heredity and variation Wundt's table predisposition, p. 15; Primary, Secondary and Tertiary racial in 16 or homo- characters speech, pp. 15, ; unity geneity of a race cannot be postulated on linguistic basis 1-17. alone, p. 17. [pp. LECTURE II ANCIENT BEXCAL AND ITS PEOPLES. Section I. The antiffuily of the names Vanga and Batty Ia The Veda samhitas and the early Vedic literature do not mention the name Vanga Atharva Veda mentions Anga In the Atharva A'eda Parisista the word Vanga occurs with Magadha as a component of a compound Brahmana word The value of this silence, p. 18 ; Aitareya as a of the 20 mentions Vanga country barbarians, p. ; as silent as the Vedas Early Buddhistic literature is ; Vanga not colonised by the Aryans till 6th century B. C., p. 20; the aboriginal tribes known by their totem names, 21 the of Sin ha and the colonisation of p. ; story Vijaya 1 in Bengal, p. 22; Earl} Magadhi influence Ceylon, p. 23; Remnants of Bengali vocabulary and accent system in in Sinhalese, p. 24; First Aryan settlement Bengal, of pp. 24, 25; Baudhay ana's and Vasista's limits Aryavarta, INDKMCAL CONTENTS \ pp. The unhol\ anga, p. '2r> ; -ca voyage allowed in >ome northern rio !' the Ar\;in>. :2l> Ke- count p. ; -eareho in l-'arther India liy LMiayre and (ierini Karly colonisation of Burma by the Dravidians and then by the :2? ; Telei>u in Aryans, j>. supremacy Arakan and Chitta- ur "!)u- in s.'jO B.C. Bengali colony in Annam not later than Ttli '27 the leader of the century B.C., p. ; Bengali adven- turer Lack-lorn coming from the province of Bong-long, to p. 28 ; belonged N&ga Vathsa Bong-long the original form of Hiiughi })eoj)le of Bong-long known by the name Hong Yanga as the name <>\' a tribe in old Hindu Litera- ture Anga, Yanga, Ivalinga regarded by the Aryans 1o liave been oi' non- Aryan origin Kins of Bong tribe replaced by Huddhist Ksatriyas of Magadh in Annam in -ecuiid decade of ord H. Dravidian tradi- century C., p. 28 ; tion regarding many Naga-worshipping tribes proceeding outh from Hi-ngal and its neighbourhood The ^Nlarans, Cheras and '1 !> Pangala Tirayers, the most important, p.