‘Mother Tongue-An Indicator of Cultural Identity’

Newmai News Network SHILLONG, September 16 [dropcap]F[/dropcap]ormer president of the Khasi Author Society (KAS), Prof. S.S. Majaw on Tuesday rejected the narrow views expressed by some linguists who termed the Indian Languages as a ‘Mad house of languages’. Refuting the misconception of the Indian languages, Prof. Majaw said that in his personal opinion, he would prefer to say that India is a ‘garden of languages’. Speaking as the chief guest at the symposium entitled, ‘Mother Tongue-An Indicator of Cultural Identity’ organized by All India Radio, Shillong at Don Bosco Youth Centre, Laitumkhrah, Prof. Majaw said that he would view India as a pluralistic society with diverse castes, tribes, religions, customs, traditions, cultures and languages.He termed the language spoken by the community as a “mother tongue” having its own place and status in the society. Expressing his understanding about mother tongue, Prof. Majaw said that it should be a native language of a particular community or tribe and a language naturally acquired by children. “Any mother tongue that is still spoken by a community is rightly considered as a living language and a mother tongue that is no longer spoken is a dead language,” Prof. Majaw said while adding that the Latin language which was spoken during the Roman empire was one of the dead languages in the world. Referring mother tongue as a medium of instruction, Prof. Majaw expressed deep appreciation of the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi who was the foremost advocate of the mother tongue. “He termed the mother tongue as the language of the heart and other languages as the languages of the brain,” said Prof. Majaw. Retired Professor in the Khasi Department of North Eastern Hill University, Prof. M.B. Jyrwa who gave the Key Note Address lauded the efforts of All India Radio, Shillong for providing a forum to thrash out the value of the mother tongue and also how to preserve it through the media. Prof. Jyrwa suggested that mother tongue could be preserved by using it in schools, colleges, universities and through print and electronic media. She said that the cultures of the communities emerge from speaking of mother tongue right from childhood. “There are those who receive their cultures from the language spoken by mothers during childhood,” Prof. Jyrwa said, adding that those motherless children receive their culture from those who take care of them. Explaining this further, she also said there are those who could speak two languages and also receive two cultures because the mother and the father do not speak the same language as they do not follow the same culture. “Socio-linguistics is making an in depth study on these aspects in order to have more clarity on the matter,” Prof. Jyrwa informed while adding that the mother tongue received right from birth encompasses thoughts, feelings, values, sanguinity, family relationships and social relationship. It is in this context that she also0 subscribes to the notion that that mother tongue is the language of the heart. Emphasizing the importance of mother tongue in the life a person, Prof. Jyrwa quoted Nelson Mandella who said, “If you talk to a man in the language he understands that goes to his head; If you talk to him in his language that goes to his heart.” She also said that mother tongue is an important component for the preservation of one’s identity. Recalling the days of Hill State Movement, Prof. Jyrwa informed that Meghalaya was carved out of Assam because the then Assam Government wanted to impose the Assamese language on all the tribes of the state. The tribes did not succumb to the imposition of the Assamese language on the ground that they have their own languages and cultures, which were completely difference the people of the plains, she said, adding that if the languages and cultures were not with the tribes, they would have been assimilated by other cultures. During the Technical Session which was presided over by lecturer of the Khasi Department, Sakar Dev Collage, Shillong, Sukjai Swer, the Dean School of Humanity, NEHU, Prof. Badaplin War presented a paper on, ‘Mother Tongue-An Indicator of Cultural Identity’. Prof. A. Kharmalki of the Khasi Department, NEHU presented a paper on ‘The Importance of Mother Tongue Education’. Retired Deputy Director (Programme) of All India Radio, Shillong, E.W. Dkhar presented a paper on ‘Mother Tongue and Media’, Assistant Professor of Khasi Department, NEHU, M. Khyndeit presented a paper on, ‘Mother Tongue and Language Borrowing’. A Khasi song was presented by David Lartang and his team.