LANGUAGES

Human beings are innate when it comes to communication, verbal and nonverbal, which is symbolized by a baby crying at birth. Now you know why a baby must be slapped to cry. There is this mythological story told in India to show the importance of communication, it’s about a son in the womb who could listen to a secret battle plan but remembers later in life which helps him go to a certain town.

In India speaking is considered to bring people together.

 

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT INDIAN LANGUAGES

ü  India has 22 different official languages, with a total of 121 languages and 270 mother tongues.

ü  Hindi is the world’s oldest language and also the most spoken language in India with over 590 million speakers.

ü  English being the second language and more spoken in Southern India than in Northern India.

ü  It’s Important to note India has no national language.

ü  India is the second largest English speaking country after the United States.

ü  Most Indians can move between two, three or even more languages, often in the same sentence while conversing with the same person.

 

 INDIAS MAJOR LANGUAGES ARE;

ü  Hindi over 590 million speakers

ü  Bengali or Bangla 205 million speakers) mostly spoken in the state of West Bengal and part of Assam

ü  Punjabi (100 million), spoken in the states of Punja, Haryana and Delhi, a Marathi (75 million) spoken in Maharashtra and Goa Tamil (also spoken in Sri Lanka; over 66 million worldwide)

 

CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED BY FOREIGNERS

ü  The biggest cultural diversity challenge that most tourist and travelers encounter is language barrier.

ü  In India English is a widely spoken, however things like accent changes the entire  communication theme.

ü  Foreigners struggle to understand English conversations because of grammatical

ü  errors, euphemisms, double speak and "Hinglish" [a mix of Hindi and English]. For instance, “Prepone” is the opposite of postpone, "Intimate" means inform.

ü  A study done by Facts and Details quotes “The way English is spoken varies a great deal from place to place and with levels of fluency and wealth.

ü  It is commonly said that there are at least 15 different kinds of English, one to go with each of the each of the official languages” .

            

RECOMMENDATIONS

If travelling to India especially Northern India, it’s important to learn Hindi to help you get more

authentic exchange with the locals. Hindi is known to be a phonetic language, that is spoken same way its written. For example, “Namaste” is read as it is. In sentences they place the action verb at the end of the sentence after which makes it complex.

 

 

 

Few important words to learn before travelling to India

ü  Namaste- Hello

ü  Please- kripaya (kruh-pah-yaa)

ü  Thankyou- dhanyavad (dhuhn-yuh-vaadh) or shukriya

ü  How Are You? - Aap (you) kaise (how) hain (are)?

ü  Do You Speak English? - ‘Kya (what) aap (you) English bolte (speak) hain?

ü  Can You Help Me? ‘Kya (will) aap (you) meri (me) madad (help) karenge (do

 ü  Sorry- maaf kijiye

                    ü What is the cost? – Kitnay ka hai? 

                                   ü  Bill please – Bill de dijiye

                                 ü  This is expensive – Ye bahut mehenga hai