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Sanskrit: Its Origin and Influence
Article by Strong Mind (583 pts ) , published Aug 31, 2009
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Sanskrit is considered one of the ancient languages of the world. Many linguists believe it to be the mother of all languages, but there is a huge controversy on this. Let us discuss the history and origin of this rich language which has influenced almost all the languages of the world.
Sanskrit is one of the oldest languages of India, known to have originated more than 1000 years ago. It is known as the classical language and considered the Mother of all the languages by many linguists. This is the native language of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. It is mainly used in religious ceremonies and rituals as it is considered as a sacred language through the ages. According to Hindu mythological belief, Lord Brahma introduced the Sanskrit language to sages.
History of Sanskrit
The pre-classical form of the Sanskrit language is Vedic Sanskrit. It is said to have originated approximately 1500-200 BC. Currently it is still widely used in the form of prayer as mantras and hymns.
Classical Sanskrit is also known as “Panini”, which has developed from the Vedic form. This language evolved between 500 B.C. – 1000 A.D. During this period, the Sanskrit language was used as a second language of the Hindu religion and for learning. The two major epics of this period are Ramayana and Mahabharata. Classical Sanskrit also has contributions in the fields of medicine, law science, astronomy and philosophy. Apart from the scholars of India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh, there are also many Buddhist scholars in Japan, China and Thailand who speak Sanskrit.
Understanding 'Sanskrit"
The word Sanskrit means- “to put together or to arrange, to compose” and is also called as the “divine language” or “language of Gods.” Studies reveal that there many similarities found between Sanskrit, Greek and Latin and this derives its relationship with the Indo- European language. Sanskrit literature is known to be the richest literature in the history of humankind containing, poems, hymns, puranas and Vedas. The oldest known texts of Sanskrit are Rig-Veda, Yajur-Veda, Sama-Veda Atharva- Veda, Brahmans and Upanishads..
Influence on other languages
Many Indian languages are derivatives of Sanskrit. Languages like Bengali and Orissa have adopted direct words from it, whereas Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Grantha proved to originate from Sanskrit.
The influence of this language is quite strong; not only Indian languages, but, also Russian, Chinese, Greek, English and many other European languages have adopted words which originated from Sanskrit. The word 'hour' in English is derived from the Sanskrit word 'hora', 'brain' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'Shira' or 'brahma'. Common and basic words like mother, father are derived from Sanskrit. It is said that the latest Oxford dictionary lists around 30,000 or more words and phrases which are derived from Sanskrit. The examples are endless. It has also spread globally and changed many languages.
Final words!
Whatever be Sanskrit's antiquity, it is one of the most beautiful languages in the world with a wonderful structure. It does beat Greek and Latin in its perfection and is stronger in comparison to its roots and resemblance in grammar. The educational system of India is now trying to revive this language in the modern era by having Sanskrit as a study subject in schools and colleges.
Despite of the presumed death of the language in day-to-day use, it continues to be used in the cultures of India and will always remain important.
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