East Indian language explained

East Indian Marathi
Nativename:पूर्व भारतीय मराठी
Pronunciation:Pūrv Bhāratiya Marāthī
Region:Greater Bombay in Konkan and also Maharashtra
Ethnicity:Bombay East Indians
Speakers:600,000
Date:2013
Ref:[1]
Familycolor:Indo-European
Fam2:Indo-Iranian
Fam3:Indo-Aryan
Fam4:Southern Zone
Fam5:Marathi–Konkani
Script:Devanagari, Roman Script
Isoexception:dialect
Notice:Indic
Glotto:none
Notice2:IPA

The East Indian language or East Indian dialect, also known as Mobai Mahratti and East Indian Marathi, is the form of Marathi-Konkani languages spoken in Bombay (Mumbai).[2] It has a significant amount of Indo-Portuguese loanwords.[1] It does not have a unique script of its own: Devanagari and the Roman script are used by most of its speakers, who are the native Christians of the Seven Islands of Bombay in the northern Konkan division.[2] The dialect is losing popular usage due to immigration, depopulation & anglo-americanisation among most of the younger generation. However, it is still used by some in songs and dramas, as well as in Christian worship since the Novus Ordo was approved in the 1960s.

Differences from standard Marathi

All pronouns have a change from yah to te. Words in Marathi for yes, where, here, there, have different East Indian counterparts. Other grammatical nuances differ from standard-spoken Marathi.[3]

Historical references

See main article: article, Bombay Presidency and Bombay East Indians. From the early days of the East India Company, there were no other Indian Christians in the North Konkan except the East Indian Catholics. Employments that were intended for Christians, were the monopoly of the Bombay East Indians. With development, came in railways and steamship, a boon for the travelling public. And with that came a number of immigrants from Goa who were also known as Portuguese Christians. The British found it expedient to adopt a designation which would distinguish the Christians of North Konkan who were British subjects and the Goan, who were Portuguese subjects (Mangalorean Catholics were not Portuguese subjects at this point any more). Accordingly, on the occasion of The Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria, the Christians of North Konkan, who were known as "Portuguese Christians" discarded that name and adopted the designation "East Indian". By the adoption of the name "East Indian" they wanted to impress upon the British Government of Bombay that they were the earliest Roman Catholic Subjects of the British Crown in this part of India, in as much as parts of Bombay, by its cession in 1661, were the first foothold the British acquired in India, after Surat. As the children of the soil, they urged on the Government, that they were entitled to certain natural rights and privileges as against the immigrants.[4]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Kumar. Raksha. The original East Indians. 20 December 2016. The Hindu. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20170625130307/http://www.thehindu.com/features/magazine/the-original-east-indians/article4959668.ece. 25 June 2017.
  2. Web site: The East Indian Dialect . Sahapedia . 12 July 2021 . en . 6 June 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210606093921/https://www.sahapedia.org/the-east-indian-dialect . live .
  3. News: East Indian dictionary to preserve local Marathi dialect. 20 December 2016. The Times of India. 27 April 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190427230622/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/East-Indian-dictionary-to-preserve-local-Marathi-dialect/articleshow/14788849.cms. live.
  4. Book: Baptista , Elsie Wilhelmina . The East Indians: Catholic Community of Bombay, Salsette and Bassein . 1967. Bombay East Indian Association.