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The Politics of Language in India and Ceylon

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 November 2008

S. J. Tambiah
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Extract

A Member of Parliament, representing Orissa State, once said in the course of a debate: ‘My first ambition is the glory of Mother India. I know it in my heart of hearts that I am an Indian first and an Indian last. But when you say you are a Bihari, I say I am an Oriya. When you say you are a Bengali, I say I am an Oriya. Otherwise I am an Indian’ (cited in Harrison, 1960). The same words could plausibly be spoken by a Ceylonese or Burmese with other labels substituted. If we succeed in unravelling the meaning of this statement we shall understand a major aspect of South Asian politics.

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Articles
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Modern Asian Studies , Volume 1 , Issue 3 , May 1967 , pp. 215 - 240
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1967

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