We ‘Two/Too’: Origins and Outcomes of (forced) Bilingualism in Tribal Islanders of India, New Zealand and Australia

Name of Author : Souvik Datta

Abstract: My paper would serve to provide a gateway into an understanding of the languages and the situation of resultant bilingualism prevailing within the tribal people of the island territories mentioned, namely Nicobaris (Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India), Maoris (New Zealand), and Torres Strait Islanders (Australia), due to a dynamic pull exerted between the indigenous tribal ‘marginalized’ native culture, striven to be held on to; and the advent of a relatively ‘modernized’ language formation: Hindi/English, understood and utilized in the present scenario by people of the so-called ‘mainstream’. I seek to examine questions of where the tribal populace stands given these forces of social change, utilizing sociolinguistic theory – both in the language formations and their application. Additionally, I would comment on the codification issue of these tribal languages, and how lop-sided their status seems to be, across the similar geographical spaces taken into consideration. The Nicobarese language(s) serve as a microcosm for most Indian tribal languages in general. What is their degree of representation in mainstream culture, how effective have integration practices been at ground zero? This study of linguistic assessment compares the status accorded to an Indian tribe(s) with its global counterparts. The need for preservation of this linguistic dimension within the cultural heritage of this Indian tribal community has been highlighted. This is the only way to salvage a critically endangered (linguistic) culture, having the tribal communities hold their own, even if their merging into the ‘mainstream’ may remain utopic.

Keywords : Bilingualism, Sociolinguistics, Codification, Preservation, Endangering.

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