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The language of Hinduism in the US diaspora
Author(s) -
PANDHARIPANDE RAJESHWARI V.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
world englishes
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.6
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1467-971X
pISSN - 0883-2919
DOI - 10.1111/weng.12041
Subject(s) - hinduism , diaspora , sociology , english language , linguistics , gender studies , philosophy
The use of English in rituals in the Hindu diaspora in the US is a major change for the religion, since English is excluded from Hindu rituals in India. This paper demonstrates that: (a) this change has impacted the structure of English and the system of Hinduism; (b) Hindu saints, the ‘authority’ in Hinduism, sanction this change; (c) the media further promotes it; and (d) it impacts the degree of functional load and transparency for the languages of rituals while creating di‐systems, or mixed codes with two systems of thought. The implications of this discussion for the theory of language change, maintenance and loss of language will be presented.