Is it existent? 🙂 Yes…it is but you have to look and listen very, very carefully though….:) Let us first analyze how the Indian languages pan out around India.
Hindi:
Hindi is the national language of India and is spoken pre-dominantly in the northern, central, eastern tier states of India(Hindi belt) along with India’s neighboring countries.
Southern states and their languages:
Now the Southern states of India namely Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are quite far from the Hindi belt region and have their own languages.
Malayalam is the primary language in Kerala, Tamil is the primary language in Tamil Nadu, Kannada is the primary language in Karnataka and Telugu is the primary language in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
While each south Indian state has its own language, the metropolitan cities of Bangalore, Hyderabad see a multitude of languages being spoken that we might forget the state’s own language!! (face palm!)
Tamil Nadu:
Having said that what is the predominant language spoken in a big city such as Chennai which is located in the state of Tamil Nadu?
Tamil is the ONLY language spoken in Tamil Nadu whether it is in Chennai or any other city. Period!! 🙂
Is Hindi not visible in Tamil Nadu at all?
For the most part, many(though they will be a minority) in Tamil Nadu would have learnt Hindi to some extent in their school. But most will not speak it as it is not a necessity at all. Many will just keep the Hindi knowledge to themselves and nod quietly during a pre-dominantly Hindi conversation! 🙂
Are there no North Indians in Tamil Nadu at all?
One might be surprised to know that Chennai does have a good set of North Indians settled in. But they will be visible only in exclusive pockets in the city and one might not see them right away.
So, one can hear Hindi in certain pockets of the city and the student population might have a decent knowledge of Hindi as well too.
The Hindi speaking population blend very well with the state and have picked up some amount of good Tamil too! 🙂
Needless to say, Hindi in other parts of Tamil Nadu is practically non-existent.
So, how will you know if a person from Tamil Nadu knows Hindi at all?
Well, you can’t… 🙂
Many might know just a little, others might know just a bit more and some might be total experts. But most people who are from Tamil Nadu might not flaunt their Hindi knowledge at all and might remain mum totally keeping it locked in completely! 🙂
So, what do you think? Do you think I know Hindi ? 🙂
CORRECTION : I stand corrected on the first sentence – Hindi is not the national language of India
This is the third post for #MyFriendAlexa by @Blogchatter
Bwahahaha, spot on.
🙂 🙂
I visited Kerala a few years ago and you brought back memories. All we could say was idli sambar. Rest all was point to and ask for kinda business. I think you might be knowing a little bit of hindi 😊
🙂 🙂 actually well versed in Hindi…but never show it!! 😉
Thats a perfectly penned article… loved reading it.. i lived in Karnataka for few years and even people there never open there cards about languages 😜
I disagree with one sentence in the beginning. Hindi being our national language. The Constitution, however, did never declare Hindi as the national language; it rather accorded Hindi the status of official language along with English. Article 343 of the Constitution prescribes Hindi as written in Devanagari script as the official language of the government along with English.
Well said!
I am staying in south for almost 15+ years. Staying is metros is not a problem but living UK n smaller cities you do feel the heat. Hindi is not the national language though.
Stalin Son Uday learned Hindi from CBSE school but Tee Moo Kaa still don’t want people to learn Hindia. If given a chance students and people will learn but DMK will never allow.
I have heard this before about Chennai. This is a very interesting article.
i really liked the article but Hindi is not the national language. And knowing Hindi is good and I know it and I know you know it too dear.
This is a very informative post. I remember when I visited Chennai some 20 years back, we could not communicate easily as we were in Salem and Yercaud for a few days. Tamilians prefer to speak their own native language and that’s good also.
I found this so relatable. I did my primary schooling in Tamilnadu and I was literally just one student who wanted Hindi as a second and third language.
Oh…wow…where did you do, Leha? You must be knowing Tamil too then… 🙂
Yes I am South Indian 🙂 I can understand but can’t really speak Tamil. Family can.
Hahaha…I can totally relate to this based on my trips to Chennai and other parts of Tamil Nadu. I know a lot of people who can understand and talk in Hindi, but again as you told, it’s only a handful of people.
Being in Hyderabad, the Urdu influence makes it different from other south Indian cities. Loved reading this. Whether you know Hindi or not, I’d say Yes! Hindi arenge 😉
Thanks Atul! Bangalore is different too where we dont know which language to talk when we see anybody! 😉 😉
Very well written post…I can relate to this at many points.
Interesting and well written
First of all, Hindi is not India’s national language. The makers of our constitution were too smart to make that sort of a mistake. Secondly, it’s good to have a national lingua franca. But the problem in India is that the Hindi speakers want to impose their culture and eating habits and religion along with the language upon other people. Impositions of cultures won’t work. Thirdly, I know a lot of Tamils who speak Hindi fluently. It shows that people don’t hate the language; they resist imposition of culture and its burdens.
Tamilians knowing Hindi and refusing to speak it, bring back quite a few memories (pleasant and some quite unpleasant) of when we had just moved to chennai in 1995. My dad was in fact, the Hindi Raj Bhasha adhikari ( or the Hindi language officer) for ONGC Chennai. He still learnt Tamil, and even though I studied there only for two years, I did manage to pick up a smattering of Tamil.
By the time the family moved out of Chennai in 2007, either the city had mellowed or we had adjusted well, I don’t think the language was a problem for the family, plus we lived in the predominantly cosmopolitan area of Adyar and Kalakshetra so that might also be the factor
That is very nice..my parents had a house in Adayar too…:)
And even I don’t talk Hindi openly and regularly…:) 🙂 even though I know it decently well..
I often wondered about the presence of HIndi in the southern parts of India. Thank you for this post!
Hahaha, now I feel like a complete fool. Oh God, I can’t even remember how many times we have had foolish conversations in Hindi in front of someone thinking that they might not be knowing Hindi because they speak only in Tamil. I can’t stop laughing right now. Now, if you ask me, I am sure you definitely know Hindi 🙂
In my opinion whether you know Hindi or not you should know your own mother tongue. Most people in India can speak and understand Hindi. I think you know Hindi as well. Very interesting article.
Nice post, amma! it is well written and easy to follow as always. I loved it.
Well English connects us better. I am sure its the same when they travel up north
True
Hindi isn’t our national language, AFAIK. It’s one of the languages used by the GoI for official use. Enjoyed the way you’ve written about this minute observation. Being Bengali, learning to speak Hindi well has been an uphill task for me!
I think one should know the language where you stay/work other than your mother-tongue. It’s helpful and assimilating if you do so. It will make your own life easy.
ok, so i remember visiting Tamil nadu and having difficulty is ordering food from a hotel
Its good that they speak their local language until people who visit the place come and find it impossible to direct the taxi to where they want to go.
I went to Tamil Nadu , We try speaking Hindi as we don’t know Tamil. Its very difficult to make understand Hindi there but restro people know hindi very well.
Love love love this post. I remember my cousin and I used to speak only in Hindi in front of our cousin from the US until mom told us that he could understand everything we were saying *major face palm* 😀 😀
Interesting post. I come across people from all over the country in my workplace and everybody makes an effort to keep things inclusive and speak in common languages. Having pride for our mother tongue is very important and so is preserving it, we should also practice inclusivity in my opinion.
I lived in Hyderabad for 7 years until recently and I still can’t figure why people wouldn’t like to speak Hindi when they know it and it’s a national language but know English far better than Hindi.
I remember visiting Tamil Nadu and Tamilians prefer to speak their own native language. In South everywhere we faced this . I guess you understand hindi
Hindi is one of my favourite language and I love to speak, read and write.
It is actually interesting to note this : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_language#India India actually has no national language :). I had read up this information long ago.
Yes! 🙂
Language is a means of communication and when there are not many people who know the language, it will not be popular. Regional languages are the language of communication in their regions. The region of Hindi is bigger than others and hence more people speak it. I remember my trip to southern states over the years and I find English is better understood and spoken in that part of the country.
That’s so true! None of my coworkers from Chennai ever uttered a word in Hindi 🙂 fun read
I spent ten years in Chennai and yes, even people who know Hindi refuse to speak it. There are North Indians galore and many of them speak impeccable Tamil. 😊 I must say I enjoyed my tenure there, and learnt my Tamil from arguing with auto drivers who would charge the earth in those days.
Spending so many years in South I am aware the mix of languages. Every language has its beauty and each one has to respect it. Knowing few words for communicating is always a good idea to bridge the bond between people. Many people don’t speak much of the other language as they doubt themselves with wrong diction and grammar, that inhibition needs to break.
I have actually experienced this in Tamil Nadu. Its relevant for both Hindi and English, the people might understand but they don’t show they know. I had a tough time when I had to travel alone for work once.
Have experienced this in Chennai and this is not just limited to Hindi, not many would be willing to talk in English / Telugu even if you find people with maybe a Hyderabad based actors picture in their auto for example, one time around I asked a autowala who hesitantly after dropping me and my grandfather said if they spoke in language we understand, it would reduce the bargaining margins and they might lose money is one factor they seem uninterested and hindi is something they hate because they feel Tamil is the only official language of the state again some political influence here..
This is so good and useful post
Such an important post. Most of us assume a lot about the South Indian community.
I oftenxwonderedxwhy do they notcspeak Hindi and your article cleared it up
Interesting and quite relatable article. Most of the southern Indians know Hindi very well but they never attempt to speak. I know you are well versed in Hindi.
Bang on! 🙂