Hindi goes as well

[danohu]

What I didn't mention in the last post - because I didn't believe it - was that Sanskrit isn't the only course going. Cambridge is also closing the Hindi department. This is something like the fourth most widely-spoken language in the world, 400 million speakers (many more if you include urdu speakers, and speakers of hindi as a second language). How does nobody think it might be useful for somebody to be able to speak this language?

Comments

[oedipamaas49.livejournal.com]

sure, nice to (not quite) meet you.

I think SOAS has just got the last Hindi lecturer from Cambridge, Francesca Orsini.

The problem with sanskrit/hindi is really at the school level - children don't realise that these courses are even options, so they don't apply. Then there aren't enough students to justify teaching the course.

FWIW. Oxford seems to have a brilliant and thriving Sanskrit department, which will no doubt continue to embed itself as the centre of everything old and south asian.

[hulegu.livejournal.com]

I suppose it's the result of that old Thatherite canard, market-driven demand. The customers (sorry, students ... ), apparently, don't want it, so the universities stop stocking (sorry, offering ... ) it.

On a slightly related note, SOAS advertises all sorts of weird and wonderful languages through its Language Centre programme (essentially evening classes) but actually only holds classes for a handful.

The current government has made all sorts of promises regarding the expansion of language-training, but has yet to deliver on any of them.