A two-day conference on ‘India as One Linguistic Area: An Interdisciplinary Perspective’ began at the Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) here on Friday.
It has brought together distinguished administrators and eminent scholars for insightful discussions on language, linguistics, and its connections with biological science, sociology, anthropology, history, philosophy and more.
Union Minister of State for Education Sukanta Majumdar virtually inaugurated the conference. Sanjeev Sanyal, Member of the Economic Advisory Council of the Prime Minister, virtually attended the event and delivered the keynote address.
Nivedita Bhide, All India Vice-President of Vivekananda Rock Memorial and Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari, was the guest of honour, and Shailendra Mohan, Director, CIIL, presided over the programme. Pankaj Dwivedi, lecturer-cum-junior research Officer, CIIL, welcomed the guests.
Linguistic and Intellectual Heritage
In his inaugural address, Dr. Majumdar said Bharat is unique among the world’s ancient civilisations, having a rich heritage in various domains such as arts, music, dance, architecture, philosophy, and literature, whose profound legacy has significantly influenced the languages prevalent in these cultural spheres.
Emphasising on the traditional and cultural ethos of the country, he said that Bharat is a single cultural area with multifaceted, intricate tapestry woven from countless threads, each representing different aspects of life - spiritual, social, economic or political, even deeper layers of interconnectedness.
The Minister also said that despite the vast array of languages in which Indian literature is written, a profound unity binds these literary traditions together, creating a shared linguistic and intellectual heritage.
Sanjeev Sanyal, in his keynote address virtually delivered, emphasised India’s deep-rooted civilizational unity, transcending linguistic and regional diversity. He traced the concept of Bharata to the Rig Veda and highlighted how India evolved by uniting diverse traditions under a common cultural framework.
Referencing texts like the Mahabharata, Puranas, and Sangam literature, he argued that this integrative civilizational operating system still defines India.
Respecting the diversity
Nivedita Bhide appreciated the CIIL for organising the conference to bring together scholars from diverse fields. She stated that we communicate our thoughts, and thoughts come from the world view - how we view the world.
She opined that the outer appearance of languages may be different, but their inner core is the same, and so we mutually respect the diversity. She also mentioned the vision of oneness by Swami Vivekananda.
The CIIL Director Shailendra Mohan delivered his presidential remarks. The two-day conference features six academic sessions, 20 invited talks from various Central and State universities and research institutions across the nation.
A cultural event by the Toda community was also organised. Over the next two days, the eminent invitees of this conference will deliver their talks on their respective topics.
Published - April 11, 2025 07:37 pm IST
