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South Asia in Vernacular Publications: Modern Indian-Language Collections in the British Museum and the India Office Library, London

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 March 2011

N. Gerald Barrier
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Extract

The discovery and use of vernacular sources is a critical task for South Asia specialists. Area centers have produced scholars who are dissatisfied with English books and records as the primary source for understanding South Asia. The development of vernacular materials, however, has not kept pace with the new interests and attainment of language skills. Although individuals have unearthed caches of vernacular documents, no systematic effort is being made to publicize existing collections or to locate additional ones.

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Note
Information
The Journal of Asian Studies , Volume 28 , Issue 4 , August 1969 , pp. 803 - 810
Copyright
Copyright © Association for Asian Studies, Inc. 1969

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References

1 India Office Library (IOL) to British Museum (BM), Sept. 13, 1877, India Correspondence (BM Archives). One source of information on publications was a list of pamphlets prepared by several provincial governments along the lines suggested by the Royal Asiatic Society. Discussion in GIP (Govt. of India Public Proceedings), Feb. 1867, 56A. The variety of material in the collections complicates labeling items as “tracts” or “books.” This essay follows the IOL practice of using the terms synonomously to refer to any nonserial, vernacular publication.

2 A Collection of Statutes Relating to India up to the End of 1887 (Calcutta, 1913), pp. 214–27Google Scholar; note by C. Bendall, Oct. 1887, India Correspondence (BM Archives).

3 The Legislative Acts of the Governor General of India in Council for 1867 (Calcutta, 1868), pp. 135–40Google Scholar. Also, correspondence in GIP, Jan. 1868, 42–49A.

4 Letters between BM and IOL, 1878, in India Correspondence (BM Archives); Records and Library Committee, 285 of 1884; Books and Publications, March 1884, 1–3A(IO Records).

5 Correspondence in the following IO Records: Books and Publications, Oct. 1885, 1–2A and Aug. 1888, 1–14A; Records and Library, 1538 of 1887.

6 A Collection of the Acts Passed by the Governor General of India in Council in the Year 1890 (Calcutta, 1890), pp. 153–56. The office of the Director of Public Instruction or the Registrar of Books generally handled the negotiations for books in each province.

7 See, for example, GI to Local Govts. and Agents, 137–1, Jan. 13, 1890, Books and Publications, Feb. 1890, 29–30A.

8 GI Home-Political Despatch to Sec. of State, 1773, Oct. 8, 1914, Register and Records, 3336 of 1914; note by F. W. Thomas, Nov. 17, 1914, same file (IO Records). Also, discussion in Minutes of the Trustees of the British Museum, 1914–1926, p. 27 (BM Archives).

9 Note by M. Seton, Nov. 13, 1914, and Records Despatch 1, Jan. 22, 1915, Register and Records, 3336 of 1914.

10 Also, noting in Register and Records, 3336 of 1914 and Keep-With.

11 August, 1967 totals. IOL statistics from Stanley C. Sutton, A Guide to the India Office Library (London, 1967), p. 17. Mr. J. H. Eisenegger and Mr. Peter Stocks kindly supplied the BM statistics.

12 Based on a personal tabulation of tracts, July of 1968. The number in each category probably will be different when the material is catalogued because several items fell into two or more language areas

13 Interviews, August of 1967, with Miss E. M. Dimes and Miss J. R. Watson, IOL.

14 Catalogue of the Library of the India Office, v. II: Hindi, Panjabi, Pushtu and Sindhi Books (London, 1902)Google Scholar; Bengali Books: Supplement. 1906–1920 (London, 1923)Google Scholar; Marathi and Gujarati Books (London, 1908).Google Scholar

15 C. J. Napier has prepared an inclusive guide to the post-1900 Hindi collection which is being revised for publication; a similar guide to Panjabi holdings by the late Dr. Ganesh Gaur should be ready for publication in 1970.

16 Some lists in the IOL are the following: Baroda (1867–1909); Bikaner (1910–1946); Gwalior (1921–1945); Hyderabad (1909–1943); Jammu and Kashmir (1909–1947). The BM lists for British India and the states are also complete, but lack notations.

17 Catalogue of Bengali Books (London, 1886)Google Scholar, Supplementary Catalogue, 1886–1910 (London, 1910), and Second Supplementary Catalogue, 1911–1934 (London, 1939)Google Scholar; Catalogue of Burmese Books (London, 1913)Google Scholar; Catalogue of Hindi, Panjabi, Sindhi and Pushtu Books (London, 1893)Google Scholar, Second Supplementary Catalogue (London, 1957Google Scholar; In Print); Panjabi Books: Supplementary Catalogue (London, 1961; In Print)Google Scholar; Catalogue of Hindustani Books (London, 1889)Google Scholar, Catalogue of the Kannada, Badaga and Kurg Books (London, 1910)Google Scholar; Catalogue of the Marathi and Gujarati Books (London, 1892)Google Scholar, Catalogue of Assamese and Oriya Books (London, 1890)Google Scholar; Catalogue of Tamil Books (London, 1909)Google Scholar, Catalogue of the Telegu Books (London, 1912).Google Scholar

18 Statistics and subject categories from Blumhardt catalogues, fn. 14.

19 The BM has approximately 150 tracts on Kayastha associations and 300 items on the Arya Samaj-Generalizations on the content of the collections are based on a survey of the catalogues and research in materials pertaining to the Punjab and the United Provinces. A full treatment of the tracts on one province is found in the author's The Punjab in Nineteenth-Century Tract Literature (Michigan State University Monograph Series, 1968).

20 These exemplify the cow material: songs for children on “mother cow” (Gomatechin Sangita Paden. Marathi. IOL. Thana, 1894)Google Scholar; proceedings of the Bombay Cow Protection Society (Mumbai Gorakshaka Mandali. Gujarati. IOL. Bombay, 1893); lectures on the cow (Bhajan Goraksha Upadesh Manjari. Hindi. IOL. Allahabad, 1892)Google Scholar. Background information and transliteration of titles are taken from the IOL and BM catalogues. Diacritical marks have been omitted.

21 The collections include these periodicals: Inanavardhaka (education and literature. Gujarati. IOL. Bombay, 1873–1897); Oudh Akjibar (society and politics. Urdu. BM. Lucknow, 1875–1884); Isha'at al-Sunnat (religion and current problems. Urdu. BM. Lahore, 1890–1904); Sathya Sam Varthani (Prardhana Samaj journal on religion and social reform, Telegu. BM. Rajahamundhri, 1891–1901); Sahitya Samhita (literature. Bengali. BM. Calcutta, 1900–1920?); Nagri Pracharini Patrika (Benares Devanagri Sabha journal. Hindi. BM. Benares, 1898–1934).

22 History examples: Bihar (Ali Muhammad, Tarikh-i-Subah Behar. Urdu. BM. Patna, 1880); a town in Punjab (Ghulam Nabi, Tarikh-i-Jhajhar. Urdu. BM. Meerut, 1866); princely state (Diwan Ramjas, Tawarikhi-i-Kapurthala. Urdu. BM, IOL. Amritsar, 1878); Telegu-speaking people (Vira Bhadra Rao, Andhrula Charitramu. Telegu. BM. 2d. ed.; Madras, 1910); Arora caste (Mohan Lai, Tawarikh Jati Arora Bans. Panjabi. IOL. Lahore, 1896). Examples of biography: famous Saraswat Brahmins (Ganesha Ramchandra, Sarasvata Ratnamala. Marathi. BM. Khanapur, 1910); Govardhana Rama Madhavarama, literary figure (Kanti Lai Chhaganlal Pandya, Sriyuta Govardhana. Gujarati. BM. Bombay, 1910); Oudh taluqdars (Kisori Lal, Tawarikh-i-Ta'attukdaran-i-Awadh. Urdu. BM. Lucknow, 1880); Nahar family of Azimganj (Avinas Chandra Das, Nahar Vamshavrittanta, Bengali. BM. Calcutta, 1895); Muhammad Abdul Mansur, Delhi theologian (Saiyid Maihdi Hasan, Ain al-Yaginy. Urdu. IOL. Delhi, 1873).

23 Blumhardt, , Marathi and Gujarati Books, pp. 116–17, 271–73.Google Scholar

24 The Club published proceedings and papers on the Vedas, the Congress, social problems, science and literature. The nine volumes in the BM are under the heading Hemanta Vyakhya Namala (Marathi. Bombay, 1880–92?). Other examples include lectures of the Khoja Social Progress Union (Kohja Sochiyal Progress Yuniyan. Marathi. BM. Bombay, 1897) and reports from Muslim religious bodies (Riport Jalsa Islamiyah. Urdu. BM. Ghazipur, 1881).

25 Irrigation: Sharh-i-Ab Pashi (Urdu. IOL. Delhi, 1867)Google Scholar; Krishikarmavidya (Marathi. IOL. Bombay, 1878)Google Scholar; Vyavasaya Bodhini (Tamil. BM. Madras, 1908)Google Scholar. Law: Usal-i-Dharma Shastra (Urdu. IOL. 2 pts; Lucknow, 1873); Ramachandra Moresvara Gupte Karadkar, Mahamadi Sastra (Marathi. IOL. Ahmadnagar, 1867).

26 Local governments often had Indian officials prepare district surveys. Although these were integrated into gazetteers, the size of the vernacular versions (up to 600 pages) suggests that they contain additional data. An example of a travelogue is Amin Chand's memoir of a trip through Bengal, West and Central India, 1850–52 (Sajar-Namah. Urdu. BM. 2nd ed.; Lahore, 1859).

27 The IOL, for example, has a substantial collection on the MAO College at Aligarh and the Calcutta Madrasa. Individual tracts on education include Sivachandra Sarkar's general survey of western education and its effect on Indians (Pallipathika. Bengali. IOL. Calcutta, 1872) and papers on the proposed organization of a college for Vajur Vediya Brahmins (Narahan Vithoba Vaidya Purandare, Sankani Vrittipatra. Marathi. IOL. Bombay, 1880).

28 Illustrated by Thakkur Narayan Visanji's political novel, Aj Kalno Sudharo Ke Ramaniya Bhayankarata (Gujarati. BM. Bombay, 1911) and the biographical sketches of politicians in Deviprasanna Ray Chaudhuri, Pranava (Bengali. BM. Calcutta, 1914). Several communist tracts deal with labor or kisan organizations such as Kisan Sreni Sajag Ho (Hindi. BM. n.p., n.d.).

29 On the Arya Samaj and Hinduism, Arya Samaj Ki Nak. Men Nakel (Hindi. BM. n.p., n.d.) and Puranik Pop Par Vedik. Top Yani Sanatan Dharm Ki Maul (Urdu. BM. Lahore, n.d.). On Islam, Imam Hasan Aur Husain Ki Tarikya (Urdu. BM. Lahore, n.d.) and Quadian Main Panjtan Pak. (Panjabi. BM. n.p., n.d.). Tracts on Sikh revivalism and “martyrdom” include Sikh Mazhab Aur Kes (Urdu. BM. n.p., n.d.), Hukamnama Patshahi (Panjabi. BM, IOL. n.p., n.d.) and Shahidi Yatra (Panjabi. BM. n.p., n.d.).