Words have many things to notice about. Many great quotes on words have been made like, “Words can be forgiven but not forgotten”, and many more like this are worth noticing.
However the choice of words that is made during talks, speak volumes about the user’s regional, social, economic and educational conditions.
I have realised this correlation more often when I come across many such people, belonging to different regions and social strata.
Words Reflect your Present Times.
Covid pandemic has changed our lives in many ways. Knowingly, unknowingly many words associated with this pandemic has become part of our subconscious.
My niece was playing ‘Antyakshari’ ( a game of forming words that are linked end-wise by the same letter and is a very popular time-pass indoor game among the children of South Asia.), with her younger brothers and elders of the family.
Every participant has to speak a word which was to start with the last letter of the word, spoken previously by the another participant.
” ‘I’ for Isolation ward”, she replied back. I turned to her in surprise at such choice of word from her mouth! Soon realisation dawned upon me that how this Covid pandemic has added these medical terms in to common parlance. This word once again reminded me about how deep is the problem the whole humanity is into.
Another incident related to the choice of words by the children is, when I had been to one of my acquaintances where father of children was an officer in police. The children were playing thief-police game.
In this game, children on their respective turn, had to play the role of police officer, his driver, constable and thief.
I was not very far from their place of playing. Actually there was a splendid campus in which a thatched outhouse was built for the visitors to sit. I was just sitting in this outhouse and was flipping through the day’s newspaper.
one of the children who was playing the role of cop, spoke in stern loud voice, “bring out five hundred bucks and you will be spared.” And this was repeatedly being said to the child in role of thief, when my ears caught these words.
Surprised me, didn’t take time to figure out the source of such sentences in child’s mind. Thanks to the care taken of by the father police officer to his duty and his professional ethics! Child had well soaked the father’s legacy and the ambience he was into.
Words Indicate Past Times.
In India where we have colonial history, the legacy of English has touched every strata and hierarchy of society.
Presently and specially after year 1991, when India stepped in to era of economic reforms and got integrated with the world market, a good size of young population became skilled in English. Because, you couldn’t dispense with English if you are in search of job in private sector.
But there is also a lighter side to all this. A foreign language spreads by trickle down effect. And in this way, over the decades, many English words have permeated into the communication of people, who are living away from the big cities and Metros.
Such people being poorly informed about the proper pronunciation and usage of words, create strange situation. They just stuff the words in their sentences, force them to produce desired meaning by tone of their voice and by hand gestures. And interestingly, his audience gets it! Being proud of my fellow citizens, I appreciate this spirit of customization!😊
One such my friend was explaining an incident of fire, saying that the leather (he meant ‘skin’) of one family member was badly burnt.
Similarly, one Mr. X is an insurance agent. Whenever his insurance company launches a new policy, he has to find clients to purchase it. He explains his policy by saying, “Our company has lunched (he means ‘launched’) a new policy for…. .” He further continues, “…its silent (he meant ‘salient’) features include… .”
So this is how the use of words speak volumes about person’s personal, regional and historical background.
Since rural India is more or less a male dominated society, most of the government officials are male. And the popular word to address them is “Sir”. Gradually this word “Sir” found place even in the illiterate persons’ vocabulary. They used this word for the persons cutting across the gender.
One such reflection I found in the communication between my Mom and our house sweeper, who served us with great affinity till his last. He often nodded to my Mom’s suggestions by bowing his head in respect, and saying “Ji Sir” ( He meant “yes Ma’am.”).
Thus, to our rural folks, rules of language hardly matters! Words can not disobey them! Before them words are helpless and have to produce meaning what these people have commanded them to do! After all, all this is matter of heart and feelings! Perhaps “Mem Sahab” word used in rural North India is the metamorphosed form of the English word “Madam”. You see even “Madam” couldn’t deny to become “Mem Sahab”!😊