Presenter
Palladino Martina - Ghent University, Universiteit Gent (UGent), Gent, BelgiumPanel
26 – Printing to Instruct and Instructing to Print in Early Modern and Colonial South AsiaAbstract
In 1861, K. C. Kama introduced a new system of Zoroastrian religious instruction in Bombay, revolutionising the teaching of Avestan and Pahlavi among the Parsi community. The sacred languages of Zoroastrianism, previously the exclusive domain of the priestly class, entered the curricula at the University of Bombay. Following this, Parsi scholars such as S. D. Bharucha or K. A. Kanga began to publish various grammars of Avestan (Zend), Pahlavi and Pazand, as well as dictionaries and other teaching tools to support the students.
This paper examines the publication of grammars, manuals, and dictionaries designed to rejuvenate language teaching for students, and explores their influence on the cultural milieu of the Parsi community, particularly in Bombay. Additionally, it considers the formal aspects of these manuals, such as the choice of printing them in English or Gujarati, and their impact on the Parsi education system.
