Hindi - University of Houston
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Dr. Tiwari

Why do I Teach Hindi?

Bhavya Tiwari

As comparative literature scholar, I care about literary and linguistic traditions in the local as well as the global frameworks. For me, the world cannot exist in just one language. Hindi is one of the many languages spoken in the Indian subcontinent and beyond. Like many South Asian languages Hindi has a rich literary and cultural past that could be traced back to the 12th century.

I teach Hindi at the University of Houston because I love reading literature in Hindi and Urdu. As a native of Lucknow, India, I also want my students to recognize the artificial divide between Hindi and Urdu. Since no language training is complete without cultural immersion, my students in Hindi classes learn a lot about the politics of language in India.

Below you will read why some of my students are learning Hindi.

Congratulations!

Pranav Rao

Pranav Rao is the recipient of Boren Scholarship for Hindi in 2019

Pranav Rao is a sophomore, and he is minoring in India Studies. He is  fascinated with Indian culture and history, and has taken two semesters of Hindi with Dr. Tiwari along with her course "Indian Cinema: Bollywood and Beyond." This summer, he will be traveling to Madison and Jaipur in India where he will be participating in the Boren South Asian Flagship Languages Initiative. The South Asian Flagship Languages Initiative (SAFLI) offers opportunity to American students for intensive language study of less commonly taught languages such as Hindi or Urdu, and cultural immersion through domestic and overseas language programs. SAFLI students participate in a full-time domestic summer program at the University of Wisconsin. The program is funded through the Boren Scholarship. SAFLI students then participate a full-time overseas program, administered by American Councils for International Education. This takes place at the American Institute of Indian Studies in Jaipur (Hindi) or Urdu (Lucknow). Pranav hopes that after spending time in India he will become more fluent in Hindi. As a Political Science major, who has keen interests in subjects of national security and international studies, Pranav believes that India will play a bigger role in the international community in the coming decades. Pranav hopes that his participation in the Boren SAFLI program will shine a spotlight on India Studies as well as the Hindi language courses offered at UH.

Why I Study Hindi at UH?