12/21/2017 Apabhraṃśa - Wikipedia

Apabhraṃśa
Apabhraṃśa (Sanskrit: अप ंश, IPA:  [əpəbʱrəm'ʃə], Prakrit: Avahansa) is a
term used by vyākaraṇin (grammarians) since Patañjali to refer to the dialects
prevalent in the Ganges (east and west) before the rise of the modern
languages. In Indology, it is used as an umbrella term for the dialects forming
the transition[1] between the late Middle and the early Modern Indo-Aryan
languages, spanning the period between the 6th and 13th centuries CE.
However, these dialects are conventionally included in the Middle Indo-Aryan
period.[2]:p.42 Apabhraṃśa in Sanskrit literally means "corrupt" or "non-
grammatical language", that which deviates from the norm of Sanskrit
grammar.

Apabhraṃśa literature is a valuable source for the history of North India for
the period spanning the 12th to 16th centuries.[3]

Contents
Overview
Writers & Poets
See also
Notes
References
External links

Overview

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The term Prakrit, which includes Pali, is also used as a cover term for the
vernaculars of North India that were spoken perhaps as late as the 4th to 8th
centuries, but some scholars use the term for the entire Middle Indo-Aryan
period. Middle Indo-Aryan languages gradually transformed into Apabhraṃśa
dialects, which were used until about the 13th century. The Apabhraṃśas later
evolved into Modern Indo-Aryan languages. The boundaries of these periods
are somewhat hazy, not strictly chronological. Modern North Indian languages
are often considered to have begun to develop a distinct identity around the
11th century - while Apabhraṃśas were still in use - and became fully distinct
by the end of the 12th century.

A significant amount of Apabhraṃśa literature has been found in Jain

libraries. While Amir Khusrow and Kabir were writing in a language quite
similar to modern Hindi, many poets, especially in regions that were still ruled
by Hindu kings, continued to write in Apabhraṃśa. These authors include
Saraha, Tilopa and Kanha of Kamarupa; Devasena of Dhar (9th century CE);
Pushpadanta of Manyakheta (9th century CE); Dhanapal; Muni Ramsimha;
Hemachandra of Patan; and Raighu of Gwalior (15th century CE).

An early example of the use of Apabhraṃśa is the Vikramorvashiyam of

Kālidāsa, when Pururavas asks the animals in the forest about his beloved who
had disappeared. Compositions in Apabhramsha continued until Vikram
Samvat 1700, when Bhagavatidasa wrote Migankaleha Chariu.[3]

The only known example of an Apabhramsa work by a Muslim is the Sandesh

Rasak of Abdur Rahman of Multan, possibly written around Circa 1000 A.D.

Writers & Poets
Below is the list of some of the eminent Writers & poets of Apabhraṃśa
literature:

Mahakavi Swyambhudev (8th century CE)

Ritthanemichariu
Pauma-Chariu[4]
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Mahakavi Pushpadant (10th century)

Mahapuran [5]
Naykumarchariu
Jasaharchariu

Hemachandra (12th Century)

Abdul Rehman (13th Century) - Multani poet who penned an epic romance in
Apabhraṃśa.[6]

See also
Hindavi
History of Hindustani

Notes
1. Shapiro, Michael C. (2003), "Hindi", in Cardona, George; Jain, Dhanesh,
The Indo-Aryan Languages (https://books.google.com/books?id=jPR2Olb
TbdkC&pg=PA250&dq=indo-aryan&sig=cUNurxJKkTLfKf8uiMd7pWX2RC
0), Routledge, ISBN 978-0-415-77294-5
2. Shastri, Dr Devendra Kumar (1996). Apabhramsha Bhasha Sahitya Ki
Shodh Pravritiyan. New Delhi: Bhartiya Jnanpith. Bhartiya Jnanpith
Bhartiya Jnanpith. p. 388.
3. Apabhramsha Sahitya, Devendra Kumar Jain, Mahavir Jain Vidyalay
Suvarna Mahotsav Granth, 2003.
4. Pauma-Chariu (Part-I) (http://www.jnanpith.net/book/pauma-chariu-part-i)
5. Jain granths (http://www.jaingranths.com/Manuscript.asp?id=91&i=1)
6. Flood, Finbarr Barry (2009). Objects of Translation: Material Culture and
Medieval "Hindu-Muslim" Encounter (https://books.google.com/books?id=
OLNE_li8C10C&pg=PA155&dq=Multan+sun+temple+destroyed&hl=en&s
a=X&ved=0ahUKEwi11peBueTSAhWK7IMKHXo5CWIQ6AEIITAB#v=one
page&q=Multan&f=false). Princeton University Press.
ISBN 9780691125947.

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References
Shapiro, Michael C. Hindi. Facts about the world's languages: An
encyclopedia of the world's major languages, past and present. Ed. Jane
Garry, and Carl Rubino: New England Publishing Associates, 2001.

External links
Dr. Devendra Kumar Shastri (http://www.jainworld.com/society/speaksch/d
ksastri.htm)
Hindi: The language of songs (http://www.cs.colostate.edu/~malaiya/hindii
nt.html)
Halder, Shashwati (2012). "Apabhrangsha" (http://en.banglapedia.org/inde
x.php?title=Apabhrangsha). In Islam, Sirajul; Jamal, Ahmed A.
Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic
Society of Bangladesh.

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