(no subject)

[swatkat]

Greetings. Classes have not started yet, and New Delhi is miserably cold and windy, so I managed to fly back home for a few days (BSG S2 - here I come!). In the past week, I've been traipsing all over town with a bunch of rowdy boys and girls - hence the absence. Yesterday I was at the second-hand (third. fourth) books market at Dariaganj (near Chandi Chowk in Old Delhi), where we walked and walked and walked and jostled through the crowds and walked some more (I would show you photos, but S has them). Then we went to the market near the Jama Mosque for some delicious nahari and firni. Afterwards, at night, we had a bonfire (because it was Lohri. which neither of us celebrate - or know how to - because it's unique to that part of the country. but hey, when in Rome) and barbeque (with a clay flowerpot and bicycle spokes in absence of a proper grill). Is there anything I missed?

Comments

[roga.livejournal.com]

I don't know! In Judaism, I don't think birthdays are part of any special traditions, other than having a bar/bat mitzva at the age of 13/12, symbolic of becoming a man/woman. It makes sense that the tradition of birthdays came from the surrounding cultures, especially considering that most Jews celebrate them according to the Gregorian calender and not the Jewish calender.

(And ha, 'mabruk' os a common slang word here for congratulations, coming from Arabic.) And sorry for assuming you spoke Hindi - I actually didn't remember what you spoke, and wikipedia said the official languages of India were English and Hindi, so I just went with it.

[swatkat24.livejournal.com]

It makes sense that the tradition of birthdays came from the surrounding cultures, especially considering that most Jews celebrate them according to the Gregorian calender and not the Jewish calender.

Same here. In fact, I don't think I remember what my birthday is according to whichever of the many Indian calendars we follow. *hangs head in shame*

(And ha, 'mabruk' os a common slang word here for congratulations, coming from Arabic.)

Urdu - Hindi's twin sister who was separated at birth and brought up by mostly Muslim parents - also derives from Arabic. Not a slang, though, because you actually say 'Eid mubarak' on Eid.

And hey, it's cool, languages in India are endless and confusing. I do speak Hindi, actually. It *is* the 'official' language, which means it is used for all 'official' things by the central government alongside English. There's Hindi-language television and the cinema industry (Bollywood). Then there's the fact that most urban areas are multilingual, which means you can't avoid Hindi. I've always spoken Hindi (I wish I could read faster, though. or write it properly without forgetting what the words look like), and it's improved after living in a predominantly Hindi-speaking area for the past one and a half years. I still do lose words, and I think I'll never get the gender right, but at least I don't have the dreaded Accent! *g*