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September 14 marks a significant day in the history of India: Hindi was adopted as the nation's official language on this date. To encourage people to proudly read, speak, and write Hindi - especially children - Hindi Diwas is celebrated annually all across India. The growing trend towards English and neglect of Hindi is another reason for celebrating Hindi Diwas; keep reading to find out more about the history of this special day, how it's celebrated, and some interesting facts about the Hindi language itself!

History of Hindi Diwas

Hindi Diwas was first celebrated in 1949, just a year after India's independence from British rule. At the time, there was much debate over which language should be adopted as the official language of India. Hindi, spoken by the majority of people in northern India, was an obvious choice. However, many people in southern India spoke languages such as Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada, and there was concern that adopting Hindi as the sole official language would be unfair to them.

But the concern for selecting an official language remained unattended. After a long discussion, two languages (English and Hindi) were selected as the official languages of independent India on 14th September.

“Many people made huge efforts to make Hindi the official language like Beohar Rajendra Simha, Hazari Prasad Dwivedi and many more. On Beohar Rajendra Simha's 50th birthday- 14th September 1949, Hindi was adopted as an official language. Hindi Diwas is also celebrated to remember the efforts of Beohar Rajendra Simha in making Hindi an official language alongside English.”

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After much discussion, it was decided that Hindi would be the official language of India, with English remaining as an additional official language for use in government and education. This compromise satisfied everyone and is the reason why Hindi Diwas is celebrated on September 14th.

After independence, demand for a single language or national language also started. A common consensus was made by ministers from different states to accept Hindi as the national language. Along with the north, people from western parts of India understood Hindi and their native language. But northeastern and southern states of India considered it a foreign language; Due to this, it was not announced as the national language after India got its independence.

As per article 351, it is the responsibility of the central government to work towards promoting the Hindi language and declare it as the national language when the language is accepted across the nation.

How is Hindi Diwas Celebrated?

Hindi Diwas is celebrated all across India, with many schools and organisations holding events and competitions to encourage people to use Hindi in their daily lives. . Best schools in Baddi organise competitions such as Hindi essay writing, debates and quizzes to encourage students to use Hindi in day-to-day life. Government offices, nationalised banks, and public sector units (PSU) use Hindi in place of English for official work from 14th September to 21 September every year (Rajbhasha week), and during this week, several programmes are organised to raise awareness for the Hindi language. Teachers at International Public School in Baddi encourage their students to read, write and enquire about this language on this occasion.

Facts about the Hindi language

• It is believed that Hindi got its name from the Persian word hind or Sindh, which means land of the Indus river. Turks gave the name Hindi which means the language of the people who live near the Indus river.

•Hindi is inspired by the Sanskrit language, which is the ancient language of almost all Hindu and some Buddhist religious texts. It is written in the Devanagari script, and its standard form is Awadhi, Brij, Garhwali, Magahi, etc.

•Bihar was the first state that adopted Hindi as its sole state language in 1881.

•Hindi is the fourth largest speaking language in the world after English, Spanish and Mandarin. And it is spoken in countries such as Nepal, Bangladesh, Mauritius, Uganda, Guyana and South Africa.

•Many English words are taken from Hindi such as avatar, bungalow, karma, mantra, loot, thug, guru, jungle and yoga.

•Unlike English, Hindi does not have articles such as a/an and The. Also, every noun in Hindi has its own gender- Masculine and Feminine.

•Prem Sagar is the first book published in Hindi, written by Lallu Lal in 1805. This book is about the avatar of Lord Vishnu- Shri Krishna.

•Hindi is the third official language in Abu Dhabi (UAE) after Arabic and English.

•Hindi is the first language of almost 400 million in the world, especially in India. And if we consider the number of people whose second language is Hindi, the number of speakers will increase.

•Hindi is among the seven languages in the world that are used to make web addresses.

Key takeaway

Hindi is a feeling that many Indians who speak it have in common. Even though English is now seen as more elegant, and most modern civilisations enjoy boasting about their language skills, Hindi still has its appeal and importance. According to a recent survey, more and more students are taking competitive Hindi examinations, which indicates that Hindi is gradually regaining its lost position. Let us make a vow to devote our love and respect for the Hindi language on this Hindi Diwas.