Sylhetis

The Sylheti () or Sylhetis are an Indo-Aryan ethnocultural group,Shahela Hamid (2011). Language Use and Identity: The Sylheti Bangladeshis in Leeds. pp.Preface. Verlag Peter Lang. Retrieved on 4 December 2020. that are associated with the Sylhet region (Sylhet Division of Bangladesh and the Karimganj district of south Assam, India). There are strong diasporic communities in Barak Valley of Assam, India,Glanville Price (2000). Encyclopedia of the Languages of Europe. pp. 91–92. North Tripura, Shillong, Meghalaya, and Hojai, Central Assam. Outside South Asia, there are significant numbers in the United Kingdom, the United States,Nazli Kibria (2011). Muslims in Motion. pp. 58–61. Rutgers University Press.Sook Wilkinson (2015). Asian Americans in Michigan. pp. 166–167. Wayne State University Press. and Canada.Harald Bauder (2012). Immigration and Settlement Challenges, Experiences, and Opportunities. Canadian Scholars' Press Incorporated. p. 239.

They speak Sylheti, an eastern Indo-Aryan language that is considered a distinct language by many and a dialect of Bengali by some others."Along the linguistic continuum of eastern Indic languages, Sylheti occupies an ambiguous position, where it is considered a distinct language by many and also as a dialect of Bengali or Bangla by some others." Sylheti identity is associated primarily with its regional culture and language, developing alongside the cultural and ethnic Bengali identity.

Etymology The word Sylheti is derived from the ancient name Śrīhaṭṭiya, which takes its name from Śrīhaṭṭanātha, the tutelary deity of the Hindu Nātha dynasty who promoted the early settlement of Nāthas in the Surma and Barak valleys between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, founding the Śrīhaṭṭa janapada and establishing Śrīhaṭṭanātha idols across the region. The later Hindu monarchs of Sylhet continued to pay tribute to the deity as Hāṭkeśvara or Haṭṭanātha as evident from the Devipurana and copper-plate inscriptions.

History

Culture

Sylheti culture, while considered a subculture of Bengali culture,Ashfaque Hossain (2022). Colonial Globalization and Its Effects on South Asia, Eastern Bengal, Sylhet, and Assam, 1874–1971. Taylor & Francis. Chapter 4.Dick Geary, Nicholas Hewitt (2007). Diaspora(s): Movements and Cultures. Critical, Cultural and Communications Press. p. 168. is distinguished by its unique linguistic, historical, and regional characteristics.বিশ্ব সিলেট সম্মেলনের ভূমিকা: একটি পর্যালোচনা Prothom Alo (in Bengali). Ziauddin Ahmed. 26 May 2017. Retrieved on 10 November 2024.

The Sylheti language, which some consider as a dialect of Bengali,"Bengalis interviewed in the course of this study reported that the differences between Standard Bengali and Sylheti are relatively small...We have to consider though that these statements were made by people who originate from Sylhet and who speak both the local vernacular Sylheti and Standard Bengali." while many linguists consider it as a distinct language,"At the geographical extremes, Chittagonian, Sylheti, Mal Paharia, and Rohingya are so unintelligible to speakers of other dialects that they are almost universally considered by linguists to be separate languages on their own." is central to Sylheti identity. Its unique phonetic qualities and vocabulary often make it unintelligible to standard Bengali speakers, which contributes to a sense of separateness among Sylhetis.Hanne-Ruth Thompson (2007). Part 2: "Bangladesh" in Andrew Simpson (ed.) Language and National Identity in Asia. OUP Oxford. p.50.Harald Bauder (2012). Immigration and Settlement: Challenges, Experiences, and Opportunities. Canadian Scholars' Press Incorporated. p. 239. In addition, Sylhetis have a strong regional identity that was strengthened by the historical shifts of the Sylhet region between Assam and Bengal during British rule.Ali Riaz (2014). Part 8: "Being Bengali abroad: identity politics among the Bengali community in Britain" in Mridula Nath Chakraborty Being Bengali: At Home and in the World. Taylor & Francis. These transitions were pivotal in developing a distinct Sylheti identity, due to the region’s geographical isolation and its historical and cultural ties with Bengal. Many Sylhetis today continue to identify with both the broader Bengali and their distinct Sylheti ethnocultural identities.Sobha Satyanaf (2023). "12: Sociolinguistics of the Indo-European languages in South Asia." in Chiara Meluzzi, Martin J. Ball, Rajend Mesthrie The Routledge Handbook of Sociolinguistics Around the World. Taylor & Francis.Chris Phillipson, Nilufer Raihan Ahmed, Joanna Latimer (2003). Women in Transition: A Study of the Experiences of Bangladeshi Women Living in Tower Hamlets. Policy Press. pp.43-45.Adrian Blackledge (2001). Power relations and the social construction of 'literacy' and 'illiteracy'. in Marilyn Martin-Jones, Kathryn Jones Multilingual Literacies: Reading and Writing Different Worlds. John Benjamins Publishing Company. pp.66-68.

Sylheti folklore is unique to the region, it is influenced by Hindu, Sufi, Turco-Persian and native ideas. Chandra Kumar De of Mymensingh is known to be the first researcher of Sylheti folklore. Archives of old works are kept in Kendriya Muslim Sahitya Sangsad in Sylhet (also known as the Sylhet Central Muslim Literary Society) – the oldest literary organisation in Bengal and one of the oldest in the subcontinent.

Literature Sylheti Nagri

A distinct linguistic register emerged in the Sylhet region through the development of the Sylheti Nagri script. Though having similar features to the more prevalent Dobhashi literary register of Middle Bengali, the Sylheti Nagri script fostered a unique literary culture of the Sylhet region. Its distinction is marked with its simpler script which is related to the Kaithi script, and its phonology being deeply influenced by the Sylheti vernacular.Thibaut d'Hubert (2018). Jāmī in Regional Contexts: The Reception of ʿAbd al-Raḥmān Jāmī’s Works in the Islamicate World, ca. 9th/15th-14th/20th Century. pp.667-678. Brill. Its most renowned writer was Sadeq Ali whose Halatunnabi was famed as household item among rural Muslim communities. Manuscripts have been found of works such as Rag Namah by Fazil Nasim Muhammad, Shonabhaner Puthi by Abdul Karim, and the earliest known work Talib Huson (1549) by Gholam Huson. Late Nagri writers include Muhammad Haidar Chaudhuri who wrote Ahwal-i-Zamana in 1907 and Muhammad Abdul Latif who wrote Pohela Kitab o Doikhurar Rag in 1930. From around the middle of 20th century, Sylheti Nagri had faced near-extinction as most Sylheti Nagri printing presses fell out of use or were destroyed during the Bangladeshi Liberation War in 1971.David Kane (2021). Puthi-Pora. Blurb. p. 165. Recently there have been efforts in reviving the script, including from the British Bangladeshi diaspora, as the script is viewed as a unique cultural marker that distinguishes Sylhetis from Bengali identity.Various (2022). Routledge Revivals: Language, Education and Society Series. Taylor & Francis. p.44.

Bengali

It has been argued that the first Bengali translation of the Mahabharata was written by Sri Sanjay of Sylhet in the 17th century. The 18th-century Hattanather Panchali (Hattanath chronicles) written by Ganesh Ram Shiromani was a Bengali ballad of 36,000 lines which detail the early history of Sylhet though its authenticity is questionable. When Sylhet was under the rule of the Twipra Kingdom, medieval Sylheti writers using the Bengali script included the likes of Dwija Pashupati, the author of Chandravali – considered one of the earliest Sylheti works. Nasiruddin Haydar of Sylhet town wrote the Tawarikh-e-Jalali, the first Bengali biography of Shah Jalal. Gobind Gosai of Masulia wrote Nirbban Shongit, Gopinath Dutta wrote Dronporbbo, Dotto Bongshaboli and Nariporbbo and Nur Ali Khan of Syedpur wrote Marifoti Geet. Songwriters and poets such as Radharaman Dutta, Hason Raja and Shah Abdul Karim, significantly contributed to Bengali literature and their works remain popular across Bengal in present-times. Numerous Bengali writers emerged in Ita, such as Kobi Muzaffar Khan, Gauri Shankar Bhatta and Golok Chand Ghosh. Muslim literature was based upon historical affairs and biographies of prominent Islamic figures.

The first Sylheti to pursue journalism professionally was Nagendra Chandra Shyam, editor of Vabishat and Surma and a pioneer of Rabindra Sangeet in the Sylhet region. Other exponents of Rabindra Sangeet based in Shantiniketan of Sylheti origin include Chittaranjan Deb and Asoke Bijay Raha. In 2021, Shuvagoto Chowdhury was awarded the Bangla Academy Literary Award.

Other languages

Throughout the course of recorded history, Sylhetis have made significant, meaningful, and lasting contributions to the vast and complex corpus of Sanskrit literature, a classical language that had served Sylhetis as a critical medium for religious, philosophical, and scholarly discourse for millennia. These contributions span various periods and demonstrate the enduring intellectual and literary engagement of Sylheti scholars with Sanskritic traditions. During the 15th century, the Naiyayika philosopher Jagadish Tarkalankar emerged as a prominent literary figure in Sylhet, dedicating much of his scholarly life to the composition and compilation of several Sanskrit works. He authored numerous books that were comprehensive in nature and often divided into multiple volumes, indicating the depth and breadth of his scholarly pursuits. Among these works, perhaps the most renowned and influential was the Sanskrit textbook Shabdashaktiprakashika. A contemporary of Tarkalankar was Advaita Acharya (1434–1559) of Laur, a spiritual leader still revered today as a saint. He is best known as a formative figure in the Krishnaite Gaudiya Vaishnavism movement. Acharya contributed two notable works to the corpus of medieval Sanskrit literature: Yogavasishtha-Bhaishta, which explored profound spiritual and philosophical themes, and Geeta Bhaishya, an exegetical commentary on the revered Bhagavad Gita.

In the 16th century, the Sylheti physician Murari Gupta wrote the first Sanskrit biography of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, thereby contributing to both hagiographical literature and the devotional Bhakti movement that was sweeping across Bengal and beyond during this time. Another highly prolific scholar, Raghunath Shiromani, composed 40 distinct works in the Sanskrit language.

Some works written by Sylhetis have also been translated into other languages. For example, Ashraf Hussain's Manipurer Ladai was translated into English by Dinesh Chandra Sen and included in the Eastern Bengal Ballads.

Distribution Diaspora

Lord Cornwallis introduced the Permanent Settlement Act of Bengal in 1793 and it altered the social, political and economic landscape of the Sylhet region; socioeconomic ramification for former landlords was severe as the land changed hands. On juxtapose, colonial administration opened new windows of opportunities for young men, who sought employment merchant ship companies. Young men from Sylhet boarded ships primarily at Kolkata, Mumbai and Singapore. Many Sylheti people believed that seafaring was a historical and cultural inheritance due to a large proportion of Sylheti Muslims being descended from foreign traders, lascars and businessman from the Middle East and Central Asia who migrated to the Sylhet region before and after the Conquest of Sylhet. Kasa Miah, who was a Sylheti migrant, claimed this was a very encouraging factor for Sylhetis to travel to Calcutta aiming to eventually reach the United States and United Kingdom.

Barak Valley