Magahi
Folklore and Folk Tales
By-
Sheela Verma
The
language Magahi is the modern derivative of the word ‘Magadhi’ which is treated
as the Prakrit language giving rise to such other modern Indian languages as
Bengali, Assamese, and Oriya, in addition to the two other modern languages of
Bihar (and adjoining regions) namely, Maithili and Bhojpuri. Magahi and its
varieties are spoken in South Bihar, Jharkhand, and parts of Bengal, and
Orissa. Magadh as a region in India has been quite significant historically.
One of the best-known Magadh kings of the Indian subcontinent was Emperor
Ashoka (269-232 BC) who was largely responsible for starting the spread of
Buddhism in South Asia and Sri Lanka, and also for sending Buddhit missionaries
to various Greek successors of Alexander in Western Asia. This book is the
first of its kind in English and has attempted to discuss the various aspects
of the more modern treatment of the term folklore to refer to the everyday
culture and its so-called ‘little traditions’ as reflected to some extent in
its table of contents. It also includes some popular folk tales.
Sheela
Verma
is a Lecturer Emerita at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA. She has
also taught Hindi at University of Chicago, Chicago; University of Michigan,
Ann arbor; and University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. Her research
areas include pedagogical grammars of Hindi, linguistic structure of Magahi,
and Magahi folklore.
ISBN 978-81-7304-804-3 2008 170p.
Rs.425/ pounds 35
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