Indian languages I (Sanskrit) B - (partim)

Teacher(s)

Vielle Christophe;

Language

French

Prerequisites

- For the level I.1 none.
- For the level I.2, the course LGLOR1671 (level I.1).

Main themes

An initiation into Sanskrit, the classic language of Brahmanical and Buddhist India and Indianised Asia.
Alternately with LGLOR1671, this course is given to two distinct groups of students according to their level.
For level I.1 (beginners), it deals systematically with writing, phonetics, morphology (principles of derivation and composition, declensions and conjugation) and syntax.'
For level I.2, the course goes further into the details of the grammar on the basis of the translation of extracts from classical texts.
 

Aims

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :
1	At the end of this course, which implies following the course LGLOR1671 also, the student will be capable, with help of the appropriate tools, of translating Sanskrit texts of elementary and average difficulty. In order to achieve this goal, he will have acquired the reading of syllabic writing, the principal grammatical structures, and a basic vocabulary.

The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.

Content

Sanskrit is the classical language of the literary, religious and scholarly traditions of Brahmanical and Buddhist India and Indianised Asia.
Level 1.1.: After a brief historical introduction (Indo-European origin and Pâninian codification of Sanskrit), the course treats devanâgarî syllabic writing, phonetics (notably the rules for euphonic combination or sandhi), the morphology of nouns (declensions) and of verbs (conjugations) as well as a basic vocabulary explained according to the principles of derivation and composition, and the peculiar syntaxic features. Each grammatical notion is illustrated by example sentences drawn from the literary tradition which are used as progressive  translation exercises.'
Level 1.2.: the course consists in the commented reading of a classical narrative or epic text (for example an extract from the Mahâbhârata), which allows to go further into the grammatical study of the language.
 

Teaching methods

At the level I.1, the lectures rely on a collection of example sentences drawn from the literary tradition and on a reference grammar that the students are trained to use.
At the level I.2., the lectures are based on classical texts, a copy of the edition of which is provided to the students who are asked to prepare the translation using dictionaries and other standard working tools.
 

Evaluation methods

At the end of this course, which implies following the course LGLOR1671 also, the student will be capable, with help of the appropriate tools, of translating Sanskrit texts of elementary and average difficulty. In order to achieve this goal, he will have acquired the reading of devanagari syllabic writing, the principal grammatical structures, and a basic vocabulary.In January: continuous evaluation of the first term (Q1) work of the student during the classes, for a value of 10% of the final note.
In June: continuous evaluation of second term (Q2) work of the student during the classes, for a value of 10% of the final note, plus an oral exam, for a value of 80% of the final note, consisting of reading, translation and grammatical analysis of example sentences or extracts from the lectured texts.
 

Other information

/

Online resources

The online working tools related to the course are provided to the students directly or deposited on the iCampus server.

Bibliography

 - J. Gonda, Manuel de grammaire élémentaire de la langue sanskrite, 3e éd., Paris : 1997.
 - P.-S. Filliozat, Le sanskrit, Paris (Que sais-je ? 1416), 1992.
- L. Renou, Grammaire sanskrite élémentaire, Paris, 1946.
 - A. Scharpé, Précis de grammaire du sanscrit classique, t. 1, Louvain, 1945.- N. Stchoupak, L. Nitti, & L. Renou, Dictionnaire sanskrit-français, Paris, 1932.
- G. Huet, Dictionnaire Héritage du Sanscrit <http://sanskrit.inria.fr/DICO/index.fr.html>

 

Faculty or entity

GLOR