Socio-economic Profiling of Indian Languages
J. D. Prabhakar
GITAM University, Hyderabad
Language is predominantly a social phenomenon. Understanding language and its function in society has always been an object of research in sociolinguistics. Besides communication being the main purpose of language, it is also a crucial tool in economic development in modern societies. It plays a vital role in wealth creation, a distinct disposition of human beings. This research attempts to establish the relationship between language and economy, as the use of language plays a significant role in economic activity. The present research report underlies the use of native languages for economic activity in the workplace and how they are conducive to creating wealth. The data was collected from five selected workplaces in Telangana State, India. The results show that education levels and class of the workforce have a significant association with the use of language in the workplace. The choice of language changes according to the class of the workforce. The study shows that 94 % of the workforce from the middle and lower classes use Indian languages such as Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Odia, etc., in their economic activities, whereas only 6% of the workforce use English, which is confined to higher level employees. The findings of the study confirm the vital role of Indian languages in economic activity and their contribution to India's economy. The study demonstrates that native languages contribute more to India's GDP than English.
ISBN 9783969392164. Edition Linguistics 141. 244 pp. 2024.
