A Scholar Remembered

Sir William Jones,an 18th century philologist,was the first to translate the Manusmriti,the earliest work relating to Hindu religious and legal duties,into English,thus contributing to the British-India legal system. A few days ago,Seema Chopra,a freelance journalist,presented an overview of Jones’ contributions at a lecture organised by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA).

Chopra informed the audience how Jones had propagated the theory that Sanskrit bore a resemblance to classical Greek and Latin. “In the book,The Sanskrit Language (1786),he propounded the theory that all three languages had a common roots,and that indeed they may all be related to the Gothic and the Celtic languages,as well as to Persian,” she said. “Even 200 years later,Jones’ work is still an exceptional presentation of India’s glorious past for the present generation to read,” she added. The Kala Nidhi Division,IGNCA,has the entire collection of the first edition of Jones’ works.