US students get their first Hindi textbook

With Hindi steadily emerging as a 8220;strategically8221; important language, schools in Texas are taking the lead by introducing the first Hindi textbook for high school students in the United States. The 480-page Namaste Ji is a 8220;labour of love8221; that took Indian-origin teacher Arun Prakash almost eight years to develop.

For decades, high school students in America have been able to take classes in Latin, Spanish, French and even German. But as India becomes a bigger economic power, interest in its native tongue is growing and Texas state, with the fourth-largest Hindi-speaking population in the United States, is poised to become a leader in Hindi education.

The book covers the first two years of high school Hindi and is the equivalent of one year of college-level Hindi.