Mother Tongue – A Lap Language
- navakallc
- Mar 3, 2024
- 4 min read
I never realized the power of my mother tongue until I was 10. I grew up listening to the Marathi and Hindi languages, as they were the only things I ever heard until I went to school. Marathi was the language I said my first word in, the language in which I learned to communicate with my parents, the way they interacted with me when I was a small girl. It’s the only language I speak to my relatives in. It gave me a sort of connection to other people who spoke the same language because we started on the same wavelength.
My entire childhood comprised of reading various level of Marathi children’s books. At first, one of my earliest memories are my mom reading me a Marathi book series I loved, showing me the pictures and enunciating the words slowly so I can try to copy her. There are so many videos of me trying to say the words, smiling proudly every time I got it right. At night, my parents would sing to me Marathi rhymes, songs about the moon (Chandoba bhaglas ka), and playing in the summer (Mamachya gavala jauya). Soon, when I started going to school, I also learned English, adding to my collection of languages. As I grew up, my babbling turned into stories, ones I would tell my parents all day, every day, making them up as I go. My mother tongue gave me the power to be talkative, a way to express myself thoroughly and without hesitation, enabling me to get my point across.
Marathi is also special because it's the only language I speak to my grandmother in. She’s lived in Maharashtra all her life and is the most comfortable in that language. I wouldn’t have the same connection with her as I do now if I didn’t speak Marathi. Even now, as we live so far apart, my grandparents and I catch up with each other in Marathi. A language is so much more than just a mode of communication. It’s the anecdotes you use, the way you tease each other for not knowing a word in Marathi, or the various levels of mild curse words that make it fun and wholesome.
I’ve lived in the USA for 5 years now, being half of the amount of time I lived in India. When I first came here, I started talking to everyone in English, because that’s the language of the country. Though I never stopped talking to my parents in Marathi because of the move. It’s been instilled in me since I was 3 that knowing our language has it’s benefits. It was what I had grown up doing. Though what I never realized was the curiosity people had about the fact that I can speak two other languages fluently. For the first time, I realized it was a gift to be multi-lingual, to be able to connect with more people just because you can speak a regional language more people understand in the area.
Hence, my parents and I found out about the multi-literacy test. If you are fluent in any other languages besides English, you can take a test to prove it. They test you on your ability to read, write, speak, and listen in the target language, for me, Marathi. And so, I started prepping for it. I read Marathi books, wrote about my experiences of the day, sort of like a Marathi journal, and spoke about fictional situations with my mom. For me, it was like any ordinary day, as it’s usually something I do every day, but it felt nice to receive credit for knowing my language. I have never learned Marathi as a subject in school. It is something my parents instilled in me and is a fruit of my commitment, which is why I was so proud to be able to do the test on my own accord. The test is usually 3 hours, which accommodates all 4 sections. You can either choose to write by hand or use a Marathi keyboard, but writing on paper is easier for me, and so I chose to do that.
Going in, I was determined to get full marks, to make my mother tongue proud as it had stood by me for all these years. You can receive a maximum of 4 credits, one for each of the sections listed. If you do get it, then you are applicable for the Washington certificate of multi-literacy as long as you follow through with English classes for all 4 years of high school.
I did well on the test, receiving all four credits, which then also inspired me to take a similar test for Hindi. I am truly grateful for knowing my regional and national language. For me, these are not just tests, but a way to still be connected to my home country by knowing the language to be able to communicate with them. I’m really proud and grateful that my parents ensured I never lost touch with it and raised me to love every aspect of my culture. - Navaka