6 Indian linguistic culture and the genesis of language policy in the subcontinent

We live in an age where increasing attention is paid to what is known as ‘multiethnic diversity’, and part of this attention is focused on issues of language. Nowadays it is not uncommon in discussions about language policy ¹ for someone eventually to ask ‘Why does there have to be a language policy? Why do we have to have a standard language? Why can’t people just do what they like with language?’ My reply is that whether or not there are explicit language policies, there will always be implicit policies, that is, there are cultural assumptions about language, about correctness, about the ‘best’ way to talk or write, and even if there is no explicit policy, these assumptions will constitute the implicit policy. That is, there is no such thing as no language policy—there is always a policy, whether or not it is explicit. Abolishing the explicit rules about language, or declaring ‘standard’ languages to be nothing but a ‘myth’ or an ideology does not make the cultural assumptions underlying these concepts automatically disappear.