Paper short abstract:

This study hypothesizes the situation of language contact which was created due to the social processes of migration of both Aryan, and non-Aryan speech communities, and facilitated the development of Proto-Bengali involving the processes of pidginization and creolization.

Paper long abstract:

The aim of this study is to hypothesize the situation of language contact with regard to the migration which instigated the development of Proto-Bengali with the assumption that the Indic languages have evolved from a common ancestral language, i.e. Old Indo-Aryan language following a route of development as shown below.

Old Indo-Aryan>prakrit>apabhramsha>Modern Indic languages

Hence, Indic languages have been a decreolized variety developed from the Apabhramshaes which shows adherence to the post-creole continuum presently existing in South-Asia. They had developed in stages from the old Indo-Aryan involving the linguistic processes like pidginization and creolization in a situation of language contact which was created due to the contact between the Indo-Aryan vernaculars and the indigenous languages having been supplemented with the social processes of migration, Aryanization, colonization and religious conversion.

Against the above-mentioned backdrop on the development of Indic languages, this paper will focus on the issue of situation of language contact which was created due to the migration of both Aryan and non-Aryan (including Austric, Dravida, and Tibetan) speech communities. The migration of various speech communities would happen due to the colonization of Bengal as well as spread of both Aryan religions, i.e. Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, and Islam in Bengal. Given these fact of migration in South Asia, this study will investigate how the immigration of non-Indo-Aryan speaking immigrants required for administrative and military establishment by different colonial powers like Aryan and Tibetan, and joined as disciples in the monasteries, e.g. Nalanda facilitated the creation of situation of language contact in the way to development of Proto-Bengali from the Gaudiya creole Indo-Aryan.