My same interest has been shaped on the
one hand by my own inclinations and on the other by needs of the Department
since I have joined the College. My basic training in Urdu literature began
early during my graduation. As one of the papers of Urdu (Hons) course, History
of Urdu language, required me to read some basic book of Urdu literature
and thus motivated an urge to study Urdu Literature. I was thus fascinated by
the ways in which languages share their lexicons crossing the geographical
boundaries. The very fact that the different root-words travel all the way from
Persian, Arabic, English, Hindi, Latin, Greek, Sanskrit, Baltic, Slavic and
finally through Germanic route come to survive in Urdu encourage me to look
beyond to pursue my career in Urdu Languages.
I got the proper environment and academic atmosphere to spur and nurture
my intellectual appetite in University of Delhi where I did my MA, M.Phil, PhD
and two post doctoral research The courses and new ways of dealing with the
course-content and evaluation system all thrilled me into becoming an
academician. Various papers in MA, M.Phil, Ph. D, and post doctoral research in
University of Delhi, that shaped my
interest in Urdu language were ‘Research and Critical Study’, ‘North India as a linguistic Area’, Field-Methods
and ‘Grammatical theories and models’. I have been interested in the structure
of words and sentences from the early days of my training in Urdu. I worked on
several small projects and term-papers during my Masters and M.Phil in
University of Delhi. The main focus of my term-papers has always been to
examine the complex relationships of words to other words and to sentences at
large. The issue of relativity and its relationship with the other grammatical
alteration in the sentence, dative subject constructions and its effect on the
role of verbal inflection were some of the issues which I tried to solve in
Urdu (my mother tongue). While research scholar at University of Delhi, I was
selected through an interview to teach history of Urdu to the under graduates
doing B. A. at the school of open learning University of Delhi. Such an
experience to put into practice what I had learned was very exciting. I thus
taught ‘history of Urdu’, ‘Introduction to Urdu Literature’ to the same in the
same for several years. I have had the opportunity to undertaken several
field-works during MA, M.Phil and PhD research work in same University. I
worked on Urdu language during my M. A. In University of Delhi, had offered so
many projects to Prof. Irteza Karim of University of Delhi, to cross-examine
the findings of Prof. Irteza Karim who had claimed the existence of some kentum
elements in an Indo-Aryan language called Bangani. After an orientation program,
which was followed by an interview, I was selected to assist him in the field
for the abovementioned project. The language and its structural complexities
inspired me to take another field-oriented paper in my M. Phil and do extensive
field-work for few days on Bangani. I submitted a report on ‘The structure of
NP in Bangani’ for the course. My PhD work, as it turned out, needed several
field-works in order to have varied and intense lingual data. All these years I
have developed a passion to work with the native speakers of different
languages and with all necessary field techniques, I have always been able to
create a congenial environment for data collection. Later on, at the University
of Delhi, where I went to pursue my PhD, I had the privilege of doing some
advanced courses such as political and historical back ground of Urdu, syntax,
documentary/descriptive linguistics and psycholinguistics. My research was also
largely related to the examination of the complex nature of words and their
syntactic environments in which they are patterned to make up sentence and
finally the discourse. Though, I had to quit the program as my RA-ship in got
over after one year, I had the chance to learn the streaks
of professionalism in academics. Teaching Urdu as a modern Indian language
in the Department of Urdu, enabled me not only to use the techniques and tools
of linguistics in my teaching (such as sound-system, structure of the syllable,
words and sentences) but also helped me gain a first hand insight into the
problems of syntactic constructions such as conjunct verb construction, infinitives
and the small clause-construction in Urdu, seen as a modern Indian
language from the perspective of the learner. I submitted my PhD in the Dept of
Urdu University of Delhi, and the thesis of Ph. D &M. Phil Dissertation and
other collection of Articles has been under published by reputed publications
New Delhi. I am very happy to report that Prof. Irteza Karim, Head, Department
of Urdu has written the foreword for the book. He accepted my request to do
this as he had read the draft of my same scripts.
I have examined eight different
varieties of Urdu-Persian, besides providing an account of nine major languages
of India to show how the phenomenon of ‘Grammatical Agreement’ works in these
languages. My training as a field-Urdu helped me to collect and collate the
data of eight varieties of Urdu-Persian. The incessant drive to try to find a
unified theory for the Urdu languages phenomenon by comparing and cross
examining the structure of different languages that I learned at various stages
of either teaching or learning language typology, helped me to provide a
better analysis and examination of the function of agreement phenomenon
in typologically similar and genetically related varieties of Urdu-Hindi. I
have shown that the varieties of Urdu-Hindi can be classified in three
different TYPES on the basis of the agreement system that they display;
A. Languages that have only
Subject-verb agreement.
B. Languages that have both Subject-verb
& Object-verb agreement on an alternative basis (i.e. the verb agrees with
either the subject or the object in different syntactic environment).
C. Languages that have primarily
Subject-verb agreement, however, other actants (NPs) also find their marking on
the verb due to certain pragmatic value or requirements of the language e.g.
specificity marking, animacy factor, scale of honorificity and some patter gap
in the system of pronouns etc. I have tried to unify the agreement types (a)
& (c) into one system and have termed it as a single system of agreement and
have labelled the agreement type (b) as a dual system of agreement. The
motivation for the combining (a) & (c) into one comes from two main
factors; (i) there is no change of the syntactic environment of marking the
inflection of other actants (NPs) on the verb besides the subject (ii) the
languages do not show overt object agreement. With the help of such micro level
study of the phenomenon in the varieties of Urdu-Hindi, I have tried to provide
a solution to the problem of ‘agreement facts’ in complex predicates of
Urdu-Hindi at a macro level which otherwise remains unexplained.
Before joining the Department of Urdu,
Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi, I was selected in a reputed research
institution .However, I took up the job at University of Delhi, considering the
fact that I would be able to finish my post doctoral work within the stipulated
time-limit if I work in University of Delhi in general and the Department of
Urdu Kirori Mal College in particular has provided me a very strong and healthy
environment of growth and a good opportunity to further shape my research
interest. I have been teaching several papers of Urdu language &
literature since 2000. They include ‘history of Urdu, Urdu culture, Urdu
society Urdu prose & poetry, in the Department of Urdu School Open learning
DU). I have also helped the Department to carry out intensive field-works on
several assignments. In addition to my regular teaching assignments, I have also
in contributed to other regularly organized programs of the Department. I have
thus taught History in such programs to Indian students. Teaching these classes
always has helped me to practice the theories of most of the core areas of Urdu
literature. The feed back (the assignments) from the programs have enriched my
point of view of analyzing the corpus. It has also given me insights into the
area of interference and the typological similarity of the target and source
language, despite the fact that innovate in language teaching in addition to
the direct method of teaching mostly followed and used within teaching of Urdu
and English. I am working on the role of Urdu language in promotion to
nationalism which has been accepted for publication by a reputed publisher. The
book contains a precise and in-depth account of historical study of the Urdu
language. I am also having planned to work on a text-book–“Introduction to Urdu
Language for Foreign language learners” which will help the learners to
accelerate their process of learning the foreign language. The work has also
been already accepted for publication by a reputed publisher. The publisher has
also promised to bring out a foreign print. to keep the price of the book
affordable not only for the students in sub-continent also for all over the
world.
I have professional interest in various schools
of thoughts in Urdu literature. Area of my interest started emerging while
doing post graduation in Urdu from University of Delhi. I started reading more
about poetry & novel. Most of my study period was devoted towards this
direction. This area of interest kept continued in my M.Phil course with
new direction. I did a lot of work in the same field with progressive approach.
Ph.D work was slightly activated from this direction and adopted a new
specialization area in Romantic long verse (MATHNAVI) Attending seminars
/workshop in this field in the documentary and literary proof of my interest in
this profession. I also touched the clam cal field in Urdu literature. Ministry
of Tourism & culture had awarded me the junior fellowship to carry out the
research on “Urdu Hindi Folk Literature". My work on the same was well
appreciated by the Ministry peoples. On basis of that Indian Council of
Historical Research has awarded me Post Doctoral Fellowship for doing the
Research on "A Study of Hindu-Muslim Relations Around Partition as
reflected in Saadat Hasan Mantos Stories". In the last, I would like to
accept the challenging work for promoting the Urdu language from different
perspectives Teaching & Research have become extra forte of my life style.
You will be happy to read the opinion of my Guide Prof. Irteza Karim who is my
elder brother that “As Researcher Dr.Yahya Saba is well known not mainly in
Urdu also other subjects. He deeply committed to its aim of setting the highest
literary standards by recognizing good literature and also establishing a deep
culture bond among various languages and communities of India through his
work and contribution. Published work of high quality in different Urdu news
paper and journals which are significant contribution to knowledge. He is
actively engaged in research and teaching at University level since ten years.
He want to introduce innovative concepts to provide a multi-disciplinary
profile and to allow a cafeteria like approach including initiating new
research to cater to frontier development in the concerned subject to to
combine the practical requirements of research in the Indian academic context
with the need to observe high standards to provide knowledge in the frontier
areas of their disciplines, it has also been aimed to combine the goals and
parameters of global knowledge with pride in the Indian heritage and India’s
contribution in this context. The purpose of my research has been to provide a
broad common framework for exchange mobility and free dialogue across the
entire Indian research community. This research will provide spirits of
openness and continuous improvements create thoughts and actions in
the mind of the people of nation so that they live united. Guiding people
a path of life with righteousness as righteous man gives the strength of
character. Helping all religious leaders, philosophers, politicians,
historians, academicians and researchers of India is to give strength to the
people to combat the divisive forces. Guide Indians to develop an attitude to
appreciate different ideologies and transform enmity among individuals,
organizations’ and nations, into friendliness and harmony with the embedded
thought that nation is bigger than the individual in the minds of the leaders
and people. people to work with perseverance to transform the country into a
peaceful and prosperous nation, a large scale attempt on our part to contribute
to harmony in society and will help us always to maintain harmony in world, his
research will convert our beloved country into a love garden from which whole
world will take a holy lesson of love and peace which is the main sources of
national integration and reconstruction” moreover examine closely my
research, work and contribution in Urdu literature, through my bio-data
and autobiographical account which attached with this application.
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