Hapankaali t1_irtewmd wrote
Reply to comment by Smart_Ass_Dave in TIL according to the Census of India of 2001, India has 122 major languages and 1599 other languages by Sistermateriial
The Mughal Empire lasted about 2 centuries, so not that short-lived.
Anyway, that the ruling class doesn't speak the language(s) of the people they are ruling was the norm until quite recently - colonialism didn't invent this. The Qing court used Manchu - a now practically extinct language - until the 20th Century.
Smart_Ass_Dave t1_irtg2md wrote
My point about the Mughals is that while the empire itself existed for hundreds of years, it did not cover the whole of the continent for hundreds of years. Your points about China is a good one though.
I do feel like you've missed my overall point however, so I'll explain it more clearly. India was not a homogenous entity when Europeans arrived there. It was a bunch of different people all slammed together by foreign empires. The Mughals were as foreign to a Mysorean or Bengali as the British were. We as westerners (meaning your average Redditor, I don't know you specifically) would do well to imagine them as complexly as they deserve.
Shturm-7-0 t1_is3u47u wrote
Manchu was almost extinct by the late 19th century, even by the late 18th century a big chunk of Manchus couldn't speak Manchu.
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