Sanskrit

Old Indo-Aryan language, the classical literary language of the Hindus of India. Vedic Sanskrit, based on a dialect of northwestern India, dates from as early as 1800 BC and appears in the text of the Rigveda; it was described and standardized in the important grammar book by Panini, dating from about the 5th century BC. Literary activity in so-called Classical Sanskrit, which is close to but not identical with the language described by Panini, flourished from c. 500 BC to AD 1000 and continued even into modern times. Currently, a form of Sanskrit is used not only as a learned medium of communication among Hindu scholars but also as a language for some original writing. The language, written in the Devanagari script is, in fact, undergoing something of a revival, though it is neither a widespread nor a usual mother tongue. (Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.)

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