Exploring the legacy of colonial language policies: the case of Mauritian Bhojpuri

This paper explores the legacy of key language policy decisions taken during the tenure of one of the earliest Governors of the British Colony of Mauritius, Sir James Macaulay Higginson (1851–1857). Tasked with overseeing the day-to-day running of an island where the majority of the population was of Indian origin, he is recognised for his efforts to establish the first schools targeted at children of Indian descent. Focusing specifically on his decision to select an Indian vernacular language as a medium of instruction in these schools, this paper looks at a series of recommendations put forward by Higginson culminating, among others, in the labelling of Mauritian Bhojpuri (MB) as ‘Hindoo dialect’ and eventually as ‘Hindustani’ or ‘Hindi’. It uses his correspondence with various officers from the Colonial Office as well as the different Ordinances put forward by him as its primary focal point. Paying particular attention to the period of January 1854 to October 1857, it examines the circumstances leading to the misnaming of MB and looks at the consequences of this decision in colonial Mauritius.