Page:The history of the Bengali language (1920).pdf/136

114 (a)	the final simple consonants are not pronounced হসন্ত, (b)	রাজা has been reduced to রজা and the Apabhraṁśa form of কাংস্য is কঁসা, and (c) the half nasal ঁ is placed on the final letters of such words as কাহিঁ, যহিঁ, etc.; it is noticeable, that when the Bengalis write the Oriya words কাহিঁ, যহিঁ, etc., they represent them as কাঁহি, যঁহি, etc.

In my general criticism relating to the question of accent, I have noticed many peculiarities of ours; I proceed now to consider some other marked peculiarities, as should engage the attention of all scholars. As a general rule, in our standard Bengali speech, the first syllables are accented, while curiously enough the last syllables are accented in Eastern Bengal. Mr. J. D. Anderson, late of the Bengal Civil Service, has written of late some very suggestive and learned notes in the J. R. A. S. on the character of Bengali syllable and accent. To the students of philology these original notes are of very high value. Misled by the wrong idea or information, that the people of the districts of Mymensingh and Dacca, have the tendency to make the first syllable accented, Mr. Anderson has compared the Assamese mode of pronunciation with that of Eastern Bengal, and has subjected the Eastern Bengal accent system to Assamese influence. As the case is quite the contrary, we must look to some other influence for this phenomenon. Let me just give a few examples as to how the words are accented differently in Eastern Bengal and Central Bengal. In Central Bengal, মাথা having the accent on the first syllable, the unaccented syllable is pronounced soft, and থ sounds like ত; in East Bengal, however, মার্থা, কর্থা, কের্রে, etc., are the accented forms. With accent on the first syllable, the final য় of কোথায় is wholly or partially dropped in Central Bengal, while the accent on the last syllable in Eastern Bengal