Hindi at KU

Why Hindi

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Hindi is the third most spoken language in the world, after Chinese and English. It is the major language of India, home of the Indus Valley Civilization and now one of the fastest growing economies in the world. Learning Hindi opens a vast and new horizon to one of the oldest, richest and vibrant cultures and philosophies in the world.

With a global dominance of software professionals, India is now attracting numerous international businesses from all over the globe. India is also increasingly becoming a major world power attracting Foreign Service Officers overseas. Even a basic knowledge of Hindi can lead to job opportunities in trade, finance, education, energy, IT, military and many other areas. As an emerging market, India is an important trade partner and ally to the United States.

Hindi at KU

Taking Hindi at KU is not your typical language learning endeavor: practice Yoga, celebrate Indian festivals, cook authentic Indian food, play games, watch Bollywood films, learn about Indian music... can you say immersion? Hindi is offered by the Center for Global and International Studies. For detailed information, please refer to the department's website.

"The KU Hindi program provides a refreshing break from traditional language education environments. Patrica’s classroom approach goes beyond the standard lecture format (memorize and repeat), emphasizing instead a lively, interactive experience, incorporating games, songs, and role playing as key components in teaching and reinforcing structural concepts, all while striving to facilitate development of a solid understanding of Indian culture through participation in regional cultural events." - Kathryn Ingenloff (Graduate Student, Ecology)

"Taking Hindi classes has been the highlight of my KU experience! I got to learn a lot about South Asian culture and experience it through fun classroom activities and field trips. I also got to thrive in a small class size with a lot of one-on-one assistance. This allowed me to learn a lot of language in just a few years." - Abigail Rose Schletzbaum (PhD candidate, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology)

"Because Hindi isn’t based on Latin, the way it handles subject-object relationships and its grammatical structures are entirely foreign to an English speaker, and these differences force you to not only think in an entirely new way, but to redefine and rediscover how you relate to your own emotions, experiences, and the people around you. Hindi opened the door to an entirely new worldview for me." - Daniel Lee Theisen (Senior, Neurobiology)

Courses Offered and Degree Paths

Our Hindi Program consists of beginner, intermediate and advanced level language classes, offering a progressive and immersive learning environment.

Hindi Classes Offered

For placement and proficiency testing, please get in touch with us!

Resources

Hindi at KU - download the flyer
There are several area-of-study specific study abroad opportunities in India. Please visit the Office of Study Abroad for more details. Below are three study abroad programs open to all majors.
The Ermal Garinger Academic Resource Center (EGARC) at KU houses numerous feature films from India including several award winning movies by well known directors. EGARC also has documentary movies related to South Asia. Each year new movies are added to the collection. Students can check the digital catalog and availability of these movies online.
The Moore Reading Room located in Smith Hall has a large collection of printed materials related to South Asian philosophy, religion, and culture.
Be sure to visit the weekly Hindi language tables for a relaxed and informal learning environment