ABSTRACT
The linguistic double divide in South Asian countries shows two typically common characteristics: (a) English is the major language of power, and (b) one or few national level languages have a dominant status, symbolically supported as the language(s) of national identity. Thus, English is the most sought after language in South Asia but, oddly enough, it is never viewed as a language of national identity (Dasgupta 1993). In fact, in these South Asian countries, English has established itself as the most powerful language, often benefiting from competing linguistic identities and assertions. The conflicts between Hindi and Tamil (as well as other Indian languages) in India, between Sinhala and Tamil in Sri Lanka, between Urdu, Punjabi, Sindhi and major languages of other communities in Pakistan, and between Urdu and Bengali in Bangladesh have helped English to the position of power.
