British Orientalism In India

Until the 1750s the major workers of the East India Company were merchants and politicians in Bengal. After the 1750s along with the merchants, first orientalists have started to come to British India. This period as it is named British Orientalism starts from 1772 to 1835. It was inspired by the needs of the East India Company (1600-1857) to train a class of British administrators who can learn and study the languages, cultures and religions of India. British orientalism officially starts after the arrival of an orientalist and merchant, Warren Hasting, (1732–1818), the first and most famous of the British governors general of India. With the encouragement of Hasting many fresh orientalists have started to come to India to seek their knowledge

Naturally, when they have reached to Calcutta they brought most of thoughts and scholarships including some set of values, attitudes, beliefs. Hasting’s believed that in order to successfully do activities in Bengal there must be Indianization process for British. British people must know how to think and behave like an Easterner. Otherwise, the British will be treated like aliens in India. Therefore, Hasting had supported William Jones to establish an association called the Asiatic Society of Bengal (1784) to create consciousness among the English orientalist emigrants and also to encourage further oriental researches. The Asiatic society of Bengal was, until the nineteenth century, an organization for an elite of company officials where they regularly meet and discuss oriental issues with 100 members since 1790. This period of British orientalism gave birth to many intellectual, religious and social changes in Bengal that is now known as the Bengal

The college of Fort William had officially established in 1800 by the members of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. More than a hundred of original works in oriental languages were published by orientalists mostly sponsored by the College of Fort William.

In the college the departments were established for each major language and culture of India, having one professor and a couple of assistant teachers. Department of Persian, Arabic, Hindustani Language, Sanskrit, Bangla, and Vernacular Languages have actively begun to produce linguistic works. All the Departments had a number of pundits who made up the native element of the College staff. In all, twelve Faculties were established by 1805. It was a dream that this college which is so productive in the cultivation of arts and sciences that someday it should turn into the “Oxford of the East”.

Publication facilities have become available in Calcutta after many scientific works on language and culture of India have been done in the college. Very soon, a Christian missionary association Serampore Mission Press would be launched in 1801, the Hindustani Press in 1802, the Persian Press in 1805 and the Sanskrit Press in