History

The History of Sanskrit Teaching at the University of Warsaw

Professor Eugeniusz Słuszkiewicz laid the foundations for post-war Sanskrit studies in Warsaw, and his students went on to educate successive generations of scholars. Among his students were, among others, Andrzej Ługowski (1938–2006), an outstanding linguist and expert on the Vedas; Maria Krzysztof Byrski, who specialized in classical Indian theatre; and Marek Mejor, a Sanskrit scholar and researcher who focused on Buddhist studies and, in 2008, founded the Research Unit for Buddhist Studies, Artur Karp (1942–2022), a specialist in Sanskrit epics, as well as a researcher of Buddhism and the Pali language. 

Over time, the group of specialists in classical Indological studies was joined by further scholars, most of whom were graduates of Indology at the University of Warsaw and who continue to teach Sanskrit-related subjects to this day. Among them are: Joanna Jurewicz, a researcher of Vedic-period Sanskrit literature, especially the Rigveda; Bożena Śliwczyńska, a Sanskritist and Bengali studies scholar, who also researches India’s performative traditions, particularly the theatrical forms of Kerala; Piotr Balcerowicz, a scholar of the history of Indian philosophy and Jain doctrines (he studied in Warsaw, Varanasi, and Hamburg); and Anna Trynkowska, who specializes in classical Sanskrit literature (kāvya), primarily with courtly epic poetry (mahākāvya) and love poetry, classical Indian literary theory, as well as Bengali studies; Monika Nowakowska, who, after studying Greek and Latin, developed an interest in classical Indian culture, focusing primarily on Indian philosophy.   

More about the history of Sanskrit teaching at the University of Warsaw: 

1. Marek Mejor, Dziewięćdziesiąt lat Instytutu i Wydziału Orientalistycznego Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego 1932-2022, Dom Wydawniczy ELIPSA, Warszawa 2022.
2. Marek Mejor, Studia sanskrytologiczne i buddologia, w: 75 lat Instytutu Orientalistycznego Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, pod red. Macieja Popko, Warszawa 2007, s. 111-121.
3. Marek Mejor, Sanskrit Studies in Poland, w: Teaching on India in Central and Eastern Europe. Contributions to the 1st Central & Eastern European Indological Conference on Regional Cooperation (Warsaw, 15-17 September 2005, pod red. Danuty Stasik, Anny Trynkowskiej, Dom Wydawniczy ELIPSA, Warszawa 2007, s. 36-43.
4. Anna Trynkowska, Sanskrit Studies in Poland after the Second World War, w: Sixty Years of Sanskrit Studies (1950-2010), Vol. 2: Countries Other than India, pod red. Radhavallabh Tripathi, Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan, D.K. Printworld, New Delhi 2012, s. 213–236.

The History of Hindi Language Teaching at the University of Warsaw

Research on the Hindi language at the University of Warsaw began in 1938, when it became part of the curriculum of the Indological Seminar. The beginner’s course was taught by Professor Stanisław Schayer, while the advanced classes were led by Hiranmoy Ghoshal, the first lecturer in modern Indian languages from India employed at the Institute of Oriental Studies at the University of Warsaw.

A new stage in the teaching of the Hindi language began in the 1955/56 academic year, when Tatiana Rutkowska (1926–2002) was employed. She was a student of Prof. A.P. Barannikov, a renowned specialist in both contemporary and classical Hindi language and literature. With the arrival of this expert, post-war studies of the language were revived. Since then, Hindi has been taught continuously for 70 years.

Research was expanded to include studies of the Muslim strand of North Indian culture with the introduction of Urdu language instruction in 1961. The first lecturer was Alicja Karlikowska, a graduate of Warsaw Indology. In the 1960s, additional graduates joined the Hindi language teaching staff: Agnieszka Kowalska-Soni, a scholarship holder at Allahabad University, and Maria Krzysztof Byrski, who held a scholarship at Banaras Hindu University, where he earned his PhD in 1966. In the following years, the teaching staff continued to grow. Artur Karp (1942–2022) joined the team; as did Anna Sieklucka, who, until her retirement, also taught Punjabi language and literature; and in 1984 – Danuta Stasik, author of the first Polish-language textbook for learning Hindi and a researcher of Ramayana in the Hindi literary tradition. 

From 1983 to 2021, Hindi language teaching was also supported by lecturers from India, who arrived as part of Polish-Indian bilateral agreements. 

With Aleksandra Turek (since 2009), who specializes in the culture, literature, and language of Rajasthan (Marwari), the teaching staff gradually began to include former students of Prof. Danuta Stasik, forming the second generation of Hindi language graduates from Warsaw Indology. This group also includes Jakub Wilanowski-Hilchen (since 2013), a researcher of Pakistani culture, Urdu literature, and language, and Justyna Wiśniewska-Singh (since 2016), a scholar of early literary prose in Khariboli Hindi. Hindi language teaching is also supported by Monika Nowakowska, a Sanskritist who also honed her Hindi skills at the Central Institute of Hindi in Agra, India. 

Currently, graduates from the third and youngest generation are also joining the Hindi language team at KAP WO UW, including Agnieszka Jakóbowska (2023–2024) and Karolina Papis-Wróblewska (2024).

It is also worth mentioning that the Department of South Asian Studies at the Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of Warsaw, was among the organizers of international workshops such as the 2nd Braj Bhasha and Early Modern Hindi Retreat (2012), during which scholars explored texts in early modern literary languages of North India, as well as the 1st International Early Modern Rajasthani Workshop (2015).

More about the history of Hindi language teaching at the University of Warsaw: 

1. Danuta Stasik, Studia nad językiem i literaturą hindi, w: 75 lat Instytutu Orientalistycznego Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, pod red. Macieja Popko, Warszawa 2007, s. 123-131.
2. Danuta Stasik, Vārsā viśvavidyālay mẽ hindī ke pāthyakram aur paṛhāne kī sāmagrī, w: Madhya aur pūrvī yūrop mẽ hindi, pod red. Imre Bangha, Vāṇī prakāśan, Naī Dillī 2007, s. 57–60.
3. Danuta Stasik, Vārsā viśvavidyālay mẽ hindī adhyayan-adhyāpan – vartmān paridr̥śya, w: Videśī bhāṣā ke rūp mẽ hindī śikṣaṇ: paridr̥śya. Saṅgoṣṭhī samagra, pod red. Śrīś Candra Jaisvāl,  Hindi Book Centre, New Delhi 2012, s. 61-63. 

The History of Bengali Studies at the University of Warsaw

The Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Warsaw is the only center in Poland and one of the few in Europe that conducts research on Bengali literature and culture and offers instruction in the Bengali language. The history of Bengali studies in Warsaw is inseparably linked to the figure of Hiranmoy Ghoshal (1907–1969), a Bengali and the first lecturer from India employed at the University of Warsaw to teach modern Indian languages. He was invited to Poland in 1935 by Professor Stanisław Schayer. The outbreak of World War II found him in Warsaw. In September 1940, he managed to return to India, only to come back to Warsaw in 1957. From that time until his death, he taught at the then Department of Indian Philology within the Institute of Oriental Studies at the University of Warsaw, offering courses in Indian history, Bengali literature, and the Bengali language.

In the 1960s and 1970s, classes in descriptive grammar and practical Bengali language instruction were conducted by Agnieszka Kowalska-Soni, who also studied Bengali at Visva-Bharati University in Santiniketan (1961–1963). It is also worth mentioning Maria Gurbiel, who taught Bengali at the then Institute of Oriental Studies at the University of Warsaw between 1969 and 1971.

One of Hiranmoy Ghoshal’s students was Barbara Grabowska (1944–2023), who joined the Bengali studies faculty in 1967 and earned her PhD in 1973 under the supervision of Prof. Eugeniusz Słuszkiewicz. Thanks to her work, Bengali studies in Warsaw expanded to include research on medieval Bengali literature. She taught Bengali-related subjects until her retirement in 2018.

The next generations of lecturers were students of Prof. Barbara Grabowska. One of the key figures in Bengali studies at the University of Warsaw was Elżbieta Walter (active from 1973 until her retirement in 2014), who played a vital role in shaping this academic center and educating successive generations of specialists on Bengal—both West Bengal in India and Bangladesh. She also translated Bengali literature into Polish and was actively involved in promoting knowledge about India and Bengal. The Bengali studies faculty also includes Bożena Śliwczyńska and Anna Trynkowska—who was also a scholarship holder at Visva-Bharati University in Santiniketan.

The teaching staff for the Bengali language also included Michał Panasiuk (until the end of the 2023/2024 academic year). Currently, Bengali studies are being developed by Weronika Rokicka (since 2014), whose research interests include Bengali travel literature as well as the history and contemporary literature of West Bengal and Bangladesh, and Jan Klonowski, a representative of the youngest generation of Bengali scholars who joined the faculty in 2024.

Currently, graduates from the third and youngest generation are also joining the Hindi language team at KAP WO UW, including Agnieszka Jakóbowska (2023–2024) and Karolina Papis-Wróblewska (2024).

More about Bengali studies in Warsaw:

1. Elżbieta Walter, Bengalistyka, w: 75 lat Instytutu Orientalistycznego Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego, pod red. Maciej Popko, Warszawa 2007, s. 133-139.
2. Elżbieta Walter, Bengali Studies in Warsaw, w: On the Understanding of the Other Cultures, Materials of International Conference on Sanskrit and Related Studies to Commemorate the Centenary of the Birth of Stanisław Schayer, Warsaw University, Poland, October 7-10, 1999, pod red. Marka Mejora, Piotra Balcerowicza, Warszawa 1999, s. 42-48.
3. Barbara Grabowska, Hiranmoy Ghoshal (1907-1969), „Przegląd Orientalistyczny”, nr 2, 1970, s. 108-109.

The History of Tamil Studies at the University of Warsaw

The beginnings of Tamil studies in Warsaw are linked to Ramanathan Sundaram, who in 1972 began working at the University of Warsaw as the first-ever lecturer in Dravidian languages—Tamil and Malayalam. Since 1974, Indology students have had the opportunity to study in a group with Tamil as their primary Indian language.

The first Polish lecturer in the Tamil language was Katarzyna Witkowska-Trzaska, a student of Dr. Sundaram, who prepared and defended her master’s thesis under his supervision in 1975. It should be noted, however, that the first master’s thesis devoted to the Tamil language was submitted earlier, in 1970, by Małgorzata Burakowska under the supervision of the Sanskrit scholar Prof. Eugeniusz Słuszkiewicz.

Among the Indology graduates who completed their studies under Sundaram's supervision in 1979, two individuals deserve particular mention. Danuta Pęcikiewicz studied in Madras, where in 1980 she prepared a Tamil-Polish-English dictionary, which remains in manuscript form to this day. Tadeusz Herrmann studied at the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Madras (1983–1986) and became the first person in Poland to earn a PhD in 1989 based on a dissertation devoted to medieval Tamil literature. Until his retirement, he taught the Tamil language, literature, and culture, and also conducted Malayalam language courses.

The second person to earn a PhD at the University of Warsaw based on a dissertation devoted to Tamil literature was Joanna Kusio (1960–2009), who received her degree in 2003. During her studies, she spent a year on a scholarship in Madras (1980/1981), and after beginning her work at the then Institute of Oriental Studies, she went on a three-year research stay at Tamil University in Thanjavur, where she deepened her knowledge of the Tamil language and culture.

Currently, two people are conducting academic research in Tamil studies at the University of Warsaw. Jacek Woźniak studied Tamil at Tamil University in Thanjavur, and Karolina Kłoszewska at Pondicherry University in Puducherry. Until 2025, the lecturer employed was M.A. Karthik Shanmuganandam.

From the very beginning, Polish Tamil scholars have been supported in their teaching work by lecturers from India. Among the most distinguished of them is Indra Parthasarathy, an acclaimed writer and playwright.

More about the history of Tamil studies in Warsaw: