Dakshi Alibha. Learning Bengali. A self-tutor on a phonetic basis

Kolkata: Sanskrit Pustak Bhandar, 2003. — 318 p.This book aims at imparting particularly a proficiency in speaking, understanding, reading and writing skills to the Bengali language learners. It is my humble attempt to represent an empirical exposition in the field of applied linguistics covering the total range of language concern, say. its script, pronunciation, sound pattern, structure, vocabulary, written and colloquial forms of language concern, etc. This book is intended mainly to introduce and instruct the standard colloquial forms of the Bengali structure.
The present book comprises three parts. The first part introduces the Bengali script. The letters have been grouped according to their similarity in shape. There is a detailed description of Bengali vowels, diphthongs and consonants and a detailed exercise in the study of conjuncts and their pronunciation is also given. In the transcription, the signs are those of the International Phonetic Association (IPA).
The second part deals with basic structure of the Bengali language. It discusses the simple sentences and then the complex and compound sentence structures. Lessons are generally presented in the form of conversation. In each lesson free English rendering is given. At the end of each lesson the structure has been explained in a simple way and the relevant vocabulary has been appended to each lesson as easy reference.
colloquial forms of Bengali with excerpts is given At the end the mode of addressing letters, list of common Bengali verbs and Bengali idioms have been appended.Preface
Introduction
A brief survey of Bengali language and literature
Script, pronunciation and sound system
How to write Bengali script
Vowels (Suara-dhvani)
Diphthongs (Duisvara-dhvani)
Consonants (Vyanjana-dhvani)
Consonant conjuncts and their pronunciation
Joining or Euphonic Combination (Sandhi)
Lessons
First class room meeting
Greetings and enquiry
Visiting a friend’s house
Buying fruit in the market
A meeting between a student and his teacher
To the doctor
Shopping
A holiday in Kolkata
An accident
Booking a room in a hotel in Kalimpong
A telephone talk
Pous-mela at Santiniketan
Story of a great man — Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar
Arranging a picnic party
A letter to a friend — about spring festival at Santiniketan
An idle evening
Durgapujo — the biggest festival of Bengalees
The climate and seasons of West Bengal
Travelling in a train
On tour at Santiniketan
Appendices
Grammatical Differences Between Sadhu (literary Bengali of Nineteenth century) and Calit (Colloquial) Bengali
A few specimens from literature
Mode of addressing letters
List of a few common verbs
Idioms
List of grammatical terms
Abbreviations
Bibliography
Grammatical indexPS: качество скана среднее, неустранимые проекционные искажения страниц