Director, Hindi Urdu Flagship
Professor, Dept of Asian Studies
hvo@mail.utexas.edu
A leading Hindi educator, Herman Van Olphen has been the driving force behind the development of the Hindi language program at UT. He is recognized for his participation in the field of evaluating language proficiency, materials design, and teaching Hindi at all levels. He was involved in the initial establishment and subsequent enhancement of the guidelines of the American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), which are the accepted standard for evaluating proficiency in Hindi. As Chair of the American Institute of Indian Studies (AIIS) Advanced Language Programs in India for almost a decade, he was responsible for overall structure and evaluation of the programs—giving him a direct hand in the language education of a generation of American scholars of India. Van Olphen has taught and overseen many Hindi courses while at UT. He continues to oversee Beginning and Intermediate Hindi language courses. He has taught courses in Advanced Hindi; the Hindi Short Story; the Hindi Novel; Language in Society in Asia; as well as many other courses where the students are exposed to a variety of Hindi genres.
Associate Director, Hindi Urdu Flagship
Adjunct Professor, Dept of Asian Studies
rupertsnell@mail.utexas.edu
Emeritus Reader in Hindi at the University of London, Rupert Snell, works as an associate director of the HindiUrdu Flagship Program. Snell was the recipient of the prestigious Sir George Grierson Hindi Sevi Sammaan Award given by the President of India in 1997 in recognition of his services to the Hindi language. Snell, who is known worldwide for his text Teach Yourself Hindi, teaches Hindi language at all levels. He has produced several other instructional texts with audio accompaniment and readers for the Hodder & Stoughton “Teach Yourself” series. In addition to creating Hindi educational materials, Snell’s research interests focus on 16th and 17th century Braj Bhasa poetry. Snell published The Eighty-Four Hymns of Hita Harivamsha, which is an anthology of 16th century Braj Bhasa devotional hymns attributed to Hita Harivamsha. Another book that has received much acclaim is Snell’s translation of In the Afternoon of Time: An Autobiography, the autobiography of the 20th century Hindi poet, Harivansh Rai Bachchan. Snell has also edited several texts, including According to Tradition: Hagiographical Writing in India and Classics of Modern South Asian Literature.
Associate Director, Hindi Urdu Flagship
Associate Professor, Dept of Asian Studies & Religious Studies
shyder@mail.utexas.edu
Beloved among colleagues, staff, and students alike, Akbar Hyder, serves as an associate director of the Hindi and Urdu Flagship Program. His dynamic approach to teaching has captivated students throughout the years. Hyder has been the coordinator for the Urdu program since his arrival at UT. Hyder’s language courses are oriented around particular themes such as “Female Voices in Urdu Literature” and “Progressive Urdu Literature.” Hyder’s research interests center on Indo-Muslim culture, history, literature, and language. His book, Reliving Karbala: Martyrdom in South Asian Memory, underscores the complexity that religious symbols carry in varying contexts. Hyder reveals multiple, and often conflicting interpretations of the Karbala story, and he investigates the varying ways in which the story is used for personal and communal identity in South Asia. His second book, A’iye Urdu Parhen: Let’s Study Urdu, An Introductory Urdu Textbook, was co-authored with Ali Asani, Professor of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard. This textbook for beginning Urdu students has already received acclaim as an effective and authoritative tool for teaching Urdu.
Senior Lecturer, Hindi Urdu Flagship
Dept of Asian Studies
jshankar@austin.utexas.edu
Jishnu Shankar is the Flagship's Senior Lecturer in Hindi. Shankar arrived at UT in 2007 after serving as an instructor of South Asia/Languages and Literatures at Syracuse University. He holds an M.A. from Syracuse University (1988) and an M.A. from Delhi School of Economics (1986), a Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism, Indian Institute of Mass Communication (1984), and a B.A. from Delhi University (1983). Shankar is a pioneer in web-based Hindi Urdu instruction. His earlier work with online Hindi Urdu lessons has served as the basis for many current web-based Hindi Urdu projects. Aside from Hindi pedagogy, Shankar's current research centers on the Kinaram Tradition. He has field work experience in India and his major publications include a work on Aghor Vachan Shastra, Sri Sarveshwari Samooh, Varanasi, India, 1990.