TRACING VEDIC DIALECTS - People.fas.harvard.edu

the bhāṣika accent) is lost. Nor do we have the lost Paipp.Br. for part of
the AV. The list can be prolonged. Such lacunae can, in the future, be
worked away to some extent, step by step, if we succeed in filling in the
map of Vedic India with the help of the "lost schools" (cf. Bh. Ghosh:
Lost Br.). 322
There remain, however, still a few more problems in the definition and
proper delineation of the Vedic dialects.
The various dialects mentioned just now will always have to be clearly
distinguished from local style, especially the style of a few Vedic śākhās
versus others. Examples have been mentioned and discussed above: the
use of sam.yat versus spṛdh, the new compound devāsurāḥ (to be treated
seperately), and other school mannerisms and peculiarities like súvar for
svàr, etc.
*****
It has been noted above that several peculiarities are not shared by the
various schools (śākhās) of all four Vedas of a particular dialect area, e.g.
that of the Pañcālas, but only some (or even only one) of them, while the
peculiarity infact transgresses the dialect area. In such cases the
peculiarity is often restricted to the schools of only one Veda (cf.above,
passim) and thus found in various dialect areas. It can be noticed that,
for example, both a Western and a Central Vedic school share the same
traits, while those belonging to another Veda in the same area disagree.
This necessitates, in future studies, a careful deliberation of several
factors. The setting provided by time (relative / absolute chronology) and
location (the homeland of a school viz. [part(s)] of a particular text) will
have to be distinguished from the influence of such factors as the
peculiarities belonging and restricted to one of the four Vedas only, or to
one or more of the neighbouring schools, viz. to those occupying the same
area as the text in question.
To provide a concrete example: is AB 6-8 just late or is it late ánd
Eastern at the same time? Are some characteristics of AB 6-8 (like the
use of the narrative perfect or of vāvai) due, thus, to the date of its
composition or are they just due to its Eastern location and, for example,
the influence of the Vājasaneyins? Or: why should the opt. ending -īta of
a-stem verbs be regarded as younger in AB 1-5 (an old text!) but as
contemporary in KB; why does it only occur in these two Brāhmaṇas
322 See §9.5 ann. 334.
121