Bengali Language Movement and Creation of Bangladesh [Contributions to Bangladesh Studies]
Bengali Language Movement and Creation of Bangladesh is a monumental work of 776 pages by Dr. Anwar Dil and his wife Dr. Aria Dil. It is a well-researched and objectively written book dedicated to our children and our children's children so they may understand why the Bengali Muslims took such a prominent and leading role in the creation of East and West Pakistan in 1947 and then the happenings that led first to the Bengali Language Movement and then the demise of East Pakistan and the creation of Bangladesh in 1971. The husband and wife, both of them distinguished scholars of sociolinguistics and psycholinguistics respectively, and authors of acclaimed books and research papers worked together for most of their forty years of life together since 1961 in conducting research of sources in English, and Urdu, Bengali and some other languages, and published in 2000 a limited edition for scholars and libraries. It was recognized as a most comprehensive and objective record of the uniquely rich multi-ethnic and multi-religious tradition of Eastern Bengal (present-day Bangladesh) and the events from the first partition of Bengal in 1905 to the second partition in 1947 until the creation of Bangladesh in 1971 with the last part covering a review of its first thirty years as an independent nation-state. The chief merit of this landmark study is that it presents an international perspective with a balanced and judicious treatment of some of the fundamental issues in the history of Bengal in the 20th century. Because of the non-availability of the book the Adorn Publication has published this edition for national and international readers, to read and reflect on an unbiased and insightful study of our believed nation-state. - Kabir Chowdhury National Professor of Bangladesh January 10, 2011