John Gilchrist (linguist)

John Borthwick Gilchrist
Born	Template:Birth date Edinburgh, Scotland
Died	January 9, 1841(1841-01-09) (aged 81) Paris, France
Occupation(s)	Surgeon, linguist, philologist, scholar of Indian studies
Known for	Study of Hindustani language; founding University College London; Gilchrist Educational Trust

John Borthwick Gilchrist (19 June 1759 – 9 January 1841) was a Scottish surgeon, linguist, philologist, and scholar of Indian studies. Originating from Edinburgh, where he received his education, Gilchrist spent a substantial portion of his early professional life in India, focusing on the study of indigenous languages. Afterward, he returned to Britain, living in Edinburgh and London before relocating to Paris, where he passed away at the age of 81.

Gilchrist is chiefly recognized for his extensive research on the Hindustani language, which played a crucial role in its establishment as the common language across northern India—including regions now part of Pakistan—among both British colonial officials and native populations. His notable publications include An English-Hindustani Dictionary, A Grammar of the Hindoostanee Language, and The Oriental Linguist. His Hindustani dictionary was made available in Arabic script, Nāgarī script, and Romanized form. Additionally, he contributed significantly to the founding of University College London and provided financial support through the Gilchrist Educational Trust.

Early life and education

Born on 19 June 1759 in Edinburgh, Gilchrist was baptized John Hay Gilchrist. His father, Walter Gilchrist, a merchant by profession, vanished during the year of John's birth. His mother, Henrietta Farquharson (1730–1830), originally from Dundee, lived to be 100 years old. Later in life, Gilchrist acquired permission to adopt the surname Borthwick from his maternal grandmother’s family, which was connected to the Scottish noble title Lord Borthwick.

He attended George Heriot's School and Edinburgh High School between 1773 and 1775. At sixteen, he ventured to the West Indies, where he gained practical experience in indigo cultivation before returning to Edinburgh.

Career in India

Gilchrist began his medical career in 1782 as a surgeon’s mate in the Royal Navy, eventually traveling to Bombay. By 1784, he had joined the East India Company Medical Service as an assistant surgeon. He accompanied the Bengal Army to Fatehgarh, observing that despite widespread knowledge of the Hindustani language, East India Company personnel were not required to learn it. He strongly recommended that military officers acquire proficiency in Hindustani to communicate effectively with Indian soldiers (sepoys).

Hindustani dictionary

Gilchrist initiated a methodical study of Hindustani and compiled his first dictionary. In 1785, he sought leave from service to focus on this project; granted in 1787, he did not return to medical duties thereafter. Over twelve years, he resided in Patna, Faizabad, Lucknow, Delhi, and Ghazipur, collaborating with native speakers and collecting linguistic data. In Ghazipur, he supported his research financially through ventures in indigo, sugar, and opium production—initially profitable but ultimately unsuccessful.

In 1786, Gilchrist promoted A Dictionary: English and Hindoostanee. To which Is Prefixed a Grammar of the Hindoostanee Language, which was released by subscription in parts until its completion in 1790. This publication was pioneering as it was the first printed work using Devanagari typeface developed by Orientalist Charles Wilkins. The government agreed to purchase 150 copies at 40 rupees each; however, prices later increased to 60 rupees.

Background to the Hindustani language

In Northern India, Hindustani developed as a common language among Persian and Turkish immigrants alongside local speakers of the Dehlavi dialect. It incorporated substantial Persian vocabulary. John Gilchrist championed Hindustani for British administrative purposes after recognizing it was more widely spoken among locals than Persian or Arabic. Consequently, the East India Company adopted Hindustani—then known as the "Moors language" or "Jargon"—as its official administrative tongue.

Fort William College

Acting on Gilchrist's advice, Governor-General Richard Wellesley and the East India Company founded Fort William College in Calcutta in 1800 with the purpose of educating British recruits. Gilchrist served as the institution's inaugural principal until 1804, receiving a generous remuneration roughly equivalent to £180,000 in today's currency. During his tenure, he authored several significant publications concerning Hindustani and related languages.

Fort William, under Gilchrist’s direction, evolved into a center for Urdu prose focused primarily on practical administrative communication rather than literary expression. He gathered writers from across India to create a simplified Urdu style that British officials could easily understand. Among his notable students was Henry Martyn, who translated essential Christian scriptures into both Urdu and Persian. By the early 1800s, Urdu was increasingly adopted over Persian as the language of administration in British India.

In 1803, Gilchrist broadened the college’s literary activities to include the promotion of Hindi language and literature. This expansion culminated in the first Hindi translation of the Bible in 1818 and the launch of Udant Martand in 1826, recognized as India’s first Hindi newspaper. Gilchrist perceived this era as the point at which Khariboli diverged into two separate languages—Hindi and Urdu—each distinguished by its script and cultural identity.

Gilchrist is acknowledged for supporting both Urdu and the revival of Hindi through advocating a purer form of Khariboli, which laid the foundation for modern Hindi. Scholar K.B. Jindal remarked that "the Hindi language we recognize today is largely a nineteenth-century creation." Conversely, linguist George Abraham Grierson viewed modern standard Hindi as an artificial construct developed by Europeans rather than an indigenous dialect.

Land in Australia

In 1801, while still residing in India, Gilchrist acquired a considerable tract of land near Sydney, Australia, from William Balmain as settlement for an outstanding debt. Although he never traveled to Australia himself, the property's value—now incorporated into the suburb of Balmain—appreciated significantly with Sydney’s growth.

Return to Britain

Due to declining health, Gilchrist took leave from Fort William in 1804 and returned to Britain, officially retiring from the East India Company with a pension in 1805. He styled himself as "John Borthwick Gilchrist, of Camberwell, in the county of Surrey, LL.D., late Professor of the Hindoostanee Language at Fort William College, Calcutta."

When the East India College commenced operations at Haileybury in 1806, Gilchrist briefly replaced Jonathan Scott as Professor of Oriental Languages. Later that year, he relocated to Edinburgh where he co-established the banking firm Inglis, Borthwick Gilchrist & Co. He was inducted as a fellow into several prestigious organizations including the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Royal Horticultural Society, East India Club, and Scottish Military and Naval Academy. Known for his fiery temperament and peculiar habits—such as keeping an aviary filled with exotic birds—he developed a distinctive personal reputation.

The banking enterprise collapsed in 1815 due to financial troubles. After spending some time in Perthshire, Gilchrist moved to London in 1817. The subsequent year he was appointed lecturer in oriental languages for the East India Company, a position he held until 1825. Following this period, he continued offering unpaid lectures to promote his educational materials. Additionally, he played a key role in founding the London Oriental Institution and was both a founding shareholder and the first Professor of Hindustani at University College London. He also collaborated with George Birkbeck to establish the London Mechanics Institution (which later became Birkbeck College).

Marriage and children

Throughout his years in India (1782–1804), Gilchrist fathered multiple children, although the identities of their mothers and their legitimacy remain uncertain, with many passing away during childhood. One daughter who survived, Mary Anne (born 1786), probably remained in India after Gilchrist left and wed Major Charles William Burton in Calcutta in 1810. Burton was the son of James Burton, a canon at Christ Church, Oxford, and chaplain to both George III and George IV. Charles William Burton died in Mirzapur in 1816, and their son, Major Charles Aeneas Burton, along with his two sons, perished during the 1857 Indian uprising at Kotah.

Gilchrist brought three other daughters born in India back to Britain:

• Henrietta (1797–1864), who became the wife of Edinburgh merchant James Wilson in 1815.
• Elizabeth (born 1801), who married John Mann, a jeweller, in Edinburgh in 1818.
• Violet (1802–1872), who united in marriage with George Linley, a writer and composer, in Edinburgh in 1824.

Upon returning to Edinburgh, Gilchrist wed Mary Ann Coventry on 15 May 1808; she was nearly three decades younger than him and bore no children. After Gilchrist’s passing, she remarried General Guglielmo Pepe, a prince of the Kingdom of Naples.

Final years, death and legacy

Between 1825 and 1831, Gilchrist made several trips to Continental Europe due to declining health and eventually settled in Paris from 1831 onward. He secured French passports for himself, his spouse, and two attendants. Residing on Rue Matignon, he lived there until his death on 9 January 1841 at age 81. He was interred at Père-Lachaise Cemetery.

Will

Gilchrist bequeathed a considerable estate comprising real estate and investments located in London, Edinburgh, and the Balmain property in Australia. He appointed Member of Parliament Joseph Hume as the chief executor with instructions to liquidate his assets and place the proceeds into a charitable trust. His widow and daughters received annuities, while the remaining income was allocated "for the benefit and advancement and propagation of education and learning worldwide as circumstances permit."

Legal battle

Family members challenged the will, chiefly his nephew Walter Gilchrist Whicker, who asserted his claim as the rightful heir. The dispute known as Whicker v Hume involved critical legal questions:

• Determining Gilchrist's legal domicile at death—whether it was under Scottish, French, or English jurisdiction where the will had been prepared.
• The legitimacy status of Gilchrist's daughters born in India.
• Authority over land holdings within the New South Wales colony and the relevance of the mortmain doctrine.
• The validity of "education and learning" qualifying as a charitable objective.

Following extended litigation that concluded with a July 1858 decision by the House of Lords, the will was upheld as valid. This case established significant legal precedents related to domicile interpretation and jurisdiction over wills involving cross-border assets.

Gilchrist Educational Trust

An unintended consequence of the drawn-out legal proceedings was a substantial increase in Australian land values to roughly £70,000, boosting Gilchrist’s estate valuation at probate beyond £100,000 (equivalent to more than £10 million today). With this considerable endowment, the Gilchrist Educational Trust was founded in 1865 and continues its mission by awarding financial support for educational initiatives.

Character and Political Perspectives

Gilchrist was recognized for his passionate nature and frequent conflicts. He openly conveyed his viewpoints and grievances through correspondence and pamphleteering, often attributing his setbacks to others. Characterized as "sometimes disjointed yet candid, self-pitying yet confrontational," he nevertheless obtained patronage and accumulated significant wealth, despite occasionally engaging in ethically questionable business practices.

In Edinburgh, his radical republican stance rendered him a divisive personality, which played a role in his exit following the failure of his banking enterprise. His visits thereafter were limited to brief family reunions. In his later life, he became notable for a striking appearance reminiscent of a royal Bengal tiger—a comparison he accepted with pride.

Published Works

• A Dictionary: English and Hindoostanee, Calcutta: Stuart and Cooper, 1787–90.
• A Grammar of the Hindoostanee Language, Calcutta: Chronicle Press, 1796.
• The Anti-Jargonist; an introduction to the Hindoostanee Language, Calcutta, 1800.
• Dialogues, English and Hindoostanee, Calcutta, 1802(?); second edition, Edinburgh, 1809.
• The Hindee Director; Student's Introductor to the Hindoostanee Language, Calcutta, 1802.
• The Hindee-Arabic Mirror; Arabic practical tables connected with Hindoostanee, Calcutta, 1802.
• The Hindee-Roman Orthoepigraphical Ultimatum, Calcutta, 1804.
• British Indian Monitor; Antijargonist and Oriental Linguist, Edinburgh, 1806–8.
• Parliamentary reform on constitutional principles, Glasgow, 1815.
• The Orienti-Occidental Tuitionary Pioneer to Literary Pursuits, London, 1816.
• The Oriental Green Bag!! A sketch of Edwards Alter in the Royal Exchequer, London: J.B. Gilchrist, 1820.
• The Hindee-Roman Orthoepigraphical Ultimatum; pronunciation guide for Oriental languages, London, 1820.
• The General East India Guide and Vade Mecum, London, 1825.
• Dialogues, English and Hindoostanee; promoting colloquial intercourse in India, London, 1826.
• A Practical Appeal to the Public in Defence of the New System of Physic, London, 1833.
• A Bold Epistolary Rhapsody Addressed to East-India Stock Proprietors and the British Nations, London, 1833.

Bibliography

• Richard Steadman-Jones, Colonialism and Grammatical Representation: John Gilchrist and the Analysis of the Hindustani Language in the Late Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth Centuries, Publications of the Philological Society; 41, 2007 9781405161329
• Sadiqur-Rahman Kidwai, Gilchrist and the 'Language of Hindoostan', PhD thesis, University of Delhi. Rachna Prakashan, 1972.

Collections

The archives belonging to the Gilchrist Educational Trust were transferred to the Institute of Education at University College London in both 2001 and 2006. This repository contains administrative documents, materials related to John Borthwick Gilchrist, as well as publications issued by the Trust.

See also

• Hindustani language
• Gilchrist Educational Trust

Further reading

• Thomas Duffus Hardy, Memoirs of the Right Honourable Henry Lord Langdale, Richard Bentley, 1852, pp. 398–413.
• Natasha Glaisyer and Sara Pennell, Didactic Literature in England 1500–1800: Expertise Constructed, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2003, pp. 155–159.
• Richard Steadman-Jones, "Etymology and Language Learning at the Start of the 19th Century", in The History of Linguistic and Grammatical Praxis, edited by Piet Desmet, Peeters Publishers, 2000, pp. 190–193.

External links

• Gilchrist Educational Trust Archive held at the Institute of Education, University College London