Grammatik der Prakrit-Sprachen

Strassburg: Trübner, 1900. — 400 S. — (Grundriss der Indo-Arischen Philologie und Altertumskunde I.8.).Richard Pischel’s Grammar of the Prakrit Languages was first published in the year 1900 in German. Prakrit has a vast literature but it had no systematic comprehensive grammar. Scholars like Vararuci, Hemacandra, Trivikrama, Markandeya, Laksmidhra, Krsna Pandit, Ramasarana Tarkavagisa had indeed their own grammars but they differed immensely in respect of their contents. Lassen was the first who tried to systematize Prakrit grammar but he wrote in Latin. After Lassen, Pischel analysed not only the extant Prakrit grammars but studied minutely the whole of extant Prakrit literature and collected first hand information about this about this important language. As a result of his study he brought out a systematised comprehensive grammar of Prakrit language in German. His voluminous work has continued for decades to be the only reliable authority on Prakrit grammar.