> How did such a disconnect occur?
Think in terms of dialects. Vedic appears to have been one dialect,
Classical Sanskrit another, (albeit a slightly artificial hybrid with deep
influences from Vedic and the Prakrits) and the sources of the modern I-A
languages yet others.
In more detail:
Vedic is apparently based on a far-western dialect, perhaps influenced by
Iranian,and showing historical development within the Rg veda and onto the
later writings.
Classical Sanskrit is based on a dialect of the midland (western Ganges,
eastern Punjab) although influenced by Vedic. Later literature is greatly
influenced by the earliest forms of modern Indo-Aryan.
The Prakrits are various regional dialects from the 3rd century BCE, which
later develop into the modern languages.
Such a situation is not uncommon - it occurs for example in English where it
could be argued that Shakespeare's dialect is not the true source of modern
English.
Peter
> I read somewhere that the modern Indian languages are descended from
> the Middle Indo-Aryan languages (Prakrits, etc.) but that they are
> not directly descended from Vedic Sanskrit. Is this true? How can it
> be true?
>
> If so, are they descended from Classical Sanskrit?
>
> How did such a disconnect occur?
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