Brahman or Brahmin

[Julia Leslie]

In message Fri, 18 Aug 1995 16:00:44 BST,
  Lance Nelson <lnelson at pwa.acusd.edu>  writes:
>
> My South Indian BrAhmaNa friends and teachers, when speaking English, use
> the word "Brahmin."  I've never heard it used in a derogatory sense, has
> anyone?  The -min ending is handy when one is writing in English about
> VedAnta, to avoid confusion with the term "Brahman" (ultimate Reality).
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I agree with all three points:
(1) I use "brahmin" as the English form, perhaps also due to my South Indian
bias;
(2) I have never come across a derogatory usage of this form (but I would
welcome evidence on this);
(3) I *force* my first-year students to use this spelling in order to make
them consciously distinguish between the person and the ultimate "Brahman".
(When they leave my care, they are welcome to make their own decisions ...)
Should I rethink, I wonder?

Julia Leslie