Gaddi (also called Gaddki, Gaddiyali or Bharmauri;
Takri
The Tākri script (Takri ( Chamba): ; Takri (Jammu/Dogra): ; sometimes called Tankri ) is an abugida writing system of the Brahmic family of scripts. It is derived from the Sharada script formerly employed for Kashmiri. It is the sister scrip ...
: ) is an
Indo-Aryan language
The Indo-Aryan languages (or sometimes Indic languages) are a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages in the Indo-European language family. As of the early 21st century, they have more than 800 million speakers, primarily concentrated in India, Pa ...
of India. It is spoken by the
Gaddi people
The Gaddi is a semi-pastoral Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic tribe living mainly in the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.
Overview
The origin of the Gaddi Tribe is Gaderiya (Dhangar) they also additionally believe that ...
primarily in
Bharmour
Bharmour, also known as Machu Pichu of Himachal, formally known as Brahmpura, was the ancient capital of Chamba district in Himachal Pradesh, India. Situated at an altitude of 2,100 metres in the Budhil valley, forty miles to the south-east of ...
Tehsil of
Chamba district
Chamba is the northwestern district of Himachal Pradesh, in India, with its headquarters in Chamba town. The towns of Dalhousie, Khajjhiar and Churah Valley are popular hill stations and vacation spots for the people from the plains of north ...
in
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peak ...
. It is also spoken in neighbouring parts of
Jammu
Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi, the city of Jammu, with an area of ...
, with Gaddi villages found in
Udhampur
Udhampur (ˌʊd̪ʱəmpur) is a city and a municipal council in Udhampur district in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters of Udhampur District. Named after Raja Udham Singh, it serves as the district capi ...
,
Kathua and
Doda districts.The language has traditionally been written using the
Takri script
The Tākri script (Takri ( Chamba): ; Takri (Jammu/Dogra): ; sometimes called Tankri ) is an abugida writing system of the Brahmic family of scripts. It is derived from the Sharada script formerly employed for Kashmiri. It is the sister scrip ...
.
Dialects
There are four dialects of the language:
*The first one is spoken in the entire
Bharmaur, Chhatrari and Bhatyat Tehsils of
Chamba and Gaddi speaking regions of
Kangra district.
*The second one is spoken in consists of Piyuhar, Belaj, Guun, Bakani, the upper part of Mehla and Kaded, etc.
*The third one is spoken in the region of Basu and other adjoining area.
*The fourth on is spoken in Lilh and Paho.
Status
The language is commonly called
Pahari or
Himachali. Some speaker may even call it a dialect of
Dogri
Dogri ( Name Dogra Akkhar: ; Devanagari: डोगरी; Nastaliq: ; ) is an Indo-Aryan language primarily spoken in the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, India, with smaller groups of speakers in adjoining regions of western Himachal Pra ...
. The language has no official status. According to the
United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the language is of definitely endangered category, i.e. many Gaddi children are not learning Gaddi as their mother tongue any longer.
The demand for the inclusion of 'Pahari (Himachali)' under the Eight Schedule of the Constitution, which is supposed to represent multiple Pahari languages of Himachal Pradesh, had been made in the year 2010 by the state's Vidhan Sabha. There has been no positive progress on this matter since then even when small organisations are striving to save the language.
References
External links
Gaddi grammar sketches{{Indo-Aryan languages
Northern Indo-Aryan languages
Languages of Himachal Pradesh
Languages of Jammu and Kashmir