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The Indo-Aryan languages (or sometimes Indic languages) are a branch of the
Indo-Iranian languages The Indo-Iranian languages (also Indo-Iranic languages or Aryan languages) constitute the largest and southeasternmost extant branch of the Indo-European language family (with over 400 languages), predominantly spoken in the geographical subr ...
in the Indo-European language family. As of the early 21st century, they have more than 800 million speakers, primarily concentrated in
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
,
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
,
Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
, Nepal,
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
, and
Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...
. Moreover, apart from the
Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, In ...
, large immigrant and expatriate Indo-Aryan–speaking communities live in Northwestern Europe, Western Asia, North America, the Caribbean, Southeast Africa, Polynesia and
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
, along with several million speakers of Romani languages primarily concentrated in Southeastern Europe. There are over 200 known Indo-Aryan languages. Modern Indo-Aryan languages descend from Old Indo-Aryan languages such as early Vedic Sanskrit, through Middle Indo-Aryan languages (or Prakrits). The largest such languages in terms of first-speakers are Hindi–Urdu (),Standard Hindi first language: 260.3 million (2001), as second language: 120 million (1999). Urdu L1: 68.9 million (2001–2014), L2: 94 million (1999): ''Ethnologue'' 19.
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
(242 million),
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
(about 120 million), Marathi (112 million),
Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...
(60 million), Rajasthani (58 million), Bhojpuri (51 million),
Odia Odia, also spelled Oriya or Odiya, may refer to: * Odia people in Odisha, India * Odia language, an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family * Odia alphabet, a writing system used for the Odia languag ...
(35 million), Maithili (about 34 million),
Sindhi Sindhi may refer to: *something from, or related to Sindh, a province of Pakistan * Sindhi people, an ethnic group from the Sindh region * Sindhi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them People with the name * Sarkash Sindhi (1940–2012 ...
(25 million),
Nepali Nepali or Nepalese may refer to : Concerning Nepal * Anything of, from, or related to Nepal * Nepali people, citizens of Nepal * Nepali language, an Indo-Aryan language found in Nepal, the current official national language and a language spoken ...
(16 million), Assamese (15 million),
Chhattisgarhi Chhattisgarhi ( / ) is an Indo-Aryan language, spoken by approximately 16 million people from Chhattisgarh & other states. It is mostly spoken in the Indian states of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh & Maharashtra. It is closely related ...
(18 million), Sinhala (17 million), and
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
(). A 2005 estimate placed the total number of native speakers of the Indo-Aryan languages at nearly 900 million people.


Classification


Theories

The Indo-Aryan family as a whole is thought to represent a dialect continuum, where languages are often transitional towards neighboring varieties. Because of this, the division into languages vs. dialects is in many cases somewhat arbitrary. The classification of the Indo-Aryan languages is controversial, with many transitional areas that are assigned to different branches depending on classification. There are concerns that a tree model is insufficient for explaining the development of New Indo-Aryan, with some scholars suggesting the wave model.


Subgroups

The following table of proposals is expanded from . Note that the table only lists some modern Indo-Aryan languages. Anton I. Kogan, in 2016, conducted a
lexicostatistical Lexicostatistics is a method of comparative linguistics that involves comparing the percentage of lexical cognates between languages to determine their relationship. Lexicostatistics is related to the comparative method but does not reconstruct a ...
study of the New Indo-Aryan languages based on a 100-word Swadesh list, using techniques developed by the glottochronologist and comparative linguist Sergei Starostin. That grouping system is notable for Kogan's exclusion of Dardic from Indo-Aryan on the basis of his previous studies showing low lexical similarity to Indo-Aryan (43.5%) and negligible difference with similarity to Iranian (39.3%). He also calculated Sinhala–Dhivehi to be the most divergent Indo-Aryan branch. Nevertheless, the modern consensus of Indo-Aryan linguists tends towards the inclusion of Dardic based on morphological and grammatical features.


Inner–Outer hypothesis

The Inner–Outer hypothesis argues for a core and periphery of Indo-Aryan languages, with Outer Indo-Aryan (generally including Eastern and Southern Indo-Aryan, and sometimes Northwestern Indo-Aryan, Dardic and Pahari) representing an older stratum of Old Indo-Aryan that has been mixed to varying degrees with the newer stratum that is Inner Indo-Aryan. It is a contentious proposal with a long history, with varying degrees of claimed phonological and morphological evidence. Since its proposal by Rudolf Hoernlé in 1880 and refinement by
George Grierson George Allison Grierson (April 11, 1867–October 18, 1931) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1914 to 1922, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Tobias Norris. Grierson ...
it has undergone numerous revisions and a great deal of debate, with the most recent iteration by Franklin Southworth and Claus Peter Zoller based on robust linguistic evidence (particularly an Outer past tense in ''-l-''). Some of the theory's skeptics include
Suniti Kumar Chatterji Bhashacharya Acharya Suniti Kumar Chatterjee (26 November 1890 – 29 May 1977) was an Indian linguist, educationist and litterateur. He was a recipient of the second-highest Indian civilian honour of Padma Vibhushan. Life Childhood Chatterji ...
and Colin P. Masica.


Groups

The below classification follows , and .


Dardic

The Dardic languages (also Dardu or Pisaca) are a group of Indo-Aryan languages largely spoken in the northwestern extremities of the Indian subcontinent. Dardic was first formulated by George Abraham Grierson in his
Linguistic Survey of India The Linguistic Survey of India (LSI) is a comprehensive survey of the languages of British India, describing 364 languages and dialects. The Survey was first proposed by George Abraham Grierson, a member of the Indian Civil Service and a linguis ...
but he did not consider it to be a subfamily of Indo-Aryan. The Dardic group as a genetic grouping (rather than areal) has been scrutinised and questioned to a degree by recent scholarship: Southworth, for example, says "the viability of Dardic as a genuine subgroup of Indo-Aryan is doubtful" and "the similarities among ardic languagesmay result from subsequent convergence". The Dardic languages are thought to be transitional with Punjabi and Pahari (e.g. Zoller describes Kashmiri as "an interlink between Dardic and West Pahāṛī"), as well as non-Indo-Aryan Nuristani; and are renowned for their relatively conservative features in the context of Proto-Indo-Aryan. * Kashmiri:
Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, their language People with the name * Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...
,
Kishtwari Kishtwari or Kashtwari is a northern Indo-Aryan language closely related to the Kashmiri language, with strong influences from neighboring Western Pahari varieties, spoken in Kishtwar district in Jammu and Kashmir, India. Kishtwari has historica ...
,
Poguli Pogali or Pugali, more recently known, together with neighboring languages, as Panchali or Khah, is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in parts of the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, India. Its area encompasses the Pogal and Paristan valleys, and c ...
; * Shina: Brokskad, Kundal Shahi, Shina,
Ushojo Ushoji (natively known as Ushojo) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in Kohistan and Swat In the United States, a SWAT team (special weapons and tactics, originally special weapons assault team) is a police tactical unit that uses spec ...
,
Kalkoti Kalkoti, also known as Goedijaa, is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Kalkot Tehsil, in the Upper Dir district in Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asi ...
, Palula,
Savi Savi is a town in Benin that was the capital of the Kingdom of Whydah prior to its capture by the forces of Dahomey in 1727. An account of the city was given by Robert Norris in 1789: There were British, French, Dutch and Portuguese factori ...
; * Chitrali: Kalasha, Khowar; * Kohistani:
Bateri Bateri (, बटेरी) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in Kohistan District, Pakistan and Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (unio ...
, Chilisso, Gowro,
Indus Kohistani Indus Kohistani (, Kōstaiñ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the former Kohistan District of Pakistan. The language was referred to as Maiyã (Mayon) or Shuthun by early researchers, but subsequent observations have not verified that thes ...
, Kalami, Tirahi, Torwali, Wotapuri-Katarqalai; * Pashayi * Kunar: Dameli,
Gawar-Bati Gawar-Bati or Narsati is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Chitral region of northern Pakistan, and across the border in Afghanistan. It is also known as Aranduyiwar in Chitral because it is spoken in Arandu, which is the last village in lo ...
,
Nangalami Nangalami, or Grangali, is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of C ...
, Shumashti.


Northern Zone

The Northern Indo-Aryan languages, also known as the Pahari ('hill') languages, are spoken throughout the Himalayan regions of the subcontinent. * Eastern Pahari:
Nepali Nepali or Nepalese may refer to : Concerning Nepal * Anything of, from, or related to Nepal * Nepali people, citizens of Nepal * Nepali language, an Indo-Aryan language found in Nepal, the current official national language and a language spoken ...
, Jumli, Doteli; * Central Pahari: Garhwali, Kumaoni; *
Western Pahari The Western Pahari languages are a group of Northern Indo-Aryan languages that are spoken in the state of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir and parts of Uttarakhand and Punjab Languages The following lists the languages c ...
(Himachali): Dogri,
Kangri Kangri can mean: *of, from, or related to the Kangra Valley or the Kangra district of northern India *Kangri language, the Indo-Aryan language of the valley *Kanger A kanger (; also known as kangri or kangid or kangir) is an earthen pot woven aro ...
,
Bhadarwahi Bhadarwahi is an Indo-Aryan language of the Western Pahari group spoken in the Bhaderwah region of Jammu and Kashmir, India. The name Bhadarwahi can be understood either in a narrow sense as referring to the dialect, locally known as Bhiḍl� ...
,
Churahi Churahi (Takri: ) is a Western Pahari language of Himachal Pradesh, India. It is spoken in the Chaurah and Saluni tehsils of Chamba district, and is considered vulnerable. Adages Script The native script of the language is Takri script. ...
,
Bhateali Bhateali, or Bhattiyali, is a Western Pahari language of northern India. The 2011 Indian Census counted 23,970 speakers, of which 15,107 were found in Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh. Bhateali has sometimes been counted as dialect of either ...
, Bilaspuri,
Chambeali Chambeali (Takri: ) is a language spoken in the Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh. Classification The Chambeali language is a part of the North-Western branch of the Indo-Aryan languages. It is further classified as a member of the Western-P ...
, Gaddi,
Pangwali Pangwali (Takri: ) is a Western Pahari language of Himachal Pradesh, India. It is spoken in the Pangi Tehsil of Chamba district, and is threatened to go extinct. Pangwali is natively written in the Takri script, but Devanagari is used as well. ...
,
Mandeali Mandeali (Takri: ) is a language spoken in northern India, predominantly in the Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh by the people of the Mandi Valley and particularly in the major city of Mandi. Other spellings for the name are Mandiyali and Ma ...
,
Mahasu Pahari Mahasu Pahari (Takri: ) is a Western Pahari (Himachali, Takri: ) language spoken in Himachal Pradesh. It is also known as Mahasui or Mahasuvi. The speaking population is about 1,000,000 (2001). It is more commonly spoken in the Himachal Pradesh, S ...
,
Jaunsari Jaunsari may refer to: * Jaunsari people, an ethnic group of northern India * Jaunsari language Jaunsari () is a Western Pahari language of northern India spoken by the Jaunsari people in the Chakrata Chakrata is a cantonment town and als ...
,
Kullui Kului (, also known as Kulvi, Takri: ) is a Western Pahari language spoken in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Phonology Consonants For the stops and affricates there is a four-way distinction in phonation between tenuis , voiced , ...
, Pahari Kinnauri, Hinduri,
Sarazi Sarazi or Sirazi (also spelled Siraji) is an Indo-Aryan language of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is native to the Saraz region, a hilly area taking up the northern half of Doda district and parts of neighbouring Ramban and Kishtwar districts. ...
,
Sirmauri Sirmauri is a Western Pahari language spoken in the Sirmaur district in the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western H ...
.


Northwestern Zone

Northwestern Indo-Aryan languages are spoken in the northwestern region of India and Eastern Pakistan.
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
is spoken predominantly in the Punjab region and is the official language of the northern Indian state of Punjab; in addition to being the most widely-spoken language in Pakistan. To the south,
Sindhi Sindhi may refer to: *something from, or related to Sindh, a province of Pakistan * Sindhi people, an ethnic group from the Sindh region * Sindhi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them People with the name * Sarkash Sindhi (1940–2012 ...
and its variants are spoken; primarily in Sindh. Northwestern languages are ultimately thought to be descended from Shauraseni Prakrit. *
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
** Eastern Punjabi:
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
, Doabi, Majhi, Malwai, Puadhi, Sansi; ** Western Punjabi ( Lahnda): Saraiki, Hindko,
Pahari-Pothwari The Indo-Aryan language spoken on the Pothohar Plateau in the far north of Pakistani Punjab, as well as in most of Pakistan's Azad Kashmir and in western areas of India's Jammu and Kashmir, is known by a variety of names, the most common of whic ...
, Inku†; *
Sindhi Sindhi may refer to: *something from, or related to Sindh, a province of Pakistan * Sindhi people, an ethnic group from the Sindh region * Sindhi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them People with the name * Sarkash Sindhi (1940–2012 ...
:
Sindhi Sindhi may refer to: *something from, or related to Sindh, a province of Pakistan * Sindhi people, an ethnic group from the Sindh region * Sindhi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them People with the name * Sarkash Sindhi (1940–2012 ...
,
Jadgali Jaḍgālī is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Jadgal, an ethno-linguistic group of Pakistan and Iran. It is one of only two Indo-Aryan languages found on the Iranian plateau. It is a dialect of Sindhi most closely related to Lasi. The ...
, Kutchi, Luwati,
Memoni Memoni (ميموني, મેમોની) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by Kathiawari Memons from the Kathiawar region of Gujarat, India. Memon people are a subgroup or an ethnic group that originated in north-western India. After the Indi ...
, Khetrani,
Kholosi Kholosi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in two villages in southern Iran that was first described in 2008. At its current status, the language is considered endangered. In 2008, it was only spoken in the neighboring villages of Kholus and G ...
.


Western Zone

Western Indo-Aryan languages, are spoken in the central and western areas within India, such as
Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the second ...
and
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern ...
, in addition to contiguous regions in Pakistan. Gujarati is the official language of
Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
, and is spoken by over 50 million people. In Europe, various Romani languages are spoken by the
Romani people The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan peoples, Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic Itinerant groups in Europe, itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have Ro ...
, an itinerant community who historically migrated from India. The Western Indo-Aryan languages are thought to have diverged from their northwestern counterparts, although they have a common antecedent in Shauraseni Prakrit. * Rajasthani: Standard Rajasthani, Bagri, Marwari,
Mewati Mewati (Devanagri:मेवाती; Perso-Arabic:میواتی) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by about three million speakers in the Mewat Region (Alwar and Bharatpur, districts of Rajasthan, Nuh district of Haryana). While other people ...
,
Dhundari Dhundhari (also known as Jaipuri) is a dialect of Rajasthani spoken in the Dhundhar region of northeastern Rajasthan state, India. Dhundari-speaking people are found in four districts – Jaipur, Sawai Madhopur, Dausa, Tonk and some parts ...
,
Harauti Harauti or Hadauti (Hadoti) is a Rajasthani language spoken by approximately four million people in the Hadoti region of southeastern Rajasthan, India. Its speakers are concentrated in the districts of Kota, Baran, Bundi and Jhalawar in Rajast ...
, Mewari, Shekhawati, Dhatki,
Malvi The Malvi or Malavi, also known as Manthani or Mahadeopuri, is breed of zebu cattle from the Malwa plateau in western Madhya Pradesh, in central India. It is a good draught breed; the milk yield of the cows is low. The breed has been studie ...
, Nimadi,
Gujari Gojri (, ), also known as Gujari, Gujri, Gojari, or Gojri, is a variety of Rajasthani spoken by the Gurjars and other tribes of India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. In India, the language is mainly spoken in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Prades ...
, Goaria, Loarki, Bhoyari, Kanjari, Od; *
Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...
:
Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...
, Jandavra, Saurashtra, Aer, Vaghri, Parkari Koli,
Kachi Koli Kachi Koli is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in Pakistan and India. Part of the Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati lan ...
,
Wadiyara Koli Wadiyara Koli is an Indo-Aryan language of the Gujarati group. It is spoken by the Wadiyara people, who originate from Wadiyar in Gujarat; many of whom are thought to have migrated to Sindh in the early twentieth century, following the onset ...
; *
Bhil Bhil or Bheel is an ethnic group in western India. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages. As of 2013, Bhils were the largest tribal group in India. Bhils are listed as tribal people of ...
: Kalto, Vasavi, Wagdi, Gamit, Vaagri Booli; ** Northern Bhil:
Bauria ''Bauria'' is an extinct genus of the suborder Therocephalia that existed during the Early and MiddleTriassic period, around 246-251 million years ago. It belonged to the family Bauriidae. ''Bauria'' was probably a carnivore or insectivore ...
, Bhilori, Magari; ** Central Bhil: Bhili proper, Bhilali, Chodri, Dhodia, Dhanki, Dubli; ** Bareli: Palya Bareli, Pauri Bareli,
Rathwi Bareli Rathwi Bareli is a Bhil language of India, spoken mainly in Gujarat. It is close to two other languages called Bareli, but not mutually intelligible with them. It has 81%–93% lexical similarity with Rathwi Bareli dialects, 67%–73% with Paly ...
, Pardhi; * Khandeshi * Lambadi *
Domaaki Dawoodi (), also known as Domaakí (), Dumaki or Domaá, is an endangered Indo-Aryan language spoken by a few hundred people living in the Gilgit-Baltistan territory in northern Pakistan. It is historically related to the Central Indo-Aryan langua ...
* Domari *
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
: Carpathian Romani,
Balkan Romani Balkan Romani, Balkaniko Romanes, or Balkan Gypsy is a specific non- Vlax dialect of the Romani language, spoken by groups within the Balkans, which include countries such as Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Greece, Kosovo, North Macedonia, ...
, Vlax Romani; ** Northern Romani:
Sinte Romani Sinte Romani (also known as Sintitikes, Manuš) is the variety of Romani spoken by the Sinti people in Germany, France, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, some parts of Northern Italy and other adjacent regions. Sinte Romani is characterize ...
, Finnish Kalo,
Baltic Romani Baltic Romani is group of dialects of the Romani language spoken in the Baltic states and adjoining regions of Poland and Russia. Half of the speakers live in Poland. It also called Balt Romani, Balt Slavic Romani, Baltic Slavic Romani, and Ro ...
.


Central Zone (Madhya ''or'' Hindi)

Within India, Hindi languages are spoken primarily in the Hindi belt regions and Gangetic plains, including
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
and the surrounding areas; where they are often transitional with neighbouring lects. Many of these languages, including
Braj Braj, also known as Vraj, Vraja, Brij or Brijbhoomi, is a region in India on both sides of the Yamuna river with its centre at Mathura-Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh state encompassing the area which also includes Palwal and Ballabhgarh in Hary ...
and Awadhi, have rich literary and poetic traditions.
Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Khariboli, is the official language of
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
and also has strong historical connections to
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
, where it also has been designated with official status.
Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
, a standardized and Sanskritized register of Khariboli, is the official language of the Government of India. Together with Urdu, it is the third most-spoken language in the world. * Western Hindi: Hindustani (including Standard Hindi and Standard Urdu), Khariboli,
Braj Braj, also known as Vraj, Vraja, Brij or Brijbhoomi, is a region in India on both sides of the Yamuna river with its centre at Mathura-Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh state encompassing the area which also includes Palwal and Ballabhgarh in Hary ...
, Haryanvi,
Bundeli Bundeli ( Devanagari: बुन्देली or बुंदेली; or Bundelkhandi) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Bundelkhand region of central India. It belongs to the Central Indo-Ayran languages and is part of the Western H ...
,
Kannauji Kannauji is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Kannauj region of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Kannauji is closely related to Hindustani, with a lexical similarity of 83–94% with Hindi. Some consider it to be a dialect of Hindust ...
, Parya; * Eastern Hindi: Bagheli,
Chhattisgarhi Chhattisgarhi ( / ) is an Indo-Aryan language, spoken by approximately 16 million people from Chhattisgarh & other states. It is mostly spoken in the Indian states of Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh & Maharashtra. It is closely related ...
, Surgujia; ** Awadhi: Fiji Hindi, Caribbean Hindustani


Eastern Zone

The Eastern Indo-Aryan languages, also known as Magadhan languages, are spoken throughout the eastern subcontinent, including Odisha and Bihar, alongside other regions surrounding the northwestern Himalayan corridor.
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
is the seventh most-spoken language in the world, and has a strong literary tradition; the national anthems of
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
and
Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
are written in Bengali. Assamese and
Odia Odia, also spelled Oriya or Odiya, may refer to: * Odia people in Odisha, India * Odia language, an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family * Odia alphabet, a writing system used for the Odia languag ...
are the official languages of Assam and Odisha, respectively. The Eastern Indo-Aryan languages descend from Magadhan Apabhraṃśa and ultimately from Magadhi Prakrit. * Bihari: ** Bhojpuri, Caribbean Hindustani, Fiji Hindi; **
Magahi The Magahi language (), also known as Magadhi (), is a language spoken in Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal states of eastern India, and in the Terai of Nepal. Magadhi Prakrit was the ancestor of Magahi, from which the latter's name deriv ...
, Khortha; ** Maithili, Angika,
Bajjika Bajjika is an Indo-Aryan language variety spoken in parts of eastern India and Nepal. It is closely related to Maithili (of which it is often considered a dialect). Territory and speakers Bajjika is spoken in the north-western part of Bihar, ...
, Dehati; ** Sadanic: Nagpuri (Sadri), Kurmali (Panchpargania); ** Tharu,
Kochila Tharu Kochila Tharu, also called Septari or Saptariya Tharu, Madhya-Purbiya Tharu, and Mid-Eastern Tharu, is a diverse group of language varieties in the Tharu group of the Indo-Aryan languages. The several names of the varieties refer to the regions ...
, Buksa, Majhi, Musasa; ** Kumhali, Kuswaric: Danwar, Bote-Darai; * Halbic: Halbi, Kamar, Bhunjia, Nahari; *
Odia Odia, also spelled Oriya or Odiya, may refer to: * Odia people in Odisha, India * Odia language, an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family * Odia alphabet, a writing system used for the Odia languag ...
: Baleswari, Kataki, Ganjami, Sundargadi, Sambalpuri, Desia; ** Bodo Parja,
Bhatri Bhatri is an Eastern Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Bhottada tribe in Chhattisgarh and Odisha, India. The language is spoken predominantly in eastern Bastar district and in Koraput Koraput is a town and a Municipality in Koraput distr ...
, Reli, Kupia; * Bengali–Assamese: Bishnupriya Manipuri, Hajong, Chittagonian,
Chakma Chakma may refer to: *Chakma people, a Tibeto-Burman people of Bangladesh and Northeast India *Chakma language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them **Chakma script The Chakma Script (''Ajhā pāṭh''), also called Ajhā pāṭh, Ojhapath, O ...
,
Noakhailla Noakhailla (), also known by the exonym Noakhalian, is a dialect of Bengali, spoken by an estimated 7 million people, primarily in the Greater Noakhali region of Bangladesh as well as southern parts of Tripura in India. Outside of these regions, t ...
, Tanchangya, Rohingya, Sylheti,; ** Bengali-Gauda:
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
,
Bangali Bengalis (singular Bengali bn, বাঙ্গালী/বাঙালি ), also rendered as Bangalee or the Bengali people, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the Bengal region of S ...
, Rarhi, Varendri, Sundarbani, Manbhumi, Dhakaiya Kutti, Dobhashi; ** Kamarupic: Assamese, Kamrupi, Goalpariya, Rangpuri,
Surjapuri Surjapuri is an Eastern Indo-Aryan language spoken in Eastern India including North Bengal, West Bengal, and Banganchal of Eastern Bihar, as well as in Nepal. Among speakers in some regions, it is known as 'Deshi Bhasa'. It possesses similaritie ...
, Rajbanshi;


Southern Zone

Marathi-Konkani languages are ultimately descended from Maharashtri Prakrit, whereas Insular Indo-Aryan languages are descended from Elu Prakrit and possess several characteristics that markedly distinguish them from most of their mainland Indo-Aryan counterparts. *
Marathi-Konkani The Marathi-Konkani languages are the mainland Southern Indic languages, spoken in Maharashtra and the Konkan region of India. Languages Languages are: Marathi, Konkani, Phudagi, Kadodi (Samvedi), Katkari, Varli and Andh. Several of th ...
** Marathic: Marathi, Varhadi, Andh, Berar-Deccan Marathi, Phudagi, Katkari, Varli, Kadodi; ** Konkanic: Konkani,
Canarese Konkani Canarese Konkani are a set of dialects spoken by minority Konkani people of the Canara sub-region of Karnataka, and also in Kassergode of Kerala that was part of South Canara.The Constitution Act 1992 (71st Amendment) Kanarese script is the ...
,
Maharashtrian Konkani Maharashtri Konkani or Konkan Marathi, is a group of Konkanic dialects spoken in the Konkan division of the Konkan region. George Abraham Grierson, a British Indian linguist of the colonial era referred to these dialects as the ''Konkan St ...
.


Insular Indic

Insular Indic languages (of
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
and
Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...
) started developing independently and diverging from the continental Indo-Aryan languages from around 5th century BCE. * Insular Indo-Aryan ** Sinhala ** Maldivian: Dhivehi, Mahl


Unclassified

The following languages are otherwise unclassified within Indo-Aryan: * Chinali–Lahul Lohar: Chinali, Lahul Lohar. * Badeshi


History


Proto-Indo-Aryan

Proto-Indo-Aryan (or sometimes Proto-Indic) is the reconstructed proto-language of the Indo-Aryan languages. It is intended to reconstruct the language of the pre-Vedic Indo-Aryans. Proto-Indo-Aryan is meant to be the predecessor of Old Indo-Aryan (1500–300 BCE), which is directly attested as Vedic and
Mitanni-Aryan Mitanni (; Hittite cuneiform ; ''Mittani'' '), c. 1550–1260 BC, earlier called Ḫabigalbat in old Babylonian texts, c. 1600 BC; Hanigalbat or Hani-Rabbat (''Hanikalbat'', ''Khanigalbat'', cuneiform ') in Assyrian records, or ''Naharin'' in ...
. Despite the great archaicity of Vedic, however, the other Indo-Aryan languages preserve a small number of conservative features lost in Vedic.


Mitanni-Aryan hypothesis

Some theonyms, proper names, and other terminology of the Late
Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
Mitanni civilization of Upper Mesopotamia exhibit an Indo-Aryan superstrate. While what few written records left by the Mittani are either in
Hurrian The Hurrians (; cuneiform: ; transliteration: ''Ḫu-ur-ri''; also called Hari, Khurrites, Hourri, Churri, Hurri or Hurriter) were a people of the Bronze Age Near East. They spoke a Hurrian language and lived in Anatolia, Syria and Norther ...
(which appears to have been the predominant language of their kingdom) or
Akkadian Akkadian or Accadian may refer to: * Akkadians, inhabitants of the Akkadian Empire * Akkadian language, an extinct Eastern Semitic language * Akkadian literature, literature in this language * Akkadian cuneiform Cuneiform is a logo-syllabic ...
(the main diplomatic language of the Late Bronze Age Near East), these apparently Indo-Aryan names suggest that an Indo-Aryan elite imposed itself over the Hurrians in the course of the Indo-Aryan expansion. If these traces are Indo-Aryan, they would be the earliest known direct evidence of Indo-Aryan, and would increase the precision in dating the split between the Indo-Aryan and Iranian languages (as the texts in which the apparent Indicisms occur can be dated with some accuracy). In a treaty between the Hittites and the Mitanni, the deities Mitra,
Varuna Varuna (; sa, वरुण, , Malay: ''Baruna'') is a Vedic deity associated initially with the sky, later also with the seas as well as Ṛta (justice) and Satya (truth). He is found in the oldest layer of Vedic literature of Hinduism, su ...
, Indra, and the Ashvins (
Nasatya The Ashvins ( sa, अश्विन्, Aśvin, horse possessors), also known as Ashwini Kumara and Asvinau,, §1.42. are Hindu twin gods associated with medicine, health, dawn and sciences. In the ''Rigveda'', they are described as youthful div ...
) are invoked. Kikkuli's horse training text includes technical terms such as ''aika'' (cf. Sanskrit ''eka'', "one"), ''tera'' (''tri'', "three"), ''panza'' (''pancha'', "five"), ''satta'' (''sapta'', seven), ''na'' (''nava'', "nine"), ''vartana'' (''vartana'', "turn", round in the horse race). The numeral ''aika'' "one" is of particular importance because it places the superstrate in the vicinity of Indo-Aryan proper as opposed to Indo-Iranian in general or early Iranian (which has ''aiva''). Another text has ''babru'' (''babhru'', "brown"), ''parita'' (''palita'', "grey"), and (''pingala'', "red"). Their chief festival was the celebration of the
solstice A solstice is an event that occurs when the Sun appears to reach its most northerly or southerly excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. Two solstices occur annually, around June 21 and December 21. In many count ...
(''vishuva'') which was common in most cultures in the ancient world. The Mitanni warriors were called ''marya'', the term for "warrior" in Sanskrit as well; note ''mišta-nnu'' (= ''miẓḍha'', ≈ Sanskrit ''mīḍha'') "payment (for catching a fugitive)" (M. Mayrhofer, ''Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen'', Heidelberg, 1986–2000; Vol. II:358). Sanskritic interpretations of Mitanni royal names render Artashumara (''artaššumara'') as ''Ṛtasmara'' "who thinks of Ṛta" (Mayrhofer II 780), Biridashva (''biridašṷa, biriiašṷ''a) as ''Prītāśva'' "whose horse is dear" (Mayrhofer II 182), Priyamazda (''priiamazda'') as ''Priyamedha'' "whose wisdom is dear" (Mayrhofer II 189, II378), Citrarata as ''Citraratha'' "whose chariot is shining" (Mayrhofer I 553), Indaruda/Endaruta as ''Indrota'' "helped by Indra" (Mayrhofer I 134), Shativaza (''šattiṷaza'') as ''Sātivāja'' "winning the race price" (Mayrhofer II 540, 696), Šubandhu as ''Subandhu'' "having good relatives" (a name in Palestine, Mayrhofer II 209, 735), Tushratta (''tṷišeratta, tušratta'', etc.) as *tṷaiašaratha, Vedic Tvastar "whose chariot is vehement" (Mayrhofer, Etym. Wb., I 686, I 736).


Indian subcontinent

Dates indicate only a rough time frame. * Proto-Indo-Aryan (before 1500 BCE, reconstructed) * Old Indo-Aryan (ca. 1500–300 BCE) ** early Old Indo-Aryan: includes Vedic Sanskrit (ca. 1500 to 500 BCE) ** late Old Indo-Aryan: Epic Sanskrit, Classical Sanskrit (ca. 200 CE to 1300 CE) ** Mitanni Indo-Aryan (ca. 1400 BCE) *
Middle Indo-Aryan The Middle Indo-Aryan languages (or Middle Indic languages, sometimes conflated with the Prakrits, which are a stage of Middle Indic) are a historical group of languages of the Indo-Aryan family. They are the descendants of Old Indo-Aryan (OIA ...
or Prakrits (ca. 300 BCE to 1500 CE) ** early Buddhist texts (ca. 6th or 5th century BCE) ** early Middle Indo-Aryan: e.g. Ashokan Prakrits, Pali, Gandhari, (ca. 300 BCE to 200 BCE) ** middle Middle Indo-Aryan: e.g. Dramatic Prakrits, Elu (ca. 200 BCE to 700 CE) ** late Middle Indo-Aryan: e.g.
Abahattha Abahaṭ‌ṭha, Abahatta or Avahaṭṭha (Prakrit: ''abasaṭ‌ṭa'', ultimately from Sanskrit ''apaśabda'' 'meaningless sound') is a stage in the evolution of the Eastern group of the Indo-Aryan languages. The eastern group consists of lan ...
(ca. 700 CE to 1500 CE) * Early Modern Indo-Aryan (Late Medieval India): e.g. early Dakhini and emergence of the Dehlavi dialect


Old Indo-Aryan

The earliest evidence of the group is from Vedic Sanskrit, that is used in the ancient preserved texts of the
Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, In ...
, the foundational canon of the Hindu synthesis known as the Vedas. The Indo-Aryan superstrate in Mitanni is of similar age to the language of the
Rigveda The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' ( ', from ' "praise" and ' "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts ('' śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only on ...
, but the only evidence of it is a few proper names and specialized loanwords. While Old Indo-Aryan is the earliest stage of the Indo-Aryan branch, from which all known languages of the later stages Middle and New Indo-Aryan are derived, some documented Middle Indo-Aryan variants cannot fully be derived from the documented form of Old Indo-Aryan (on which Vedic and Classical Sanskrit are based), but betray features that must go back to other undocumented variants/dialects of Old Indo-Aryan. From Vedic Sanskrit, " Sanskrit" (literally "put together", "perfected" or "elaborated") developed as the prestige language of culture, science and religion, as well as the court, theatre, etc. Sanskrit of the later Vedic texts is comparable to Classical Sanskrit, but is largely mutually unintelligible with Vedic Sanskrit.


Middle Indo-Aryan (Prakrits)

Outside the learned sphere of Sanskrit, vernacular dialects ( Prakrits) continued to evolve. The oldest attested Prakrits are the Buddhist and Jain canonical languages Pali and Ardhamagadhi Prakrit, respectively. Inscriptions in Ashokan Prakrit were also part of this early Middle Indo-Aryan stage. By medieval times, the Prakrits had diversified into various Middle Indo-Aryan languages. '' Apabhraṃśa'' is the conventional cover term for transitional dialects connecting late Middle Indo-Aryan with early Modern Indo-Aryan, spanning roughly the 6th to 13th centuries. Some of these dialects showed considerable literary production; the ''Śravakacāra'' of Devasena (dated to the 930s) is now considered to be the first Hindi book. The next major milestone occurred with the Muslim conquests in the Indian subcontinent in the 13th–16th centuries. Under the flourishing Turco-Mongol Mughal Empire, Persian became very influential as the language of prestige of the Islamic courts due to adoption of the foreign language by the Mughal emperors. The two largest languages that formed from Apabhraṃśa were
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
and Hindustani; others include Assamese,
Sindhi Sindhi may refer to: *something from, or related to Sindh, a province of Pakistan * Sindhi people, an ethnic group from the Sindh region * Sindhi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them People with the name * Sarkash Sindhi (1940–2012 ...
,
Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...
,
Odia Odia, also spelled Oriya or Odiya, may refer to: * Odia people in Odisha, India * Odia language, an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family * Odia alphabet, a writing system used for the Odia languag ...
, Marathi, and
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
.


New Indo-Aryan


= Medieval Hindustani

= In the Central Zone Hindi-speaking areas, for a long time the
prestige dialect Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnet ...
was Braj Bhasha, but this was replaced in the 19th century by Dehlavi-based Hindustani. Hindustani was strongly influenced by Persian, with these and later Sanskrit influence leading to the emergence of Modern Standard Hindi and Modern Standard
Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' register Register or registration may refer to: Arts entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller * Registration (organ), th ...
s of the Hindustani language. This state of affairs continued until the division of the British Indian Empire in 1947, when Hindi became the official language in India and
Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' sociolinguistic than purely linguistic. Today it is widely understood/spoken as a second or third language throughout South Asia and one of the most widely known languages in the world in terms of number of speakers.


Outside the Indian subcontinent


Domari

Domari is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by older Dom people scattered across the Middle East. The language is reported to be spoken as far north as Azerbaijan and as far south as central Sudan.*Matras, Y. (2012). ''A grammar of Domari''. Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton (Mouton Grammar Library). Based on the systematicity of sound changes, linguists have concluded that the ethnonyms ''Domari'' and ''
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
'' derive from the Indo-Aryan word ''ḍom''.


Lomavren

Lomavren is a nearly extinct mixed language, spoken by the
Lom people The Lom people or tr, Lomlar, also known in tr, Poşa as (Bosha or Posha) by non-Loms ( hy, Բոշա, ka, ბოშა, tr; russian: Боша) or Romani (russian: армянские цыгане; hy, հայ գնչուներ) or Caucasian Ro ...
, that arose from language contact between a language related to
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
and Domari and the
Armenian language Armenian (Classical Armenian orthography, classical: , Armenian orthography reform, reformed: , , ) is an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language and an independent branch of that family of languages. It is the official language of Armenia ...
.


Romani

The Romani language is usually included in the Western Indo-Aryan languages. Romani varieties, which are mainly spoken throughout Europe, are noted for their relatively conservative nature; maintaining the Middle Indo-Aryan present-tense person concord markers, alongside consonantal endings for nominal case. Indeed, these features are no longer evident in most other modern Central Indo-Aryan languages. Moreover, Romani shares an innovative pattern of past-tense person, which corresponds to Dardic languages, such as Kashmiri and Shina. This is believed to be further indication that proto-Romani speakers were originally situated in central regions of the subcontinent, before migrating to northwestern regions. However, there are no known historical sources regarding the development of the Romani language specifically within India. Research conducted by nineteenth-century scholars Pott (1845) and Miklosich (1882–1888) demonstrated that the Romani language is most aptly designated as a New Indo-Aryan language (NIA), as opposed to Middle Indo-Aryan (MIA); establishing that proto-Romani speakers could not have left India significantly earlier than AD 1000. The principal argument favouring a migration during or after the transition period to NIA is the loss of the old system of nominal case, coupled with its reduction to a two-way nominative-oblique case system. A secondary argument concerns the system of gender differentiation, due to the fact that Romani has only two genders (masculine and feminine). Middle Indo-Aryan languages (named MIA) generally employed three genders (masculine, feminine and neuter), and some modern Indo-Aryan languages retain this aspect today. It is suggested that loss of the neuter gender did not occur until the transition to NIA. During this process, most of the neuter nouns became masculine, while several became feminine. For example, the neuter ''aggi'' "fire" in Prakrit morphed into the feminine ''āg'' in Hindi, and ''jag'' in Romani. The parallels in grammatical gender evolution between Romani and other NIA languages have additionally been cited as indications that the forerunner of Romani remained on the Indian subcontinent until a later period, possibly as late as the tenth century.


Sindhic migrations

Kholosi Kholosi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in two villages in southern Iran that was first described in 2008. At its current status, the language is considered endangered. In 2008, it was only spoken in the neighboring villages of Kholus and G ...
,
Jadgali Jaḍgālī is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Jadgal, an ethno-linguistic group of Pakistan and Iran. It is one of only two Indo-Aryan languages found on the Iranian plateau. It is a dialect of Sindhi most closely related to Lasi. The ...
, and Luwati represent offshoots of the Sindhic subfamily of Indo-Aryan that have established themselves in the Persian gulf region, perhaps through sea-based migrations. These are of a later origin than the Rom and Dom migrations which represent a different part of Indo-Aryan as well.


Indentured labourer migrations

The use by the British East India Company of indentured labourers led to the transplanting of Indo-Aryan languages around the world, leading to locally influenced lects that diverged from the source language, such as Fiji Hindi and Caribbean Hindustani.


Phonology


Consonants


Stop positions

The normative system of New Indo-Aryan stops consists of five places of articulation:
labial The term ''labial'' originates from '' Labium'' (Latin for "lip"), and is the adjective that describes anything of or related to lips, such as lip-like structures. Thus, it may refer to: * the lips ** In linguistics, a labial consonant ** In zoolog ...
, dental, " retroflex", palatal, and velar, which is the same as that of Sanskrit. The "retroflex" position may involve retroflexion, or curling the tongue to make the contact with the underside of the tip, or merely retraction. The point of contact may be alveolar or postalveolar, and the distinctive quality may arise more from the shaping than from the position of the tongue. Palatals stops have affricated release and are traditionally included as involving a distinctive tongue position (blade in contact with hard palate). Widely transcribed as , claims to be a more accurate rendering. Moving away from the normative system, some languages and dialects have alveolar affricates instead of palatal, though some among them retain in certain positions: before front vowels (esp. ), before , or when geminated. Alveolar as an ''additional'' point of articulation occurs in Marathi and Konkani where dialect mixture and others factors upset the aforementioned complementation to produce minimal environments, in some West Pahari dialects through internal developments (, > ), and in
Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, their language People with the name * Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...
. The addition of a retroflex affricate to this in some
Dardic languages The Dardic languages (also Dardu or Pisaca) or Hindu-Kush Indo-Aryan languages, are a group of several Indo-Aryan languages spoken in northern Pakistan, northwestern India and parts of northeastern Afghanistan. The term "Dardic" is stated t ...
maxes out the number of stop positions at seven (barring borrowed ), while a reduction to the inventory involves *ts > , which has happened in Assamese, Chittagonian, Sinhala (though there have been other sources of a secondary ), and Southern Mewari. Further reductions in the number of stop articulations are in Assamese and
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
, which have lost the characteristic dental/retroflex contrast, and in Chittagonian, which may lose its labial and velar articulations through
spirantisation In linguistics, lenition is a sound change that alters consonants, making them more sonorous. The word ''lenition'' itself means "softening" or "weakening" (from Latin 'weak'). Lenition can happen both synchronically (within a language at ...
in many positions (> ). /q x ɣ f/ are restricted to Perso-Arabic loanwords in most IA languages but they occur natively in Khowar. According to Masica (1991) some dialects of Pashayi have a /θ/ which is unusual for IA languages. Domari which is spoken in the Middle East and had high contact with Middle Eastern languages has /q ħ ʕ ʔ/ and emphatic consonants from loanwords.


Nasals

Sanskrit was noted as having five nasal-stop articulations corresponding to its oral stops, and among modern languages and dialects Dogri, Kacchi, Kalasha, Rudhari, Shina, Saurashtri, and Sindhi have been analysed as having this full complement of phonemic nasals , with the last two generally as the result of the loss of the stop from a homorganic nasal + stop cluster ( > and > ), though there are other sources as well. In languages that lack phonemic nasals at some places of articulation, they can still occur allophonically from place assimilation in a nasal + stop culture, e.g. Hindi > .


Aspiration and breathy-voice

Most Indo-Aryan languages have contrastive aspiration (), and some retain historical breathy voice on voiced consonants (). Sometimes both phenomena are analysed as a single aspiration contrast. The places and manners of articulation which allow contrastive aspiration vary by language; e.g. Sindhi permits phonemic , but the phonemic status of this sound in Hindi is uncertain, and many "Dardic" languages lack aspirated retroflex sibilants despite having unaspirated equivalents. In languages that have lost breathy-voice, the contrast has often been replaced with tone.


Regional developments

Some of these are mentioned in . * Implosives: Languages in the Sindhic subfamily, as well as Saraiki, western Marwari dialects, and some dialects of Gujarati have developed implosive consonants from historical intervocalic geminates and word-initial stops. Sindhi has a full implosive series except for the dental implosive: . It has been claimed that Wadiyari Koli has the dental implosive too. Other languages have less complete implosive series, e.g. Kacchi has just . * Prenasalized stops: Sinhala and Maldivian (Dhivehi) have a series of prenasalized stops covering all places except for palatal: . * Palatalization: Kashmiri (natively) and some Romani dialects (from contact with Slavic languages) have contrastive palatalisation. * Voiceless lateral In Gawarbati, some Pashai dialects, partly Bashkarik and some Shina dialects have /ɬ/ from clusters of tr kr or sometimes pr; dr gr and br merged with /l/ in these languages. *
Lateral affricate A lateral is a consonant in which the airstream proceeds along one or both of the sides of the tongue, but it is blocked by the tongue from going through the middle of the mouth. An example of a lateral consonant is the English ''L'', as in ''Larr ...
s: Bhadarwahi has an unusual series of lateral retroflex affricates ( derived from historical clusters.


Vowels

Vowel typologies are varied across Indo-Aryan due to diachronic mergers and (in some cases) splits, as well as different accounts by linguists for even the widely-spoken languages. Vowel systems per are listed below. Many languages also have phonemic nasal vowels. Sylheti language being a tonal, still classified as the Indo-Aryan language. The vowels of Sylheti language listed below.


Charts

The following are consonant systems of major and representative New Indo-Aryan languages, mostly following , though here they are in
IPA IPA commonly refers to: * India pale ale, a style of beer * International Phonetic Alphabet, a system of phonetic notation * Isopropyl alcohol, a chemical compound IPA may also refer to: Organizations International * Insolvency Practitioners A ...
. Parentheses indicate those consonants found only in loanwords: square brackets indicate those with "very low functional load". The arrangement is roughly geographical.


Sociolinguistics


Register

In many Indo-Aryan languages, the literary register is often more archaic and utilises a different lexicon (Sanskrit or Perso-Arabic) than spoken vernacular. One example is Bengali's high literary form, Sādhū bhāśā as opposed to the more modern Calita bhāśā (Cholito-bhasha). This distinction approaches diglossia.


Language and dialect

In the context of South Asia, the choice between the appellations "language" and "dialect" is a difficult one, and any distinction made using these terms is obscured by their ambiguity. In one general colloquial sense, a language is a "developed" dialect: one that is standardised, has a written tradition and enjoys social prestige. As there are degrees of development, the boundary between a language and a dialect thus defined is not clear-cut, and there is a large middle ground where assignment is contestable. There is a second meaning of these terms, in which the distinction is drawn on the basis of linguistic similarity. Though seemingly a "proper" linguistics sense of the terms, it is still problematic: methods that have been proposed for quantifying difference (for example, based on
mutual intelligibility In linguistics, mutual intelligibility is a relationship between languages or dialects in which speakers of different but related varieties can readily understand each other without prior familiarity or special effort. It is sometimes used as ...
) have not been seriously applied in practice; and any relationship established in this framework is relative.


See also

* Indo-Aryans * Iranic languages * Indo-Aryan migration * Proto-Vedic Continuity * The family of
Brahmic The Brahmic scripts, also known as Indic scripts, are a family of abugida writing systems. They are used throughout the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and parts of East Asia. They are descended from the Brahmi script of ancient In ...
scripts *
Linguistic history of India Since the Iron Age in India, the native languages of the Indian subcontinent are divided into various language families, of which the Indo-Aryan and the Dravidian are the most widely spoken. There are also many languages belonging to unre ...
* Indo-Aryan loanwords in Tamil *
Languages of Bangladesh The national language and official language of Bangladesh is Bengali according to the third article of the Constitution of Bangladesh. The second most spoken language in Bangladesh is claimed to be Burmese which is spoken by the Marma tri ...
*
Languages of India Languages spoken in India belong to several language families, the major ones being the Indo-European languages spoken by 78.05% of Indians and the Dravidian languages spoken by 19.64% of Indians, both families together are sometimes know ...
* Languages of Maldives * Languages of Nepal * Languages of Pakistan * Languages of Sri Lanka * Languages of South Asia


Notes


References


Further reading

* John Beames, ''A comparative grammar of the modern Aryan languages of India: to wit, Hindi, Panjabi, Sindhi, Gujarati, Marathi, Oriya, and Bangali''. Londinii: Trübner, 1872–1879. 3 vols. *Morgenstierne, Georg. "Early Iranic Influence upon Indo-Aryan." Acta Iranica, I. série, Commemoration Cyrus. Vol. I. Hommage universel (1974): 271-279. * . * Madhav Deshpande (1979). ''Sociolinguistic attitudes in India: An historical reconstruction''. Ann Arbor: Karoma Publishers. , (pbk). * Chakrabarti, Byomkes (1994). ''A comparative study of Santali and Bengali''. Calcutta: K.P. Bagchi & Co. * Erdosy, George. (1995). ''The Indo-Aryans of ancient South Asia: Language, material culture and ethnicity''. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. .
Ernst Kausen, 2006. ''Die Klassifikation der indogermanischen Sprachen''
( Microsoft Word, 133 KB) * Kobayashi, Masato.; & George Cardona (2004). ''Historical phonology of old Indo-Aryan consonants''. Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. . * . * Misra, Satya Swarup. (1980). ''Fresh light on Indo-European classification and chronology''. Varanasi: Ashutosh Prakashan Sansthan. * Misra, Satya Swarup. (1991–1993). ''The Old-Indo-Aryan, a historical & comparative grammar'' (Vols. 1–2). Varanasi: Ashutosh Prakashan Sansthan. * Sen, Sukumar. (1995). ''Syntactic studies of Indo-Aryan languages''. Tokyo: Institute for the Study of Languages and Foreign Cultures of Asia and Africa, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. * Vacek, Jaroslav. (1976). ''The sibilants in Old Indo-Aryan: A contribution to the history of a linguistic area''. Prague: Charles University.


External links


The Indo-Aryan languages
25 October 2009
The Indo-Aryan languages
Colin P.Masica
Survey of the syntax of the modern Indo-Aryan languages
(Rajesh Bhatt), 7 February 2003. {{DEFAULTSORT:Indo-Aryan Languages Indo-European languages