Rodiya is a dialect of the

Sinhalese language Sinhala ( ; , ''siṁhala'', ), sometimes called Sinhalese (), is an Indo-Aryan language primarily spoken by the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka, who make up the largest ethnic group on the island, numbering about 16 million. Sinhala is also sp ...

spoken by members of the

Rodiya Rodi or Rodiya are reported to be an untouchable social group or caste amongst the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka. Their status was very similar to all the Untouchable castes of India with segregated communities, ritualised begging, economically we ...

community 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 ...

. Speakers are considered to be low-

caste Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...

among the

Sinhalese people Sinhalese people ( si, සිංහල ජනතාව, Sinhala Janathāva) are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group native to the island of Sri Lanka. They were historically known as Hela people ( si, හෙළ). They constitute about 75% of t ...

. Examples of Rodiya words:Gunasekara, ''A comprehensive grammar of the Sinhalese language'' (1891), pag. 384 *dissenavā ''to come'' (Sinhala enavā) *dumana ''house'' (Sinhala geya, gedara) *galla ''mouth'' (Sinhala kaṭa) *gävā ''man'' (Sinhala minihā) *gävī ''woman'' (Sinhala gäänu) *miganavā ''to eat'' (Sinhala kanavā)

References

Sinhala language Languages of Sri Lanka {{SriLanka-stub