Languages of India

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This article is about the general overview of Indian languages. For historical context,
see Linguistic history of India.
Not to be confused with Languages of Indian subcontinent.

Languages of India

 Language families of the Indian subcontinent

 Nihali, Kusunda and Thai languages are not shown.

Official  Assamese

 Bengali

 Bodo

 Dogri

 English[1][2][3]

 Gujarati

 Hindi[1][4]

 Kannada

 Kashmiri

 Konkani

 Maithili

 Malayalam

 Marathi
  Meitei

 Nepali

 Odia

 Punjabi

 Sanskrit

 Santali

 Sindhi

 Tamil

 Telugu

 Urdu

 (total: 23, including 22 8th Schedule languages and

additional official language, English)

Foreign English – 200 million (L2 speakers 2003)[5]

Signed  Indo-Pakistani Sign Language

 Alipur Sign Language

 Naga Sign Language (extinct)

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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,[6][7] both families together are sometimes
known as Indic languages.[8][9][10] Languages spoken by the remaining 2.31% of the
population belong to the Austroasiatic, Sino–Tibetan, Tai–Kadai and a few other
minor language families and isolates.[11]: 283  India has the world's fourth highest number
of languages (447), after Papua New Guinea (840), Indonesia (710),
and Nigeria (524).[12]
Article 343 of the Constitution of India stated that the official language of the Union
is Hindi in Devanagari script, with official use of English to continue for 15 years from
1947. Later, a constitutional amendment, The Official Languages Act, 1963, allowed
for the continuation of English alongside Hindi in the Indian government indefinitely
until legislation decides to change it. [2] The form of numerals to be used for the official
purposes of the Union are "the international form of Indian numerals",[13][14] which are
referred to as Arabic numerals in most English-speaking countries.[1] Despite the
misconceptions, Hindi is not the national language of India; the Constitution of
India does not give any language the status of national language. [15][16]
The Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution lists 22 languages,[17] which have
been referred to as scheduled languages and given recognition, status and official
encouragement. In addition, the Government of India has awarded the distinction
of classical
language to Kannada, Malayalam, Odia, Sanskrit, Tamil and Telugu. Classical
language status is given to languages which have a rich heritage and independent
nature.
According to the Census of India of 2001, India has 122 major languages and 1599
other languages. However, figures from other sources vary, primarily due to
differences in definition of the terms "language" and "dialect". The 2001 Census
recorded 30 languages which were spoken by more than a million native speakers
and 122 which were spoken by more than 10,000 people. [18] Two contact
languages have played an important role in the history of
India: Persian[19] and English.[20] Persian was the court language during the Mughal
period in India. It reigned as an administrative language for several centuries until
the era of British colonisation.[21] English continues to be an important language in
India. It is used in higher education and in some areas of the Indian
government. Hindi, which has the largest number of first-language speakers
in India today,[22] serves as the lingua franca across much of North and Central India.
However, there have been concerns raised with Hindi being imposed in South India,
most notably in the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka,[23][24] Maharashtra, West
Bengal, Assam, Punjab and other non-Hindi regions have also started to voice
concerns about Hindi.[25] Bengali is the second most spoken and understood
language in the country with a significant amount of speakers
in eastern and northeastern regions. Marathi is the third most spoken and
understood language in the country with a significant amount of speakers in South-
Western regions.[26]

Contents

 1History
 2Inventories
o 2.1Census of India figures
 3Multilingualism
o 3.12011 Census India
o 3.2Ethnologue (2019, 22nd edition) worldwide
 4Language families
o 4.1Indo-Aryan language family
o 4.2Dravidian language family
o 4.3Austroasiatic language family
o 4.4Tibeto-Burman language family
o 4.5Tai-Kadai language family
o 4.6Andamanese language families
o 4.7Language isolates
 5Official languages
o 5.1Federal level
 5.1.1Hindi
 5.1.2English
o 5.2Scheduled languages
 6Prominent languages of India
o 6.1Hindi
o 6.2Bengali
o 6.3Marathi
o 6.4Meitei
o 6.5Telugu
o 6.6Tamil
o 6.7Urdu
o 6.8Gujarati
o 6.9Kannada
o 6.10Malayalam
o 6.11Odia
o 6.12Santali
o 6.13Punjabi
 o 6.14Assamese
o 6.15Maithili
 7Classical languages of India
o 7.1Benefits
 8Other local languages and dialects
o 8.1Practical problems
 9Language conflicts
 10Developmental works
o 10.1Meitei (Manipuri)
o 10.2Sanskrit
o 10.3Tamil
o 10.4Telugu and Kannada
 11Writing systems
 12See also
 13Notes
 14References
 15External links

History
Main article: Linguistic history of India
Further information: Persian language in the Indian subcontinent
The Southern Indian languages are from the Dravidian family. The Dravidian
languages are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. [27] Proto-Dravidian
languages were spoken in India in the 4th millennium BCE and started disintegrating
into various branches around 3rd millennium BCE. [28][page  needed] The Dravidian languages
are classified in four groups: North, Central (Kolami–Parji), South-Central (Telugu–
Kui), and South Dravidian (Tamil-Kannada).[29][page  needed]
The Northern Indian languages from the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European
family evolved from Old Indo-Aryan by way of the Middle Indo-
Aryan Prakrit languages and Apabhraṃśa of the Middle Ages. The Indo-Aryan
languages developed and emerged in three stages — Old Indo-Aryan (1500 BCE to
600 BCE), Middle Indo-Aryan stage (600 BCE and 1000 CE) and New Indo-Aryan
(between 1000 CE and 1300 CE). The modern north Indian Indo-Aryan languages all
evolved into distinct, recognisable languages in the New Indo-Aryan Age. [30]
In the Northeast India, among the Sino-Tibetan languages, Meitei language (officially
known as Manipuri language) was the court language of the Manipur
Kingdom (Meitei: Meeteileipak). It was honoured before and during
the darbar sessions before Manipur was merged into the Dominion of the Indian
Republic. Its history of existence spans from 1500 to 2000 years according to most
eminent scholars including Padma Vibhushan awardee Suniti Kumar Chatterji.[31]
[32]
 Even according to the "Manipur State Constitution Act, 1947" of the once
independent Manipur, Manipuri and English were made the court languages of the
kingdom (before merging into Indian Republic). [33][34]
Persian, or Farsi, was brought into India by the Ghaznavids and other Turko-Afghan
dynasties as the court language. Culturally Persianized, they, in combination with the
later Mughal dynasty (of Turco-Mongol origin), influenced the art, history, and
literature of the region for more than 500 years, resulting in the Persianisation of
many Indian tongues, mainly lexically. In 1837, the British replaced Persian with
English and Hindustani in Perso-Arabic script for administrative purposes and the
Hindi movement of the 19th Century replaced Persianised vocabulary with Sanskrit
derivations and replaced or supplemented the use of Perso-Arabic script for
administrative purposes with Devanagari.[19][35]
Each of the northern Indian languages had different influences. For
example, Hindustani was strongly influenced by Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian,
leading to the emergence of Modern Standard Hindi and Modern Standard
Urdu as registers of the Hindustani language. Bangla on the other hand has retained
its Sanskritic roots while heavily expanding its vocabulary with words from Persian,
English, French and other foreign languages. [36][37]

Inventories
Main article: List of languages by number of native speakers in India
The first official survey of language diversity in the Indian subcontinent was carried
out by Sir George Abraham Grierson from 1898 to 1928. Titled the Linguistic Survey
of India, it reported a total of 179 languages and 544 dialects. [38] However, the results
were skewed due to ambiguities in distinguishing between "dialect" and "language",
[38]
 use of untrained personnel and under-reporting of data from South India, as the
former provinces of Burma and Madras, as well as the princely states of Cochin,
Hyderabad, Mysore and Travancore were not included in the survey. [39]
Different sources give widely differing figures, primarily based on how the terms
"language" and "dialect" are defined and grouped. Ethnologue, produced by the
Christian evangelist organisation SIL International, lists 461 tongues for India (out of
6,912 worldwide), 447 of which are living, while 14 are extinct. The 447 living
languages are further subclassified in Ethnologue as follows:[40][41]

 Institutional – 63
 Developing – 130
 Vigorous – 187
 In trouble – 54
 Dying – 13
The People's Linguistic Survey of India, a privately owned research institution in
India, has recorded over 66 different scripts and more than 780 languages in India
during its nationwide survey, which the organisation claims to be the biggest
linguistic survey in India.[42]
The People of India (POI) project of Anthropological Survey of India reported 325
languages which are used for in-group communication by 5,633 Indian communities.
[43]

Census of India figures

The Census of India records and publishes data with respect to the number of
speakers for languages and dialects, but uses its own unique terminology,
distinguishing between language and mother tongue. The mother tongues are
grouped within each language. Many of the mother tongues so defined could be
considered a language rather than a dialect by linguistic standards. This is especially
so for many mother tongues with tens of millions of speakers that are officially
grouped under the language Hindi.
1951 Census
Separate figures for Hindi, Urdu, and Punjabi were not issued, due to the fact the
returns were intentionally recorded incorrectly in states such as East
Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, PEPSU, and Bilaspur.[44]
1961 Census
The 1961 census recognised 1,652 mother tongues spoken by 438,936,918 people,
counting all declarations made by any individual at the time when the census was
conducted.[45] However, the declaring individuals often mixed names of languages
with those of dialects, subdialects and dialect clusters or even castes, professions,
religions, localities, regions, countries and nationalities. [45] The list therefore includes
languages with barely a few individual speakers as well as 530 unclassified mother
tongues and more than 100 idioms that are non-native to India, including
linguistically unspecific demonyms such as "African", "Canadian" or "Belgian".[45]
1991 Census
The 1991 census recognises 1,576 classified mother tongues. [46] According to the
1991 census, 22 languages had more than a million native speakers, 50 had more
than 100,000 and 114 had more than 10,000 native speakers. The remaining
accounted for a total of 566,000 native speakers (out of a total of 838 million Indians
in 1991).[46][47]
2001 Census
As per the census of 2001, there are 1635 rationalised mother tongues, 234
identifiable mother tongues and 22 major languages. [18] Of these, 29 languages have
more than a million native speakers, 60 have more than 100,000 and 122 have more
than 10,000 native speakers.[48] There are a few languages like Kodava that do not
have a script but have a group of native speakers in Coorg (Kodagu).[49]
2011 Census
According to the most recent census of 2011, after thorough linguistic scrutiny, edit,
and rationalization on 19,569 raw linguistic affiliations, the census recognizes 1369
rationalized mother tongues and 1474 names which were treated as ‘unclassified’
and relegated to ‘other’ mother tongue category. [50] Among, the 1369 rationalized
mother tongues which are spoken by 10,000 or more speakers, are further grouped
into appropriate set that resulted into total 121 languages. In these 121 languages,
22 are already part of the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India and the other
99 are termed as "Total of other languages" which is one short as of the other
languages recognized in 2001 census. [51]

Multilingualism
Main article: Multilingualism in India
Multilingualism is common in the international airports in India. A signboard of a Child Care Room in
the Imphal International Airport is written in Meitei, Hindi and English languages.

2011 Census India

First, Second, and Third languages by number of speakers in India (2011 Census)

First
language Second Third Total
speakers languag languag speakers
First as a e e Total
as a
Language language percenta speaker speaker speakers
percentage
speakers[ ge s s (millions)
52] [53] of total
of total (million (million population
populati s) s) [54]

on

Hindi 528,347,193 43.63 139 24 692 57.1

English 259,678 0.02 83 46 129 10.6

Bengali 97,237,669 8.30 9 1 107 8.9

Marathi 83,026,680 6.86 13 3 99 8.2

Telugu 81,127,740 6.70 12 1 95 7.8

Tamil 69,026,881 5.70 7 1 77 6.3

Gujarati 55,492,554 4.58 4 1 60 5.0

 First, Second, and Third languages by number of speakers in India (2011 Census)

First
language Second Third Total
speakers languag languag speakers
First as a e e Total
as a
Language language percenta speaker speaker speakers
percentage
speakers[ ge s s (millions)
52] [53] of total
of total (million (million population
populati s) s) [54]

on

Urdu 50,772,631 4.19 11 1 63 5.2

Kannada 43,706,512 3.61 14 1 59 4.9

Odia 37,521,324 3.10 5 0.03 43 3.5

Malayalam 34,838,819 2.88 0.05 0.02 36 2.9

Punjabi 33,124,726 2.74 0.03 0.003 36 3.0

Assamese 15,311,351 1.26 7.48 0.74 24 2.0

Maithili 13,583,464 1.12 0.03 0.003 14 1.2

Meitei (Manipu
1,761,079 0.15 0.4 0.04 2.25 0.2
ri)

Sanskrit 24,821 0.00185 0.01 0.003 0.025 0.002

Ethnologue (2019, 22nd edition) worldwide

The following list consists of Indian subcontinent languages' total speakers
worldwide in the 2019 edition of Ethnologue, a language reference published by SIL
International, which is based in the United States.[55]
 Language Total speakers (millions)

Hindi 615

Bengali 265

Urdu 170

Punjabi 126

Marathi 95

Telugu 93

Tamil 81

Gujarati 61

Kannada 56

Odia 38

Malayalam 38

Assamese 15

Santali 7

Meitei (Manipuri) 1.7

Sanskrit 0.025
Language families
Ethnolinguistically, the languages of South Asia, echoing the complex history and
geography of the region, form a complex patchwork of language families, language
phyla and isolates.[11] Languages spoken in India belong to several language families,
the major ones being the Indo-Aryan languages spoken by 78.05% of Indians and
the Dravidian languages spoken by 19.64% of Indians. The languages of India
belong to several language families, the most important of which are: [56][6][7][11][57]

Rank Language family Population (2018)

1 Indo-European language family 1,045,000,000 (78.05%)

2 Dravidian language family 265,000,000 (19.64%)

3 Austroasiatic language family Unknown

4 Sino-Tibetan language family Unknown

5 Tai–Kadai language family Unknown

6 Great Andamanese languages Unknown

Total Languages of India 1,340,000,000

Indo-Aryan language family

Main article: Indo-Aryan languages

Indo-Aryan language subgroups (Urdu is included under Hindi)

  Pashai
  Khowar
  Shina
  Kohistani
  Kashmiri
  Panjabi
  Sindhi
  Rajasthani
  Gujarati
  Bhili
  Western Pahari
  Central Pahari
  Nepali
  Western Hindi
  Eastern Hindi
  Bihari
  Bengali-Assamese
  Oriya
  Halbi
  Marathi-Konkani
  Sinhala-Maldivian

The largest of the language families represented in India, in terms of speakers, is

the Indo-Aryan language family, a branch of the Indo-Iranian family, itself the
easternmost, extant subfamily of the Indo-European language family. This language
family predominates, accounting for some 1035 million speakers, or over 76.5 of the
population, as per a 2018 estimate. The most widely spoken languages of this group
are Hindi,[n
1]
 Bengali, Marathi, Urdu, Gujarati, Punjabi, Kashmiri, Rajasthani, Sindhi, Assamese
(Asamiya), Maithili and Odia.[58] Aside from the Indo-Aryan languages, other Indo-
European languages are also spoken in India, the most prominent of which is
English, as a lingua franca.
Dravidian language family
Main article: Dravidian languages
The second largest language family is the Dravidian language family, accounting for
some 277 million speakers, or approximately 20.5% as per 2018 estimate. The
Dravidian languages are spoken mainly in southern India and parts
of eastern and central India as well as in parts of northeastern Sri Lanka,
Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. The Dravidian languages with the most speakers
are Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam.[7] Besides the mainstream population,
Dravidian languages are also spoken by small scheduled tribe communities, such as
the Oraon and Gond tribes.[59] Only two Dravidian languages are exclusively spoken
outside India, Brahui in Balochistan, Pakistan and Dhangar, a dialect of Kurukh,
in Nepal.[60]
Austroasiatic language family
Families with smaller numbers of speakers are Austroasiatic and numerous
small Sino-Tibetan languages, with some 10 and 6 million speakers, respectively,
together 3% of the population.[61]
The Austroasiatic language family (austro meaning South) is the autochthonous
language in Southeast Asia, arrived by migration. Austroasiatic languages of
mainland India are the Khasi and Munda languages, including Bhumij and Santali.
The languages of the Nicobar islands also form part of this language family. With the
exceptions of Khasi and Santali, all Austroasiatic languages on Indian territory are
endangered.[11]: 456–457 
Tibeto-Burman language family
The Tibeto-Burman language family are well represented in India. However, their
interrelationships are not discernible, and the family has been described as "a patch
of leaves on the forest floor" rather than with the conventional metaphor of a "family
tree".[11]: 283–5 
Padma Vibhushan awardee Indian Bengali scholar Suniti Kumar Chatterjee said,
"Among the various Tibeto-Burman languages, the most important and in literature
certainly of much greater importance than Newari, is the Meitei or Manipuri
language".[62][63][64]
In India, Tibeto-Burman languages are spoken across the Himalayas in the regions
of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam (hills and autonomous councils), Himachal
Pradesh, Ladakh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and We
st Bengal.[65][66][67]
Sino-Tibetan languages spoken in India include two constitutionally recognised
official languages, Meitei (officially known as Manipuri) and Bodo as well as the non-
scheduled languages like Karbi, Lepcha, and many varieties of several
related Tibetic, West Himalayish, Tani, Brahmaputran, Angami–
Pochuri, Tangkhul, Zeme, Kukish sub linguistic branches, amongst many others.
Tai-Kadai language family
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Ahom language, a Southwestern Tai language, had been once the dominant
language of the Ahom Kingdom in modern-day Assam, but was later replaced by
the Assamese language (known as Kamrupi in ancient era which is the pre-form of
the Kamrupi dialect of today). Nowadays, small Tai communities and their languages
remain in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh together with Sino-Tibetans, e.g. Tai
Phake, Tai Aiton and Tai Khamti, which are similar to the Shan language of Shan
State, Myanmar; the Dai language of Yunnan, China; the Lao language of Laos;
the Thai language of Thailand; and the Zhuang language in Guangxi, China.
Andamanese language families
The languages of the Andaman Islands form another group:[68]

 the Great Andamanese languages, comprising a number of extinct, and

one highly endangered language Aka-Jeru.
  the Ongan family of the southern Andaman Islands, comprising two extant
languages, Önge and Jarawa, and one extinct language, Jangil.
In addition, Sentinelese is thought likely to be related to the above languages. [68]
Language isolates
The only language found in the Indian mainland that is considered a language
isolate is Nihali.[11]: 337  The status of Nihali is ambiguous, having been considered as a
distinct Austroasiatic language, as a dialect of Korku and also as being a "thieves'
argot" rather than a legitimate language. [69][70]
The other language isolates found in the rest of South Asia include Burushaski, a
language spoken in Gilgit–Baltistan (administered by Pakistan), Kusunda (in western
Nepal), and Vedda (in Sri Lanka).[11]: 283  The validity of the Great Andamanese
language group as a language family has been questioned and it has been
considered a language isolate by some authorities. [11]: 283 [71][72]
In addition, a Bantu language, Sidi, was spoken until the mid-20th century in Gujarat
by the Siddi.[11]: 528 

Official languages
Main article: Languages with official status in India

States and union territories of India by the most commonly spoken (L1) first language. [73]
Official languages of India by state and union territory. Hindustani refers to both Hindi and Urdu in this map.

Federal level
Language proficiency in India (2001, 2011)[74][75]
Language Year percent
2001    53.61%
Hindi +3.50%
2011    57.11%
2001    12.19%
English -1.57%
2011    10.62%

Prior to Independence, in British India, English was the sole language used
for administrative purposes as well as for higher education purposes.[76]
In 1946, the issue of national language was a bitterly contested subject in the
proceedings of the Constituent Assembly of India, specifically what should be the
language in which the Constitution of India is written and the language spoken during
the proceedings of Parliament and thus deserving of the epithet "national". Members
belonging to the northern parts of India insisted that the Constitution be drafted in
Hindi with the unofficial translation in English. This was not agreed to by the drafting
committee on the grounds that English was much better to craft the nuanced prose
on constitutional subjects. The efforts to make Hindi the pre-eminent language were
bitterly resisted by the members from those parts of India where Hindi was not
spoken natively.
Eventually, a compromise was reached not to include any mention of a national
language. Instead, Hindi in Devanagari script was declared to be the official
language of the union, but for "fifteen years from the commencement of the
Constitution, the English Language shall continue to be used for all the official
purposes of the Union for which it was being used immediately before such
commencement."[76]
Article 343 (1) of the Constitution of India states "The Official Language of the Union
government shall be Hindi in Devanagari script." [77]: 212 [78] Unless Parliament decided
otherwise, the use of English for official purposes was to cease 15 years after the
constitution came into effect, i.e. on 26 January 1965. [77]: 212 [78]
Main article: Hindi
Main article: Anti-Hindi agitations of Tamil Nadu
As the date for changeover approached, however, there was much alarm in the non
Hindi-speaking areas of India, especially in Kerala, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil
Nadu, Punjab, West Bengal, Karnataka, Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh.
Accordingly, Jawaharlal Nehru ensured the enactment of the Official Languages Act,
1963,[79][80] which provided that English "may" still be used with Hindi for official
purposes, even after 1965.[76] The wording of the text proved unfortunate in that while
Nehru understood that "may" meant shall, politicians championing the cause of Hindi
thought it implied exactly the opposite.[76]
In the event, as 1965 approached, India's new Prime Minister Lal Bahadur
Shastri prepared to make Hindi paramount with effect from 26 January 1965. This
led to widespread agitation, riots, self-immolations, and suicides in Tamil Nadu. The
split of Congress politicians from the South from their party stance, the resignation of
two Union ministers from the South, and the increasing threat to the country's unity
forced Shastri to concede.[76][24]
As a result, the proposal was dropped,[81][82] and the Act itself was amended in 1967 to
provide that the use of English would not be ended until a resolution to that effect
was passed by the legislature of every state that had not adopted Hindi as its official
language, and by each house of the Indian Parliament. [79]
The Constitution of India does not give any language the status of national language.
[15][16]

Hindi

The Hindi-belt, including Hindi-related languages such as Rajasthani and Bhojpuri.

In the 2001 census, 422 million (422,048,642) people in India reported Hindi to be

their native language.[83] This figure not only included Hindi speakers of Hindustani,
but also people who identify as native speakers of related languages who consider
their speech to be a dialect of Hindi, the Hindi belt. Hindi (or Hindustani) is the native
language of most people living in Delhi, Uttar
Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Himachal
Pradesh, Chandigarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan.
[84]

"Modern Standard Hindi", a standardised language is one of the official languages of

the Union of India. In addition, it is one of only two languages used for business in
Parliament. However, the Rajya Sabha now allows all 22 official languages on the
Eighth Schedule to be spoken.[85]
Hindustani, evolved from khari boli (खड़ी बोली), a prominent tongue of Mughal times,
which itself evolved from Apabhraṃśa, an intermediary transition stage from Prakrit,
from which the major North Indian Indo-Aryan languages have evolved.[citation needed]
Varieties of Hindi spoken in India include Rajasthani, Braj
Bhasha, Haryanvi, Bundeli, Kannauji, Hindustani, Awadhi, Bagheli, Bhojpuri, Magahi, 
Nagpuri and Chhattisgarhi. By virtue of its being a lingua franca, Hindi has also
developed regional dialects such as Bambaiya Hindi in Mumbai. In addition, a trade
language, Andaman Creole Hindi has also developed in the Andaman Islands.[86]
In addition, by use in popular culture such as songs and films, Hindi also serves as
a lingua franca across both North and Central India[citation needed]
Hindi is widely taught both as a primary language and language of instruction and as
a second tongue in most states.
English
Main articles: English language and Indian English
British colonial legacy has resulted in English being a language for governance,
business, and education. English, along with Hindi, is one of the two languages
permitted in the Constitution of India for business in Parliament. Despite the fact that
Hindi has official Government patronage and serves as a lingua franca over large
parts of India, there was considerable opposition to the use of Hindi in the southern
states of India, and English has emerged as a de facto lingua franca over much of
India.[76][24] Journalist Manu Joseph, in a 2011 article in The New York Times, wrote
that due to the prominence and usage of the language and the desire for English-
language education, "English is the de facto national language of India. It is a bitter
truth."[87]
Scheduled languages
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Main languages of India and their relative size according to how many speakers each has. [88]

Until the Twenty-first Amendment of the Constitution of India in 1967, the country

recognised 14 official regional languages. The Eighth Schedule and the Seventy-
First Amendment provided for the inclusion of Sindhi, Konkani, Meitei and Nepali,
thereby increasing the number of official regional languages of India to 18. The
Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India, as of 1 December 2007, lists 22
languages,[77]: 330  which are given in the table below together with the regions where
they are used.[83]

Language Family ISO 639 code

Assamese Indo-Aryan as

Bengali (Bangla) Indo-Aryan bn

Bodo Sino-Tibetan brx

Dogri Indo-Aryan doi

Gujarati Indo-Aryan gu

Hindi Indo-Aryan hi

Kannada Dravidian kn

Kashmiri Indo-Aryan ks

Konkani Indo-Aryan gom

Maithili Indo-Aryan mai

Malayalam Dravidian ml

Meitei
Sino-Tibetan mni
(Manipuri)

Marathi Indo-Aryan mr

Nepali Indo-Aryan ne
 Language Family ISO 639 code

Odia Indo-Aryan or

Punjabi Indo-Aryan pa

Sanskrit Indo-Aryan sa

Santali Austroasiatic sat

Sindhi Indo-Aryan sd

Tamil Dravidian ta

Telugu Dravidian te

Urdu Indo-Aryan ur

The individual states, the borders of most of which are or were drawn on socio-
linguistic lines, can legislate their own official languages, depending on their linguistic
demographics. The official languages chosen reflect the predominant as well as
politically significant languages spoken in that state. Certain states having a
linguistically defined territory may have only the predominant language in that state
as its official language, examples being Karnataka and Gujarat, which
have Kannada and Gujarati as their sole official language respectively. Telangana,
with a sizeable Urdu-speaking Muslim population, and Andhra Pradesh[89] has two
languages, Telugu and Urdu, as its official languages.
Some states buck the trend by using minority languages as official
languages. Jammu and Kashmir used to have Urdu, which is spoken by fewer than
1% of the population, as the sole official language until 2020. Meghalaya uses
English spoken by 0.01% of the population. This phenomenon has turned majority
languages into "minority languages" in a functional sense. [90]
Lists of Official Languages of States and Union Territories of India
In addition to states and union territories, India has autonomous administrative
regions which may be permitted to select their own official language – a case in point
being the Bodoland Territorial Council in Assam which has declared the Bodo
language as official for the region, in addition to Assamese and English already in
use.[91] and Bengali in the Barak Valley,[92] as its official languages.
Prominent languages of India
Hindi
Main article: Hindi

At a tourist site in Bengaluru – Top to bottom, the languages are Hindi, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu,

and Malayalam. English and many other European languages are also provided here.

In British India, English was the sole language used for administrative purposes as

well as for higher education purposes. When India became independent in 1947, the
Indian legislators had the challenge of choosing a language for official
communication as well as for communication between different linguistic regions
across India. The choices available were:

 Making "Hindi", which a plurality of the people (41%)[83] identified as their

native language, the official language.
 Making English, as preferred by non-Hindi speakers,
particularly Kannadigas and Tamils, and those
from Mizoram and Nagaland, the official language. See also Anti-Hindi
agitations.
 Declare both Hindi and English as official languages and each state is
given freedom to choose the official language of the state.
The Indian constitution, in 1950, declared Hindi in Devanagari script to be the official
language of the union.[77] Unless Parliament decided otherwise, the use of English for
official purposes was to cease 15 years after the constitution came into effect, i.e. on
26 January 1965.[77] The prospect of the changeover, however, led to much alarm in
the non Hindi-speaking areas of India, especially in South India whose native
tongues are not related to Hindi. As a result, Parliament enacted the Official
Languages Act in 1963,[93][94][95][96][97][98] which provided for the continued use of English for
official purposes along with Hindi, even after 1965.
Bengali
Main article: Bengali language
Native to the Bengal region, comprising the nation of Bangladesh and
the states of West Bengal, Tripura and Barak Valley region[99][100] of Assam. Bengali
(also spelt as Bangla: বাংলা) is the sixth most spoken language in the world.[99][100] After
the partition of India (1947), refugees from East Pakistan were settled in Tripura,
and Jharkhand and the union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. There is
also a large number of Bengali-speaking people in Maharashtra and Gujarat where
they work as artisans in jewellery industries. Bengali developed from Abahatta, a
derivative of Apabhramsha, itself derived from Magadhi Prakrit. The modern Bengali
vocabulary contains the vocabulary base from Magadhi Prakrit and Pali,
also borrowings from Sanskrit and other major borrowings
from Persian, Arabic, Austroasiatic languages and other languages in contact with.
Like most Indian languages, Bengali has a number of dialects. It exhibits diglossia,
with the literary and standard form differing greatly from the colloquial speech of the
regions that identify with the language. [101] Bengali language has developed a rich
cultural base spanning art, music, literature, and religion. Bengali has some of the
oldest literature of all modern Indo-Aryan languages, dating from about 10th to 12th
century ('Chargapada' Buddhist songs). There have been many movements in
defence of this language and in 1999 UNESCO declared 21 Feb as the International
Mother Language Day in commemoration of the Bengali Language Movement in
1952.[102]
Marathi
Main article: Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language. It is the official language and co-official language
in Maharashtra and Goa states of Western India respectively, and is one of the
official languages of India. There were 83 million speakers of the language in 2011.
[103]
 Marathi has the third-largest number of native speakers in India and ranks 10th in
the list of most spoken languages in the world. Marathi has some of the oldest
literature of all modern Indo-Aryan languages; Oldest stone inscriptions from 8th
century & literature dating from about 1100 AD (Mukundraj's Vivek Sindhu dates to
the 12th century). The major dialects of Marathi are Standard Marathi and the
Varhadi dialect. There are other related languages such as Khandeshi,
Dangi, Vadvali, Samavedi. Malvani Konkani has been heavily influenced by Marathi
varieties. Marathi is one of several languages that descend from Maharashtri Prakrit.
The further change led to the Apabhraṃśa languages like Old Marathi.
Marathi Language Day (मराठी दिन/मराठी दिवस (transl. Marathi Dina/Marathi Diwasa)
is celebrated on 27 February every year across the Indian states of Maharashtra and
Goa. This day is regulated by the State Government. It is celebrated on the Birthday
of eminent Marathi Poet Vi. Va. Shirwadkar, popularly known as Kusumagraj.
Marathi is the official language of Maharashtra and co-official language in the union
territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. In Goa, Konkani is the
sole official language; however, Marathi may also be used for all official purposes. [104]
Over a period of many centuries the Marathi language and people came into contact
with many other languages and dialects. The primary influence
of Prakrit, Maharashtri, Apabhraṃśa and Sanskrit is understandable. Marathi has
also influenced by the Austroasiatic, Dravidian and foreign languages such
as Persian, Arabic. Marathi contains loanwords from Persian, Arabic, English and a
little from French & Portuguese.
Meitei
Main article: Meitei language
Meitei language (officially known as Manipuri language) is the most widely
spoken Indian Sino-Tibetan language of Tibeto-Burman linguistic sub branch. It is
the sole official language in Manipur and is one of the official languages of India. It is
one of the two Sino-Tibetan languages with official status in India, beside Bodo. It
has been recognized as one of the advanced modern languages of India by the
National Sahitya Academy for its rich literature.[105] It uses both Meitei script as well
as Bengali script for writing.[106][107]
Meitei language is currently proposed to be included in the elite category of
"Classical Languages" of India.[108][109][110] Besides, it is also currently proposed to be an
associate official language of Government of Assam. According to Leishemba
Sanajaoba, the present titular king of Manipur and a Rajya Sabha member of
Manipur state, by recognising Meitei as an associate official language of Assam, the
identity, history, culture and tradition of Manipuris residing in Assam could be
protected.[111][112][113]
Meitei Language Day (Manipuri Language Day) is celebrated on 20 August every
year by the Manipuris across the Indian states of Manipur, Assam and Tripura. This
day is regulated by the Government of Manipur. It is the commemoration of the day
on which Meitei was included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India on
the 20 August 1992.[114][115][116][117][118]
Telugu
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Main article: Telugu language
Telugu is the most widely spoken Dravidian language in India and around the world.
Telugu is an official language in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Yanam, making it
one of the few languages (along with Hindi, Bengali, and Urdu) with official status in
more than one state. It is also spoken by a significant number of people in the
Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha,
Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, and by the Sri Lankan Gypsy people. It is one of six languages
with classical status in India. Telugu ranks fourth by the number of native speakers in
India (81 million in the 2011 Census), [103] fifteenth in the Ethnologue list of most-
spoken languages worldwide and is the most widely spoken Dravidian language.
Tamil
Main article: Tamil language
1:14

15th-century anthology of Tamil religious poem dedicated to lord Ganesha

Tamil (also spelt as Thamizh: தமிழ்) is a Dravidian language predominantly spoken

in Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and many parts of Sri Lanka. It is also spoken by large
minorities in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra
Pradesh, Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius and throughout the world. Tamil ranks fifth
by the number of native speakers in India (61 million in the 2001 Census) [119] and
ranks 20th in the list of most spoken languages.[citation needed] It is one of the 22 scheduled
languages of India and was the first Indian language to be declared a classical
language by the Government of India in 2004. Tamil is one of the longest
surviving classical languages in the world.[120][121] It has been described as "the only
language of contemporary India which is recognisably continuous with a classical
past".[122] The two earliest manuscripts from India, [123][124] acknowledged and registered
by UNESCO Memory of the World register in 1997 and 2005, are in Tamil.[125] Tamil is
an official language of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Sri
Lanka and Singapore. It is also recognized as a minority language
in Canada, Malaysia, Mauritius and South Africa.
Urdu
Main article: Urdu
After independence, Modern Standard Urdu, the Persianised register of Hindustani
became the national language of Pakistan. During British colonial times, knowledge
of Hindustani or Urdu was a must for officials. Hindustani was made the second
language of British Indian Empire after English and considered as the language of
administration.[citation needed] The British introduced the use of Roman script for Hindustani
as well as other languages. Urdu had 70 million speakers in India (as per the Census
of 2001), and, along with Hindi, is one of the 22 officially recognised regional
languages of India and also an official language in the Indian states of Andhra
Pradesh[89], Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Telangana that
have significant Muslim populations.
Gujarati
Main article: Gujarati language
Gujarati is an Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the west Indian region of Gujarat.
Gujarati is part of the greater Indo-European language family. Gujarati is descended
from Old Gujarati (c. 1100 – 1500 CE), the same source as that of Rajasthani.
Gujarati is the chief and official language in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is also an
official language in the union territories of Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar
Haveli. According to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), 4.5% of population of
India (1.21 billion according to 2011 census) speaks Gujarati. This amounts to
54.6 million speakers in India.[126]
Kannada
Main article: Kannada
Kannada is a Dravidian language which branched off from Kannada-Tamil sub group
around 500 B.C.E according to the Dravidian scholar Zvelebil. [127] It is the official
language of Karnataka. According to the Dravidian scholars Steever and
Krishnamurthy, the study of Kannada language is usually divided into three linguistic
phases: Old (450–1200 CE), Middle (1200–1700 CE) and Modern (1700–present). [128]
[129]
 The earliest written records are from the 5th century, [130] and the earliest available
literature in rich manuscript (Kavirajamarga) is from c. 850.[131][132] Kannada language
has the second oldest written tradition of all languages of India. [133][134] Current
estimates of the total number of epigraph present in Karnataka range from 25,000 by
the scholar Sheldon Pollock to over 30,000 by the Sahitya Akademi,[135] making
Karnataka state "one of the most densely inscribed pieces of real estate in the
world".[136] According to Garg and Shipely, more than a thousand notable writers have
contributed to the wealth of the language.[137][138]
Malayalam
Main article: Malayalam
Malayalam (/mæləˈjɑːləm/;[139] [ maləjaːɭəm]) has official language status in the state
of Kerala and in the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry. It belongs to
the Dravidian family of languages and is spoken by some 38 million people.
Malayalam is also spoken in the neighboring states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka;
with some speakers in the Nilgiris, Kanyakumari and Coimbatore districts of Tamil
Nadu, and the Dakshina Kannada and the Kodagu district of Karnataka.[140][141]
[142]
 Malayalam originated from Middle Tamil (Sen-Tamil) in the 7th century.[143] As
Malayalam began to freely borrow words as well as the rules of grammar
from Sanskrit, the Grantha alphabet was adopted for writing and came to be known
as Arya Eluttu.[144] This developed into the modern Malayalam script.[145]
Odia
Main article: Odia language
Odia (formerly spelled Oriya)[146] is the only modern language officially recognized as
a classical language from the Indo-Aryan group. Odia is primarily spoken and has
official language status in the Indian state of Odisha and has over 40 million
speakers. It was declared as a classical language of India in 2014. Native speakers
comprise 91.85% of the population in Odisha.[147][148] Odia originated from Odra Prakrit
which developed from Magadhi Prakrit, a language spoken in eastern India over
2,500 years ago. The history of Odia language can be divided to Old Odia (3rd
century BC −1200 century AD),[149] Early Middle Odia (1200–1400), Middle Odia
(1400–1700), Late Middle Odia (1700–1870) and Modern Odia (1870 until present
day). The National Manuscripts Mission of India have found around 213,000
unearthed and preserved manuscripts written in Odia. [150]
Santali
Main article: Santali language
Santali is a Munda languages, a branch of Austroasiatic languages spoken widely
in Jharkhand and other states of eastern India by Santhal community of tribal and
non tribal.[151] It is written in Ol Chiki script invented by Raghunath Murmu at the end
of 19th century.[152] Santali is spoken by 0.67% of India's population. [153][154] About 7
million peoples speak this language.[155] It is also spoken in Bangladesh and Nepal.[156]
[157]
 The language is widely spoken in Jharkhand and thus Santhal community is
demanding to make it as the official language of Jharkhand.[158]
Punjabi
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Main article: Punjabi language
Punjabi, written in the Gurmukhi script in India, is one of the prominent languages of
India with about 32 million speakers. In Pakistan it is spoken by over 80 million
people and is written in the Shahmukhi alphabet. It is mainly spoken in Punjab but
also in neighboring areas. It is an official language of Delhi and Punjab.
Assamese
Main article: Assamese language
Asamiya or Assamese language is most popular in the state of Assam.[159] It's
an Eastern Indo-Aryan language with more than 23 million total speakers including
more than 15 million native speakers and more than 7 million L2 speakers as per
2011 Census of India.[160] Along with other Eastern Indo-Aryan languages, Assamese
evolved at least before the 7th century CE[161] from the middle Indo-Aryan Magadhi
Prakrit. Assamese is unusual among Eastern Indo-Aryan languages for the presence
of the /x/ (which, phonetically, varies between velar ([x]) and a uvular ([χ])
pronunciations). The first characteristics of this language are seen in
the Charyapadas composed in between the eighth and twelfth centuries. The first
examples emerged in writings of court poets in the fourteenth century, the finest
example of which is Madhav Kandali's Saptakanda Ramayana composed during
14th century CE.
Maithili
Main article: Maithili language
Maithili (/ˈmaɪtɪli/;[162] Maithilī) is an Indo-Aryan language native to India and Nepal. In
India, it is widely spoken in the Bihar and Jharkhand states.[163][164] Native speakers are
also found in other states and union territories of India, most notably in Uttar
Pradesh and the National Capital Territory of Delhi.[165] In the 2011 census of India, It
was reported by 1,35,83,464 people as their mother tongue comprising about 1.12%
of the total population of India.[166] In Nepal, it is spoken in the eastern Terai, and is
the second most prevalent language of Nepal. [167] Tirhuta was formerly the primary
script for written Maithili. Less commonly, it was also written in the local variant
of Kaithi.[168] Today it is written in the Devanagari script.[169]
In 2003, Maithili was included in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution as a
recognised regional language of India, which allows it to be used in education,
government, and other official contexts. [170]

Classical languages of India

Further information: Meitei classical language movement
In 2004, the Government of India declared that languages that met certain
requirements could be accorded the status of a "Classical Language" of India.
[171]
 Over the next few years, several languages were granted the Classical status,
and demands have been made for other languages, including Bengali,[172]
[173]
 Marathi[174] and Meitei (officially called Manipuri).[175][176][177]
Languages thus far declared to be Classical:

 Tamil (in 2004),[178]
 Sanskrit (in 2005),[179]
 Kannada (in 2008),[180]
 Telugu (in 2008),[180]
 Malayalam (in 2013),[181]
 Odia (in 2014).[182][183]
In the year 2004, the tentative criteria for the age of antiquity of "classical language"
was assumed to be at least 1000 years of existence. [184]
In a 2006 press release, Minister of Tourism and Culture Ambika Soni told the Rajya
Sabha the following criteria were laid down to determine the eligibility of languages
to be considered for classification as a "Classical Language", [185]
High antiquity of its early texts/recorded history over a period of 1500–2000 years; a
body of ancient literature/texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by
generations of speakers; the literary tradition be original and not borrowed from
another speech community; the classical language and literature being distinct from
modern, there may also be a discontinuity between the classical language and its
later forms or its offshoots.[186][187][188]

Benefits
As per Government of India's Resolution No. 2-16/2004-US (Akademies) dated 1
November 2004, the benefits that will accrue to a language declared as a "Classical
Language" are:

1. Two major international awards for scholars of eminence in Classical

Indian Languages are awarded annually.
2. A Centre of Excellence for Studies in Classical Languages is set up.
3. The University Grants Commission will be requested to create, to start
with at least in the Central Universities, a certain number of
Professional Chairs for Classical Languages for scholars of eminence
in Classical Indian Languages.[189]

Other local languages and dialects

The 2001 census identified the following native languages having more than one
million speakers. Most of them are dialects/variants grouped under Hindi. [83]

Languages No. of native speakers[83]

Bhojpuri 33,099,497

Rajasthani 18,355,613

Magadhi/Magahi 13,978,565

Chhattisgarhi 13,260,186

Haryanvi 7,997,192

Marwari 7,936,183
 Languages No. of native speakers[83]

Malvi 5,565,167

Mewari 5,091,697

Khorth/Khotta 4,725,927

Bundeli 3,072,147

Bagheli 2,865,011

Pahari 2,832,825

Laman/Lambadi 2,707,562

Awadhi 2,529,308

Harauti 2,462,867

Garhwali 2,267,314

Nimadi 2,148,146

Sadan/Sadri 2,044,776

Kumauni 2,003,783

Dhundhari 1,871,130

Tulu 1,722,768

Surgujia 1,458,533
 Languages No. of native speakers[83]

Bagri Rajasthani 1,434,123

Banjari 1,259,821

Nagpuria 1,242,586

Surajpuri 1,217,019

Kangri 1,122,843

Practical problems
India has several languages in use; choosing any single language as an official
language presents problems to all those whose "mother tongue" is different.
However, all the boards of education across India recognise the need for training
people to one common language.[190] There are complaints that in North India, non-
Hindi speakers have language trouble. Similarly, there are complaints that North
Indians have to undergo difficulties on account of language when travelling to South
India. It is common to hear of incidents that result due to friction between those who
strongly believe in the chosen official language, and those who follow the thought
that the chosen language(s) do not take into account everyone's preferences.
[191]
 Local official language commissions have been established and various steps are
being taken in a direction to reduce tensions and friction. [citation needed]

Language conflicts
Further information: Anti-Hindi agitations of Tamil Nadu, Pure Tamil
movement, Meitei linguistic purism movement, and Gokak agitation
There are conflicts over linguistic rights in India. The first major linguistic conflict,
known as the Anti-Hindi agitations of Tamil Nadu, took place in Tamil Nadu against
the implementation of Hindi as the official language of India. Political analysts
consider this as a major factor in bringing DMK to power and leading to the ousting
and nearly total elimination of the Congress party in Tamil Nadu. [192] Strong cultural
pride based on language is also found in other Indian states such as Assam, Odisha,
Karnataka, West Bengal, Punjab and Maharashtra. To express disapproval of the
imposition of Hindi on its states' people as a result of the central government, the
government of Maharashtra made the state language Marathi mandatory in
educational institutions of CBSE and ICSE through Class/Grade 10.[193]
The Government of India attempts to assuage these conflicts with various
campaigns, coordinated by the Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysore, a
branch of the Department of Higher Education, Language Bureau, and the Ministry
of Human Resource Development.[clarification needed][citation needed]

Developmental works
Meitei (Manipuri)
Further information: Meitei language, Meitei script, and Directorate of Language
Planning and Implementation
On the 4 September 2013, the Directorate of Language Planning and
Implementation was established for the development and the promotion of Meitei
language (officially called Manipuri language) and the Meitei script (Manipuri script)
in Manipur.
In September 2021, the Central Government of India released ₹18
crore (US$2.3 million) as the first instalment for the development and the promotion
of the Meitei language (officially called Manipuri language) and the Meitei
script (Manipuri script) in Manipur.[194][195][196]
Sanskrit
Further information: Sanskrit
The Central Government of India allocated ₹643.84 crore in the last three years for
the development and the promotion of Sanskrit, ₹231.15 crore in 2019–20, around
₹214.38 crore in 2018–19, and ₹198.31 crore in 2017–18. [197][198]
Tamil
Further information: Tamil language
The Central Government of India gave an allocation of Rs 10.59 crore in 2017–18,
Rs 4.65 crore in 2018-19 and Rs 7.7 crore in 2019–20 to the "Central Institute of
Classical Tamil" for the development and the promotion of Tamil language.[197][199]
Telugu and Kannada
Further information: Telugu language and Kannada language
The Central Government of India gave an allocation of Rs 1 crore in 2017–18, Rs 99
lakh in 2018-19 and Rs 1.07 crore in 2019–20, each for the development and the
promotion of Telugu language and Kannada language.[197][199]

Writing systems
Main articles: Brahmic scripts and Nastaliq
Part of a series on

Officially used writing systems in India

 Category

Scripts

B
Bengali-Assamese script
D
Devanagari script
G
Gujarati script
Gurmukhi script
K
Kannada script
L
Latin script
M
Malayalam script
Meitei script
O
Odia script
Ol Chiki script
P
Perso-Arabic script
T
Tamil script
Telugu script
U
Urdu script

Related

Official script
Writing systems of India
Languages of India

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Most languages in India are written in scripts derived from Brahmi.[200] These

include Devanagari, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Meitei Mayek, Odia, Eastern Nagari –
Assamese/Bengali, Gurumukhi and other. Urdu is written in a script derived from
Arabic. A few minor languages such as Santali use independent scripts (see Ol Chiki
script).
Various Indian languages have their own
scripts. Hindi, Marathi, Maithili[201] and Angika are languages written using
the Devanagari script. Most major languages are written using a script specific to
them, such as Assamese (Asamiya)[202][203] with Asamiya,
[204]
 Bengali with Bengali, Punjabi with Gurmukhi, Meitei with Meitei
Mayek, Odia with Odia script, Gujarati with Gujarati,
etc. Urdu and Kashmiri, Saraiki and Sindhi are written in modified versions of
the Perso-Arabic script. With this one exception, the scripts of Indian languages are
native to India. Languages like Kodava that didn't have a script whereas Tulu which
had a script adopted Kannada due to its readily available printing settings; these
languages have taken up the scripts of the local official languages as their own and
are written in the Kannada script.[205]
 

A Meitei language stone inscription in Meitei script about a royal decree of a Meitei king

found in the sacred site of God Panam Ningthou in Andro, Imphal East, Manipur.
 

Development of Odia script

 

Tamil-Brahmi inscription in Jambaimalai.
 

Silver coin issued during the reign of Rudra Singha with Assamese inscriptions.

 

North Indian Brahmi found in Ashok pillar.

 
 

The Halmidi inscription, the oldest known inscription in the Kannada script and language.
The inscription is dated to the 450 CE - 500 CE period.
 

An early Telugu inscription found in the Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh.