Hindi language

Hindi is a standardized form of Hindustani, along with Urdu. Hindi is derived directly from Hindustani in North India and was standardized in the 19th century. Hindi and Urdu share significant similarities, and they are still linguistically considered to be two variants of Hindustani. Hindi is one of India’s official languages and is mostly spoken in the northern half of India. Hindi words are pronounced exactly as they are written, making the Hindi language easy to learn. Hindi is written in the Devanagari script and draws much of its vocabulary from Sanskrit, while Urdū is written in the Perso-Arabic script and draws a great deal of its lexicon from Persian and Arabic.

Knowing Hindi opens countless doors, not just for travelers and students, but also for working professionals who want to set up a business or aspire to work in India. Even just conversing and listening in Hindi can give you a business advantage that a non-Hindi speaker may not have. Whatever your motivation for learning the language is, the resources below are organized around different skill sets, from expanding your vocabulary to improving your conversation skills.

1. Duolingo – Duolingo offers Hindi language lessons starting from the absolute basics, such as familiarizing you with the Devanagari script. Only after you have mastered Devanagari do you move on to other modules covering grammar rules, numbers, phrases, situational vocabulary, and so on.
2. Pimsleur – The dynamic lessons help jump-start your speaking skills, and the verbal prompts keep you on your toes. Each lesson builds upon the previous one, letting you progress into more advanced material. Overall, the differences between the standard and premium subscription plans are slight. But one benefit of the more expensive option is there is more reading practice.
3. Multibhashi – They use an approach that will help you grasp the language quickly and be able to use it in your day-to-day situations in just a few days after you start taking the sessions. With their audio-visual online learning sessions, one can have a real-time interaction with the trainer, ask questions, get the doubts cleared, and practice the lessons taught. You can also install the app and test your knowledge in Hindi by solving quizzes and puzzles that are uploaded on the app everyday.
4. HindiPod101 – This is one of the most popular resources to learn Hindi on YouTube or via Podcast. Most of the videos and podcasts are quite topical and cover most scenarios where speaking Hindi might help you. If you want to quickly learn some key phrases, these videos provide you with more than enough guidance.
5. Italki – Every instructor on the site is either a professional teacher or community tutor. Teachers must have teaching experience, a degree in education, or a teaching certificate. Community tutors either have advanced language knowledge or are native speakers. It’s not a language program, but rather a platform for locating tutors.
6. Rocket Hindi – There are over 120 hours of lessons per level, plus a leader board and streaks to keep you motivated. Rocket Hindi offers a complete learning experience with its interactive audio lessons, improving your pronunciation by giving your voice recording a score.
7. Memrise – Beginners or those Hindi speakers looking to enhance their vocabulary will get the most out of this option. It’s more of a flashcard-type platform than a comprehensive course of lessons. For absolute beginners, it’s a fun way to introduce basic vocabulary and learn a handful of phrases.
8. Udemy – Udemy offers a range of courses for Hindi learners, including this fast-track course which promises to teach you Hindi in three weeks. There are modules to teach you how to write as well. If you want to strictly focus on writing and various conjugations, this Hindi writing course might be especially helpful, which covers vowels, vowel symbols, consonants, and more.
9. Mango – Grammar and cultural notes help immerse you in the language. Beyond the intermediate level, though, there’s not much content for advanced speakers. Stats trackers are nice for seeing what you’ve achieved, but they’re also expected at this price point. With a Mango subscription, you can learn many different languages without paying again.
10. Glossika – Glossika’s learning methodology focuses on listening to sentences and repeating what you hear. While this can help you improve your speaking skills and listening comprehension, it’s not a particularly exciting experience. Overall, it’s a useful resource with a lot of room for improvement, that’s priced quite high given its limitations.