Official languages of Indian states

Multibhashi
India

Which language is being used in which state

India is, truly, a nation with a lot of diversity in every aspect. A long time back, that is, during the pre-independence period, when India, as a nation, had not come into being, there used to be princely states separated from each other by their ruler or the governor depending upon the area or the territory that they ruled or controlled.

After independence, India was established as a republic state unified by its external boundaries and divided internally by its states separated on the basis of the language spoken by the majority in those states. No language could be declared as the sole national language of India, since it is a huge area of land occupied by ethnic groups belonging to many different linguistics, cultures, communities, creeds, etc. It was, thus, decided in 1965 that the Official Languages Act be brought into effect, and in every state, a few languages be recognized as official languages of that state.

The Comprehesive list

 

Language Family Speakers (in millions) States where this language enjoys “official language’ status
Hindi Indo-Aryan 528

Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Bihar, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Ladakh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal

 

Bengali Indo-Aryan, Eastern 97.2

West Bengal, Tripura, Assam and Jharkhand

 

Marathi Indo-Aryan, Southern 83

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Goa, Maharashtra

 

Telugu Dravidian 81.1

Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Puducherry

 

Tamil Dravidian 69

Tamil Nadu and Puducherry

 

Gujarati Indo-Aryan, Western 55.5

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu and Gujarat

 

Urdu Indo-Aryan, Central 50.7

Bihar, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal

 

Kannada Dravidian 43.7 Karnataka
Odia Indo-Aryan, Eastern 37.5

Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal

 

Malayalam Dravidian 34.8

Kerala, Lakshadweep and Puducherry

 

Punjabi Indo-Aryan, Northwestern 33.1

Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and West Bengal

 

Assamese Indo-Aryan, Eastern 15.3 Assam

Maithili

 

Indo-Aryan, Eastern        13.6 Jharkhand
Santali Austroasiatic 7.3 Jharkhand
Kashmiri Indo-Aryan, Dardic 6.8

Jammu and Kashmir

 

Nepali Indo-Aryan, Northern 2.9

Sikkim and West Bengal

 

Sindhi Indo-Aryan, Northwestern 2.7  
Dogri Indo-Aryan, Northwestern 2.6

Jammu and Kashmir

 

Konkani Indo-Aryan, Southern 2.25

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu and Goa

 

Manipuri Tibeto-Burman 1.8

Manipur

 

Bodo Tibeto-Burman 1.48 Assam
Sanskrit Indo-Aryan 0.02

Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand

 

 

If you go through the above data carefully, you will realise that many languages are on the verge of a sad, slow death. They will not survive if they are not conserved and nurtured and taken forward to the coming generations. We can definitely keep our languages alive and thriving by learning them ourselves, and by teaching them lovingly to the next generations.

Moreover, the languages which are spoken on a wide scale, and are in high demand due to their usage in professional lives of people or the similar, can be learnt from reliable sources within a short span. Then, why not give as much importance to Indian languages as we give to English?

Rarely vs Seldom
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