The Indian Language Families

The word language is derived from the French word Langue and Latin word Lingua both meaning tongue. The word language can still be used interchangeably with tongue- to suggest the spoken medium- but it has now enlarged it's dimension to also include the written means of communication, besides verbal. So, language now stands to denote the acceptable and acknowledged means of communication in words , and in words forming sentences, in both written and spoken format.

Thus, the deceptively simple term ‘Indian language’ is too complicated to be summarized in a few words. It comprises over 122 spoken languages, 19500 dialects, 22 recognised by the Constitution, 2 official, 66 recorded scripts, 14 written scripts, 6 of them having classical status based on their enriched heritage- and so possibly, picking up a single national language was a task best avoided!

The magnitude and diversity of the Indian Language could overwhelm the best linguist.

Which is the best language to learn of the lot? This answer to this might be debatable one, instead, why not admire the variety and richness of Indian Language, to begin with!

What is India's language family?

The set of Indian Languages broadly comes under the following two families:

• Indo-Aryan
• Dravidian

The two above are grouped together as Indic languages.

Besides, the other Indian languages- albeit spoken by a very minor percentage of the populace- owe their origin to the following families:

• Austroasiatic
• Tibeto-Burman
• Tai-Kadai
• Andamanese

This is what is India’s language family about.

The origin of Indian language:

Sanskrit is the base of the Indo-Aryan clan. One of the most beautiful and scientific languages the world has ever produced, Sanskrit, written in Devanagari script, is the parent to most of the languages spoken in the North, West, Central, East of India. The major Indian scriptures and epics are written in it and its semblance could be majorly traced in all its inherited languages. But does it mean Sanskrit has ceased to exist in day-to-day life among the masses? Most hearteningly, in the ‘Mattur’ village of the Shimoga District, Karnataka, Sanskrit is still the medium of communication among its inhabitants.

Tamil is the oldest of the Dravidian languages. The other three Dravidian languages are Kannada, Telugu and Malayalam. The Dravidian family has around 80 dialects. Surprisingly, a language that is a descendent of the Dravidian tree, namely Brahui, is even spoken in Pakistan and Afghanistan by a minor chunk of the population.

How many languages are spoken in India?

With a reasonably big and vast language family, with its civilisation rooted in times immemorial, the acceptance of multiple cultures among the masses, with diverse geography to boast of- it should be anyone’s guess that the number of languages and dialects spoken in India is quite vast. The number of spoken languages in India stands at a staggering -122 (and counting!)

Hindi, of the Indo-Aryan clan, is not only the most widely used in India but also one of the most spoken languages in the world. Bengali, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil and Gujarati are not too far behind either.

Sanskrit is recognised and revered as one of the most beautiful and logical languages in the world. Tamil has one of the oldest registered literature and sign of existence.

Could we learn Indian languages online for free?

(Image above: screenshot showcasing levels and chapters in Language Curry app).

Have we ever familiarized ourselves with an Indian language app? OK, let us stop beating around the bushes: did we hear of ‘Language Curry’?

The ‘Language Curry’ app could be our gateway to learning Indian languages. Let us endeavour to learn Indian Language, and learn Indian languages online free, so let us download and install the ‘Language Curry’ app free from the Google store and familiarize ourselves and learn the Indian language app.

So, why wait?  Having armed ourselves now with the diving gear- the Language Curry app- let us take deep dives into the sea of Indian Language.

 

We stay in society, we speak and hear,

We travel along- far and near,

We need a medium to pass on the message,

And thus takes the birth of a language.

 

A country with a vast geographical spread,

With many dialects spoken, and many scripts read,

And a civilization that is rooted in the Bronze age,

All contribute to defining the Indian Language.

 

The languages are many, its speakers spread wide,

 Hindi, Punjabi, Gujarati, many more- on one side,

Tamil, Telegu, Malayalam, Kannada garnish the Dravidian slate,

We are almost ready to serve the Indian Language plate!

 

 The Indian language is a sea very deep,

Do we have a language app for keeps?

Let’s have ‘Language Curry’ by our side,

As we get ready to take the deep dive!

              (Image:showcasing a page from the Sanskrit lesson in the Language Curry App.)

Learning can be fun! Learn Sanskrit through emojis!

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