Languages in Nepal

Languages in Nepal

There are some more than 120 native languages of Nepal, belonging to the Indo-Aryan, Sino-Tibetan, Austro-Asiatic and Dravidian language families.

It is the official language and de facto lingua franca of Nepal and is also spoken in Bhutan, parts of India and parts of Myanmar (Burma). In India, it is one of the country's 23 official languages: Nepali has official language status in the formerly independent state of Sikkim and in West Bengal's Darjeeling district. The influence of the Nepali language can also be seen in Bhutan and some parts of Burma. Nepali developed in proximity to a number of Tibeto-Burman languages, most notably Nepal Bhasa (Newari), and shows Tibeto-Burman influences. Nepali is closely related to the Hindi languages and is sometimes considered mutually intelligible to some extent, yet is more conservative with more Sanskritic derivations and fewer Persian or English loan words than Hindi-Urdu.

Historically, the language was first called Khaskura (language of the khas 'rice farmers'), then Gorkhali or Gurkhali (language of the Gurkha) before the term Nepali was taken from Newari. Other names include Parbatiya ("mountain language", identified with the Parbatiya people of Nepal) and Lhotshammikha (the "southern language" of the Lhotshampa people of Bhutan). The name 'Nepali' is ambiguous, as it was originally a pronunciation of Newari, the Tibeto-Burman language of the capital

Classification

Three quarters of the 120-some languages native to Nepal belong to the Tibeto-Burman language family; this includes Nepal Bhasa (Newar) (the original language of Kathmandu), the Tamang, Magar and various Rai and Limbu languages. However, the official and numerically most important language, Nepali (Gorkhali), belongs to the Indo-Aryan (Indic) branch of the Indo-European family, so that Indic languages constitute 79% of the population to Tibeto-Burman's 18%, even though most languages of both families are spoken by small numbers of people.

The Dravidian languages are represented by Kurux, and the Munda languages of the Austro-Asiatic family by Santali and Mundari. The indigenous languages of Nepal that predated the influx of Indic, Tibeto-Burman, and other families barely survive in the Kusunda language, which is nearly extinct today.

Nepal also has two indigenous Deaf sign languages, in addition to the Nepali Sign Language designed for national use.

Major languages

Nepali (48.61%, 2001 census)

Angika (8.30%)

Bhojpuri (7.53%)

Tharu (5.6%)

Tamang (5.19%)

Newari/Nepal Bhasa (3.63%)

Maithili (3.90%)

Magar (3.39%)

Awadhi (2.47%)

Limbu (1.47%)

Bantawa (1.4%)

Gurung (1.3%)

Bajjika (1.05%)

Other languages

Athpare (Rai)

Bahing or Rumdali

Belhare

Bhujel

Chamling (Rai)

Chantyal

Chepang

Chintang

Dhanwar Rai

Dhimal and Toto

Dogri-Kangri

Dumi (Rai)

Dura

Kayort

Khaling (Rai)

Kham

Kulung (Rai)

Kurukh

Kusunda

Lepcha

Majhwar

Mugom

Mundari

Puma

Sampang (Rai)

Sanskrit

Santali

Sherpa

Sunuwar

Thulung (Rai)

Wambule (Rai)

Wayu

Yakkha

Yamphu (Rai)