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OVERVIEW
Language
being the most important medium of communication
and education, their development occupies and
important place in the National Policy on
Education and Programme of Action. Therefore,
promotion and development of Hindi and other 22
languages listed in the schedule VIII of the
Constitution including Sanskrit and Urdu on the
one hand and English as well as the foreign
languages on the other hand have received due
attention. In fulfilling the constitutional
responsibility, the Department of Higher
Education is assisted by autonomous organization
and subordinate offices.
2. The Language Policy of India relating to the use of languages
in administration, education, judiciary, legislature, mass
communication, etc., is pluralistic in its scope. It is both
language-development oriented and language-survival oriented.
The policy is intended to encourage the citizens to use their
mother tongue in certain delineated levels and domains through
some gradual processes, but the stated goal of the policy is to
help all languages to develop into fit vehicles of communication
at their designated areas of use, irrespective of their nature
or status like major, minor, or tribal languages. The policy is
accommodative and ever-evolving, through mutual adjustment,
consensus, and judicial processes.
3. Evolving and monitoring implementation of language policy is
a major endeavor of the Language Bureau of the Ministry of Human
Resource Development, Government of India. This is done by the
Bureau through language institutions setup for the purpose under
its aegis: Central Hindi Directorate, Centre for Scientific and
Technical Terminology, Central Hindi Institute, Central
Institute of Indian Languages, National Council for Promotion of
Sindhi Language, National Council for Promotion of Urdu
Language, RSKS, MSRVVP, Central Institute of English and Foreign
Languages.
LANGUAGES IN
INDIA
Modern India, as per the 1961 Census, has more than 1652 mother
tongues, genetically belonging to five different language
families. The 1991 Census had 10,400 raw returns of mother
tongues and they were rationalized into 1576 mother tongues.
They are further rationalized into 216 mother tongues, and
grouped under 114 languages: Austro-Asiatic (14 languages, with
a total population of 1.13%), Dravidian (17 languages, with a
total population of 22.53%), Indo-European (Indo-Aryan, 19
languages, with a total population of 75.28%, and Germanic, 1
language, with a total population of 0.02%), Semito-Harmitic (1
language, with a total population of 0.01%), and Tibeto-Burman
(62 languages with a total population of 0.97%).It may be noted
that mother tongues having a population of less than 10000 on
all India basis or not possible to identify on the basis of
available linguistic information have gone under ‘others’.
FAMILY-WISE GROUPING OF THE 122 SCHEDULED AND
NON-SCHEDULED LANGUAGES – 2001
|
Language families |
Number of Languages |
Persons who returned the languages as
their mother tongue |
Percentage to total population |
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
|
1. Indo-European
(a) Indo-Aryan |
21 |
790,627,060 |
76.87 |
|
(b) Iranian |
2 |
22,774 |
00.00 |
|
(c) Germanic |
1 |
226,449 |
00.02 |
|
2. Dravidian |
17 |
214,172,874 |
20.82 |
|
3. Austro-Asiatic |
14 |
11,442,029 |
01.11 |
|
4. Tibeto-Burmese |
66 |
10,305,026 |
01.00 |
|
5. Semito-Hamitic |
1 |
51,728 |
00.01 |
|
Total |
122 |
1,026,847,940* |
99.83* |
* Out of the total
population of 1,028,610,328 for India, the
balance of 1,762,388 (0.17%) Speakers are "Total
of Other languages" other than Scheduled and Non
Scheduled languages. The total population
excludes the figures of Paomata, Mao Maram and
Purul Subdivision of Senapti district of
Manipur.
The names of the 122 Scheduled and Non-Scheduled
languages falling in the above five language
families are given below with the Scheduled
Languages denoted as (S). Of the 22 Scheduled
Languages, 15 fall in the Indo-Aryan branch of
the Indo-European family, 1 in Austro-Asiatic
family, 4 in the Dravidian family and 2 in the
Tibeto-Burmese family.
1. INDO-EUROPEAN
(a) INDO-ARYAN
1. Assamese (S), 2. Bengali(S), 3. Bhili/Bhilodi,
4. Bishnupuriya, 5. Dogri(S) 6. Gujarati(S), 7.
Halabi, 8. Hindi(S), 9. Kashmiri(S), 10.
Khandeshi,11. Konkani(S), 12.Lahnda. 13.
Maithili(S), 14. Marathi(S), 15. Nepali(S), 16.
Oriya(S), 17. Punjabi(S), 18. Sanskrit(S), 19.
Shina, 20. Sindhi(S), 21. Urdu(S),
(b) IRANIAN
1. Afghani/Kabuli/Pashto, 2. Persian
(c) GERMANIC
1. English.
2. DRAVIDIAN
1. Coorgi/Kodagu, 2. Gondi, 3. Jatapu, 4.
Kannada(S), 5. Khond/Kondh, 6. Kisan, 7. Kolami,
8. Konda, 9.Koya, 10. Kui, 11. Kurukh/Oraon, 12.
Malayalam(S), 13. Malto, 14. Parji, 15 Tamil(S),
16. Telugu(S), 17.Tulu.
3. AUSTRO-ASIATIC
1. Bhumij, 2. Gadaba, 3. Ho, 4. Juang, 5. Kharia,
6. Khasi, 7. Koda/Kora, 8. Korku, 9. Korwa, 10.
Munda, 11.Mundari, 12. Nicobarese, 13. Santali(S)
14.Savara.
4. TIBETO-BURMESE
1. Adi, 2. Anal, 3. Angami, 4. Ao, 5. Balti, 6.
Bhotia, 7. Bodo (S), 8. Chakesang, 9. Chakru/Chokri,
10. Chang, 11. Deori, 12. Dimasa, 13. Gangte,
14. Garo,15. Halam, 16. Hmar, 17. Kabui, 18.
Karbi/Mikir, 19. Khezha, 20. Khiemnungan,
21.Kinnauri, 22. Koch, 23. Kom, 24. Konyak, 25.
Kuki, 26. Ladakhi, 27. Lahauli, 28. Lakher, 29.
Lalung, 30. Lepcha, 31. Liangmei, 32. Limbu,
33.Lotha, 34. Lushai/Mizo, 35. Manipuri(S), 36.
Maram, 37. Maring, 38. Miri/Mishing, 39. Mishmi,
40. Mogh, 41. Monpa, 42. Nissi/Dafla, 43. Nocte,
44. Paite, 45. Pawi, 46. Phom, 47. Pochury, 48.
Rabha, 49. Rai 50.Rengma, 51. Sangtam, 52. Sema,
53. Sherpa, 54. Simte, 55. Tamang 56. Tangkhul,
57. Tangsa, 58. Thado, 59. Tibetan, 60. Tripuri,
61. Vaiphei, 62. Wancho, 63. Yimchungre, 64.
Zeliang, 65. Zemi, 66. Zou.
5. SEMITO-HAMITIC
1. Arabic/Arbi
The Indo-Aryan languages
are spoken by the maximum number of speakers,
followed in the descending order by the
Dravidian, Austro-Asiatic, and Sino-Tibetan
(Tibeto-Burman) languages.
Twenty two
Indian languages : Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati,
Hindi, Kashmiri, Kannada, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam,
Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santali,
Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu are included in the Eighth
Schedule. Among these two languages - Sanskrit and Tamil are
assigned the status of Classical languages.
Indian
multilingualism is unique in many respects - it has naturally
evolved and is coupled with the multilingualism evolving through
schooling.
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