National Language of India: India is a big country with lots of different cultures and languages. As you travel across India, you'll notice that people speak different languages in different areas. It's like how the water changes when you move from one place to another. Even though India has many languages, it doesn't have one language that everyone agrees is the national language. People have been talking about this for a long time, but there hasn't been a decision yet. It's important to know the difference between a national language and an official language. This post will help you understand more about National Language of India.
In 1950, Hindi in Devanagari script was made India’s official language, and English was to be used only till 1965. But since a full shift to Hindi wasn’t possible, English is still used along with Hindi. The Official Language Act (1963) clarified the use of Hindi and English in Parliament, government work, laws, and courts. India is a multilingual country. Each state can choose its own official language(s). The Constitution (Eighth Schedule) recognizes 22 languages as scheduled languages. List of 22 Scheduled Languages:
Assamese
Bengali
Bodo
Dogri
Gujarati
Hindi
Kannada
Kashmiri
Konkani
Maithili
Malayalam
Manipuri
Marathi
Nepali
Odia (Oriya)
Punjabi
Sanskrit
Santali
Sindhi
Tamil
Telugu
Urdu
Official Language of India State Wise | ||
---|---|---|
State | Official Languages | Other Spoken Languages |
Andhra Pradesh | Telugu | Telugu, Urdu, Hindi, Tamil, Marathi |
Arunachal Pradesh | English | Nishi, Adi, Bengali, Nepali, Hindi |
Assam | Assamese | Assamese, Bengali, Hindi, Bodo, Nepali |
Bihar | Hindi | Hindi (Bhojpuri, Magadhi), Maithili, Urdu |
Chattisgarh | Hindi | Hindi (Chhattisgarhi), Odia, Bengali, Telugu, Marathi |
Goa | Konkani | Konkani, Marathi, Hindi, Kannada, Urdu |
Gujarat | Gujarati | Gujarati, Hindi, Sindhi, Marathi, Urdu |
Haryana | Hindi | Hindi (Haryanvi, Mewati), Punjabi, Urdu, Bengali, Maithili |
Himachal Pradesh | Hindi | Hindi, Punjabi, Nepali, Kashmiri, Dogri |
Jharkhand | Hindi | Hindi (Bhojpuri, Magadhi, Nagpuri), Santhali, Bengali, Urdu, Odia |
Karnataka | Kannada | Kannada, Urdu, Telugu, Tamil, Marathi |
Kerala | Malayalam | Malayalam, Tamil, Tulu, Kannada, Konkani |
Madhya Pradesh | Hindi | Hindi, Marathi, Urdu, Sindhi, Gujarati |
Maharashtra | Marathi | Marathi |
Manipur | Meitei (Manipuri) | Manipuri, Nepali, Hindi, Bengali |
Meghalaya | English | Khasi, Garo, Bengali, Nepali, Hindi |
Mizoram | Mizo, English, Hindi | Mizo, English, Hindi, Manipuri, Chakma |
Nagaland | English | Ao, Konyak, Angami, Sema, Lotha |
Odisha | Odia | Odia, Bengali, Telugu, Hindi, Santali |
Punjab | Punjabi | Punjabi, Hindi |
Rajasthan | Hindi | Rajasthani, Hindi |
Sikkim | English | Bhutia, Hindi, Nepali, Lepcha, Limbu |
Tamil Nadu | Tamil | Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Urdu, Malayalam |
Telangana | Telugu | Telugu, Urdu, Marathi, Kannada, Hindi |
Tripura | Bengali, English, Kokborok | Bengali, Tripuri, Manipuri, Kokborok |
Uttar Pradesh | Hindi | Hindi (Awadhi, Bhojpuri, Braj Bhasha, Khari Boli dialects) |
Uttarakhand | Hindi | Hindi (Garhwali, Kumaoni, Jaunsari dialects) |
West Bengal | Bengali | Bengali |
Other Related Links | |
Tiger Reserves in India | National Parks in India |
Biosphere Reserves in India | Elephant Reserves in India |