Kangri language

Kangri (Takri: 𑚊𑚭𑚫𑚌𑚪𑚯) is an Indo-Aryan language variety spoken in northern India, predominantly in the Kangra, Hamirpur and Una districts of Himachal Pradesh and in the Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur districts of Punjab.[1] It is associated with the people of the Kangra Valley. The total number of speakers has been estimated at 1.7 million (as of 1996),[1] while those who reported their first language as Kangri in the 2011 census were 1.17 million[2] (compared with 1.12 million in 2001).[3]

Kangri
𑚊𑚭𑚫𑚌𑚪𑚯, कांगड़ी
Kangri written in Takri
Native toIndia
RegionHimachal Pradesh, Punjab
Native speakers
(1.7 million cited 1996)
Takri,
Devanagari
Language codes
ISO 639-3xnr
Glottologkang1280

Its precise position within Indo-Aryan is subject to debate. Some scholars have classified as a dialect of the Dogri language spoken to the west (and hence a member of Greater Punjabi), while others have seen its affinity to be closer with the Pahari dialects spoken to the east: Mandeali, Chambeali and Kullui.[4]

Script

The native script of the language is Takri Script.

Specimen in Kangri language

Status

The language is commonly called Pahari or Himachali. Some speaker may even call it a dialect of Punjabi or Dogri. The language has no official status and is recorded as a dialect of Hindi.[5] According to the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the language is of definitely endangered category, i.e. many Kangri children are not learning Kangri as their mother tongue any longer.


The demand for the inclusion of 'Pahari (Himachali)' under the Eight Schedule of the Constitution, which is supposed to represent multiple Pahari languages of Himachal Pradesh, had been made in the year 2010 by the state's Vidhan Sabha.[6] There has been no positive progress on this matter since then even when

small organisations are taking upto themselves to save the language and demanding it.[7] Due to political interest, the language is currently recorded as a dialect of Hindi, even when having a poor mutual intelligibility with it and having a higher mutual intelligibility with other recognised languages like Dogri.

References
  1. Simons, Gary F; Fennig, Charles D, eds. (2017). Ethnologue: Languages of the World (20th ed.). Dallas, Texas: SIL International.
  2. "2011 Census tables: C-16, population by mother tongue". Census of India Website. Retrieved 4 November 2018. The precise figure is 1,117,342
  3. "Census of India: Abstract of speakers' strength of languages and mother tongues –2001". censusindia.gov.in. The precise number is 1,122,843.
  4. Eaton 2008, p. 2.
  5. "India Language Census" (PDF).
  6. "Pahari Inclusion". Zee News.
  7. "Pahari Inclusion". The Statesman.

Bibliography
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