India has a diverse list of spoken languages among different groups of people. At least 30 different languages and around 2000 dialects have been identified. The Constitution of India has stipulated the usage of Hindi and English to be the two official languages of communication for the national government. Additionally, it contains a list of 22 scheduled languages. These languages are entitled to representation on the Official Language Commission, and a candidate in an examination conducted for national government service may opt to take the exam in any of these languages.

As drafted, English ceased to exist as an official language (on par with Hindi) in 1965, after which it was intended to continue as an "associate additional official language" until such time that a duly appointed committee can decide on a full-scale transition to Hindi, based on a periodic review. However, due to protests from some states like Tamil Nadu where there is low Hindi penetration, the "twin language" system is still in vogue. Due to rapid industrialization, and a

Official languages

Two languages are the languages used by the central administration:

1. Hindi is the language used by the Central Government when communicating with the states of Hindi Belt
2. English is the Associate official language and the language to be used while communicating with the States.

Recognized national languages of India

A further 22 languages are scheduled for official use:

1. Assamese — official language of Assam
2. Bengali — official language of Tripura and West Bengal
3. Bodo — official language of Assam
4. Dogri — official language of Jammu and Kashmir
5. Gujarati — official language of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and Gujarat
6. Hindi — official language of Arunachal Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal
7. Kannada — official language of Karnataka
8. Kashmiri — official language of Jammu and Kashmir
9. Konkani — official language of Goa
10. Maithili — official language of Bihar
11. Malayalam — official language of Kerala and Lakshadweep
12. Manipuri or Meithei — official
    
    
    
    language of Manipur
13. Marathi — official language of Maharashtra
14. Nepali — official language of Sikkim
15. Oriya — official language of Orissa
16. Punjabi — official language of Punjab, second official language of Delhi
17. Sanskrit — language of Hinduism, required teaching in many schools
18. Santali
19. Sindhi
20. Tamil — official language of Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry
21. Telugu — official language of Andhra Pradesh
22. Urdu — official language of Jammu and Kashmir, some districts in Andhra Pradesh, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh

Other popular languages of India

These languages have over 5 million speakers but no official status. Many are often considered sub-varieties of Hindi.

Closely-related to Hindi

1. Angika — language of Bihar, Spoken largely in the Northern and Southern part of Bihar, Major part of Jharkhand and Maldah district of West Bengal
2. Awadhi
3. Bhojpuri — language of Bihar
4. Bundeli
5. Chhattisgarhi — language of Chhattisgarh
6. Hariyanavi (Haryanvi) — language of Haryana
7. Hindustani — a mixture of Hindi and Urdu, spoken largely in the Northern part of India.
8. Kanauji — language of Uttar Pradesh
9. Magadhi — language of southern Bihar
10. Marwari — language of Rajasthan

Others

1. Bhili (Bhil tribals)
2. Gondi (Gond tribals)
3. Kodava, spoken in the Kodagu district of Karnataka
4. Kutchi — language of Kutch, a region in Gujarat
5. Tulu — spoken by Tulu people of Karnataka and Kerala

The Constitution of India lists 18 regional languages.

Minority languages of India

These languages have fewer than one million speakers:

1. Mahl — language of Minicoy, spoken in the island of Minicoy, Lakshadweep

See also

• List of Indian languages by total speakers
• Languages of India

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