Languages of Bangladesh
| Languages of Bangladesh | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Official languages | Bengali |
| National languages | Bengali |
| Regional languages | rangpuri language |
| Minority languages |
38 Minority languages Arakanese, Assamese, Bishnupriya Manipuri, Chakma, Hajong, Tangchangya, Oraon Sadri, Khasi, Koda, Mundari, Pnar, Santali, War-Jaintia, Kurukh, Sauria Paharia, A'Tong, Chak, Chin, Asho, Bawm, Falam, Haka, Khumi, Koch, Garo, Megam, Meitei Manipuri, Mizo, Mru, Pangkhua, Kok Borok, Riang, Tippera and Usoi |
| Main immigrant languages | Bihari • Burmese • Rohingya |
| Main foreign languages | English • Arabic |
| Sign languages | Bengali Sign language |
| Common keyboard layouts |
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The official and de facto national language of Bangladesh is Bangla. It serves as the lingua franca of the nation, with 98% of Bangladeshis fluent in Standard Bangla or Bangla dialects as their native language.
English in Bangladesh, though having no official status, is prevalent across government, law, business, media and education.[1][2] Arabic is also used widely as an integral part of religious instruction in daily life. The indigenous people of northern and southeastern Bangladesh speak a variety of native languages.
Aryan languages
Bangla is spoken by more than 98% of the country's inhabitants. There are also some Eastern Indic language varieties, which are variously classified either as dialects of Bangla or separate but closely related languages. They can be thought of forming a dialect continuum.
Bengali-Assamese languages
- Standard Bangla (Bengali): the sole official and national language, spoken countrywide across Bangladesh.
- Chittagonian Bangla: spoken in the city of Chittagong and in much of the southeast of the country, it is often considered to be a dialect of Bangla, but both languages are mutually unintelligible to each other.
- Rangpuri (rajbanshi): spoken in the city of Rangpur and in much of the northeast of the country,it is often considered to be a dialect of bangla, but both languages are mutually unintelligible to each other.
- Sylheti Bangla: spoken in the city of Sylhet and in much of the northeast of the country, it is often considered to be a dialect of Bangla, but both languages are mutually unintelligible to each other.
- Assamese: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Rangpur Division.
- Bishnupriya Manipuri: spoken by minorities in the southern part of Sylhet Division.
- Chakma: spoken by minorities in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region.
- Hajong: spoken by minorities in the Sylhet Division.
- Rohingya: spoken by minorities in the southern part of Chittagong Division. It is also spoken in Arakan State in Burma, and by refugees from that region, currently living in Bangladesh's Chittagong Division. While it is also often called Arkani by native speakers, it is unrelated to the Arakanese of Arakan State.
- Tangchangya: spoken in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region.
Non Bengali-Assamese languages
- Pali: used by Buddhist organizations and Buddhist studies in collages and universities.
- Oraon Sadri: spoken by minorities in the western part of Rajshahi Division.
- Bihari: spoken primarily by Bihari refugees from Bihar.
Non-Aryan languages
The indigenous languages of the region are members of the Austroasiatic, Dravidian and Tibeto-Burman families. Most of these languages are spoken in mountainous areas.
Afro-Asiatic languages
- Arabic: is used widely as an integral part of religious instruction in daily life. This trend ended in the late 1970s, however, after Bangladesh strengthened its ties with Saudi Arabia and other oil-rich, Arabicspeaking countries. An unsuccessful attempt was made in 1983 to introduce Arabic as a required language in primary and secondary levels. In the late 1980s, Arabic was studied in many homes in Bangladesh as an integral part of religious instruction. Aside from courses in religious schools, however, Arabic was not a popular subject at the college and university level.[3]
Austroasiatic languages
While the more widely spoken and better-known Austroasiatic languages are spoken in Southeast Asia (e.g. Khmer and Vietnamese), smaller languages of that family are spoken by indigenous communities of northern and eastern Bangladesh.
- Khasi: spoken by minorities in the northern part of Mymensingh Division.
- Koda: spoken by minorities in the western part of Rangpur Division.
- Mundari: spoken by minorities in the western part of Rangpur Division.
- Pnar: spoken by minorities in the western part of Rangpur Division.
- Santali: spoken by minorities in the western part of Rangpur Division.
- War-Jaintia: spoken by minorities in the western part of Rangpur Division.
Dravidian languages
Two Dravidian languages are spoken by indigenous communities of western Bangladesh.
- Kurukh: spoken by minorities in the northern part of Rangpur Division.
- Sauria Paharia: spoken by minorities in the western part of Rangpur Division.
Germanic languages
- English: has a prevalent unofficial usage across business, media and education alongside with Bangla.
Tibeto-Burman languages
The mountainous areas along the northern and eastern edges of the country are inhabited primarily by speakers of Tibeto-Burman languages. Indigenous Tibeto-Burman-speaking communities are found through the northern, eastern, and especially the southeastern parts of Bangladesh.
- Arakanese: spoken by minorities in the southern part of Chittagong Division and also in the southern part Barisal Division. It is also spoken in Arakan State in Burma.
- A'Tong: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
- Chak: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
- Chin languages (includes Asho, Bawm, Falam, Haka, Khumi): spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
- Koch: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
- Garo: spoken by minorities in the northern part of Mymensingh Division. It is also a major language of Meghalaya State in India.
- Megam: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
- Meitei Manipuri: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Sylhet Division. It is also a major language of Manipur State in India.
- Mizo: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division. It is also a major language of Mizoram State in India.
- Mru: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
- Pangkhua: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
- KokBorok: spoken by minorities in the northeastern part of Chittagong Division. It is a major language of Tripura State in India.
- Riang: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
- Tippera: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
- Usoi: spoken by minorities in the eastern part of Chittagong Division.
References
Further reading
External links
| Official language | |
|---|---|
| Semiofficial language | |
| Indo-European | |
| Sino-Tibetan | |
| Austroasiatic | |
| Dravidian | |
| Afro-Asiatic | |
