There are 18 major languages spoken in India and over 1600 regional dialects. Even though Hindi is the official language, many people in India do not speak it at all. Hindi is spoken by about half the population, mostly in North India. Most languages have their own script. Some of the major languages are Hindi, English, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu.
English is the second major language spoken in India and is used for much of the official business. It is the official language of the judiciary. Many people prefer to use English as a common language over Hindi. English is the first language for many people, especially in the big cities. A large percentage of people in India can speak and read English.
Each state in the South has its own language—Tamil in Tamil Nadu; Telegu in Andhra Pradesh; Kanada in Karnataka; and Malayalam in Kerala.
Major Languages
Assamese About 60% of the population of Assam speaks Assamese.
Bengali It is the state language of West Bengal. Many people in Bengal only speak Bengali and do not speak Hindi or English.
Gujarati State language of Gujarat.
Hindi This is the first language of about 20% of India. It is the first language in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. It is the official language of the Indian government.
Kannada State language of Karnataka.
Kashmiri About 55% of the population of Jammu & Kashmir speak this language. It is written in an Arabic script.
Konkani It is the language spoken in Goa.
Malayalam State language of Kerala.
Manipuri Spoken in northeast India.
Marathi State language of Maharashtra. Also spoken in Mumbai.
Nepali This is the main language in Nepal and Sikkim.
Oriya State language of Orissa.
Punjabi State language of the Punjab.
Sanskrit It is the language that the Vedic scriptures are written in and it is one of the oldest languages in the world. Very few people speak this language now.
Sindhi This language is spoken in Pakistan or by people that were from this area.
Tamil State language of Tamil Nadu. 65 million people speak this language.
Telugu State language of Andhra Pradesh.
Urdu State language of Jammu & Kashmir. Urdu was developed in Delhi and is mainly spoken by the Muslim population. It is written in the Arabic script and includes many Persian words.
