Awadhi language
Awadhi (Hindi pronunciation: [əʋ.d̪ʱi]; अवधी), also known as Audhi (औधी), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Awadh region of Uttar Pradesh in northern India and in Terai region of western Nepal. The name Awadh is connected to Ayodhya, the ancient city, which is regarded as the homeland of the Hindu god Rama. It was, along with Braj, used widely as a literary vehicle before being displaced by Hindi in the 19th century.
| Awadhi | |
|---|---|
| Avadhī | |
| अवधी/औधी | |
The word "Awadhi" written in Devanagari script | |
| Pronunciation | [əʋ.d̪ʱi] |
| Native to | India and Nepal |
| Region | Awadh |
| Ethnicity | Awadhis |
Native speakers | 3.85 million in India (2011) 500,000 in Nepal (2011) |
Early forms | |
| Dialects |
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| |
| Official status | |
Official language in | Fiji (as Fiji Hindi) |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 | awa |
| ISO 639-3 | awa |
| Glottolog | awad1243 |
| Linguasphere | 59-AAF-ra |
Linguistically, Awadhi is a language at par with Hindustani. However, it is regarded by the Indian government to be a dialect of Hindi, and the area where Awadhi is spoken to be a part of the Hindi-language area owing to their cultural proximity, meanwhile Standard Hindi also serves as the lingua franca of the region. As a result, Hindi, rather than Awadhi, is used for school instruction as well as administrative and official purposes; and its literature falls within the scope of Hindi literature.
Alternative names of Awadhi include Baiswāri (after the subregion of Baiswara), as well as the sometimes ambiguous Pūrbī, literally meaning "eastern", and Kōsalī (named after the ancient Kosala Kingdom).