Maithili (English: /ˈmaɪtɪli/,[4] Hindi pronunciation: [/mɛːt̪ʱili/]) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in parts of India and Nepal. It is native to the Mithila region, which encompasses parts of the eastern Indian states of Bihar and Jharkhand as well as the Nepal's Koshi and Madhesh Provinces. It is one of the 22 scheduled languages of India.[5][6][7] It is the second most commonly spoken language of Nepal.[8][9][10] It is also one of the fourteen provincial official languages of Nepal.[11]
| Maithili | |
|---|---|
| मैथिली | |
 The word "Maithili" written in Devanagari script | |
| Pronunciation | [ˈməi̯tʰɪliː] |
| Native to | India and Nepal |
| Region | Mithila |
| Ethnicity | Maithil |
Native speakers | 16.8 million (2011-2021)[1][2] |
Early forms | Magadhi Prakrit
|
| Dialects | |
| |
| Official status | |
Official language in | |
| Regulated by | Sahitya Akademi, Maithili Academy, Maithili - Bhojpuri Academy, Delhi, Nepal Academy |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 | mai |
| ISO 639-3 | mai |
| Glottolog | mait1250 |
 Maithili-speaking region of India and Nepal | |
The language is predominantly written in Devanagari, but the historical Tirhuta and Kaithi scripts retained some use until today.
Official status
editIn 2003, Maithili was included in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution as a recognised Indian language, which allows it to be used in education, government, and other official contexts in India.[5] The Maithili language is included as an optional paper in the UPSC Exam. In March 2018, Maithili received the second official language status in the Indian state of Jharkhand.[12]
The Language Commission of Nepal has recommended Maithili be made an official administrative language in Koshi province and Madhesh Province.[11]
Distribution
editIn India, it is mainly spoken in Darbhanga, Madhubani, Saharsa, Purnia, Sitamarhi, Samastipur, Munger, Muzaffarpur, Begusarai, Khagaria, Katihar, Kishanganj, Sheohar, Vaishali, Bhagalpur, Banka, Madhepura, Araria and Supaul districts of Bihar, and in some districts of Jharkhand.[13][14] The Bihari districts of Darbhanga, Madhubani, Saharsa and Purnia constitute cultural and linguistic centers of Maithili language.[15]
In Nepal, Maithili is spoken mainly in the Sarlahi, Mahottari, Dhanusa, Sunsari, Siraha, Morang and Saptari Districts.[15][16] Janakpur is an important linguistic centre of Maithili.[15]
Classification
editIn 1870s, Beames considered Maithili a dialect of a Bengali. Hoernlé initially treated it as a dialect of Eastern Hindi, but after comparing it with the Gaudian languages, recognised that it shows more similarities with the Bengali language than with Hindi. Grierson recognised it as a distinct language, grouped under 'Bihari' and published its first grammar in 1881.[17][18]
Chatterji grouped Maithili with the Magadhi Prakrit.[19]
Dialects
editMaithili varies greatly in dialects.[20] The standard form of Maithili is Sotipura also called Central Maithili.[21] It is mainly spoken in the Bihari districts of Darbhanga, Madhubani, Supaul District, Madhepura, Purnia, Samastipur, Araria and Saharsa districts, and in Nepal in Dhanusha, Siraha, Saptari, Sarlahi and Sunsari Districts.[22]
Bajjika is spoken in Sitamarhi, Muzaffarpur, Vaishali and Sheohar districts of Bihar. Western Maithili is listed as a distinct language in Nepal and overlaps by 76–86% with Maithili dialects spoken in Dhanusa, Morang, Saptari and Sarlahi Districts.[23] Thēthi is spoken mainly in Kosi, Purnia and Munger divisions and Mokama in Bihar and some adjoining districts of Nepal.[24] Angika language is spoken in and around Bhagalpur, Banka,[25] Jamui, Munger[26] Several other dialects of Maithili are spoken in India and Nepal, including Dehati, Deshi, Kisan, Bantar, Barmeli, Musar, Tati and Jolaha. All the dialects are intelligible to native Maithili speakers.[15]
Origin and history
editThe name Maithili is derived from the word Mithila, an ancient kingdom of which King Janaka was the ruler (see Ramayana). Maithili is also one of the names of Sita, the wife of King Rama and daughter of King Janaka. Scholars in Mithila used Sanskrit for their literary work and Maithili was the language of the common folk (Abahattha).
The beginning of Maithili language and literature can be traced back to the 'Charyapadas', a form of Buddhist mystical verses, composed during the period of 700-1300 AD. These padas were written in Sandhya bhasa by several Siddhas who belonged to Vajrayana Buddhism and were scattered throughout the territory of Assam, Bengal, Bihar and Odisha. Several of the Siddhas were from the Mithila region such as Kanhapa, Sarhapa etc. Prominent scholars like Rahul Sankrityanan, Subhadra Jha and Jayakant Mishra provided evidence and proved that the language of Charyapada is ancient Maithili or proto Maithili.[27] Apart from Charyapadas, there has been a rich tradition of folk culture, folk songs and which were popular among the common folks of the Mithila region.[28]
After the fall of Pala rule, disappearance of Buddhism, establishment of Karnāta kings and patronage of Maithili under Harisimhadeva (1226–1324) of Karnāta dynasty dates back to the 14th century (around 1327 AD). Jyotirishwar Thakur (1280–1340) wrote a unique work Varnaratnākara in Maithili prose.[29] The Varna Ratnākara is the earliest known prose text, written by Jyotirishwar Thakur in Mithilaksar script,[18] and is the first prose work not only in Maithili but in any modern Indian language.[30]
In 1324, Ghyasuddin Tughluq, the emperor of Delhi invaded Mithila, defeated Harisimhadeva, entrusted Mithila to his family priest and a great Military Scholar Kameshvar Jha, a Maithil Brahmin of the Oinwar dynasty. But the disturbed era did not produce any literature in Maithili until Vidyapati Thakur (1360 to 1450), who was an epoch-making poet under the patronage of king Shiva Singh and his queen Lakhima Devi. He produced over 1,000 immortal songs in Maithili on the theme of love of Radha and Krishna and the domestic life of Shiva and Parvati as well as on the subject of suffering of migrant labourers of Morang and their families; besides, he wrote a number of treaties in Sanskrit. His love-songs spread far and wide in no time and enchanted saints, poets and youth. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu saw the divine light of love behind these songs, and soon these songs became themes of Vaisnava sect of Bengal. Rabindranath Tagore, out of curiosity, imitated these songs under the pseudonym Bhanusimha. Vidyapati influenced the religious literature of Asama, Bengal, Utkala and gave birth to a new Brajabuli /Brajavali language.[31][32]
The earliest reference to Maithili or Tirhutiya is in Amaduzzi's preface to Beligatti's Alphabetum Brammhanicum, published in 1771.[33] This contains a list of Indian languages among which is 'Tourutiana.' Colebrooke's essay on the Sanskrit and Prakrit languages, written in 1801, was the first to describe Maithili as a distinct dialect.[34]
Many devotional songs were written by Vaisnava saints, including in the mid-17th century, Vidyapati and Govindadas. Mapati Upadhyaya wrote a drama titled Pārijātaharaṇa in Maithili. Professional troupes, mostly from dalit classes known as Kirtanias, the singers of bhajan or devotional songs, started to perform this drama in public gatherings and the courts of the nobles. Lochana (c. 1575 – c. 1660) wrote Rāgatarangni, a significant treatise on the science of music, describing the rāgas, tālas, and lyrics prevalent in Mithila.[35]
During the Malla dynasty's rule Maithili spread far and wide throughout Nepal from the 16th to the 17th century.[36][37] During this period, at least seventy Maithili dramas were produced. In the drama Harishchandranrityam by Siddhinarayanadeva (1620–57), some characters speak pure colloquial Maithili, while others speak Bengali, Sanskrit or Prakrit.[38] One notable Malla King who patronised Maithili was Bhupatindra Malla who composed 26 plays in the Maithili language during his lifetime.[39]
After the demise of Maheshwar Singh, the ruler of Darbhanga Raj, in 1860, the Raj was taken over by the British Government as regent. The Darbhanga Raj returned to his successor, Maharaj Lakshmishvar Singh, in 1898. The Zamindari Raj had a lackadaisical approach toward Maithili. The use of Maithili language was revived through personal efforts of MM Parameshvar Mishra, Chanda Jha, Munshi Raghunandan Das and others.[40][41]
Publication of Maithil Hita Sadhana (1905), Mithila Moda (1906), and Mithila Mihir (1908) further encouraged writers. The first social organisation, Maithil Mahasabha,[42] was established in 1910 for the development of Mithila and Maithili. It blocked its membership for people outside of the Maithil Brahmin and Karna Kayastha castes. Maithil Mahasabha campaigned for the official recognition of Maithili as a regional language. Calcutta University recognised Maithili in 1917, and other universities followed suit.[43]
Babu Bhola Lal Das wrote Maithili Grammar (Maithili Vyakaran). He edited a book Gadya Kusumanjali and edited a journal Maithili.[44] In 1965, Maithili was officially accepted by Sahitya Academy, an organisation dedicated to the promotion of Indian literature.[45][46]
In 2002, Maithili was recognised on the VIII schedule of the Indian Constitution as a major Indian language; Maithili is now one of the twenty-two Scheduled languages of India.[47]
The publishing of Maithili books in Mithilakshar script was started by Acharya Ramlochan Saran.[48][49]
Phonology
editVowels
edit| Front | Central | Back | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| short | long | short | long | short | long | |
| Close | ɪ ⟨इ⟩ | iː ⟨ई⟩ | ʊ ⟨उ⟩ | uː ⟨ऊ⟩ | ||
| Mid | e ⟨ऎ⟩ | eː ⟨ए⟩ | ə~ɐ ⟨अ⟩ | əː ⟨अऽ⟩ | o ⟨ऒ⟩ | oː ⟨ओ⟩ |
| Open | æ~ɛ ⟨ऍ⟩ | a ⟨ॴ⟩ | aː ⟨आ⟩ | ɔ ⟨अ꣱⟩ | ||
| Diphthongs | əɪ̯ ⟨ऐ⟩ əe̯ ⟨ꣾ⟩ | əʊ̯ ⟨औ⟩ əo̯ ⟨ॵ⟩ | ||||
- All vowels have nasal counterparts, represented by "~" in IPA and ँ on the vowels, like आँ ãː .
- All vowel sounds are realised as nasal when occurring before or after a nasal consonant.[50]
- Sounds eː and oː are often replaced by diphthongs əɪ̯ and əʊ̯.[citation needed]
- ɔ is replaced by ə in northern dialects and by o in southernmost dialects.
- There are three short vowels that were described by Grierson, but are not counted by modern grammarians. But they could be understood as syllable break: ॳ /ɘ̆/, इ /ɪ̆/, उ /ʊ̆/ . Or as syllable break ऺ in Devanagari and "." in IPA.
- ꣾ is a Unicode letter in Devanagari, (IPA /əe̯/) which is not supported currently on several browsers and operating systems, along with its mātrā (vowel sign).
The following diphthongs are present:[51]
- अय़(ꣾ) /əe̯/ ~ /ɛː/ - अय़सन (ꣾ सन) /əe̯sən/ ~ /ɛːsɐn/ 'like this'
- अव़(ॵ) /əo̯/ ~ /ɔː/- चव़मुख(चॏमुख) /tɕəo̯mʊkʰ/ ~ /tɕɔːmʊkʰ/ 'four faced'
- अयॆ /əe̯/ - अयॆलाः /əe̯laːh/ 'came'
- अवॊ (अऒ) /əo̯/ - अवॊताः /əo̯taːh/ 'will come'
- आइ /aːi̯/ - आइ /aːi̯/ 'today'
- आउ /aːu̯/ - आउ /aːu̯/ 'come please'
- आयॆ (आऎ) /aːe̯/ - आयॆल /aːe̯l/ 'came'
- आवॊ (आऒ) /aːo̯/ - आवॊब /aːo̯b/ 'will come'
- यु (इउ) /iu̯/ - घ्यु /ɡʱiu̯/ 'ghee'
- यॆ (इऎ) /ie̯/ - यॆः /ie̯h/ 'only this'
- यॊ (इऒ) /io̯/ - कह्यो /kəhio̯/ 'any day'
- वि (उइ) /ui̯/ - द्वि /dui̯/ 'two'
- वॆ (उऎ) /ue̯/ - वॆ: /ue̯h/ 'only that'
A peculiar type of phonetic change is recently taking place in Maithili by way of epenthesis, i.e. backward transposition of final /i/ and /u/ in all sort of words.[51] Thus:
Standard Colloquial - Common Pronunciation
- अछि /ətɕʰi/ - अइछ /əitɕʰ/ 'is'
- रवि /rəbi/ - रइब /rəib/ 'Sunday'
- मधु /mədʱu/ - मउध /məudʱ/ 'honey'
- बालु /ba:lu/ - बाउल /ba:ul/ 'sand'
Consonants
editMaithili has four classes of stops, one class of affricate, which is generally treated as a stop series, related nasals, fricatives and approximant.
| Labial | Dental/ Alveolar |
Retroflex | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m ⟨म⟩ | n ⟨न⟩ | ɳ ⟨ण⟩ | (ɲ) ⟨ञ⟩ | ŋ ⟨ङ⟩ | |||
| Plosive/ Affricate |
voiceless | unaspirated | p ⟨प⟩ | t ⟨त⟩ | ʈ ⟨ट⟩ | tɕ ⟨च⟩ | k ⟨क⟩ | |
| aspirated | pʰ ⟨फ⟩ | tʰ ⟨थ⟩ | ʈʰ ⟨ठ⟩ | tɕʰ ⟨छ⟩ | kʰ ⟨ख⟩ | |||
| voiced | unaspirated | b ⟨ब⟩ | d ⟨द⟩ | ɖ ⟨ड⟩ | dʑ ⟨ज⟩ | ɡ ⟨ग⟩ | ||
| aspirated | bʱ ⟨भ⟩ | dʱ ⟨ध⟩ | ɖʱ ⟨ढ⟩ | dʑʱ ⟨झ⟩ | ɡʱ ⟨घ⟩ | |||
| Fricative | voiceless | (ɸ~f) ⟨फ़⟩ | s ⟨स⟩ | (ʂ) ⟨ष⟩ | (ɕ) ⟨श⟩ | (x) ⟨ख़⟩ | -(h)* ⟨ः⟩ | |
| voiced | (z) ⟨ज़⟩ | (ʑ) ⟨झ़⟩ | ɦ ⟨ह⟩ | |||||
| Rhotic | unaspirated | ɾ~r ⟨र⟩ | (ɽ) ⟨ड़⟩ | |||||
| aspirated | (ɽʱ) ⟨ढ़⟩ | |||||||
| Lateral | l ⟨ल⟩ | |||||||
| Approximant | (ʋ~w) ⟨व⟩ | (j) ⟨य⟩ | ||||||
- Fricative sounds [ʂ, ɕ] only occur marginally, and are typically pronounced as a dental fricative /s/ in most styles of pronunciation. [h] ः is always added after a vowel.
Stops
editThere are four series of stops- bilabials, coronals, retroflex and velar, along with an affricate series. All of them show the four way contrast like most of the modern Indo-Aryan languages:
- tenuis, as /p/, which is like ⟨p⟩ in English spin
- voiced, as /b/, which is like ⟨b⟩ in English bin
- aspirated, as /pʰ/, which is like ⟨p⟩ in English pin, and
- murmured or aspirated voiced, as /bʱ/.
Apart from the retroflex series, all the rest four series show full phonological contrast in all positions. The retroflex tenius /ʈ/ and /ʈʰ/ show full contrast in all positions. /ɖ/ and /ɖʱ/ show phonological contrast mainly word-initially.[52] Both are defective phonemes, occurring intervocalically and word finally only if preceded by a nasal consonant. Word finally and postvocalically, /ɖʱ/ surfaces as [ɽʱ~rʱ].[53] Non-initially, both are interchangeable with [ɽ~ɾ] and [ɽʱ~rʱ] respectively.[52]
Fricatives
edit/s/ and /ɦ/ are most common fricatives. They show full phonological opposition. [ɕ], which is present in tatsama words, is replaced by /s/ most of the times, when independent, and prevocalic [ʂ] is replaced by /kʰ/, [x][52] or /s/. [ɕ] occurs before /tɕ/ and [ʂ] before /ʈ/. [x] and [f] occurs in Perso-Arabic loanwords, generally replaced by /kʰ/ and /pʰ/ respectively. [x] and [ɸ] also occurs in Sanskrit words (jihvamuliya and upadhmaniya), which is peculiar to Maithili.
Sonorants
edit/m/ and /n/ are present in all phonological positions. /ŋ/ occurs only non-initially and is followed by a homorganic stop, which may be deleted if voiced, which leads to the independent presence of /ŋ/. /ɳ/ occurs non-initially, followed by a homorganic stop, and is independent only in tatsama words, which is often replaced with /n/. [ɲ] occurs only non-initially and is followed by a homorganic stop always. It is the only nasal which does not occur independently.
- In most styles of pronunciation, the retroflex flap [ɽ] occurs marginally. It is usually pronounced as an alveolar tap [ɾ] sound, and is often interchanged with /r/.[52]
- Approximant sounds [ʋ, w, j] and fricative sounds [ɸ, f, z, ɕ, ʑ, ʂ, x], mainly occur in words that are borrowed from Sanskrit or in words of Perso-Arabic origin. The conjunct ष्प (IAST ṣp) is pronounced [ɸp] in Maithili e.g. पुष्प [puɸp(ə)]. The conjunct ह्य (IAST hy) is pronounced [ɦʑ] as in ग्रऻह्य (grahya) [graɦʑə].[52]
There are four non-syllabic vowels in Maithili- i̯, u̯, e̯, o̯ written in Devanagari as य़, व़, य़ॆ, व़ॊ. Most of the times, these are written without nukta.
Morphology
editNouns
editAn example declension:
| Case name | Singular Inflection | Plural Inflection | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feminine | Masculine | Neuter | Feminine | Masculine | Neuter | |
| Nominative | -इ ɪ | -आ/अ꣱ aː/ɔ | -इन ɪn | -अन, -अनि
ən, ənɪ̆ |
-अन, -अनि
ən, ənɪ̆ | |
| Accusative
(Indefinite) |
-ई iː | -ई iː | -आ aː | |||
| Instrumental | Postposition used |
-एँ ẽː | Postposition used | -अन्हि
ənʰɪ̆ | ||
| Dative | Postposition used | |||||
| -इल ɪlə | -अल ələ | No forms | ||||
| Ergative | -इएँ ɪẽː | -एँ ẽː | ||||
| Ablative | -इतः ɪtəh | -अतः
ətəh | ||||
| Genitive | -इक ɪk, इर ɪr | -अक ək, -अर ər | -ईंक ĩːk | -आँँक
ãːk | ||
| Locative | Postposition used | -ए eː | Postposition used | -आँ
ãː | ||
| Vocative | -इ ɪ/ई iː | -आ/अऽ aː/əː | -इन ɪn | -अन, -अनि
ən, ənɪ̆ | ||
Adjectives
editThe difference between adjectives and nouns is very minute in Maithili. However, there are marked adjectives there in Maithili.
| Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Definite | -का/क꣱ kaː/kɔ | -कि/कि kɪ/kɪ̆ | का/कऽ kaː/kəː |
| Indefinite | -आ/अ꣱ aː/ɔ | -इ/इ ɪ/ɪ̆ | अ/अऽ ᵊ/əː |
Pronouns
editPronouns in Maithili are declined in similar way to nominals, though in most pronouns the genitive case has a different form. The lower forms below are accusative and postpositional. The plurals are formed periphrastically.
| Person | First Grade Honour | Honorofic | High Honorofic | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Person | हम ɦəm
अपना ɐpᵊnaː (Inclusive) | |||
| हमरा ɦəmᵊraː
अपना ɐpᵊnaː (Inclusive) | ||||
| Second Person | तोँह tõːɦᵊ | अहाँ ɐɦãː | अपने ɐpᵊneː | |
| तोँहरा tõːɦᵊraː | ||||
| Third Person | Proximate | ई iː | ए eː | |
| ऎकरा ekᵊraː | हिनका ɦɪnᵊkaː | |||
| ए eː (Neuter) | ||||
| ऎहि, ऍ, अथि eɦɪ, æ, ɐtʰɪ (Neuter) | ||||
| Non-Proximate | ऊ, वा uː, ʋaː | ओ oː | ||
| ऒकरा okᵊraː | हुनका ɦʊnᵊkaː | |||
| ऒ o (Neuter) | ||||
| ऒहि, ॵ oɦɪ, əʊ (Neuter) | ||||
Orthography
edit
Beginning in the 14th century, the language was written in the Tirhuta script (also known as Mithilakshara or Maithili), which is related to the Bengali-Assamese script.[54] By the early 20th century, this script was largely associated with the Mithila Brahmans, with most others using Kaithi, and Devanagari spreading under the influence of the scholars at Banaras.[55] Throughout the course of the century, Devanagari grew in use eventually replacing the other two, and has since remained the dominant script for Maithili.[56][54][55] Tirhuta retained some specific uses (on signage in north Bihar as well as in religious texts, genealogical records and letters), and has seen a resurgence of interest in the 21st century.[54]
The Tirhuta and Kaithi scripts are both currently included in Unicode.
| Devanagari | Tirhuta | Transcription | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Text | IAST | IPA | |
| क | 
|
𑒏 | ka | /kə/ |
| ख | 
|
𑒐 | kha | /kʰə/ |
| ग | 
|
𑒑 | ga | /gə/ |
| घ | 
|
𑒒 | gha | /gʱə/ |
| ङ | 
|
𑒓 | ṅa | /ŋə/ |
| च | 
|
𑒔 | ca | /t͡ɕə/ |
| छ | 
|
𑒕 | cha | /t͡ɕʰə/ |
| ज | 
|
𑒖 | ja | /d͡ʑə/ |
| झ | 
|
𑒗 | jha | /d͡ʑʱə/ |
| ञ | 
|
𑒘 | ña | (/ɲə/) /nə/ |
| ट | 
|
𑒙 | ṭa | /ʈə/ |
| ठ | 
|
𑒚 | ṭha | /ʈʰə/ |
| ड | 
|
𑒛 | ḍa | /ɖə/ |
| ढ | 
|
𑒜 | ḍha | /ɖʱə/ |
| ण | 
|
𑒝 | ṇa | /ɳə/ or /nə/ |
| त | 
|
𑒞 | ta | /t̪ə/ |
| थ | 
|
𑒟 | tha | /t̪ʰə/ |
| द | 
|
𑒠 | da | /d̪ə/ |
| ध | 
|
𑒡 | dha | /d̪ʱə/ |
| न | 
|
𑒢 | na | /nə/ |
| प | 
|
𑒣 | pa | /pə/ |
| फ | 
|
𑒤 | pha | /pʰə/ |
| ब | 
|
𑒥 | ba | /bə/ |
| भ | 
|
𑒦 | bha | /bʱə/ |
| म | 
|
𑒧 | ma | /mə/ |
| य | 
|
𑒨 | ya | (/jə/) /d͡ʑə/ or /e̯/ |
| र | 
|
𑒩 | ra | /rə/ |
| ल | 
|
𑒪 | la | /lə/ |
| व | 
|
𑒫 | va | (/ʋə/) or /bə/ /o̯/ |
| श | 
|
𑒬 | śa | (/ɕə/) /sə/ |
| ष | 
|
𑒭 | ṣa | /ʂə/ or /sə/ or /kʰə/ |
| स | 
|
𑒮 | sa | /sə/ |
| ह | 
|
𑒯 | ha | /ɦə/ |
| Devanagari | Tirhuta | Devanagari | Tirhuta | Transcription | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Dependent | ||||||||
| Phonetic | Traditional | Image | Text | Phonetic | Traditional | Image | Text | Romanisation | IPA |
| अ | 
|
𑒁 | [a] | [b] | a[c]/∅[d] | /ə/ or /ɐ/ or /ə̆/[c] or ∅[d] | |||
| अ꣱/अऽ/अ' | अऽ[e] | ◌꣱/◌ऽ/◌' | ◌'[f]/ ◌ऽ[e] | å | /ɔ/ ~/ʌ/ | ||||
| ॴ | आ | 
|
𑒂 | ऻ | ा | 
|
𑒰 | a/ă | /a/ |
| आ | ा | ā | /аː/ | ||||||
| इ | 
|
𑒃 | ि | 
|
𑒱 | і | /ɪ/ | ||
| not possible in initial position or independent (after vowel) | ि'[g] | ि | ĭ/i | /ɪ̆/ | |||||
| ई | 
|
𑒄 | ी | 
|
𑒲 | ī | /іː/ | ||
| उ | 
|
𑒅 | ु | 
|
𑒳 | u | /ʊ/ | ||
| not possible in initial position (after vowel) | ु'[h] | ु | ŭ/u | /ʊ̆/ | |||||
| ऊ | 
|
𑒆 | ू | 
|
𑒴 | ū | /uː/ | ||
| ऋ | 
|
𑒇 | ृ | 
|
𑒵 | ṛ | /r̩/ or /rɪ/ | ||
| ॠ | 
|
𑒈 | ॄ | 
|
𑒶 | ṝ | /r̩ː/ or /riː/ | ||
| ऌ | 
|
𑒉 | ॢ | 
|
𑒷 | ḷ | /l̩/ or /lɪ/ | ||
| ऍ | ऍ/ऐ | ॅ[i] | ॅ/ै | æ/ê | /æ/ ~/ɛ/[i] | ||||
| ऎ | ए | ॆ | े | 
|
𑒺 | e | /е/ | ||
| ए | 
|
𑒋 | े | 
|
𑒹 | ē | /еː/ | ||
| ꣾ | ऐ | 
|
𑒌 | ◌ꣿ | ै | 
|
𑒻 | ai | /ai/ |
| ऐ | ै | āі | /аːі/ | ||||||
| ऒ | ओ | ॊ | ो | 
|
𑒽 | о | /о/ | ||
| ओ | 
|
𑒍 | ो | 
|
𑒼 | ō | /оː/ | ||
| ॵ | औ | 
|
𑒎 | ॏ | ौ | 
|
𑒾 | au | /au/ |
| औ | ौ | āu | /aːu/ | ||||||
Literature
editSample text
editThe following sample text is Maithili translation of Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:
Maithili in the Devanagari alphabet
Maithili in IAST
Translation
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ Grierson and Hoernle used ◌॰ for pronounced schwa, and ◌• for the absent schwa in some of his works.
- ^ Sometimes ◌' or even ◌ऽ is used for word final pronounced schwa, however not all of them are treated same, often only used to avoid confusion.
- ^ a b The notation a can be used for non-final weak schwa, Maithili weakens the non-final schwa, instead of deleting it (pronounced as /ə̆/). Grierson also used a for the purpose, but sometimes used apostrophe (') also for the purpose.
- ^ a b Final schwa is deleted in Maithili, though written in native scripts.
- ^ a b In older texts, ◌꣱ or ः are used, not in current use though.
- ^ ◌' is used only word finally.
- ^ Grierson used ि् .
- ^ Grierson used ु् .
- ^ a b Occurrence of æ~ɛ is a recent phenomenon.
Citations
edit- ^ "Census of India 2011" (PDF). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. 2011. p. 7. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ^ "National Population and Housing Census 2021" (PDF). Census of Nepal. 2021. p. 32. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ^ "झारखंड : रघुवर सरकार कैबिनेट से मगही, भोजपुरी, मैथिली व अंगिका को द्वितीय भाषा का दर्जा". Archived from the original on 21 March 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
- ^ "Maithili". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
- ^ a b "Constitutional provisions relating to Eighth Schedule" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
- ^ "मैथिली लिपि को बढ़ावा देने के लिए विशेषज्ञों की जल्द ही बैठक बुला सकते हैं प्रकाश जावड़ेकर" [Prakash Javadekar likely to call meeting of experts to promote Maithili script]. NDTV News (in Hindi). 21 March 2018. Archived from the original on 21 March 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2018.
- ^ "मैथिली को भी मिलेगा दूसरी राजभाषा का दर्जा". Hindustan. 6 March 2018. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
- ^ National Statistics Office (2023), p. 32.
- ^ "Nepal languages". Ethnologue. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
- ^ Sah, K. K. (2013). "Some perspectives on Maithili". Nepalese Linguistics (28): 179–188.
- ^ a b Language Commission (2021). सरकारी कामकाजको भाषाका आधारहरूको निर्धारण तथा भाषासम्बन्धी सिफारिसहरू (पञ्चवर्षीय प्रतिवेदन- साराांश) २०७८ [Determination of language bases of government work and language recommendations (five-year report - summary) 2078] (PDF) (Report) (in Nepali). Government of Nepal. Archived from the original on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
- ^ "झारखंड : रघुवर कैबिनेट से मगही, भोजपुरी, मैथिली व अंगिका को द्वितीय भाषा का दर्जा" [Jharkhand: Raghuvar Cabinet gives second language status to Magahi, Bhojpuri, Maithili and Angika]. Prabhat Khabar (in Hindi). 2018. Retrieved 6 February 2021.
- ^ "बिहार में मैथिली भाषा आजकल सुर्खियों में क्यों है? त्रेता युग से अब तक मैथिली का सफर" [Why is Maithili language in the news these days in Bihar? Maithili's journey from Treta Yuga till now]. NBT. 2021.
- ^ "मैथिली को भी मिलेगा दूसरी राजभाषा का दर्जा". Hindustan (in Hindi). 6 March 2018. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
- ^ a b c d Lewis, M. P., ed. (2009). "Maithili". Ethnologue: Languages of the World (Sixteenth ed.). Dallas, Texas: SIL International. Archived from the original on 22 September 2013. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
- ^ National Statistics Office (2023), pp. 210, 212, 218–220.
- ^ Yadav, Ramawatar (1996). A Reference Grammar of Maithili. Walter de Gruyter. pp. 1–5. ISBN 978-3-11-014558-8.
- ^ a b Yadav, R. (1979). "Maithili language and Linguistics: Some Background Notes" (PDF). Maithili Phonetics and Phonology. Doctoral Dissertation, University of Kansas, Lawrence. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 May 2017. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
- ^ Chatterji, S. K. (1926). The origin and development of the Bengali language. University Press, Calcutta.
- ^ Brass, P. R. (2005). Language, Religion, and Politics in North India. iUniverse, Lincoln, NE.
- ^ Yadav, R. (1992). "The Use of the Mother Tongue in Primary Education: The Nepalese Context" (PDF). Contributions to Nepalese Studies. 19 (2): 178–190. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 April 2016. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
- ^ Choudhary, P.K. (2013). "Causes and Effects of Super-stratum Language Influence, with Reference to Maithili". Journal of Indo-European Studies. 41 (3/4): 378–391.
- ^ Simons, G. F.; Fennig, C. D., eds. (2018). "Maithili. Ethnologue: Languages of the World". Dallas: SIL International. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
- ^ Ray, K. K. (2009). Reduplication in Thenthi Dialect of Maithili Language. Nepalese Linguistics 24: 285–290.
- ^ "Population By Mother Tongue". Census of India. 2011.
- ^ "language | Munger District, Government of Bihar | India". Munger. Retrieved 12 March 2022.
- ^ Mishra, J. (1949). A History Of Maithili Literature. Vol. 1.
- ^ "Madhubani Paintings: People's Living Cultural Heritage". World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ Chatterji, S. K. (1940). Varna Ratnakara Of Jyotirisvara Kavisekharacarya.
- ^ Reading Asia : new research in Asian studies. Richmond, Surrey: Curzon. 2001. ISBN 0700713719. OCLC 48560711.
- ^ Majumdar, Ramesh Chandra; Pusalker, A. D.; Majumdar, A. K., eds. (1960). The History and Culture of the Indian People. Vol. VI: The Delhi Sultanate. Bombay: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. p. 515.
During the sixteenth century, a form of an artificial literary language became established ... It was the Brajabulī dialect ... Brajabulī is practically the Maithilī speech as current in Mithilā, modified in its forms to look like Bengali.
- ^ Morshed, Abul Kalam Manjoor (2012). "Brajabuli". In Islam, Sirajul; Jamal, Ahmed A. (eds.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
- ^ Ded. St. Borgiae Clementi, XIV. Praef. J. Chr. Amadutii (1771). Alphabetum Brammhanicum Seu Indostanum Universitatis Kasi (in Latin). Palala Press. pp. viii. ISBN 9781173019655.
- ^ Thomas Colebrooke, H. (1873). Miscellaneous essays. With life of the author by his son Sir T.E. Colebrooke, Volume 3. p. 26. ISBN 9781145371071.
- ^ Mishra, Amar Kant (23 November 2018). Ruling Dynasty Of Mithila: Dr.Sir Kameswar Singh. Notion Press. ISBN 978-1-64429-762-9.
- ^ Ayyappappanikkar; Akademi, Sahitya (January 1999). Medieval Indian literature: an anthology, Volume 3. p. 69. ISBN 9788126007882. Archived from the original on 19 February 2017. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
- ^ Gellner, D.; Pfaff-Czarnecka, J.; Whelpton, J. (6 December 2012). Nationalism and Ethnicity in a Hindu Kingdom: The Politics and Culture of ... Routledge. p. 243. ISBN 9781136649561. Archived from the original on 19 February 2017. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
- ^ Rahmat Jahan, 1960- (2004). Comparative literature : a case of Shaw and Bharatendu (1st ed.). New Delhi: Sarup & Sons. p. 121. ISBN 81-7625-487-8. OCLC 58526278.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Yadav, Ramawatar (2011). "Medieval Maithili stagecraft in the Nepalamandala: the Bhaktapur school". Contributions to Nepalese Studies.
- ^ Jha, Pankaj Kumar (1996). "Language and Nation : The Case of Maithili and Mithila in the First Half of Twentieth Century". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 57: 581–590. JSTOR 44133363. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ Tripathi, Shailaja (14 October 2010). "Moments for masses". The Hindu. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ Vijay Deo Jha, Mithila Research Society (9 March 2019). Maithil Mahasabha Ka Sankshipt Itihas ( Brief History Of Maithili Mahasabha) Pandit Chandranath Mishra Amar.
- ^ Mishra, Jayakanta (1977). "Social Ideals and Patriotism in Maithili Literature (1900-1930)". Indian Literature. 20 (3): 96–101. ISSN 0019-5804. JSTOR 24157493.
- ^ Chatterjee, Ramananda (1964). The Modern Review. Prabasi Press Private, Limited. p. 215.
- ^ Jha, Ramanath (1969). "The Problem of Maithili". Indian Literature. 12 (4): 5–10. ISSN 0019-5804. JSTOR 24157120.
- ^ "Parliament of India". parliamentofindia.nic.in. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
- ^ Singh, P. & Singh, A. N. (2011). Finding Mithila between India's Centre and Periphery. Journal of Indian Law & Society 2: 147–181.
- ^ Horst, Kristen Nehemiah (12 October 2011). Acharya Ramlochan Saran. Dign Press. ISBN 978-613-7-39524-0.
- ^ @biharfoundation (11 February 2020). "Acharya Ramlochan Saran, born on 11 February 1889, in #Muzaffarpur district of Bihar, was a Hindi littérateur, grammarian and publisher" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Yadav, Ramawatar (1996). A Reference Grammar of Maithili. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 15–27.
- ^ a b "Maithili". lisindia.ciil.org. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
- ^ a b c d e Grierson, George Abraham (1909). An introduction to the Maithili dialect of the Bihari language as spoken in North Bihar (2 ed.). Calcutta: Asiatic Society of Bengal.
- ^ Yadav, Ramawatar (1996). "Trends in Linguistics: Documentation, 11.". A Reference Grammar of Maithili. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 15–27.
- ^ a b c Pandey, Anshuman (2009). Towards an Encoding for the Maithili Script in ISO/IEC 10646 (PDF) (Report). p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 May 2011..
- ^ a b Brass, P. R. (2005) [1974]. Language, Religion and Politics in North India. Lincoln: iUniverse. p. 67. ISBN 0-595-34394-5. Archived from the original on 11 May 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
- ^ Yadava, Y. P. (2013). Linguistic context and language endangerment in Nepal. Nepalese Linguistics 28 Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine: 262–274.
- ^ Grierson, George Abraham (1909). An introduction to the Maithili dialect of the Bihari language as spoken in North Bihar (2 ed.). Calcutta: Asiatic Society of Bengal.
- ^ Yadav, Ramawatar (1996). A Reference Grammar of Maithili. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 15–27.
Further reading
edit- National Statistics Office (June 2023), "National report on caste/ethnicity, language & religion" (PDF), National Population and Housing Census 2021, Government of Nepal, Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, archived from the original on 14 October 2023
External links
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