Awadhi language
Awadhi | |
---|---|
Avadhī | |
अवधी · 𑂃𑂫𑂡𑂲 | |
Pronunciation | [əʋ.d̪ʱi] |
Native to | India and Nepal |
Region | Awadh |
Ethnicity | Awadhis |
Native speakers | 38.5 million in India (2011)[1][2][3] 500,000 in Nepal (2011)[citation needed] |
Indo-European
| |
Early forms | |
Dialects |
|
Perso-Arabic | |
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 |
Awadhi (Hindi pronunciation:
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[9] 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.[10] Some of the most culturally significant works in Indian literature like the Ramcharitmanas have been written in Awadhi.
Alternative names of Awadhi include Baiswāri (after the subregion of Baiswara),[11] as well as the sometimes ambiguous Pūrbī, literally meaning "eastern", and Kōsalī (named after the ancient Kosala Kingdom).[6]
Geographic distribution
In India
Awadhi is predominantly spoken in the Awadh region encompassing central Uttar Pradesh, along with the lower part of the Ganga-Yamuna doab.[6][12] In the west, it is bounded by Western Hindi, specifically Kannauji and Bundeli, while in the east, Bhojpuri from the Bihari group of Eastern Indo-Aryan languages is spoken.[13][14] In the north, it is bounded by the country of Nepal and in the south by Bagheli, which shares a great resemblance with Awadhi.[15]
The following districts of North and Central UP speak Awadhi-
- Kanpur (along with Kannauji)
- Lakhimpur Kheri
- Sitapur
- Hardoi (along with Kannauji)
- Unnao
- Fatehpur
- Barabanki
- Lucknow
- Rae Bareli
- Amethi
- Bahraich
In eastern parts of UP the Awadhi language changes its form to a special dialect called "Eastern Standard Awadhi." This region makes boundary with
- Ayodhya
- Ambedkar Nagar
- Prayagraj
- Jaunpur (western parts)
- Mirzapur
- Bhadohi
- Sultanpur(western part)
- Pratapgarh
- Gonda
- Basti (western parts)
- Siddharthnagar (western parts)
- Kaushambi
In Nepal
The
Awadhi is spoken in two provinces in Nepal:Outside South Asia
A language influenced by Awadhi (as well as other languages) is also spoken as a lingua franca for Indians in Fiji and is referred to as Fijian Hindi. According to Ethnologue, it is a type of Awadhi influenced by Bhojpuri and is also classified as Eastern-Hindi.[17] Caribbean Hindustani spoken by Indians in Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and Guyana is based on Bhojpuri and partly on Awadhi. The Hindustani that is spoken in South Africa[18] and the Bhojpuri spoken in Mauritius[19] is also partly influenced by Awadhi.
Classification
Awadhi is an
The closest relative of Awadhi is the Bagheli language as genealogically both descend from the same 'Half-Magadhi'. Most early Indian linguists regarded Bagheli merely as 'the southern form of Awadhi', but recent studies accept Bagheli as a separate dialect at par with Awadhi and not merely a sub-dialect of it.[21]
Literature
Late-medieval and early-modern India
In this period, Awadhi became the vehicle for epic poetry in northern India.[22] Its literature is mainly divided into: bhaktīkāvya (devotional poetry) and premākhyān (romantic tales).
Bhaktīkāvyas
The most important work, probably in any modern
Tulsidas's compositions Hanuman Chalisa,[26][27][28] Pārvatī Maṅgala and Jānakī Maṅgala are also written in Awadhi.[29]
अंडकोस प्रति प्रति निज रूपा। |
In each universe I saw my own self, |
—Tulsidas, 7.81.3 chaupai, Ramcharitmanas | —Translation by R.C Prasad[30] |
सिंधु तीर एक भूधर सुंदर। |
On the sea-shore there was a mountain lovely, |
—Tulsidas, 5.1.3 chaupai, Ramcharitmanas | —Translation[31] |
The first Hindi vernacular adaptation of the 'Dasam Skandha' of the Bhagavata Purana, the "Haricharit" by Lalachdas, who hailed from Hastigram (present-day Hathgaon near Rae Bareilly), was concluded in 1530 C.E. It circulated widely for a long time and scores of manuscript copies of the text have been found as far as eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, Malwa and Gujarat, all written in the Kaithi script.[32]
Satyavatī (ca. 1501) of Ishvaradas (of Delhi) under the reign of
Awadhi appeared as a major component in the works of Bhakti saints like Kabir, who used a language often described as being a pancmel khicṛī or "a hotch-potch" of several vernaculars.[33][34] The language of Kabir's major work Bijak is primarily Awadhi.[35][36]
Premākhyāns
Awadhi also emerged as the favourite literary language of the Eastern Sufis from the last quarter of the 14th century onwards. It became the language of premākhyāns, romantic tales built on the pattern of Persian
Other prominent works of Jayasi—Kānhāvat,[39] Akhrāvaṭ[29] and Ākhrī Kalām[40] are also written in Awadhi.
I'll tell you about my great town, the ever-beautiful Jais.
In the satyayuga it was a holy place, then it was called the "Town of Gardens."
Then the treta went, and when the dvapara came, there was a great rishi called Bhunjaraja.
88,000 rishis lived here then, and dense ... and eighty-four ponds.
They baked bricks to make solid ghats, and dug eight-four wells.
Here and there they built handsome forts, at night they looked like stars in the sky.
They also put up several orchards with temples on top.
Doha: They sat there doing tapas, all those human avataras.They crossed this world doing homa and japa day and night.
The Awadhi romance Mirigāvatī (ca.1503) or "The Magic Doe", was written by Shaikh 'Qutban' Suhravardi, who was an expert and storyteller attached to the court-in-exile of Sultan Hussain Shah Sharqi of Jaunpur.[42][43] Another romance named Madhumālatī or "Night Flowering Jasmine" by poet Sayyid Manjhan Rajgiri was written in 1545 C.E.[44]
Amir Khusrau (d. 1379 C.E) is also said to have written some compositions in Awadhi.[45]
Modern India
The most significant contributions to the Awadhi literature in the modern period have come from writers like Ramai Kaka (1915–1982 C.E.), Balbhadra Prasad Dikshit better known as ‘Padhees’(1898–1943 C.E.) and Vanshidhar Shukla (1904–1980 C.E.).
‘Krishnayan’ (1942 C.E.) is a major Awadhi epic-poem that Dwarka Prasad Mishra wrote in imprisonment during the Freedom Movement of India. In 2022 Dr. Vidya Vindu Singh has been awarded Padma Shri for her contribution in Awadhi literature.
Phonology
Vowels
Awadhi possesses both voiced and voiceless vowels. The voiced vowels are: /ə/, /ʌ/, /aː/, /ɪ/, /iː/, /ʊ/, /uː/, /e/, /eː/, /o/, /oː/.[46] The voiceless vowels, also described as "whispered vowels" are: /i̥/, /ʊ̥/, /e̥/.[47]
Vowel combinations
Combination | Example | Meaning | |
---|---|---|---|
IPA | Transliteration | ||
/ɪaː/ | /d͡ʒɪaː/ | jiā | "elder sister" |
/ɪeː/ | /d͡ʒɪeː/ | jiē | "became alive" |
/ʌiː/ | /nʌiː/ | naī | "new" |
/ʌɪ/ | /bʰʌɪ/ | bhai | "became" |
/ʌeː/ | /gʌeː/ | gaē | "(they) went" |
/ʌʊ/ | /t̪ʌʊ/ | tau | "then" |
/ʌuː/ | /gʌuː/ | gaū | "cow" |
/ʊʌ/ | /kʊ̃ʌn/ | kũan | "wells (obl.)" |
/ʊiː/ | /d̪ʊiː/ | duī | "two" |
/ʊaː/ | /bʊaː/ | buā | "father's sister" |
/uːiː/ | /ruːiː/ | rūī | "cotton" |
/aːoː/ | /aːoː/ | āō | "come" |
/aːeː/ | /kʰaːeː/ | khāē | "eaten" |
/aːiː/ | /aːiː/ | āī | "came" |
/aːuː/ | /naːuː/ | nāū | "barber" |
/eːiː/ | /d̪eːiː/ | dēī | "will give" |
/eːʊ/ | /d̪eːʊ/ | dēu | "give" |
/oːɪ/ | /hoːɪ/ | hōi | "may be" |
/oʊ/ | /hoʊ/ | hōu | "be" |
Combination | Example | Meaning | |
---|---|---|---|
IPA | Transliteration | ||
/ɪeʊ/ | /pɪeʊ/ | pieu | "(you) drank" |
/ʊɪaː/ | /gʰʊ̃ɪaː/ | ghũiā | "the root of Arum" |
/aːeʊ/ | /kʰaːeʊ/ | khāeu | "(you) ate" |
/ʌɪaː/ | /bʰʌɪaː/ | bhaiā | "brother" |
Consonants
Bilabial | Dental/ Alveolar |
Retroflex | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nasal | unaspirated | m | n
|
(ɳ) | (ɲ) | (ŋ) | ||
aspirated
|
mʱ | nʱ | ||||||
Plosive/ Affricate |
voiceless | unaspirated | p | t
|
ʈ | tʃ | k | |
aspirated | pʰ | tʰ | ʈʰ | tʃʰ | kʰ | |||
voiced | unaspirated | b | d
|
ɖ | dʒ | ɡ | ||
aspirated | bʱ | dʱ | ɖʱ | dʒʱ | ɡʱ | |||
Fricative | voiceless | s | h | |||||
voiced | ɦ | |||||||
Liquid | rhotic | unaspirated | r
|
ɽ | ||||
aspirated
|
rʱ | ɽʱ | ||||||
lateral | unaspirated | l
|
||||||
aspirated
|
lʱ | |||||||
Approximant | ʋ | j |
Grammar
Comparative grammar
Awadhi has many features that separate it from the neighbouring
Another defining characteristic of Awadhi is the affix /-ɪs/ as in /dɪɦɪs/, /maːɾɪs/ etc. The neighbouring Bhojpuri has the distinctive (i) /laː/ enclitic in present tense (ii) /-l/ in past tense (iii) dative postposition /-laː/ which separates it from the Awadhi language.[20]
Pronouns
Singular 'I/me/my' | Plural 'we/us/our' | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dir. | Ag. | Obl. | Dat. | Gen. | Dir. | Ag. | Obl. | Dat. | Gen. | |
Modern Standard Hindi | mãĩ मैं | mãĩ'nē मैंने | mujh मुझ | mujhē मुझे | mērā* मेरा | ham हम | ham'nē हमने | ham हम | hamē̃ हमें | hamārā* हमारा |
Awadhi | mai (mãy) मै | – | ma(h)i महि | – | mōr* मोर | ham हम | – | ham हम | hamai हमै | hamār* हमार |
(Substitute or other forms in Awadhi) | - | – | mō मो | mai'kā मइका, mō'kā मोका | – | – | – | – | ham'kā हमका | – |
Singular |
Plural | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dir. | Ag. | Obl. | Dat. | Gen. | Hon. | Dir. | Ag. | Obl. | Dat. | Gen. | Hon. | |
Modern Standard Hindi | tū | tū'nē | tujh | tujhē | tērā* | – | tum | tum'nē | tum | tumhē̃ | tumhārā* | āp– |
Awadhi | tū, tui (toi), taĩ (tãy) | – | tu(h)i | – | tōr* | āpu̥ | tum | – | tum | tumai, tohaĩ (tohãy) | tumār*/tohār* | āp– |
(Substitute or other forms in Awadhi) | – | – | tō | tui'kā, tō'kā (tõh'kā) | – | – | – | – | tum'kā | - | - |
- Notes:
- ^* indicates a form inflectable for gender and number :
- mor → mōrā (masculine), mōrī (feminine), mōrē (plural)
- hamār → hamrā (masc.), hamrī (fem.), hamrē (pl.)
- tōr→ torā (masc.), torī (fem.), torē (pl.)
- tumar→ tumrā (masc.), tumrī (fem.), tumrē (pl.)
- tohār→ tohrā (masc.), tohrī (fem.), tohrē (pl.)
Word formation
Following are the morphological processes of stem formation in the Awadhi language:
Affixation
An affix is used to alter the meaning or form of a word. It can be either a prefix or a suffix.
- Example: Prefix bē– preceding the root saram means "shameless" while apna followed by –pan means "belonging-ness".
Compounding
Two or more stems are combined to form one stem.
- Example: nīlkanṭh means "blue bird" and banmānus means "forest man" or "chimpanzee".
Reduplication
This process involves the repetition of certain forms. It may be complete, partial, or interrupted.
- Complete reduplication: It denotes continuity of action.
- Example: jāt-jāt for "going on".
- Partial reduplication: It denotes similarity of one object to other.
- Example: hãpaṭ-dãpaṭ for "panting".
- Interrupted reduplication: It stresses on the instant condition of the action that follows and expresses abundance of something.
- Example: khētaī khēt "between the fields"; garmaī garam "the very hot".
In popular culture
Entertainment
The 1961 film
Folk
The genres of folklore sung in Awadh include Sohar, Sariya, Byaah, Suhag, Gaari, Nakta, Banraa (Banna-Banni), Alha, Sawan, Jhula, Hori, Barahmasa, and Kajri.[56]
Sample phrases
The Awadhi language comes with its dialectal variations. For instance, in western regions, the auxiliary /hʌiː/ is used, while in central and eastern parts /ʌhʌiː/ is used.
The following examples were taken from Baburam Saxena's Evolution of Awadhi, and alternative versions are also provided to show dialectal variations.
English | Awadhi (IPA) | Awadhi (Devanagari) |
---|---|---|
Who were there? | ɦʊãː koː or kəʊn ɾəɦəĩ | हुआँ को (कउन) रहें? |
alt. ɦʊãː keː or kəʊn ɾəɦəin | alt. हुआँ के/कउन रहेन? | |
This boy is fine in seeing and hearing. | ɪʊ lʌɾɪkaː d̪eːkʰʌiː sʊnʌiː mə ʈʰiːk hʌiː | इउ लरिका देखई सुनई म ठीक है। |
alt. ɪ lʌɾɪkaː d̪eːkʰʌiː sʊnʌiː mə ʈʰiːk ʌhʌiː | alt. इ लरिका देखई सुनई म ठीक अहै। | |
(She) said, let (me) eat a little and give a little to this one too. | kʌɦɪn laːoː t̪ʰoːɽaː kʰaːɪ leːiː t̪ʰoːɽaː jʌhu kɘ d̪ʌɪ d̪eːiː | कहिन, लाओ थोड़ा खाई लेई, थोड़ा यहु का दै देई। |
alt. kʌɦɪn lyaːvː t̪ʰoːɽaː kʰaːɪ leːiː raːçi keː jʌnhu kɘ d̪ʌɪ d̪eːiː | alt. कहिन, ल्याव थोड़ा खाई लेई, रचि के एन्हुं के दै देई। | |
Those who go will be beaten. | d͡ʒoː d͡ʒʌɪɦʌĩ soː maːrʊ̥ kʰʌɪɦʌĩ | जो जइहैं सो मारउ खइहैं। |
alt. d͡ʒèː d͡ʒʌɪɦʌĩ soː maːr kʰʌɪɦʌĩ | alt. जे जइहैं सो मार खइहैं। | |
Do not shoot at the birds. | cɪɾʌɪjʌn pʌɾ chʌrːaː nə cʌlaːoː | चिरइयन पर छर्रा न चलाओ। |
alt. cɪɾʌɪjʌn peː chʌrːaː jin cʌlaːwː | alt. चिरइयन पे छर्रा जिन चलाव। |
See also
- Awadh
- Bagheli language
- Fijian Hindustani
- Caribbean Hindustani
Footnotes
- ^ "The Slow Death of Awadhi and Bhojpuri".
- ^ "Omniglot — Awadhi (अवधी)".
- ^ "'Awadhi language is grouped as mother tongue under Hindi' says Minister of State for Home Affairs".
- ^ Oldenburg, Veena Talwar. The Making of Colonial Lucknow, 1856–1877. Princeton University Press. p. 5.
- ^ a b Meaning, Nepali (12 August 2023). "Origin, Structure, Development, and Situation of Awadhi Language in Nepal - Nepali Meaning". nepalimeaning.com. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
- ^ a b c Saxena (1971:1)
- ^ Grierson (1904:1)
- ^ a b Saxena (1971:6)
- ^ Kawoosa, Vijdan Mohammad (22 November 2018). "How languages intersect in India". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 15 October 2022.
- ^ Masica (1993:9)- A vast central portion of the subcontinent, consisting of the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh, plus the Union Territory of Delhi, is known as the "HINDI area", because the official and general written language, that is to say, that of administration, press, school instruction, and modern literature, is Hindi, sometimes called MODERN STANDARD HINDI, and the whole area is heir to the "Hindi literary tradition" – Hindi being used here in a different and wider sense, to refer to pre-modern literature in Braj and Awadhi, and often to those languages proper to Rajasthan and Bihar as well
- ^ Grierson (1904:10)
- ^ Grierson (1904:9–10)
- ISBN 978-81-208-0855-3.
- ISBN 978-3-11-029267-1.
- ^ Saxena (1971:2–5)
- ^ "सरकारी कामकाजको भाषाका आधारहरूको निर्धारण तथा भाषासम्बन्धी सिफारिसहरू (पञ्चवर्षीय प्रतिवेदन- साराांश) २०७८" (PDF). Language Commission. Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 September 2021. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Fiji Hindi at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022)
- ISBN 978-0-86486-280-8.
- ^ "Awadhi language". omniglot.com. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
- ^ a b Grierson (1904:2)
- ISBN 978-81-7022-291-0.
- ^ Grierson (1904:13)
- ^ Saxena (1971:11–12)
- ^ Lutgendorf (1991:1)
- ^ Lutgendorf (1991:12)—Since the Ramcaritmanas is a text in the Ramayana tradition, for which the Sanskrit epic of Valmiki is the accepted archetype, it is commonly referred to simply as "the Ramayan" and many popular editions bear only this name on their spine and cover, perhaps adding above it in small print: "composed by Goswami Tulsidas".
- ISBN 978-1-64249-611-6.
- ^ Shamim, Dr Rupali Saran Mirza Dr and Amna (14 November 2016). Lucknow Poetica. Idea Publishing. p. 42.
- ISBN 978-3-96343-015-2.
- ^ a b Saxena (1971:12)
- ^ Tulasīdāsa (1999:747)
- JSTOR 23341337.
- ^ Orsini (2014:200)—"That Brahmin kathavachaks were not the only tellers of the story is proved by the first Hindi vernacular adaptation of the Dasam Skandha, the Haricharit in the Chaupai Doha by Lalach Kavi, a Kayastha from "Hastigram" (present-day Hathgaon) near Rae Bareilly, concluded in 1530 (VS1587)."
- ^ Vaudeville (1990:260)–The first editor of the Kabir Granthavali, S.S Das, also stresses the composite character of Kabir's language, giving examples in his introduction, of vanis composed in Khariboli (i.e. Standard Hindi), Rajasthani, and Panjabi, besides Awadhi.
- ^ Vaudeville (1990:264)–Among the dialects or languages "melted" in the Hindavi language, the most important is Avadhi, mentioned above. The language of Kabir himself an Easterner, retains old Eastern forms, especially the old Avadhi forms.
- ^ Vaudeville (1990:260)–Chaturvedi has shown that the same pada may be found with more characteristic Avadhi forms in the Bijak, with more Khari-boli in the Guru Granth and with Braj forms in the Kabir Granthavali.
- ^ Vaudeville (1990:259)–According to Grierson, however, there is not a single word typical of the Bhojpuri language in the Bijak. According to him, the basic language of the Bijak is old Avadhi...
- ^ Vaudeville (1990:263)
- ^ Orsini (2014:213)
- JSTOR j.ctt17rw4vj.15,
Then there are the Ahirs whose performances of the Krishna story fascinated Malik Muhammad Jayasi, as he tells us in his Kanhavat of 1540;...
- ^ Singh, Virendra (2009). "An Avadhi language account of an earthquake in medieval North India circa AD 1500". Current Science. 96: 1648–1649.
- ^ Orsini (2014:209)
- ^ Kutban (2012:9)
- ^ Saxena (1971:15)
- ^ Manjhan (2001:xi) —"Manjhan's birthplace Rajgir is in the present-day state of Bihar, not far away from Patna in northern India, and the poem itself is written in Awadhi or eastern Hindavi".
- JSTOR 26552634.
- ^ Saxena (1971:23)
- ISBN 9780804716130.
awadhi.
- ^ Masica (1993:252)
- ^ a b Grierson, G. A. (1967). Linguistic Survey of India. The Long Now Foundation. Motilal Banarsidass.
- ^ Saxena (1971:169)
- ^ "rediff.com, Movies: Exclusive!!! Aamir Khan on the sets of Lagaan". www.rediff.com. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
- ^ "'Lagaan: Just perfect' – Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
- ^ "Making music, from Aamir to Dev D". www.rediff.com. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^ "Yudh review: Amitabh Bachchan's show limps back to sluggish pace – Hindustan Times". 2 August 2014. Archived from the original on 2 August 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 28 May 2022. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Pandey (2011:31)
References
- Saxena, Baburam (1971). Evolution of Awadhi. Allahabad: Motilal Banarsidass Publication. ISBN 9788120808553.
- Grierson, George Abraham (1904). Linguistic survey of India, Vol. 6, Mediate Group. India: Office of the Superintendent of Government Printing.
- Singh, Ravindra Pratap (2019), "Nature, Climate and Self: Reading select texts of Awadhi Baramasa" (PDF), Research Journal of English, vol. 4, no. 2, ISSN 2456-2696
- Pandey, Jagdish Prasad (2011). Awadhi Granthavali Volume 5 (in Hindi). India: Vani Prakashan. ISBN 978-81-8143-905-5.
- Tulasīdāsa (1999). Sri Ramacaritamanasa. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. p. 747. ISBN 978-81-208-0762-4.
- Orsini, Francesca (2014), Dalmia, Vasudha; Faruqui, Munis (eds.), "Inflected Kathas: Sufis and Krishna Bhaktas in Awadh", Religious Interactions in Mughal India, Oxford University Press, pp. 195–232, ISBN 978-0-19-808167-8
- Vaudeville, Charlotte (1990). "Kabīr's language and languages, Hinduī as the language of non-conformity". Indo-Iranian Journal. 33 (4): 259–266. ISSN 0019-7246.
- Kutban (2012). The Magic Doe: Qutban Suhravardi's Mirigavati. Oxford University Press, USA. ISBN 978-0-19-984292-6.
- Manjhan (2001). Madhumalati: An Indian Sufi Romance. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-160625-0.
- Lutgendorf, Philip (1991). The Life of a Text: Performing the Rāmcaritmānas of Tulsidas. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-06690-8.
- Masica, Colin P. (1993). The Indo-Aryan languages. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. OCLC 18947567.
Further reading
- Behl, Aditya; Doniger, Wendy, eds. (29 November 2012). Love's Subtle Magic: An Indian Islamic Literary Tradition, 1379-1545. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-514670-7.
- Saksena, Baburam (1938). Evolution of Awadhi: A Branch of Hindi. Indian Press; Allahabad.