Bengali language: Difference between revisions

| name = Bengali

| altname = Bangla

| nativename = {{lang|bn|বাংলা}}

| pronunciation = {{IPA-bn|ˈbaŋla||Bn-বাংলা.oga}}

| region = [[Bangladesh]] and [[India]]  

| ethnicity = [[Bengalis]]

| speakers = 250{{ndash}}300{{nbsp}}million

| date = 2017

| ref = <ref>{{cite book|title=The Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh|chapter=Article 3. The state language|url=http://bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd/sections_detail.php?id=367&sections_id=24550|website=bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd|publisher=Ministry of Law, The People's Republic of Bangladesh|accessdate=1 February 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Scheduled Languages in descending order of speaker's strength - 2011|url=http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011Census/Language-2011/Statement-1.pdf|publisher=[[Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India]]|date=29 June 2018}}</ref><ref name=EthnologueSp>{{e21|ben|Bengali}}</ref>  

| speakers2 = ([[first language|L1]] plus [[Second language|L2]] speakers)

| familycolor = Indo-European

| fam2 = [[Indo-Iranian languages|Indo-Iranian]]

| fam3 = [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo-Aryan]]

| fam4 = [[Magadhi Prakrit]]

| fam5 = [[Eastern Indic|Eastern Zone]]

| fam6 = [[Bengali-Assamese]]

| ancestor = [[Abahattha]]

| ancestor2 = Old Bengali

| dia1 = see [[Bengali dialects]]

| script = [[Eastern Nagari script]] ([[Bengali alphabet]])<br />[[Bengali Braille]]

| sign = Bengali signed forms<ref>{{cite web|title=Bangla Sign Language Dictionary|url=https://www.scribd.com/doc/251910320/Bangla-Sign-Language-Dictionary|website=www.scribd.com|accessdate=12 September 2018|work=|date=}}</ref>

| nation = {{BAN|Bangladesh}}<br />{{IND|India}} (in [[West Bengal]], [[Tripura]] and [[Barak Valley]])

{{InterWiki|code=bn}}

 

 

'''Bengali''' is the most eastern [[Indo-Aryan language]] from [[South Asia]]. It developed from a language called [[Pali]].  

Bengali is spoken in [[Bangladesh]] and in the [[Republic of India|Indian]] states of [[West Bengal]] and [[Tripura]].  

 

 

Bengali has developed over the course of more than 1,300 years. [[Bengali literature]], with its millennium-old literary history, has extensively developed since the [[Bengali Renaissance]] and is one of the most prolific and diverse literary traditions in Asia. The [[Bengali language movement]] from 1948 to 1956 demanding Bengali to be an official language of Pakistan fostered [[Bengali nationalism]] in [[East Bengal]]<!--Please note, the province was called "East Bengal," not "East Pakistan," at the time, during the Bengali Language Movement.--> leading to the emergence of Bangladesh in 1971. In 1999, [[UNESCO]] recognised [[Language Movement Day|21 February]] as [[International Mother Language Day]] in recognition of the language movement.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0011/001177/117709E.pdf|title=Amendment to the Draft Programme and Budget for 2000–2001 (30 C/5)|year=1999|work=General Conference, 30th Session, Draft Resolution|publisher=UNESCO|access-date=27 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110521161342/http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0011/001177/117709E.pdf|archive-date=21 May 2011|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-URL_ID%3D28672%26URL_DO%3DDO_TOPIC%26URL_SECTION%3D201.html|title=Resolution adopted by the 30th Session of UNESCO's General Conference (1999)|work=International Mother Language Day|publisher=UNESCO|access-date=27 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080601025416/http://portal.unesco.org/education/en/ev.php-URL_ID%3D28672%26URL_DO%3DDO_TOPIC%26URL_SECTION%3D201.html|archive-date=1 June 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Bengali language is the quintessential element of Bengali identity and binds together a [[Culture of Bengal|culturally diverse]] region.

Although [[Sanskrit]] was practised by Hindu [[Brahmins]] in [[Bengal]] since the [[first millennium BCE]], the local [[Buddhist]] population were speaking in some varieties of the [[Prakrit|Prakrita languages]]. These varieties generally referred to as "eastern [[Magadhi Prakrit]]", as coined by linguist [[Suniti Kumar Chatterji]],{{citation needed|date=December 2019}} as the [[Middle Indo-Aryan languages|Middle Indo-Aryan dialects]] were influential in the [[first millennium]] when Bengal was a part of the [[Magadha]]n realm. The local varieties had no official status during the [[Gupta Empire]], and with Bengal increasingly becoming a hub of [[Sanskrit literature]] for Hindu priests, the vernacular of Bengal gained a lot of influence from Sanskrit.<ref>{{cite Banglapedia|article=Bangla Script|author=Shariful Islam}}</ref> [[Magadhi Prakrit]] was also spoken in modern-day [[Bihar]] and [[Assam]], and this vernacular eventually evolved into [[Ardha Magadhi]].<ref name=jain>{{Harvnb|Shah|1998|p=11}}</ref><ref name=keith>{{Harvnb|Keith|1998|p=187}}</ref> Ardha Magadhi began to give way to what is known as [[Apabhraṃśa]], by the end of the first millennium. The Bengali language evolved as a distinct language by the course of time.<ref name="tb">{{Harv|Bhattacharya|2000

}}</ref>

Though some claim that some 10th-century texts were in Bengali; it is not certain whether they represent a differentiated language or whether they represent a stage when [[Eastern Indo-Aryan languages]] were differentiating.<ref>"Within the Eastern Indic language family the history of the separation of Bangla from Oriya, Assamese, and the languages of Bihar remains to be worked out carefully. Scholars do not yet agree on criteria for deciding if certain tenth century AD texts were in a Bangla already distinguishable from the other languages, or marked a stage at which Eastern Indic had not finished differentiating." {{harvcol|Dasgupta|2003|pp=386–387}}</ref> The local Apabhraṃśa of the eastern subcontinent, Purbi Apabhraṃśa or [[Abahatta]] ("Meaningless Sounds"), eventually evolved into regional dialects, which in turn formed three groups of the [[Bengali–Assamese languages]], the [[Bihari languages]], and the [[Odia language]]. Some argue that the points of divergence occurred much earlier – going back to even 500 CE<ref>{{Harv|Sen|1996}}</ref> but the language was not static: different varieties coexisted and authors often wrote in multiple dialects in this period. For example, Ardhamagadhi is believed to have evolved into Abahatta around the 6th century, which competed with the ancestor of Bengali for some time.<ref name="abahatta">{{cite web|url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php|title=Banglapedia|website=En.banglapedia.org|access-date=7 November 2017}}</ref>{{bcn|date=February 2021}} Proto-Bengali was the language of the [[Pala Empire]] and the [[Sena dynasty]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://global.britannica.com/topic/Pala-dynasty|title=Pala dynasty – Indian dynasty|website=Global.britannica.com|access-date=7 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170305002609/https://global.britannica.com/topic/Pala-dynasty|archive-date=5 March 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indianmirror.com/dynasty/paladynasty.html|title=Pala Dynasty, Pala Empire, Pala empire in India, Pala School of Sculptures|last=nimmi|website=Indianmirror.com|access-date=7 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028151905/http://www.indianmirror.com/dynasty/paladynasty.html|archive-date=28 October 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>  

 

[[File:Silver coin of Danujamarddana.jpg|thumb|left|Silver Taka from the [[Sultanate of Bengal]], circa 1417]]

During the medieval period, Middle Bengali was characterised by the [[elision]] of word-final {{lang|bn|অ}} ''ô'', the spread of compound verbs, and influence from the [[Arabic]], [[Farsi|Persian]] and [[Turkic languages]]. The arrival of merchants and traders from the [[Middle East]] and [[Turkestan]] into the [[Buddhist]]-ruling [[Pala Empire]], from as early as the 7th century, gave birth to Islamic influence in the region. Starting with [[Bakhtiyar Khalji]]'s conquest in the 13th century, the subsequent Muslim expeditions to Bengal greatly encouraged the migratory movements of [[Arab Muslims]] and [[Turco-Persian tradition|Turco-Persian]]s, who heavily influenced the local vernacular by settling among the native population. Bengali acquired prominence, over Persian, in the court of the [[Sultans of Bengal]] with the ascent of [[Jalaluddin Muhammad Shah]].<ref>"What is more significant, a contemporary Chinese traveler reported that although Persian was understood by some in the court, the language in universal use there was Bengali. This points to the waning, although certainly not yet the disappearance, of the sort of foreign mentality that the Muslim ruling class in Bengal had exhibited since its arrival over two centuries earlier. It also points to the survival, and now the triumph, of local Bengali culture at the highest level of official society." {{harvcol|Eaton|1993|p=60}}</ref> Subsequent Muslim rulers actively promoted the literary development of Bengali,<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.banglajol.info/index.php/DUJL/article/view/3344|title=Politics and Literary Activities in the Bengali Language during the Independent Sultanate of Bengal|first=AKM Golam|last=Rabbani|date=7 November 2017|journal=Dhaka University Journal of Linguistics|volume=1|issue=1|pages=151–166|access-date=7 November 2017|via=www.banglajol.info|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011123110/https://www.banglajol.info/index.php/DUJL/article/view/3344|archive-date=11 October 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> allowing it to become the most spoken [[vernacular]] language in the Sultanate.{{sfn|Eaton|1993}} Bengali gained many vocabulary from [[Arabic language|Arabic]] and [[Persian language|Persian]], which cultivated a manifestation of [[Islamic culture]] on the language. Major texts of Middle Bengali (1400–1800) include [[Yusuf-Zulekha]] by [[Shah Muhammad Sagir]] and [[Shreekrishna Kirtana]] by the [[Chandidas]] poets. Court support for Bengali culture and language waned when the [[Mughal Empire]] colonised Bengal in the late 16th and early 17th century.<ref>{{harvcol|Eaton|1993|pp=167–174}}</ref>

In 1948, the Government of Pakistan tried to impose [[Urdu]] as the sole state language in Pakistan, starting the Bengali language movement.<ref name="sas">{{cite book|last1=Thompson|first1=Hanne-Ruth|title=Bengali|date=2012|publisher=John Benjamins Pub. Co.|location=Amsterdam|isbn=978-90-272-3819-1|page=3|edition=Paperback with corrections.}}</ref> The [[Bengali Language Movement]] was a popular ethno-linguistic movement in the former [[East Bengal]] <!-- Please note that East Bengal was the administrative division of the Dominion of Pakistan corresponding to today's Bangladesh from 1947 to 1955 -->(today [[Bangladesh]]), which was a result of the strong linguistic consciousness of the [[Bengalis]] to gain and protect spoken and written Bengali<!-- Please consult the article on the subject. Please note that opposing a conciliatory proposal to write Bengali in the Perso-Arabic script was the key motivation behind the protests of early 1952)-->'s recognition as a state language of the then [[Dominion of Pakistan]]. On 21 February 1952, five students and political activists were killed during protests near the campus of the [[University of Dhaka]]. In 1956, Bengali was made a state language of Pakistan.<ref name="sas" /> The day has since been observed as [[Language Movement Day]] in Bangladesh and is also commemorated as [[International Mother Language Day]] by [[UNESCO]] every year since 2000.

In 2010, the parliament of Bangladesh and the legislative assembly of West Bengal proposed that Bengali be made an official [[United Nations|UN]] language,<ref name="news.bbc.co.uk">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8425744.stm|title=Bengali 'should be UN language'|date=22 December 2009|website=News.bbc.co.uk|access-date=7 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171108040418/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8425744.stm|archive-date=8 November 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> though no further action was taken on this matter.

| align = left

| total_width = 400px

[[File:Brick Lane - London.jpg|thumb|left|A Bengali sign in [[Brick Lane]] in [[London]], which is home to a large Bengali diaspora]]

Besides the native region it is also spoken by the Bengalis living in [[Tripura]], southern [[Assam]] and the Bengali population in the Indian union territory of [[Andaman and Nicobar Islands]]. Bengali is also spoken in the neighbouring states of [[Odisha]], [[Bihar]], and [[Jharkhand]], and sizeable minorities of Bengali speakers reside in Indian cities outside Bengal, including [[Delhi]], [[Mumbai]], [[Thane]], [[Varanasi]], and [[Vrindavan]]. There are also significant Bengali-speaking communities in the [[Bangladeshis in the Middle East|Middle East]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2016/09/07/kuwait-restricts-imports-male-bangladeshi-workers/|title=Kuwait restricts recruitment of male Bangladeshi workers {{!}} Dhaka Tribune|website=www.dhakatribune.com|language=en-US|access-date=4 December 2017|date=7 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170830163025/http://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2016/09/07/kuwait-restricts-imports-male-bangladeshi-workers/|archive-date=30 August 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://gulfmigration.eu/bahrain-foreign-population-by-country-of-citizenship-sex-and-migration-status-worker-family-dependent-selected-countries-january-2015/|title=Bahrain: Foreign population by country of citizenship, sex and migration status (worker/ family dependent) (selected countries, January 2015) – GLMM|date=20 October 2015|work=GLMM|access-date=4 December 2017|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171216162345/http://gulfmigration.eu/bahrain-foreign-population-by-country-of-citizenship-sex-and-migration-status-worker-family-dependent-selected-countries-january-2015/|archive-date=16 December 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/country/SA|title=Saudi Arabia|work=Ethnologue|access-date=4 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171123150627/https://www.ethnologue.com/country/SA|archive-date=23 November 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> the [[Bengali American|United States]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/download/voting/voteform.pdf |title=New York State Voter Registration Form |access-date=10 February 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180127085322/http://www.elections.ny.gov/NYSBOE/download/voting/voteform.pdf |archive-date=27 January 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Singapore]],<ref>http://blls.sg {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130505011428/http://blls.sg/ |date=5 May 2013 }} Bangla Language and Literary Society, Singapore</ref> [[Bangladeshis in Malaysia|Malaysia]], [[Bangladeshis in Australia|Australia]], [[Bangladeshi Canadian|Canada]], the [[British Bangladeshi|United Kingdom]], and [[Bangladeshis in Italy|Italy]].

The 3rd article of the [[Constitution of Bangladesh]] states Bengali to be the sole [[official language]] of Bangladesh. The [[Bangla Bhasha Prachalan Ain, 1987|Bengali Language Implementation Act, 1987]] made it mandatory to use Bengali in all records and correspondences, laws, proceedings of court and other legal actions in all courts, government or semi-government offices, and autonomous institutions in Bangladesh. It is also the ''de facto'' [[National language|national]] language of the country

In India, Bengali is one of the 23 [[Languages with official status in India|official languages]].<ref name="secondmost">{{cite web| url=http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=IN| title=Languages of India| publisher=Ethnologue Report| access-date=4 November 2006| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091226043734/http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=IN| archive-date=26 December 2009| url-status=live}}</ref> It is the official language of the Indian states of [[West Bengal]], [[Tripura]] and in [[Barak Valley]] of [[Assam]].<ref>{{cite web | title=Language |website=Government of Assam| url=http://www.assam.gov.in/language.asp| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060826225557/http://www.assam.gov.in/language.asp|archive-date=26 August 2006| access-date=20 June 2006}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Bhattacharjee |first=Kishalay |date=30 April 2008 |title=It's Indian language vs Indian language|url=http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20080048434 |work=[[NDTV]].com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130723023746/http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20080048434 |archive-date=23 July 2013 |access-date=27 May 2008}}</ref> Bengali is a second official language of the [[States and union territories of India|Indian state]] of [[Jharkhand]] since September 2011. It is also a recognised secondary language in the City of [[Karachi]] in Pakistan.<ref>{{cite news |author=Syed Yasir Kazmi |date=16 October 2009 |title=Pakistani Bengalis |url=http://www.demotix.com/news/160560/bengalis-pakistan-karachi#media-160511 |work=DEMOTIX |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150102005045/http://www.demotix.com/news/160560/bengalis-pakistan-karachi |archive-date=2 January 2015 |access-date=2 April 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/pakistan/story/2003/11/031117_karachi_bangali_as.shtml | title=کراچی کے 'بنگالی پاکستانی'(Urdu) | work=محمد عثمان جامعی | date=17 November 2003 | access-date=2 April 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031119115353/http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/pakistan/story/2003/11/031117_karachi_bangali_as.shtml | archive-date=19 November 2003 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.21stfebruary.org/eassy21_5.htm|title=The Language Movement : An Outline|last=Rafiqul Islam|access-date=12 May 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121119232520/http://www.21stfebruary.org/eassy21_5.htm|archive-date=19 November 2012}}</ref> The Department of Bengali in the [[University of Karachi]] also offers regular programs of studies at the Bachelors and at the Masters levels for Bengali Literature.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.uok.edu.pk/faculties/bengali/ | title=Karachi Department of Bengali | access-date=2 April 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130510221536/http://www.uok.edu.pk/faculties/bengali/ | archive-date=10 May 2013 | url-status=live }}</ref> The national anthems of both Bangladesh (''[[Amar Sonar Bangla]]'') and India (''[[Jana Gana Mana]]'') were written in Bengali by the Bengali Nobel laureate [[Rabindranath Tagore]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mofa.gov.bd/statements/fm39.htm|title=Statement by Hon'ble Foreign Minister on Second Bangladesh-India Track II dialogue at BRAC Centre on 07 August, 2005|access-date=27 May 2008|publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs, [[Government of Bangladesh]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080418063436/http://www.mofa.gov.bd/statements/fm39.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date=18 April 2008}}</ref> Additionally, the first two verses of ''[[Vande Mataram]]'', a patriotic song written in Bengali by [[Bankim Chandra Chatterjee]], was adopted as the "national song" of India in both the colonial period and later in 1950 in independent India. Furthermore, it is believed by many that the national anthem of Sri Lanka ([[Sri Lanka Matha]]) was inspired by a Bengali poem written by [[Rabindranath Tagore]],<ref name="CIA">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Sri Lanka|encyclopedia=[[The World Factbook]]|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/sri-lanka/|access-date=20 September 2017}}</ref><ref name="TOI030411">{{cite news|url=http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib:LowLevelEntityToPrint_TOINEW&Type=text/html&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=CAP/2011/04/03&ID=Ar01601|title=Man of the series: Nobel laureate Tagore|date=3 April 2011|work=[[The Times of India]]|agency=[[Times News Network]]|access-date=20 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612143239/http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib%3ALowLevelEntityToPrint_TOINEW&Type=text%2Fhtml&Locale=english-skin-custom&Path=CAP%2F2011%2F04%2F03&ID=Ar01601|archive-date=12 June 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="TH040216">{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/sri-lanka-iday-to-have-anthem-in-tamil/article8189939.ece|title=Sri Lanka I-Day to have anthem in Tamil|date=4 February 2016|work=[[The Hindu]]|access-date=20 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204001139/http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/sri-lanka-iday-to-have-anthem-in-tamil/article8189939.ece|archive-date=4 February 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="HT120510">{{cite news|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/tagore-s-influence-on-lankan-culture/story-ABmSseNTEg4EFv5AAoDpbN.html|title=Tagore's influence on Lankan culture|date=12 May 2010|work=[[Hindustan Times]]|access-date=20 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011122425/http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/tagore-s-influence-on-lankan-culture/story-ABmSseNTEg4EFv5AAoDpbN.html|archive-date=11 October 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> while some even believe the anthem was originally written in Bengali and then translated into [[Sinhala language|Sinhala]].<ref name="Wickramasinghe">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wde58hbSxUEC&q=Tagore|title=Dressing the Colonised Body: Politics, Clothing, and Identity in Sri Lanka|last1=Wickramasinghe|first1=Nira|date=2003|publisher=[[Orient Longman]]|isbn=978-81-250-2479-8|page=26|author-link1=Nira Wickramasinghe|access-date=29 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180929080417/https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=Wde58hbSxUEC&printsec=frontcover&q=Tagore|archive-date=29 September 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="DM300315">{{cite news|url=http://mirrorcitizen.dailymirror.lk/2015/03/30/sri-lankan-national-anthem-can-it-be-used-to-narrow-the-gap/|title=Sri Lankan National Anthem: can it be used to narrow the gap?|last1=Wickramasinghe|first1=Kamanthi|work=[[The Daily Mirror (Sri Lanka)]]|last2=Perera|first2=Yoshitha|issue=30 March 2015|access-date=20 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011123106/http://mirrorcitizen.dailymirror.lk/2015/03/30/sri-lankan-national-anthem-can-it-be-used-to-narrow-the-gap/|archive-date=11 October 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="DS070511">{{cite news|url=http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=184548|title=Rabindranath: He belonged to the world|last1=Haque|first1=Junaidul|date=7 May 2011|work=[[The Daily Star (Bangladesh)]]|access-date=20 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304092524/http://archive.thedailystar.net/newDesign/news-details.php?nid=184548|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="TH170511">{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/celebrating-rabindranath-tagores-legacy/article2026880.ece|title=Celebrating Rabindranath Tagore's legacy|last1=Habib|first1=Haroon|date=17 May 2011|work=[[The Hindu]]|author-link1=Haroon Habib|access-date=20 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140613010300/http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/celebrating-rabindranath-tagores-legacy/article2026880.ece|archive-date=13 June 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> After the contribution made by the [[Bangladesh UN Peacekeeping Force]] in the [[Sierra Leone Civil War]] under the [[United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone]], the government of [[Ahmad Tejan Kabbah]] declared Bengali as an honorary official language in December 2002.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://indianexpress.com/article/research/how-bengali-became-an-official-language-in-sierra-leone-in-west-africa-international-mother-language-day-2017-4536551/|title=How Bengali became an official language in Sierra Leone|date=2017-02-21|work=The Indian Express|access-date=2017-03-22|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/foreign-affairs/2017/02/23/bangla-language-sierra-leone|work=[[Dhaka Tribune]]|title=Why Bangla is an official language in Sierra Leone|date=23 Feb 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Recounting the sacrifices that made Bangla the State Language|url=http://thedailynewnation.com/news/125160/recounting-the-sacrifices-that-made-bangla-the-state-language|last=Ahmed|first=Nazir|date=21 Feb 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927121835/http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_29-12-2002_pg9_6|url=http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_29-12-2002_pg9_6|date=29 Dec 2002|archive-date=27 September 2013|title=Sierra Leone makes Bengali official language|location=[[Pakistan]]}}</ref>

In 2009, elected representatives in both Bangladesh and West Bengal called for Bengali language to be made an [[Official languages of the United Nations|official language of the United Nations]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8425744.stm |date=22 December 2009 |access-date=25 January 2010 |first=Subir |last=Bhaumik |title=Bengali 'should be UN language' |work=BBC News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120403040151/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8425744.stm |archive-date=3 April 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Bengali dialects political map.svg|300px|thumb|A map of [[Bengal]] (and some districts of [[Assam]] and [[Jharkhand]]) which shows the [[dialect]]s of the Bengali Language.{{Citation needed|reason=This map includes [[Goalpariya dialect|Goalpariya]] of [[Goalpara region|Goalpara]] which is politically not classified as a Bengali dialect, but as a dialect of [[Assamese language|Assamese]], though linguistically it is a dialect of [[Rangpuri language|Rajbongshi]]. Rarhi, Bangali, Varendri, Manbhumi and Sundarbani are not dialects, they are sub groups of Bengali-Assamese languages. Sylheti, Chittagonian and Rajbanshi are languages. Sylheti and Chittagonian are classified as Bangic languages and Rajbanshi is classified as a Kamarupi language. Also except Rarhi none of those groups and languages are linguistically Bengali dialects.|date=August 2018}}

{{Legend|yellow|[[Bangali dialect]]}} {{Legend|#ff8080|[[Manbhumi dialect]]}}

(''those marked with an asterisk * are sometimes considered dialects or sometimes as separate languages.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}'')]]

Regional variation in spoken Bengali constitutes a [[dialect continuum]]. Linguist [[Suniti Kumar Chattopadhyay]] grouped the dialects of the eastern Magadhan languages into four large clusters that included Assamese and Oriya – [[Rarhi dialect|Rarhi]], [[Bangali dialect|Vangiya]], [[Kamarupi Prakrit|Kamrupi]] and [[Varendri dialect|Varendri]];<ref name="huq_sarkar"/><ref>"Note that Chatterji’s classification of ‘Bengali dialects’ includes lects ancestral to both Asamiya and Oriya. However, Chatterji does not intend to classify these lects as dialects of Bangla. Therefore, Chatterji’s four dialects—Rāḍha, Varêndra, Vaŋga, and Kāmrupa—should not be termed ‘dialects of Bengali’ but rather, ‘dialects [in the sense of historical

derivatives] of eastern Magadhan’ (cf. Chatterji 1926:92ff.)." {{harvcol|Toulmin|2009|p=218}}</ref> but many alternative grouping schemes have also been proposed.<ref name="morshed">{{cite Banglapedia|article=Dialect|author=Morshed, Abul Kalam Manjoor}}</ref> The south-western dialects ([[Rarhi dialect|Rarhi]] or [[Nadia district|Nadia]] dialect) form the basis of modern standard colloquial Bengali. In the dialects prevalent in much of eastern and south-eastern Bangladesh ([[Barisal Division|Barisal]], [[Chittagong Division|Chittagong]], [[Dhaka Division|Dhaka]] and [[Sylhet Division]]s of Bangladesh), many of the stops and [[Affricate consonant|affricates]] heard in [[West Bengal]] are pronounced as [[Fricative consonant|fricatives]]. Western [[Alveolo-palatal consonant|alveolo-palatal affricates]] {{lang|bn|চ}} {{IPAblink|tɕ|tɕɔ}}, {{lang|bn|ছ}} {{IPAblink|ʰ|tɕʰɔ}}, {{lang|bn|জ}} {{IPAblink|dʑ|dʑɔ}} correspond to eastern {{lang|bn|চ}} {{IPA|[tsɔ]}}, {{lang|bn|ছ}} {{IPA|[tsʰɔ~sɔ]}}, {{lang|bn|জ}} {{IPA|[dzɔ~zɔ]}}. The influence of [[Tibeto-Burman languages]] on the phonology of Eastern Bengali is seen through the lack of nasalised vowels and an alveolar articulation of what are categorised as the "cerebral" consonants (as opposed to the postalveolar articulation of [[West Bengal]]). Some variants of Bengali, particularly [[Chittagonian language|Chittagonian]] and [[Chakma language|Chakma]], have contrastive [[tone (linguistics)|tone]]; differences in the pitch of the speaker's voice can distinguish words. [[Rangpuri language|Rangpuri]], Kharia Thar and Mal Paharia are closely related to Western Bengali dialects, but are typically classified as separate languages. Similarly, [[Hajong language|Hajong]] is considered a separate language, although it shares similarities to Northern Bengali dialects.<ref name="hajong">{{cite web | url=http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=haj | title=Hajong | publisher=The Ethnologue Report | access-date=19 November 2006 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061115092134/http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=haj | archive-date=15 November 2006 | url-status=live }}</ref>

# ''[[Shadhu-bhasha]]'' ({{lang|bn|সাধুভাষা}} "uptight language") was the written language, with longer verb inflections and more of a [[Pali]] and [[Sanskrit]]-derived ''[[Tatsama]]'' vocabulary. Songs such as India's national anthem ''[[Jana Gana Mana]]'' (by [[Rabindranath Tagore]]) were composed in this style. Its use in modern writing however is uncommon, restricted to some official signs and documents in Bangladesh as well as for achieving particular literary effects.

# ''Cholito-bhasha'' ({{lang|bn|চলিতভাষা}} "running language"), known by linguists as Standard Colloquial Bengali, is a written Bengali style exhibiting a preponderance of colloquial idiom and shortened verb forms, and is the standard for written Bengali now. This form came into vogue towards the turn of the 19th century, promoted by the writings of [[Peary Chand Mitra]] (''[[Alaler Gharer Dulal]]'', 1857),<ref name="alal">{{cite Banglapedia|article=Alaler Gharer Dulal|author=Huq, Mohammad Daniul}}</ref> [[Pramatha Chaudhuri]] (''Sabujpatra'', 1914) and in the later writings of [[Rabindranath Tagore]]. It is modelled on the dialect spoken in the [[Shantipur]] region in [[Nadia district]], West Bengal. This form of Bengali is often referred to as the "Nadia standard", "Nadia dialect", "Southwestern/West-Central dialect" or "Shantipuri Bangla".<ref name="morshed"/>

* Madhya Rādhi dialect

* Kanthi (Contai) dialect

* Kolkata dialect

* Shantipuri (Nadia) dialect

* Shershabadia (Maldahiya/ Jangipuri) dialect

* Barendri dialect

* Rangpuriya dialect

* Sylheti dialect

* Dhakaiya (Bikrampuri) dialect

* Jessor/Jessoriya dialect

* Barisal (Chandradwip) dialect

* Chattal (Chittagong) dialect

While most writing is in Standard Colloquial Bengali (SCB), spoken dialects exhibit a greater variety. People in southeastern West Bengal, including Kolkata, speak in SCB. Other dialects, with minor variations from Standard Colloquial, are used in other parts of West Bengal and western Bangladesh, such as the [[Midnapore]] dialect, characterised by some unique words and constructions. However, a majority in Bangladesh speak in dialects notably different from SCB. Some dialects, particularly those of the [[Chittagong]] region, bear only a superficial resemblance to SCB.<ref name="ray89">{{Harvnb|Ray|Hai|Ray|1966|p=89}}</ref> The dialect in the Chittagong region is least widely understood by the general body of Bengalis.<ref name="ray89" /> The majority of Bengalis are able to communicate in more than one [[Variety (linguistics)|variety]] – often, speakers are fluent in ''Cholitobhasha'' (SCB) and one or more regional dialects.<ref name="SKumar" />  

Even in SCB, the vocabulary may differ according to the speaker's religion: Muslims are more likely to use words of Persian and Arabic origin, along with more native words respectively whereas Hindus are more likely to use [[tatsama|words derived from Sanskrit]].<ref name=ray80>{{Harvnb|Ray|Hai|Ray|1966|p=80}}</ref> For example:<ref name=Banglabetelco>{{cite web

| publisher=Bengal Telecommunication and Electric Company

| url-status=live

! Predominantly Hindu usage !! Predominantly Muslim usage !! Translation

|{{lang|bn|নমস্কার}} ''nômôshkar''||{{lang|bn|আসসালামু আলাইকুম}} ''Assalamu-Alaikum''|| hello

|{{lang|bn|নিমন্ত্রণ}} ''nimôntrôn''||{{lang|bn|দাওয়াত}} ''dawat''|| invitation

|{{lang|bn|জল}} ''jôl''||{{lang|bn|পানি}} ''pani''|| water

|{{lang|bn|স্নান}} ''snan''||{{lang|bn|গোসল}} ''gosôl''|| bath

|{{lang|bn|দিদি}} ''didi''||{{lang|bn|আপু}} ''apu''|| sister / elder sister

|{{lang|bn|দাদা}} ''dada''||{{lang|bn|ভাইয়া}} ''bhaiya''|| brother / elder brother<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bengali-dictionary.com/english_bengali_words_phrases_relations%202.html|title=A Bilingual Dictionary of Words and Phrases (English-Bengali)|website=Bengali-dictionary.com|access-date=25 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025180820/http://www.bengali-dictionary.com/english_bengali_words_phrases_relations%202.html|archive-date=25 October 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

|মাসী ''mashi''

|পিসি ''pishi''

|দুআ ''dua''

|light

|{{lang|bn|অ্যা}}<br />{{IPA link|ɛ}} <br />ê ||  ||{{lang|bn|অ}}<br />{{IPA link|ɔ }}<br />ô

| এ্যাঁ / অ্যাঁ<br />{{IPA|ɛ̃}}

! colspan="3" |

![[Dental consonant|Dental]]/<br />[[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]

![[Palatoalveolar consonant|Palatoalveolar]]

! colspan="3" |[[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]

|{{IPA link|m}}|| colspan="2" |{{IPA link|n}}||&nbsp;||{{IPA link|ŋ}}||&nbsp;

! rowspan="4" |[[Plosive consonant|Plosive]]

! rowspan="2" |[[voicelessness|voiceless]]

!<small>[[aspirated consonant|unaspirated]]</small>

!<small>[[aspirated consonant|aspirated]]</small>

|{{IPA|pʰ}}~{{IPAplink|f}}||{{IPA|tʰ}}||{{IPA|ʈʰ}}||{{IPA|tʃʰ}}||{{IPA|kʰ}}||

! rowspan="2" |[[voice (phonetics)|voiced]]

!<small>[[aspirated consonant|unaspirated]]</small>

!<small>[[aspirated consonant|aspirated]]</small>

|{{IPA|bʱ}}~{{IPAplink|v}}||{{IPA|dʱ}}||{{IPA|ɖʱ}}||{{IPA|dʒʱ}}||{{IPA|ɡʱ}}||

|-

! colspan="3" |[[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]

| || colspan="2" |{{IPA link|s}}

|{{IPA link|ʃ}}|| ||[[Voiced glottal fricative|ɦ]]

|-

! colspan="3" |[[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]

|-

! colspan="3" |[[Rhotic consonant|Rhotic]]

| ||{{IPA|r}}||{{IPA|ɽ~ɽʱ}}|| || ||

Native Bengali words do not allow initial [[consonant cluster]]s;<ref>{{Harv|Masica|1991|pp=125}}</ref> the maximum syllabic structure is CVC (i.e. one vowel flanked by a consonant on each side). Many speakers of Bengali restrict their phonology to this pattern, even when using Sanskrit or English borrowings, such as {{lang|bn|গেরাম}} ''geram'' (CV.CVC) for {{lang|bn|গ্রাম}} ''gram'' (CCVC) "village" or {{lang|bn|ইস্কুল}} ''iskul'' (VC.CVC) for {{lang|bn|স্কুল}} ''skul'' (CCVC) "school".

 

[[Bengali-Assamese script]] is an [[abugida]], a script with letters for consonants, diacritics for vowels, and in which an [[inherent vowel]] (অ ''ô'') is assumed for consonants if no vowel is marked.<ref name="it46">{{cite web | url=http://www.it46.se/docs/courses/ICT4D_localization_software_primer_it46_v1.5.pdf | author=Escudero Pascual Alberto | title=Writing Systems/ Scripts | date=23 October 2005 | access-date=20 November 2006 | work=Primer to Localization of Software | publisher=it46.se | archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20090319013436/http://www.it46.se/docs/courses/ICT4D_localization_software_primer_it46_v1.5.pdf | archive-date=19 March 2009 | url-status=dead | df=dmy-all }}</ref> The [[Bengali alphabet]] is used throughout Bangladesh and eastern India (Assam, West Bengal, Tripura). The Bengali alphabet is believed to have evolved from a modified [[Brahmic scripts|Brahmic script]] around 1000 CE (or 10th–11th century).<ref name="akhor">[http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Bangalah Bangalah] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150705234223/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Bangalah |date=5 July 2015 }} in {{Harvnb|Asiatic Society of Bangladesh|2003}}</ref> Note that despite Bangladesh being majority Muslim, it uses the Bengali alphabet rather than an [[Arabic alphabet|Arabic-based one]] like the [[Shahmukhi script]] used in Pakistan. However, throughout history there have been instances of the Bengali language being written in [[Perso-Arabic]]. The use of the [[Sylheti Nagari]] script also emerged in the [[Sylhet region]] of the Bengal.

 

The Bengali script is a [[cursive]] script with eleven [[grapheme]]s or signs denoting nine vowels and two [[diphthong]]s, and thirty-nine graphemes representing [[consonant]]s and other modifiers.<ref name="akhor" /> There are no distinct [[Letter case|upper and lower case]] letter forms. The letters run from left to right and spaces are used to separate [[Word#Orthography|orthographic words]]. Bengali script has a distinctive horizontal line running along the tops of the graphemes that links them together called {{lang|bn|মাত্রা}} ''matra''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://banglasemantics.net/ |title=banglasemantics.net |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101224112403/http://banglasemantics.net/ |archive-date=24 December 2010 |url-status=dead  }}</ref>

Since the Bengali script is an abugida, its consonant graphemes usually do not represent phonetic [[Segment (linguistics)|segments]], but carry an "inherent" vowel and thus are [[Syllable|syllabic]] in nature. The inherent vowel is usually a back vowel, either {{IPA|[ɔ]}} as in {{lang|bn|মত}} {{IPA|[m'''ɔ'''t]}} "opinion" or {{IPA|[o]}}, as in {{lang|bn|মন}} {{IPA|[m'''o'''n]}} "mind", with variants like the more open {{IPA|[ɒ]}}. To emphatically represent a consonant sound without any inherent vowel attached to it, a special diacritic, called the ''[[virama|hôsôntô]]'' {{lang|bn|(্)}}, may be added below the basic consonant grapheme (as in {{lang|bn|ম্}} {{IPA|[m]}}). This diacritic, however, is not common, and is chiefly employed as a guide to pronunciation. The abugida nature of Bengali consonant graphemes is not consistent, however. Often, syllable-final consonant graphemes, though not marked by a ''hôsôntô'', may carry no inherent vowel sound (as in the final {{lang|bn|ন}} in {{lang|bn|মন}} {{IPA|[m'''o'''n]}} or the medial {{lang|bn|ম}} in {{lang|bn|গামলা}} {{IPA|[ɡamla]}}).

A consonant sound followed by some vowel sound other than the inherent {{IPA|[ɔ]}} is orthographically realised by using a variety of vowel [[allography|allographs]] above, below, before, after, or around the consonant sign, thus forming the ubiquitous consonant-vowel [[typographic ligature]]s. These allographs, called {{lang|bn|কার}} ''kar'', are [[diacritic]]al vowel forms and cannot stand on their own. For example, the graph {{lang|bn|মি}} {{IPA|[mi]}} represents the consonant {{IPA|[m]}} followed by the vowel {{IPA|[i]}}, where {{IPA|[i]}} is represented as the diacritical allograph{{lang|bn| ি}} (called {{lang|bn|ই-কার}} ''i-kar'') and is placed ''before'' the default consonant sign. Similarly, the graphs {{lang|bn|মা}} {{IPA|[ma]}}, {{lang|bn|মী}} {{IPA|[mi]}}, {{lang|bn|মু}} {{IPA|[mu]}}, {{lang|bn|মূ}} {{IPA|[mu]}}, {{lang|bn|মৃ}} {{IPA|[mri]}}, {{lang|bn|মে}} {{IPA|[me~mɛ]}}, {{lang|bn|মৈ}} {{IPA|[moj]}}, {{lang|bn|মো}} {{IPA|[mo]}} and {{lang|bn|মৌ}} {{IPA|[mow]}} represent the same consonant {{lang|bn|ম}} combined with seven other vowels and two diphthongs. In these consonant-vowel ligatures, the so-called "inherent" vowel {{IPA|[ɔ]}} is first expunged from the consonant before adding the vowel, but this intermediate expulsion of the inherent vowel is not indicated in any visual manner on the basic consonant sign {{lang|bn|ম}} {{IPA|[mɔ]}}.

Unlike in western scripts (Latin, Cyrillic, etc.) where the letter-forms stand on an invisible baseline, the Bengali letter-forms instead hang from a visible horizontal left-to-right headstroke called {{lang|bn|মাত্রা}} ''matra''. The presence and absence of this matra can be important. For example, the letter {{lang|bn|ত}} ''tô'' and the numeral {{lang|bn|৩}} "3" are distinguishable only by the presence or absence of the ''matra'', as is the case between the consonant cluster {{lang|bn|ত্র}} ''trô'' and the independent vowel {{lang|bn|এ}} ''e''. The letter-forms also employ the concepts of letter-width and letter-height (the vertical space between the visible matra and an invisible baseline).

One kind of inconsistency is due to the presence of several letters in the script for the same sound. In spite of some modifications in the 19th century, the Bengali spelling system continues to be based on the one used for Sanskrit,<ref name="huq_sarkar" /> and thus does not take into account some sound mergers that have occurred in the spoken language. For example, there are three letters ({{lang|bn|শ}}, {{lang|bn|ষ}}, and {{lang|bn|স}}) for the [[voiceless postalveolar fricative]] {{IPA|[ʃ]}}, although the letter {{lang|bn|স}} retains the [[voiceless alveolar sibilant]] {{IPA|[s]}} sound when used in certain consonant conjuncts as in {{lang|bn|স্খলন}} {{IPA|[skʰɔlon]}} "fall", {{lang|bn|স্পন্দন}} {{IPA|[spɔndon]}} "beat", etc. The letter {{lang|bn|ষ}} also retains the [[voiceless retroflex sibilant]] {{IPA|[ʂ]}} sound when used in certain consonant conjuncts as in {{lang|bn|কষ্ট}} {{IPA|[kɔʂʈɔ]}} "suffering", {{lang|bn|গোষ্ঠী}} {{IPA|[ɡoʂʈʰi]}} "clan", etc. Similarly, there are two letters ({{lang|bn|জ}} and {{lang|bn|য}}) for the [[voiced postalveolar affricate]] {{IPA|[dʒ]}}. Moreover, what was once pronounced and written as a retroflex nasal {{lang|bn|ণ}} {{IPA|[ɳ]}} is now pronounced as an alveolar {{IPA|[n]}} when in conversation (the difference is heard when reading) (unless conjoined with another [[retroflex consonant]] such as {{lang|bn|ট}}, {{lang|bn|ঠ}}, {{lang|bn|ড}} and {{lang|bn|ঢ}}), although the spelling does not reflect this change. The [[open-mid front unrounded vowel]] {{IPA|[ɛ]}} is orthographically realised by multiple means, as seen in the following examples: {{lang|bn|এত}} {{IPA|[ɛto]}} "so much", {{lang|bn|এ্যাকাডেমী}} {{IPA|[ɛkademi]}} "academy", {{lang|bn|অ্যামিবা}} {{IPA|[ɛmiba]}} "amoeba", {{lang|bn|দেখা}} {{IPA|[dɛkʰa]}} "to see", {{lang|bn|ব্যস্ত}} {{IPA|[bɛsto]}} "busy", {{lang|bn|ব্যাকরণ}} {{IPA|[bɛkorɔn]}} "grammar".

Many consonant clusters have different sounds than their constituent consonants. For example, the combination of the consonants {{lang|bn|ক্}} {{IPA|[k]}} and {{lang|bn|ষ}} {{IPA|[ʂ]}} is graphically realised as {{lang|bn|ক্ষ}} and is pronounced {{IPA|[kkʰo]}} (as in {{lang|bn|রুক্ষ}} {{IPA|[rukkʰo]}} "coarse"), {{IPA|[kkʰɔ]}} (as in {{lang|bn|ক্ষমতা}} {{IPA|[kkʰɔmota]}} "capability") or even {{IPA|[kʰo]}} (as in {{lang|bn|ক্ষতি}} {{IPA|[kʰoti]}} "harm"), depending on the position of the cluster in a word. The Bengali writing system is, therefore, not always a true guide to pronunciation.

 

The script used for Bengali, Assamese and other languages is known as [[Bengali alphabet|Bengali script]]. The script is known as the [[Bengali alphabet]] for Bengali and its dialects and the [[Assamese alphabet]] for [[Assamese language]] with some minor variations. Other related languages in the nearby region also make use of the Bengali alphabet like the [[Meitei language]] in the Indian state of [[Manipur]], where the Meitei language has been written in the Bengali alphabet for centuries, though the [[Meitei script]] has been promoted in recent times.

There are various Romanisation systems used for Bengali created in recent years which have failed to represent the true Bengali phonetic sound. The Bengali alphabet has often been included with the group of Brahmic scripts for romanisation where the true phonetic value of Bengali is never represented. Some of them are the [[International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration]] or IAST system (based on diacritics),<ref name="IAST1">{{cite web

| title=Learning International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration

}}</ref> "Indian languages Transliteration" or [[ITRANS]] (uses upper case letters suited for [[ASCII]] keyboards),<ref name="ITRANS1">{{cite web

| publisher=Avinash Chopde

| url-status=live

| date=1 April 1999

| work=Indian Standard: Indian Script Code for Information Interchange&nbsp;– ISCII

| url-status=live

| work=UCLA Language Materials project

| url-status=dead

Yes-no questions do not require any change to the basic word order; instead, the low (L) [[tone (linguistics)|tone]] of the final syllable in the utterance is replaced with a falling (HL) tone. Additionally, optional [[grammatical particle|particles]] (e.g. {{lang|bn|কি}} ''-ki'', {{lang|bn|না}} ''-na'', etc.) are often [[clitic|encliticised]] onto the first or last word of a yes-no questio

{| style="align:center; width:60%; margin:1em auto 1em auto;"

|{{lang|bn|ছাত্রটি}}<br />chatrô-ṭi<br />the student

|{{lang|bn|জুতাটা}}<br /> juta-ṭa<br />the shoe

|{{lang|bn|ছাত্রটি'''কে'''}}<br /> chatrô-ṭi-'''ke'''<br />the student

|{{lang|bn|জুতাটা}}<br /> juta-ṭa<br />the shoe

|{{lang|bn|ছাত্রটি'''র'''}}<br /> chatrô-ṭi-'''r'''<br />the student's

|{{lang|bn|জুতাটা'''র'''}}<br /> juta-ṭa-'''r'''<br />the shoe's

|{{lang|bn|জুতাটা'''য়'''}}<br /> juta-ṭa-'''y'''<br />on/in the shoe

|{{lang|bn|ছাত্র'''রা'''/ছাত্রগণ}}<br />chatrô-'''ra'''<br />the students

|{{lang|bn|জুতাগুলা/জুতোগুলো}}<br /> juta-gula/juto-gulo<br />the shoes

|{{lang|bn|ছাত্র'''দের(কে)'''}}<br />chatrô-'''der(ke)'''<br />the students

|{{lang|bn|জুতাগুলা/জুতোগুলো}}<br /> juta-gula/juto-gulo<br />the shoes

|{{lang|bn|ছাত্র'''দের'''}}<br />chatrô-'''der'''<br />the students'

|{{lang|bn|জুতাগুলা/জুতোগুলো'''র'''}}<br /> juta-gula/juto-gulo-'''r'''<br />the shoes'

|{{lang|bn|জুতাগুলা/জুতোগুলো'''তে'''}}<br />juta-gula/juto-gulo-'''te'''<br />on/in the shoes

! Bengali

|{{lang|bn|নয়'''টা''' গরু}}

| Nôy-'''ṭa''' goru

| Nine-'''MW''' cow

| Nine cows

|{{lang|bn|কয়'''টা''' বালিশ}}

| Kôy-'''ṭa''' balish

| How many-'''MW''' pillow

| How many pillows

|{{lang|bn|অনেক'''জন''' লোক}}

| Ônek-'''jôn''' lok

| Many-'''MW''' person

| Many people

|{{lang|bn|চার-পাঁচ'''জন''' শিক্ষক}}

| Car-pãc-'''jôn''' shikkhôk

| Four-five-'''MW''' teacher

| Four to five teachers

Bengali differs from most Indo-Aryan Languages in the [[zero copula]], where the [[Copula (linguistics)|copula]] or connective ''be'' is often missing in the present tense.<ref name="huq_sarkar">[http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Bangla_Language Bangla language] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150706032246/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Bangla_Language |date=6 July 2015 }} in {{Harvnb|Asiatic Society of Bangladesh|2003}}</ref> Thus, "he is a teacher" is {{lang|bn|সে শিক্ষক}} ''se shikkhôk'', (literally "he teacher").<ref name="hacce-bangali">Among Bengali speakers brought up in neighbouring linguistic regions (e.g. Hindi), the lost copula may surface in utterances such as ''she shikkhôk hocche''. This is viewed as ungrammatical by other speakers, and speakers of this variety are sometimes (humorously) referred as "hocche-Bangali".</ref> In this respect, Bengali is similar to Russian and [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]]. [[Romani language|Romani]] grammar is also the closest to Bengali grammar.<ref name="hub1995">

[[File:Bengali Vocabulary2.gif|thumb|upright=1.15|Sources of modern literary Bengali words{{Legend|#FFCC99|67% native}}{{Legend|#993300|25% Sanskrit reborrowings}}{{Legend|#FF6666|8% indigenous and foreign loans}}]]

{{Main|Bengali vocabulary}}

However, these figures do not take into account the large proportion of archaic or highly technical words that are very rarely used. Furthermore, different dialects use more [[Persian language|Persian]] and [[Arabic]] vocabulary especially in different areas of Bangladesh and Muslim majority areas of [[West Bengal]]. Hindus, on the other hand, use more Sanskrit vocabulary than Muslims. While standard Bengali is based on the [[Bengali dialects|Nadia dialect]] spoken in the Hindu majority states of West Bengal, about 90% of Bengalis in Bangladesh (ca. 148 million) and 27% of Bengalis in West Bengal and 10% in Assam (ca. 36&nbsp;million) are Muslim and speak a more "persio-arabised" version of Bengali instead of the more Sanskrit influenced Standard [[Bengali dialects|Nadia dialect]]. The productive vocabulary used in modern literary works, in fact, is made up mostly (67%) of tadbhavas, while tatsamas make up only 25% of the total.<ref name="bhoumick">[http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Tatsama Tatsama] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150706010902/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Tatsama |date=6 July 2015 }} in {{Harvnb|Asiatic Society of Bangladesh|2003}}</ref><ref name="bhoumick1">[http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Tadbhaba Tadbhaba] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150706052525/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Tadbhaba |date=6 July 2015 }} in {{Harvnb|Asiatic Society of Bangladesh|2003}}</ref> Loanwords from non-Indic languages account for the remaining 8% of the vocabulary used in modern [[Bengali literature]].

According to [[Suniti Kumar Chatterji]], dictionaries from the early 20th century attributed about 50% of the Bengali vocabulary to native words (i.e., naturally modified [[Prakrit]] words, corrupted forms of [[Aryan]] words, and non-Indo-European languages). About 45% percent of Bengali words are unmodified Sanskrit, and the remaining words are from foreign languages.<ref name=":02">{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Bengali-language|title=Bengali language|access-date=2 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161011103133/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Bengali-language|archive-date=11 October 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> Dominant in the last group was [[Persian language|Persian]], which was also the source of some grammatical forms. More recent studies suggest that the use of native and foreign words has been increasing, mainly because of the preference of Bengali speakers for the colloquial style.<ref name=":02" /> Because of centuries of contact with [[Ethnic groups in Europe|Europeans]], [[Turkic peoples]], and [[Persians]], Bengali has absorbed numerous words from foreign languages, often totally integrating these borrowings into the core vocabulary.

The most common borrowings from foreign languages come from three different kinds of contact. After close contact with several indigenous Austroasiatic languages,<ref>[[Byomkes Chakrabarti]] ''A Comparative Study of Santali and Bengali'', K.P. Bagchi & Co., Kolkata, 1994, {{ISBN|81-7074-128-9}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Santhali Bangla Samashabda Abhidhan|last=Das|first=Khudiram|publisher=Paschim Banga Bangla Akademi|year=1998|location=Kolkata, India}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://professorkhudiramdas.com/files/ebooks/Bangla-santali-vasa-samporko-by-khudiram-das.pdf |title=Bangla santali vasa samporko |access-date=16 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170301012141/http://professorkhudiramdas.com/files/ebooks/Bangla-santali-vasa-samporko-by-khudiram-das.pdf |archive-date=1 March 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Bangla Santali Bhasa Samporko (eBook)|last=Das|first=Khudiram}}</ref> and later the [[Mughal Empire|Mughal]] invasion whose court language was Persian, numerous [[Chagatai language|Chagatai]], Arabic, and Persian words were absorbed into the lexicon.

:{{lang|bn|'''ধারা ১:''' সমস্ত মানুষ স্বাধীনভাবে সমান মর্যাদা এবং অধিকার নিয়ে জন্মগ্রহণ করে। তাঁদের বিবেক এবং বুদ্ধি আছে; সুতরাং সকলেরই একে অপরের প্রতি ভ্রাতৃত্বসুলভ মনোভাব নিয়ে আচরণ করা উচিত।}}

 

'''Bengali in [[Romanization of Bengali|phonetic Romanization]]'''

 

:'''Dhara êk:''' Sômôstô manush shadhinbhabe sôman môrjada ebông ôdhikar niye jônmôgrôhôn kôre. Tãder bibek ebông buddhi achhe; sutôrang sôkôleri êke ôpôrer prôti bhratrittôsulôbh mônobhab niye achôrôn kôra uchit.

 

 

:{{IPA|dʱara ɛk {{!}} ʃɔmosto manuʃ ʃadʱinbʱabe ʃoman mɔɾdʒada eboŋ odʱikaɾ nie̯e dʒɔnmoɡrohon kɔɾe {{!}} tãdeɾ bibek eboŋ budʱːi atʃʰe {{!}} ʃutoraŋ ʃɔkoleɾi ɛke ɔporeɾ proti bʱratritːoʃulɔbʱ monobʱab nie̯e atʃorɔn kɔra utʃit}}

 

 

 

 

 

 

== References ==

*{{cite book |last=Eaton |first=Richard M. |year=1993 |title=The Rise of Islam and the Bengal Frontier, 1204–1760 |url=https://archive.org/details/riseofislambenga00eato |publisher=University of California |isbn=978-0-520-20507-9 |access-date=13 July 2017 |url-access=registration }}

*{{citation |first=Mathew W S |last=Toulmin |title=From Linguistic to Sociolinguistic Reconstruction: The Kamta Historical Subgroup of Indo-Aryan |publisher=Pacific Linguistics | year=2009}}

{{Symbols of Bangladesh}}

{{Asia-stub}}

[[Category:Dravidian languages]]

[[Category:Languages of India]]