Kumaoni Language

• Speakers: 2.3 million people, mainly in Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Nepal.
• Dialects: Includes Askoti, Bhabari, Johari, and Danpuriya.
• Language Family: Part of the Indo-Aryan group, related to Nepali, Hindi, and Kashmiri.
• Endangered: Classified as endangered by UNESCO.
• Cultural Preservation: Maintained through songs, folklore, and traditions.

The language spoken by the people belonging to the Kumaon division of Uttarakhand is known as Kumaoni, which is distinct from the Garhwali language. The Kumaon region includes places like Almora, Nainital, Bageshwar, Pithoragarh, Champawat, Rudrapur, etc., where this language is primarily spoken by the natives, along with being spoken in limited parts of Himachal Pradesh and even Nepal. Kumaoni has a number of different dialects that are used in different parts of Uttarakhand. For example, Central Kumaoni is spoken in Almora and northern Nainital. Everyone who communicates in Kumaoni can also speak and understand Hindi easily. Some other alternate names of this dialect are Askoti (Askot), Bhabari (Rampur), Johari (Nalla Talla Johar), Danpuriya (Danpur), Phaldakotiya (Phaldkot), Sirali (Sirakot), and they are most closely related to Nepali and Garhwali dialects. Kumaoni is also one of the 325 recognized languages in India.

History of Kumaoni Language

The origin of the word ‘Kumaoni’ can be traced back to the region around Champawat in the district of Pithoragarh, which was formerly known as ‘Kumu.’ The language that was spoken there was called ‘Kumaiyya.’ With the expansion of the domain of the rulers of ‘Kumu,’ the entire territory under their control came to be known as Kumaon. Therefore, all the languages that were spoken in this region came to be known as Kumaoni. This word is also inspired by ‘Kurmanchal,’ which literally translates to ‘mountain of Kurma,’ referring to the legendary incarnation of Lord Vishnu known as ‘Kurma.’

The root source of the Kumaoni language can be traced back to the Suraseni Prakrit, which is also considered the source for Rajasthani and Braj Bhasha. The outsiders and foreign settlers in the Kumaon region then added new words to the vocabulary. Some people link the Kumaoni language to Dardokhas Prakrit, while others say that it is a synthesis of the languages spoken by Aryans and Yakshas. However, over time, Kumaoni was influenced by various other languages of the immigrants who made their way to the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand.

Kumaoni Grammar

Kumaoni is a part of the Indo-Aryan dialect sphere, which shares its grammar with other Indo-Aryan languages, especially Nepali, Hindi, Kashmiri, Gujarati, etc. The grammar is also shared with other languages of the central Pahadi regions like Garhwali and Jaunsari. The difference in grammar between Kumaoni and its other central Pahadi languages exists due to the influence of the Khasas, which is now extinct and was spoken by the first inhabitants of the region. In this case, the verb is formed from the root “ach,” which is the same in the case of Rajasthani and Kashmiri.

Kumaoni is Now Officially Endangered

According to UNESCO’s Atlas of the World’s Languages, Kumaoni has been classified as an officially unsafe language. Due to many reasons, including negligence about its importance by the authorities, its lack of status as an official language, migration to towns and cities, etc., Kumaoni is quickly becoming a forgotten language and is now primarily spoken only by the local natives of Kumaon. Sadly, it is not widely spoken elsewhere. However, there are still a few people who speak in their mother tongue and have managed to keep the sanctity of their language intact. There are also other modes through which its value is being maintained, such as songs, movies, folklore, etc.

Difference between Kumaoni and Garhwali Languages

Although for a Hindi-speaking individual, there may not seem to be any difference between the two languages, here are a few distinctions:

1. First of all, the accent of speaking between both the regions is quite different and distinct from each other.
2. Their words also differ between them.
3. The pronunciation of words differs from each other and is not similar in any way.

For example, Kumaoni uses the word ‘Thehra,’ whereas in Garhwali, they use the word ‘Bal,’ which is not at all similar to the Kumaoni word. The speaking style of the Garhwali population sounds more like Himachali, while the Kumaoni language sounds somewhat similar to Nepali.

These are just a few noticeable differences in a long list of variations between these two languages.