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Assamese or 'Ahomiya' developed into a
literary language as late as 13th century AD. Assamese is the most widely
spoken language of Assam and is spoken by nearly 60% of the state's
population. The language has close affinities to Bengali or Bangla.
Influenced By Various Languages & Dialects
The language however is surrounded on all sides by different speeches of
the Tibeto-Burman, Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Chinese families. Of these,
the Tibeto-Burman family, which contains a wide variety of racial cells,
is by far the largest.
The Bodo language group, to which belong the Kacharis,
Rabhas, Lalungs, Morans and
Chutiyas to some extent, dominates the Tibeto-Burman family. Most of these
tribes have different dialects, both spoken and written, but all of them
have tremendously contributed to the formation, development and growth of
the Assamese language.
The Origin
The origin of the Assamese language dates back to antiquity. Scholars are
of the view that the language originated from the eastern variety of
'Magadhan Prakrit'. It is by all standards a composite language into which
words of Indo-Aryan, Indo-Chinese as well as Tibeto-Burman origins have
made their way.
Besides, other pre-Aryan and non-Aryan influences are also discernible,
not only in loan words, but also in point of grammar, syntax and
pronunciation. The earliest specimens of Assamese script are provided by
copper plates and inscriptions discovered in different areas of the
origin.
Besides Assamese, other recognised Indian languages spoken in the State
are Bengali and Hindi. The major indigenous languages other than Assamese
are Bodo,
Karbi,
Mishing, and
Rabha etc.