Gujarati language

Gujarati is an Indo-Aryan language that comes from the Indian state of Gujarat and is mainly spoken by the Gujarati people. It started from an older form called Old Gujarati that was used between about 1100 and 1500 CE. Today, Gujarati is one of the 22 important languages of India, known as scheduled languages, and it is the main language in the state of Gujarat and also in Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

As of 2011, Gujarati was the 6th most widely spoken language in India, with about 55.5 million people speaking it. That means it is used by around 4.5% of all people in India. Worldwide, Gujarati ranks as the 26th most spoken language by the number of people who grow up speaking it as their first language.

Gujarati is also one of the fastest-growing languages in India, coming in third place after Hindi and the Kashmiri language. Many people who moved from Gujarat now live in other parts of India, like Mumbai, and in countries such as Pakistan, especially in Karachi. Because of this, Gujarati is spoken in many places around the world. In North America, it is very common in the United States, particularly in New Jersey and New York City, and in Canada. In Europe, it is widely spoken in the UK, especially in London. You can also hear Gujarati in Southeast Africa countries like Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and South Africa, as well as in places such as Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates. It is not to be confused with the Paraguayan Guarani language.

History

Gujarati is a modern language that belongs to a group called Indo-Aryan languages. It developed from an older language called Sanskrit. Over time, it changed and split into different forms.

People often divide the history of Gujarati into three main periods:

1. Old Gujarati (1200 CE–1500 CE): This was the early form of Gujarati, used by people living in areas like Gujarat and Rajasthan. It was used in writing as early as the 1100s.
2. Middle Gujarati (1500–1800): During this time, Gujarati changed more, developing new sounds and grammar rules.
3. Modern Gujarati (1800–present): This is the Gujarati we know today. It lost some sounds at the end of words and added new ways to show plural numbers.

These changes helped shape the Gujarati language into what it is now.

Demographics and distribution

Around 62 million people speak Gujarati. Most of them, about 60 million, live in India. Small groups live in countries like Tanzania, Kenya, and Pakistan. Some people in North America, especially around New York City and Toronto, also speak Gujarati. In the UK, over 200,000 people speak Gujarati, many living in and around London.

Gujarati is one of the official languages of India. It is the main language in the state of Gujarat and is also recognized in other places like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu.

Dialects

See also: Gujarati languages

Gujarati has several different ways of speaking, or dialects. One main type is called Standard Gujarati, used in news, schools, and government. It is also spoken in some parts of Maharashtra.

Another type is Saurashtra, spoken by people who moved from Gujarat to Southern India a long time ago. It is very similar to Gujarati and older forms of Rajasthani and Sindhi.

There is also Amdawadi Gujarati, mainly spoken in Ahmedabad and nearby places like Bharuch and Surat. Kathiawari is another type, spoken in the Kathiawar region and influenced by Sindhi.

Other types include Parsi, spoken by the Zoroastrian Parsi community, and Lisan ud-Dawat, spoken by Gujarati Muslim Bohra communities. Kutchi is sometimes called a Gujarati dialect but is closer to Sindhi.

Words from places where Gujarati-speaking people live far away, like East Africa, have also entered the language. The Linguistic Survey of India found nearly two dozen different dialects of Gujarati.

Phonology

Main article: Gujarati phonology

The Gujarati language has different sounds called vowels and consonants. These sounds help make words and sentences in Gujarati special and unique.

Writing system

Main articles: Gujarati alphabet and Gujarati braille

The Gujarati language uses a special way of writing called an abugida, which is similar to other writing systems like Nāgarī. It is a version of the Devanāgarī script but without the horizontal line on top and with some small changes in the letters. This script is used to write both Gujarati and Kutchi languages.

The Gujarati alphabet, known as Kakko, has around 47 to 48 letters. Some letters show how we use breath sounds when speaking. For example, the sound "ka" is different from "kha" because we add a little extra breath to say "kha".

Vocabulary

Gujarati words come from three main groups. First, there are words that changed from old Sanskrit words over time. These are everyday words most people use. Then there are words taken directly from Sanskrit, used in formal, technical, or religious contexts. These words keep their Sanskrit style.

Gujarati also borrows words from other languages. Persian and Arabic words entered Gujarati when Muslim rulers, like those from the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal dynasty, controlled parts of India. These words fit into Gujarati grammar. English also adds new words, especially after British colonial rule. Some English words replace older Gujarati words. Gujarati even has a few words from Portuguese, mostly used along the coast.

Some Gujarati words have made their way into English. For example, the word "bungalow" comes from the Gujarati bangalo, meaning a low, thatched house. The word "coolie" comes from Hindi quli, referring to hired laborers, which may trace back to the name of a tribe in Gujarat. The word "tank" for a pool or reservoir of water also has roots in Gujarati, from tankh.

Main article: Bungalow

Main article: Coolie

Main article: Tank

Grammar

Main article: Gujarati grammar

Gujarati is a language where the order of words is usually subject, then object, then verb. Adjectives come before nouns, and objects come before verbs. There are postpositions in the language, and it has three genders and two numbers. Verbs are formed by adding endings to a root word to show different tenses and moods.

Sample text

Gandhiji stayed in a small hut made from palm leaves under a mango tree from April 14 to May 4, 1930. This was after his famous walk to protest unfair salt laws. He used this place to help spread his message across the country and wrote a letter to the British leader about his plan to walk to another salt area.

The British arrested him late at night on May 4, 1930, right at this spot.

Gujarati script—

ગાંધીજીની ઝૂંપડી-કરાડી

જગ પ્રસિદ્ધ દાંડી કૂચ પછી ગાંધીજીએ અહીં આંબાના વૃક્ષ નીચે ખજૂરી નાં છટિયાંની એક ઝૂંપડીમાં તા.૧૪-૪-૧૯૩૦ થી તા.૪-૫-૧૯૩૦ સુધી નિવાસ કર્યો હતો. દાંડીમાં છઠ્ઠી એપ્રિલે શરૂ કરેલી નિમક કાનૂન (મીઠાના સત્યાગ્રહ) ભંગની લડતને તેમણે અહીંથી વેગ આપી દેશ વ્યાપી બનાવી હતી. અહીંથી જ તેમણે ધરાસણાના મીઠાના અગરો તરફ કૂચ કરવાનો પોતાનો સંકલ્પ બ્રિટિશ વાઈસરૉયને પત્ર લખીને જણાવ્યો હતો.

તા.૪ થી મે ૧૯૩૦ની રાતના બાર વાગ્યા પછી આ સ્થળેથી બ્રિટિશ સરકારે તેમની ધરપકડ કરી હતી.

Transliteration (IAST)—

gāndhījīnī jhūmpḍī-karāḍī

jag prasiddh dāṇḍī kūc pachī gāndhījīe ahī̃ āmbānā vrukṣ nīce khajūrī nā̃ chaṭiyānnī ek jhūmpḍīmā̃ tā.14-4-1930 thī tā.4-5-1930 sudhī nivās karyo hato. dāṇḍīmā̃ chaṭhṭhī eprile śarū karelī nimak kānūn (mīṭhānā satyāgraha) bhaṅgnī laḍatne temṇe ahīnthī veg āpī deś vyāpī banāvī hatī. ahīnthī ja temṇe dharāsṇānā mīṭhānā agro taraph kūc karvāno potāno saṅkalp briṭiś vāīsarôyane patra lakhīne jaṇāvyo hato.

tā.4thī me 1930nī rātnā bār vāgyā pachī ā sthaḷethī briṭiś sarkāre temnī dharapkaḍ karī hatī.

Transcription (IPA)—

[ɡɑndʱid͡ʒini d͡ʒʱũpɽi-kəɾɑɽi]

[d͡ʒəɡ pɾəsɪddʱ ɖɑɳɖi kut͡ʃ pət͡ʃʰi ɡɑndʱid͡ʒie ə̤ȷ̃ ɑmbɑnɑ ʋɾʊkʃ nit͡ʃe kʰəd͡�uɾnɑ̃ t͡ʃʰəʈijɑ̃ni ek d͡ʒʱũpɽimɑ̃ tɑ _________tʰi tɑ|| _______ sudʱi niʋɑs kəɾjoto|| ɖɑɳɖimɑ̃ t͡ʃʰəʈʰʈʰi epɾile ʃəɾu kəɾeli nimək kɑnun bʱəŋɡni ləɽətne tɛmɳe ə̤ȷ̃tʰi ʋeɡ ɑpi deʃ ʋjɑpi bənɑʋiti|| ə̤ȷ̃tʰid͡ʒ tɛmɳe dʱəɾɑsəɽ̃ɑnɑ miʈʰɑnɑ əɡəɾo təɾəf kut͡ʃ kəɾʋɑno potɑno səŋkəlp bɾiʈiʃ ʋɑjsəɾɔjne pətɾə ləkʰine d͡ʒəɽ̃ɑʋjoto]

[tɑ| __tʰi me ____ni ɾɑtnɑ bɑɾ ʋɑɡjɑ pət͡ʃʰi ɑ stʰəɭetʰi bɾiʈiʃ səɾkɑɾe tɛmni dʱəɾpəkəɽ kəɾiti]

Simple gloss—

gandhiji's hut-karadi

world famous dandi march after gandhiji here mango's tree under palm date's bark's one hut-in date.14-4-1930-from date.4-5-1930 until residence done was. dandi-in sixth April-at started done salt law break's fight (-to) he here-from speed gave country wide made was. here-from he dharasana's salt's mounds towards march doing's self's resolve British viceroy-to letter written-having notified was.

date.4-from May 1930's night's twelve struck after this place-at-from British government his arrest done was.

Transliteration and detailed gloss—

Translation—

Gandhiji's hut-Karadi

After the world-famous Dandi March Gandhiji resided here in a date palm bark hut underneath a/the mango tree, from 14-4-1930 to 4-5-1930. From here he gave speed to and spread country-wide the anti-Salt Law struggle, started in Dandi on 6 April. From here, writing in a letter, he notified the British Viceroy of his resolve of marching towards the salt mounds of Dharasana.

The British government arrested him at this location, after twelve o'clock on the night of 4 May 1930.

Translation (provided at location)—

Gandhiji's hut-Karadi

Here under the mango tree in the hut made of palm leaves (khajoori) Gandhiji stayed from 14-4-1930 to 4-5-1930 after the world famous Dandi march. From here he gave impetus to the civil disobedience movement for breaking the salt act started on 6 April at Dandi and turned it into a nationwide movement. It was also from this place that he wrote a letter to the British viceroy expressing his firm resolve to march to the salt works at Dharasana.

This is the place from where he was arrested by the British government after midnight on 4 May 1930.