Thumbnail Image

Origin of the Hindi Language

Vikas V

The Hindi language is a direct descendant of Sanskrit and dates back to 769 AD. The language gained prominence over time, known initially as Old Hindi and spoken in the areas around Delhi. It is the earliest stage of the Delhi dialect, serving as the ancestor both for Modern Hindi and Urdu. This first version of the language was written in the Devanagari script.

Between the 8th and 10th centuries (during the time of Islamic invasions and the formation of Muslim control in Northern India), the Afghans, Persians, and Turks adopted Old Hindi as a shared tongue of interaction with the local populace around Delhi. With time, the language evolved and adopted loanwords from Arabic and Persian. They account for around 25% of Hindi vocabulary today!

Speaking and learning Hindi as a first language was popular in the 13th and 15th centuries, around the same time that early Hindi writing in literature surfaced. Examples of famous literature written in the Hindi language include Prithviraj Raso and the works of Amir Khusrow. This version of the language went by several different names over the years, including Hindi, Hindustani, Dahlavi, and Hindavi, or –more simply – the language of India.

Added to Saved

This column was published by the author in their personal capacity.
The opinions expressed in this column are the author's own and do not reflect the view of Cafetalk.

Comments (0)

Login to Comment Log in »

from:

in:

Lesson Categories

Language Fluency

Hindi   Native
English   Near-Native
Sanskrit   Proficient
Urdu   Proficient
German   Just a few words

Vikas V's Most Popular Columns

  • Origin of the Hindi Language

    The Hindi language is a direct descendant of Sanskrit and dates back to 769 AD. The language gained...

    Vikas V

    Vikas V

    0
    764
    Sep 7, 2024
  • History of the Hindi Language

    The Hindi language is widely regarded as the language of India. Despite the country having 22 offic...

    Vikas V

    Vikas V

    0
    721
    Sep 6, 2024
  • Modern Hindi Language

    The modern version of the Hindi language did not emerge until the end of the 18th century, and it w...

    Vikas V

    Vikas V

    0
    655
    Sep 12, 2024
  • Hindi Language Alphabets

    The Hindi language is written in a script known as Devanagari. It is widely used across India to wr...

    Vikas V

    Vikas V

    0
    564
    Oct 3, 2024
« Back to List of Tutor's Column
Got a question? Click to Chat