Bundeli language

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title: "Bundeli language" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["central-indo-aryan-languages", "languages-of-india", "languages-of-madhya-pradesh", "languages-of-uttar-pradesh", "bundelkhand", "languages-written-in-devanagari", "languages-listed-as-hindi-dialects-in-latest-census"] description: "Indo-Aryan language spoken in India" topic_path: "linguistics" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bundeli_language" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Indo-Aryan language spoken in India ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox Language"]

Field	Value
name	Bundeli
nativename	बुन्देली
states	India
region	Bundelkhand
speakers	million
speakers2	Census results conflate some speakers with Hindi.
date	2011
ref
familycolor	Indo-European
fam2	Indo-Iranian
fam3	Indo-Aryan
fam4	Central
fam5	Western Hindi
script	Devanagari
nation	Martinique
iso3	bns
glotto	bund1253
glottorefname	Bundeli
map	Bundeli_langauge_map.png
image	Bundeli language.svg
imagecaption	The word "Bundeli" written in Devanagari script
::

| name = Bundeli | nativename = बुन्देली | states = India | region = Bundelkhand | speakers = million | speakers2 = Census results conflate some speakers with Hindi. | date = 2011 | ref = | familycolor = Indo-European | fam2 = Indo-Iranian | fam3 = Indo-Aryan | fam4 = Central | fam5 = Western Hindi | script = Devanagari | nation = Martinique | iso3 = bns | glotto = bund1253 | glottorefname = Bundeli | map = Bundeli_langauge_map.png | image = Bundeli language.svg | imagecaption = The word "Bundeli" written in Devanagari script Bundeli (Devanagari: बुन्देली/बुंदेली) or Bundelkhandi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Bundelkhand region of central India. It belongs to the Central Indo-Aryan languages and is part of the Western Hindi subgroup.

Classification

A descendant of the Sauraseni Apabhramsha language, Bundeli was classified under Western Hindi by George Abraham Grierson in his Linguistic Survey of India. Bundeli is also closely related to Braj Bhasha, which was the foremost literary language in north-central India until the nineteenth century.

Like many other Indo-Aryan languages, Bundeli has often been subject to a designation as a dialect, instead of a language. Furthermore, as is the case with other Hindi languages, Bundeli speakers have been conflated with those of Standard Hindi in censuses.

Grierson divided Bundeli into four dialect groups:

• Standard Bundeli, Bundeli, language of Tikamgarh, Lalitpur, Mahoba etc.
• Northeaster Bundeli (closely related to Bagheli)
• Northwester Bundeli (similar to Braj Bhasha)
• Southern Bundeli (mixed or broken Bundeli with slight influences from Marathi)

Geographical distribution

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Map-of-Bundelkhand-during-the-rule-of-the-Chandels-16-th-century-CE.png" caption="Bundelkhand Region"] ::

The Bundelkhand region comprises regions of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. Bundeli is spoken in the Gwalior, Ashoknagar, Morena, Bhind, Datia, Shivpuri, Guna, Chanderi, Orrchha, Banda, Hamirpur, Jalaun, Jhansi, Lalitpur, Chitrakoot, Mahoba, Chhatarpur, Panna, Tikamgarh, Sagar, Damoh, Niwari districts. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Lokgeet_in_Bundeli_01.webm" caption="Traditional [[Folk music]] (Lokgeet) in Bundeli"] ::

Phonology

Consonants

::data[format=table title="Phonemes of Bundeli"] | Labial | Dental | Alveolar | Retroflex | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | Nasal | Plosive/ Affricate | voiceless | voiceless aspirated | voiced | voiced aspirated | Fricative | Flap | Approximant | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ::

History

Early examples of Bundelkhandi literature are the verses of the Alha-Khand epic. It is still preserved by bards in the Banaphari region. The epic is about heroes who lived in the 12th century CE. Formal literary works in Bundeli dates from the reign of Emperor Akbar. Notable figures are the poet Kesab Das of the 16th century, while Padmakar Bhatt and Prajnes wrote several works during the 19th century. Prannath and Lal Kabi, produced many works in Bundeli language at the court of Chhatrasal of Panna.

References

Bibliography

References

1. (29 June 2018). "Scheduled Languages in descending order of speaker's strength - 2011". [[Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India]].
2. {{Linguistic Survey of India. 9. 1
3. {{Linguistic Survey of India. 9
4. "LSI Vol-9 part-1". dsal.

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