Varhadi language
Encyclopedia
Varhadi is a dialect of Marathi
spoken in Vidarbha
region of Maharashtra
and by Marathi people of adjoining parts of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh & Andhra Pradesh states of India.
due proximity of Vidarbha to Madhya Pradesh
. The common examples of Hindi words in Varhadi which are different than standard Marathi are:
The grammatical changes in Varhadi differing from standard Marathi & closer to Hindi are:
Apart from this, there are many words & phrases indigenous to Varhadi i.e. common to neither standard Marathi nor Hindi. For instance, to give stress on a request or an order, suffix (जो) (singular)/ (जा) (plural) is used like " (माह्या पोरीच्या लग्नाले येजा ) "Please attend my daughter’s wedding." Also, there are words & phrases maintained by Varhadi which were present in older Marathi (spoken 300 years ago or even prior to that) and have vanished from mainstream Marathi. E.g., in vocative case, (अगा) is said in Varhadi instead of ‘are’ (अरे) of standard Marathi. Another good example is the sentence construction of past continuous tense e.g. in Varhadi, it is said ‘Tho bahu abhyas kare’ (थो बहू अभ्यास करे) (He studied a lot) unlike ‘To khup abhyas karaycha’ (तो खूप अभ्यास करायचा) of standard Marathi.
In most of the Indo-Aryan languages
(or even in Dravidian languages
, for that matter), Sanskritized words of standard language get simplified in spoken dialects. Exceptionally, Varhadi has a few Sanskrit
tatsama
words for whom the standard Marathi counterparts are modified words (tadbhava
shadba) such as in eastern parts of Vidarbha, snake is called (सर्प) unlike (साप) of standard Marathi.
The forms of Varhadi vary in different parts of Vidarbha and also, as per castes. The influence of Hindi increases as one moves towards Madhya Pradesh. E.g. in the parts adjacent to Madhya Pradesh, ‘jana padte’ (जानं पडते) (I have to go) is preferred over ‘jaa lagte’ (जा लागते), which is similar to Hindi ‘jana padta hai’ (जाना पडता है). Also, consonant ‘cha’ (च) (like in chook)(चूक), prevalent in Marathi but absent in Hindi, is often pronounced as ‘cha’ like in vachan (वचन). So, paach (पाच) (five) may be pronounced as paanch of Hindi.
In the areas closer to Marathwada
region of Maharashtra and on the contrary, distant to Madhya Pradesh, Varhadi is influenced by dialects of adjacent parts of Marathwada. One can easily recognize a person from Pusad, Digras or Umarkhed taluka of Yavatmal
district by his sentence of present continuous tense. Somebody from this area will say ‘mee mandirat jaylo’ (मी मंदिरात जायलो) (I am going to visit a temple) instead of ‘mee mandirat jaun rahilo’ (मी मंदिरात जाऊन राहिलो) of other parts of Vidarbha. Similarly, the tone of speech in Chikhli, Mehkar, Deulgaonraja talukas of Buldana district is similar to that of nearby parts of Marathwada. If someone from this area speaks to a person from Nagpur or Wardha, the latter may get confused whether the former is from Vidarbha or Marathwada ! Likewise, Khandeshi dialect spoken in parts of Jalgaon district adjacent to Vidarbha is too similar to be differentiated from Varhadi of Malkapur- Shegaon belt of Buldana district.
The dialect spoken in Nagpur & Wardha districts is again a matter of dispute. Although, it is very much similar to Varhadi, many people claim that it is a distinct dialect, popularly known as ‘Nagpuri’ while a few claim that it is a blend of Varhadi & Jhadiboli.
The sociolect
of Brahmin community in Vidarbha (which is a part of Deshastha Brahmin
community of Maharashtra) tends to be closer to standard Marathi and gradually becoming similar to Marathi spoken by Brahmins of rest of Maharashtra and thereby, differing from Varhadi.
Nagpur station of All India Radio
broadcasts some of its programmes (mostly related to agriculture) in Varhadi while Jhadiboli Sahitya Sammelan is an initiative for development of Jhadiboli.
Marathi language
Marathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
spoken in Vidarbha
Vidarbha
Vidarbha is the eastern region of Maharashtra state made up of Nagpur Division and Amravati Division. Its former name is Berar . It occupies 31.6% of total area and holds 21.3% of total population of Maharashtra...
region of Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
and by Marathi people of adjoining parts of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh & Andhra Pradesh states of India.
Vocabulary and Grammar
Although all the dialects of Marathi are mutually intelligible to one another up to a great extent, each dialect can be distinctly identified by its unique characteristics. Likewise, Varhadi replaces the case endings la (ला) & na (ना) of standard Marathi with le (ले), a feature it shares with neighboring Khandeshi dialect. So, mala (मला) (to me) of standard Marathi becomes male (मले) while tyanna (त्यांना) (to them) becomes tyahile in (त्याहिले) Varhadi. Despite being a dialect of Marathi, the vocabulary as well as grammar of Varhadi is significantly influenced by HindiHindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
due proximity of Vidarbha to Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
. The common examples of Hindi words in Varhadi which are different than standard Marathi are:
| Varhadi | Hindi | Standard Marathi | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| (सीधा) | (सीधा) | (सरळ) | Straight |
| (बुढ्ढा) | (बुढ्ढा) | (म्हातारा) | Old man |
| (पगला) | (पागल) | (वेडा) / (पागल) | Mad |
| (अंगूर) | (अंगूर) | (द्राक्श) | Grapes |
The grammatical changes in Varhadi differing from standard Marathi & closer to Hindi are:
| Varhadi | Hindi | Standard Marathi | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| (मी जाउन राहिलो) | (मैं जा रहा हूं) | (मी जातोय) | I am going |
| (मी आली) | (मैं आयी) | (मी आले) | I (feminine) came |
| (तुझावाला पेन दे) | (तेरा पेन दे) | (तुझा पेन दे) | Give your pen |
| (पानी घेऊन घे) | (पानी ले लो) | (पाणी घे) | Please have water. |
Apart from this, there are many words & phrases indigenous to Varhadi i.e. common to neither standard Marathi nor Hindi. For instance, to give stress on a request or an order, suffix (जो) (singular)/ (जा) (plural) is used like " (माह्या पोरीच्या लग्नाले येजा ) "Please attend my daughter’s wedding." Also, there are words & phrases maintained by Varhadi which were present in older Marathi (spoken 300 years ago or even prior to that) and have vanished from mainstream Marathi. E.g., in vocative case, (अगा) is said in Varhadi instead of ‘are’ (अरे) of standard Marathi. Another good example is the sentence construction of past continuous tense e.g. in Varhadi, it is said ‘Tho bahu abhyas kare’ (थो बहू अभ्यास करे) (He studied a lot) unlike ‘To khup abhyas karaycha’ (तो खूप अभ्यास करायचा) of standard Marathi.
In most of the Indo-Aryan languages
Indo-Aryan languages
The Indo-Aryan languages constitutes a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages, itself a branch of the Indo-European language family...
(or even in Dravidian languages
Dravidian languages
The Dravidian language family includes approximately 85 genetically related languages, spoken by about 217 million people. They are mainly spoken in southern India and parts of eastern and central India as well as in northeastern Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iran, and...
, for that matter), Sanskritized words of standard language get simplified in spoken dialects. Exceptionally, Varhadi has a few Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
tatsama
Tatsama
Tatsama are Sanskrit loanwords in modern Indic languages like Bengali, Marathi, Hindi, Gujarati, Sinhala and Central Dravidian language Telugu. They belong to a higher and more erudite register than common words. That register can be compared to the use of words of Greek origin in English Tatsama...
words for whom the standard Marathi counterparts are modified words (tadbhava
Tadbhava
' is one of three etymological classes defined by native grammarians of middle Indo-Aryan languages. A "tadbhava" is a word which had been borrowed from Sanskrit, but which had changed to fit the phonology of the Prakrit or Apabhramsa in question...
shadba) such as in eastern parts of Vidarbha, snake is called (सर्प) unlike (साप) of standard Marathi.
The forms of Varhadi vary in different parts of Vidarbha and also, as per castes. The influence of Hindi increases as one moves towards Madhya Pradesh. E.g. in the parts adjacent to Madhya Pradesh, ‘jana padte’ (जानं पडते) (I have to go) is preferred over ‘jaa lagte’ (जा लागते), which is similar to Hindi ‘jana padta hai’ (जाना पडता है). Also, consonant ‘cha’ (च) (like in chook)(चूक), prevalent in Marathi but absent in Hindi, is often pronounced as ‘cha’ like in vachan (वचन). So, paach (पाच) (five) may be pronounced as paanch of Hindi.
In the areas closer to Marathwada
Marathwada
The name Marathwada identifies one of the five regions in Maharashtra state of India. The region coincides with the Aurangabad Division.-Historical highlights:...
region of Maharashtra and on the contrary, distant to Madhya Pradesh, Varhadi is influenced by dialects of adjacent parts of Marathwada. One can easily recognize a person from Pusad, Digras or Umarkhed taluka of Yavatmal
Yavatmal
Yavatmal is a city and municipal council of the Yavatmal district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. The name derives from the Marathi Yavat and mal .-Demographics:yavatmal ,district in Amravati administrative division....
district by his sentence of present continuous tense. Somebody from this area will say ‘mee mandirat jaylo’ (मी मंदिरात जायलो) (I am going to visit a temple) instead of ‘mee mandirat jaun rahilo’ (मी मंदिरात जाऊन राहिलो) of other parts of Vidarbha. Similarly, the tone of speech in Chikhli, Mehkar, Deulgaonraja talukas of Buldana district is similar to that of nearby parts of Marathwada. If someone from this area speaks to a person from Nagpur or Wardha, the latter may get confused whether the former is from Vidarbha or Marathwada ! Likewise, Khandeshi dialect spoken in parts of Jalgaon district adjacent to Vidarbha is too similar to be differentiated from Varhadi of Malkapur- Shegaon belt of Buldana district.
Geographical Distribution
Varhadi is broadly defined as a dialect of Marathi spoken in Vidarbha region. However, technically, Varhad (Berrar) consists of only five districts (Amravati, Akola, Washim, Yavatmal & Buldana) of Amravati division (also known as western Vidarbha). The four districts viz. Bhandara, Gondia, Chandrapur & Gadchiroli of Nagpur division (excluding Nagpur & Wardha districts) are collectively called as jhadipatti (झाडीपट्टी) (literally, forest belt) and the dialect of Marathi spoken in this area is known as jhadiboli (झाडीबोली). Despite of lots of similarities, the major difference between Varhadi & Jhadiboli is, in Varhadi, retroflex lateral approximant (ळ) of standard Marathi is replaced by platal approximant (य) while in Jhadiboli, it is replaced by alveolar approximant (र). So, dole (डोळे) (eyes) of standard Marathi becomes doye (डोये) in Varhadi but dore (डोरे) in Jhadiboli. One can also differentiate Jhadiboli from Varhadi by its present perfect tense construction. For instance, when asked for a cup of tea, a waiter from a hotel in Bhandara district may answer as ‘chaha nase’ (चहा नसे) unlike ‘chaha nahi’ (चहा नाही) of Varhadi.The dialect spoken in Nagpur & Wardha districts is again a matter of dispute. Although, it is very much similar to Varhadi, many people claim that it is a distinct dialect, popularly known as ‘Nagpuri’ while a few claim that it is a blend of Varhadi & Jhadiboli.
Issues and Threats
In the era of globalization, many spoken dialects are on the verge of decline and Varhadi is not an exception. Varhadi has no official status. In Maharashtra, including Vidarbha, standard Marathi is used as a medium of instruction for education as well as language of communication in print & broadcasting media and government administration. Hence, Varhadi has become just a language of villagers. People in urban areas prefer to speak standard Marathi. Many qualified people feel ashamed of speaking Varhadi with a fear of being considered as a villager, uneducated or of lower class of society. In cities, Varhadi quotes are used to create humors. Also, many Vidarbhians who relocate for employment to other parts of Maharashtra (especially to Mumbai & Pune) try to speak standard Marathi with an assumption that if they speak Varhadi, they will be identified as Vidarbhians since, Vidarbha is considered as a backward part of Maharashtra.The sociolect
Sociolect
In sociolinguistics, a sociolect or social dialect is a variety of language associated with a social group such as a socioeconomic class, an ethnic group, an age group, etc....
of Brahmin community in Vidarbha (which is a part of Deshastha Brahmin
Deshastha Brahmin
Deshastha Brahmins are the original and the oldest Hindu Brahmin sub-caste mainly from the Indian state of Maharashtra and some districts of northern Karnataka. The word Deshastha comes from the Sanskrit words Desha and Stha which mean inland or country and resident respectively...
community of Maharashtra) tends to be closer to standard Marathi and gradually becoming similar to Marathi spoken by Brahmins of rest of Maharashtra and thereby, differing from Varhadi.
Development
Many authors from Vidarbha have provided status to Varhadi in their literature including Gopal Nilkanth Dandekar, Uddhav Shelke & Pratima Ingole. Rashtrasanta Tukdoji Maharaj has narrated his abhangas in Varhadi so as to be understood by common people.Nagpur station of All India Radio
All India Radio
All India Radio , officially known since 1956 as Akashvani , is the radio broadcaster of India and a division of Prasar Bharati. Established in 1936, it is the sister service of Prasar Bharati's Doordarshan, the national television broadcaster. All India Radio is one of the largest radio networks...
broadcasts some of its programmes (mostly related to agriculture) in Varhadi while Jhadiboli Sahitya Sammelan is an initiative for development of Jhadiboli.
External links
- "Resources in and about the Varhadi-Nagpuri language"
- "Ethnologue Report for Language : Varhadi (Code : vah)"
- "OLAC Records"
- Ethnologue-Linguistic Lineage for Varhadi-Nagpuri
- Varhadi at India9
- Varhadi Language in Penn Libraries
See also
- Marathi languageMarathi languageMarathi is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people of western and central India. It is the official language of the state of Maharashtra. There are over 68 million fluent speakers worldwide. Marathi has the fourth largest number of native speakers in India and is the fifteenth most...
- Dialects of Marathi Languagem
- Unclassified Indo-Aryan Languages.
- NagpurNagpurNāgpur is a city and winter capital of the state of Maharashtra, the largest city in central India and third largest city in Maharashtra after Mumbai and Pune...
- VidarbhaVidarbhaVidarbha is the eastern region of Maharashtra state made up of Nagpur Division and Amravati Division. Its former name is Berar . It occupies 31.6% of total area and holds 21.3% of total population of Maharashtra...
region of MaharashtraMaharashtraMaharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
. - Languages in Maharashtra