Assamese is the easternmost Indo-Aryan language spoken primarily in the state of Assam, India. It is the official language of Assam and is spoken by over 15 million native speakers. The script used in writing Assamese is Assamese script, derived from the ancient Brahmi script.
Assamese is widely written, spoken and understood in northeastern India and most other places in Assam. It serves as a lingua franca in Assam where people from different linguistic backgrounds can communicate. The most common form of Assamese is known as Standard Assamese. It has taken words from Sanskrit, many words from Bengali, Arabic, Persian, and English languages.
Assamese, or more precisely Modern Standard Assamese, is a standardized register of the Assamese language. Standard Assamese is the native language of people living in Assam, parts of Arunachal Pradesh, and northeastern regions. Assamese is one of the official languages of India. Colloquial Assamese is mutually intelligible with Bengali in many contexts, which is associated with the similar linguistic heritage and grammar structure.
People who identify as native speakers of Assamese include not only speakers of Standard Assamese who are Assamese, but also many speakers of related languages who consider their speech to be a dialect of Assamese. In the 2011 Indian census, 15.3 million people in India reported Assamese to be their native language, making it the 13th most spoken language in India.
The Assam constitution, recognizes Assamese script and will be the official language of the State Government of Assam. However, English continues to be used as an official language along with Assamese. Assamese is also enumerated as one of the twenty-two languages of the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India, which entitles it to representation on the Official Language Commission.
At the state level, Assamese is the official language of Assam state. It serves as the medium of instruction in schools and colleges, and is used in government documentation. The language has a rich literary tradition dating back to the 13th century, with notable contributions from saints like Sankardeva and poets like Lakshminath Bezbaroa.
