Khasa Prakrit (also known as Khas Prakrit, Sanskrit Khasa, Himalayan Prakrit, Northern Prakrit, Khas Kura) is a

Prakrit Prakrit ( ) is a group of vernacular classical Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 5th century BCE to the 12th century CE. The term Prakrit is usually applied to the middle period of Middle Ind ...

language of medieval South Asia and a common ancestor language of the

Pahari languages The Northern Indo-Aryan languages, also known as Pahāṛi languages, are a proposed group of Indo-Aryan languages spoken in the lower ranges of the Himalayas, from Nepal in the east, through the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakh ...

, which includes Nepali, Kumaoni, Jaunsari,

Mandeali Mandeali (Takri script, Takri: ) is a Western Pahari language, spoken in northern India, predominantly in the Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh by the people of the Mandi Valley and particularly in the major city of Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, Man ...

, Kangri and Garhwali languages. It was commonly referred to as खश (Khaśa), खष (Khaṣa), and खशीर (khaśīra) in the

Sanskrit texts Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest ...

. Indian linguist

Suniti Kumar Chatterji Suniti Kumar Chatterji (26 November 1890 – 29 May 1977) was an Indian linguist, educationist and litterateur. He was a recipient of the second highest Indian civilian honour of Padma Vibhushan. Life Childhood Chatterji was born on 26 Novem ...

suggests that Nepali language developed from Khasa Prakrit. Khas Prakrit is named after the speakers of language,

Khas people Khas peoples or Khas Tribes, (; ) popularly known as Khashiya are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group native to the Himalayan region of the Indian subcontinent, in what is now the South Asian country of Nepal, as well as the Indian stat ...

, who live in the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...

History

Origin and development

Khasa belongs to the Indo-European family of languages. Like other

Indo-Aryan languages The Indo-Aryan languages, or sometimes Indic languages, are a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages in the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family. As of 2024, there are more than 1.5 billion speakers, primarily concentrated east ...

, Khasa is a direct descendant of an early form of

Vedic Sanskrit Vedic Sanskrit, also simply referred as the Vedic language, is the most ancient known precursor to Sanskrit, a language in the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan subgroup of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family. It is atteste ...

, through

Shauraseni Prakrit Shauraseni Prakrit () was a Middle Indo-Aryan language and a Dramatic Prakrit. Shauraseni was the chief language used in drama in medieval northern India. Most of the material in this language originates from the 3rd to 10th centuries, and re ...

and Śauraseni Apabhraṃśa (from Sanskrit ''apabhraṃśa'' "corrupt").

Language comparison

References

Prakrit languages Languages written in Devanagari {{IndoAryan-lang-stub

History

Origin and development

Language comparison

See also

References