State

Classical status for Bangla language

January 17 , 2024 358 days 671 0

West Bengal requested the central government to officially list Bengali as a “classical language”.
As per their claim, Bengali as a language existed, even in writing, as early as, 3rd-4th BCE.
Bengali is the 2^nd most spoken language in India, it is also the 7th most spoken language in the world.
So far, the Government of India has officially recognised six languages as having classical status.
They are Tamil (2004), Sanskrit (2005), Telugu, Kannada (2008), Malayalam (2013), and Odia (2014).
As per the Centre’s guidelines, a language must meet following requirements to be declared “classical”.
- The high antiquity of its early texts;
- Recorded history of over 1500-2000 years;
- A body of ancient literature/texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers;
- A literary tradition that’s original and not borrowed from another speech community; and
- Being distinct from modern, without discontinuity between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots.