Marwari language
Marwari is a Western Indo-Aryan language belonging to the Indo-Iranian subdivision of the Indo-European languages. Marwari and its closely related varieties like Dhundhari, Shekhawati and Mewari form a part of the broader Rajasthani language family. It is spoken in the Indian state of Rajasthan, as well as the neighbouring states of Gujarat and Haryana, some adjacent areas in eastern parts of Pakistan, and some migrant communities in Nepal. There are two dozen varieties of Marwari.
Marwari is popularly written in Devanagari script, as are many languages of India and Nepal, including Hindi, Marathi, Nepali, and Sanskrit; although it was historically written in Mahajani, it is still written in the Perso-Arabic script by the Marwari minority in Eastern parts of Pakistan, where it has educational status but where it is rapidly shifting to Urdu.
Marwari has no official status in India and is not used as a language of education. Marwari is still spoken widely in Jodhpur, Pali, Jaisalmer, Barmer, Nagaur, and Bikaner. It is also one of the most common languages spoken by Indians in Kenya.
History
It is believed that Marwari and Gujarati evolved from Old Western Rajasthani or Dingal. Formal grammar of Gurjar Apabhraṃśa was written by Jain monk and Gujarati scholar Hemachandra Suri.Geographical distribution
Marwari is primarily spoken in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Marwari speakers have dispersed widely throughout India and other countries but are found most notably in the neighbouring state of Gujarat and in Eastern Pakistan. Speakers are also found in Bhopal. With around 7.9 million speakers in India according to the 2001 census.Some dialects of Marwari are:
| Dialect | Spoken in |
| Thali/Bikaneri | Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Phalodi, Balotra districts |
| Godwari | Jalore, Sirohi, Sanchore, Pali districts |
| Dhatki | Eastern Sindh and Barmer |
| Shekhawati | Jhunjhunu, Sikar, Neem ka thana districts |
| Standard Marwari | Ajmer, Beawer, Jodhpur, Kekri, Nagore |
Lexis
Indian Marwari in Rajasthan shares a 50%–65% lexical similarity with Hindi. It has many cognate words with Hindi. Notable phonetic correspondences include /s/ in Hindi with /h/ in Marwari. For example, /sona/ 'gold' and /hono/ 'gold'.Pakistani Marwari shares 87% lexical similarity between its Southern subdialects in Sindh and Northern subdialects in Punjab, 79%–83% with Dhakti , and 78% with Meghwar and Bhat Marwari dialects. Mutual intelligibility of Pakistani Marwari with Indian Marwari is decreasing due to the rapid shift of active speakers in Pakistan to Urdu, their use of the Arabic script and different sources of support medias, and their separation from Indian Marwaris, even if there are some educational efforts to keep it active. Many words have been borrowed from other Pakistani languages.
Merwari shares 82%–97% intelligibility of Pakistani Marwari , with 60%–73% lexical similarity between Merwari varieties in Ajmer and Nagaur districts, but only 58%–80% with Shekhawati , 49%–74% with Indian Marwari , 44%–70% with Godwari , 54%–72% with Mewari , 62%–70% with Dhundari , 57%–67% with Haroti . Unlike Pakistani Marwari , the use of Merwari remains vigorous, even if its most educated speakers also proficiently speak Hindi .
| Dialect | Lexical Similarity with Hindi | Phonetic Correspondences |
| Indian Marwari | 50%–65% | Notable: /s/ in Hindi → /h/ in Marwari |
| Pakistani Marwari | 87% / 79%–83% / 78% | Mutual intelligibility decreasing due to shifts in Pakistan |
| Merwari | 82%–97% / 60%–73% | 58%–80% / 49%–74% / 44%–70% / 54%–72% / 62%–70% / 57%–67% |
| Merwari vs. Pakistani Marwari | Intelligibility: 82%–97% | |
| Merwari vs. Indian Marwari | Intelligibility: 49%–74% | |
| Merwari vs. Shekhawati | Intelligibility: 58%–80% | |
| Merwari vs. Godwari | Intelligibility: 44%–70% | |
| Merwari vs. Mewari | Intelligibility: 54%–72% | |
| Merwari vs. Dhundari | Intelligibility: 62%–70% | |
| Merwari vs. Haroti | Intelligibility: 57%–67% |
Phonology
- Nasalization of vowels is phonemic, all of the vowels can be nasalized.
- Diphthongs are /ai, ia, ae, əi, ei, oi, ui, ua, uo/
- Implosives are mostly only found word initially and it formed due to the influence of neighbouring languages.
- // is before front vowels and elsewhere e.g. 'marriage'.
- Younis Kashali mentions aspirated implosives, fricatives and sonorants.
Morphology
Vocabulary
Marwari vocabulary is somewhat similar to other Western Indo-Aryan languages, especially Rajasthani and Gujarati, however, elements of grammar and basic terminology differ enough to significantly impede mutual intelligibility.Word List
Swadesh 100-word list with Marwari translations and IPA transcriptions, illustrating core vocabulary for linguistic comparison and historical linguistics.
| Sr. No. | Marwari Meaning | IPA | English Word |
| 1 | म्हूं | /mʰũː/ | I |
| 2 | थूं | /tʰũː/ | you |
| 3 | आपण | /aːpəɳ/ | we |
| 4 | ई | /iː/ | this |
| 5 | ऊ | /uː/ | that |
| 6 | कोण | /koːɳ/ | who |
| 7 | के | /keː/ | what |
| 8 | नइ | /nəi/ | not |
| 9 | सगळो | /səgəɭoː/ | all |
| 10 | ढेर | /ɖʰeːɾ/ | many |
| 11 | एक | /eːk/ | one |
| 12 | बी | /biː/ | two |
| 13 | थाळो | /tʰaːɭoː/ | big |
| 14 | लांबो | /laːmboː/ | long |
| 15 | नान्डो | /naːɳɖoː/ | small |
| 16 | औरत | /ɔːɾət/ | woman |
| 17 | मर्द | /mərd̪/ | man |
| 18 | आदमी | /aːd̪miː/ | person |
| 19 | माछली | /maːtʃʰliː/ | fish |
| 20 | चिड़ी | /tʃɪɖiː/ | bird |
| 21 | कुक्कुर | /kʊkkʊɾ/ | dog |
| 22 | जूं | /d͡ʒũː/ | louse |
| 23 | रुख | /ɾʊkʰ/ | tree |
| 24 | बीज | /biːd͡ʒ/ | seed |
| 25 | पात | /paːt̪/ | leaf |
| 26 | जड़ | /d͡ʒəɽ/ | root |
| 27 | छाल | /tʃʰaːl/ | bark |
| 28 | चमड़ी | /tʃəmɖiː/ | skin |
| 29 | मास | /maːs/ | meat |
| 30 | लहू | /ləhʊ/ | blood |
| 31 | हड्डी | /ɦəɖɖiː/ | bone |
| 32 | चर्बी | /tʃəɾbiː/ | grease |
| 33 | अंडो | /əɳɖoː/ | egg |
| 34 | सींग | /siːŋ/ | horn |
| 35 | पूंछ | /pũːtʃʰ/ | tail |
| 36 | पांख | /paːŋkʰ/ | feather |
| 37 | केस | /keːs/ | hair |
| 38 | माथो | /maːtʰoː/ | head |
| 39 | कान | /kaːn/ | ear |
| 40 | आँख | /aːnkʰ/ | eye |
| 41 | नाक | /naːk/ | nose |
| 42 | मुख | /mʊkʰ/ | mouth |
| 43 | दांत | /d̪aːnt̪/ | tooth |
| 44 | जिह्वा | /d͡ʒɪɦʋaː/ | tongue |
| 45 | नख | /nəkʰ/ | fingernail |
| 46 | पैर | /pɛːɾ/ | foot |
| 47 | टांग | /ʈaːŋ/ | leg |
| 48 | घुटनो | /ɡʱʊʈʈʰnoː/ | knee |
| 49 | हाथ | /ɦaːt̪ʰ/ | hand |
| 50 | पंख | /pəŋkʰ/ | wing |
| 51 | पेट | /peːʈ/ | belly |
| 52 | आंत | /aːnt̪/ | guts |
| 53 | गरदन | /ɡəɾdən/ | neck |
| 54 | पीठ | /piːʈʰ/ | back |
| 55 | छाती | /tʃʰaːt̪iː/ | breast |
| 56 | दिल | /dɪl/ | heart |
| 57 | कलेजा | /kəleːd͡ʒaː/ | liver |
| 58 | पिऊ | /piːu/ | drink |
| 59 | खाई | /kʰaːi/ | eat |
| 60 | कांट | /kaːɳʈ/ | bite |
| 61 | देख | /d̪eːkʰ/ | see |
| 62 | सुन | /sʊn/ | hear |
| 63 | जाण | /d͡ʒaːɳ/ | know |
| 64 | सूत | /suːt̪/ | sleep |
| 65 | मरी | /məɾiː/ | die |
| 66 | मार | /maːɾ/ | kill |
| 67 | तर | /t̪əɾ/ | swim |
| 68 | उड | /uɖ/ | fly |
| 69 | चाल | /tʃaːl/ | walk |
| 70 | आव | /aːʋ/ | come |
| 71 | लेट | /leːʈ/ | lie |
| 72 | बैठ | /bɛːʈʰ/ | sit |
| 73 | खड़ो हो | /kʰəɖoː ho/ | stand |
| 74 | दे | /d̪eː/ | give |
| 75 | कह | /kəɦ/ | say |
| 76 | सूरज | /suːɾəd͡ʒ/ | sun |
| 77 | चंद | /tʃənd̪/ | moon |
| 78 | तारा | /t̪aːɾaː/ | star |
| 79 | पानी | /paːniː/ | water |
| 80 | बारिश | /baːɾɪʃ/ | rain |
| 81 | नदी | /nəd̪iː/ | river |
| 82 | तालाब | /t̪aːlaːb/ | lake |
| 83 | समुद्र | /səmʊd̪ɾ/ | sea |
| 84 | लवण | /lʊʋəɳ/ | salt |
| 85 | पाथर | /paːt̪ʰəɾ/ | stone |
| 86 | रेत | /ɾeːt̪/ | sand |
| 87 | धूळ | /d̪ʰuːɭ/ | dust |
| 88 | धरती | /d̪ʰəɾt̪iː/ | earth |
| 89 | बादल | /baːd̪əl/ | cloud |
| 90 | धूआं | /d̪ʰuːãː/ | smoke |
| 91 | आग | /aːɡ/ | fire |
| 92 | राख | /ɾaːkʰ/ | ash |
| 93 | जळ | /d͡ʒəɭ/ | burn |
| 94 | रोड | /ɾoːɖ/ | road |
| 95 | पहाड़ | /pəɦaːɖ/ | mountain |
| 96 | लाल | /laːl/ | red |
| 97 | हरो | /ɦəɾoː/ | green |
| 98 | पीलो | /piːloː/ | yellow |
| 99 | उजळो | /uːd͡ʒəɭoː/ | white |
| 100 | काळो | /kaːɭoː/ | black |