Languages of Asia
Asia is home to hundreds of languages comprising several families and some unrelated isolates. The most spoken language families on the continent include Austroasiatic, Austronesian, Japonic, Dravidian, Indo-European, Afroasiatic, Turkic, Sino-Tibetan, Kra–Dai and Koreanic. Many languages of Asia, such as Chinese, Persian, Sanskrit, Arabic or Tamil have a long history as a written language.
Language groups
The major families in terms of numbers are Indo-European, specifically Indo-Aryan languages and Dravidian languages in South Asia, Iranian languages in parts of West, Central, and South Asia, and Sino-Tibetan in East Asia. Several other families are regionally dominant.Sino-Tibetan
Sino-Tibetan includes Chinese, Tibetan, Burmese, Karen, Boro and numerous languages of the Tibetan Plateau, Southern China, Myanmar, and North East India.Indo-European
The Indo-European languages are primarily represented in Asia by the Indo-Iranian branch, with its two main subgroups: Indo-Aryan and Iranian.Indo-Aryan
Indo-Aryan languages are mainly spoken in the Indian subcontinent, across different modern-day South Asian countries. Examples include languages such as Hindustani (Hindi-Urdu), Bengali, Bhojpuri, Punjabi, Marathi, Rajasthani, Gujarati, Sylheti, Noakhali etc.Iranic
Iranic languages are mainly spoken in and around the Iranian Plateau, spread across the modern-day countries of Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Pakistan and neighboring regions. Examples include languages like Persian, Kurdish, Pashto and Balochi.Others
Other branches of Indo-European spoken in Asia include the Slavic branch, which includes Russian in Siberia ; Greek around the Black Sea; and Armenian in Armenia; as well as extinct languages such as Hittite of Anatolia and Tocharian of Turkestan.Altaic families
A number of smaller, but important and separately distinguished language families spread across central and northern Asia have long been linked in a hypothetical, controversial and unproven Altaic family. These are the Turkic, Mongolic, Tungusic, Koreanic, and Japonic languages. But since the mid-20th century a majority of scholars have come to regard it as a Sprachbund.Austroasiatic
The Mon–Khmer languages are the language family in South and Southeast Asia. Languages given official status are Vietnamese and Khmer.Kra–Dai
The Kra–Dai languages are found in southern China, Northeast India and Southeast Asia. Languages given official status are Thai and Lao.Austronesian
The Austronesian languages are widespread throughout Maritime Southeast Asia, including major languages such as Indonesian, Fijian, Hiligaynon, Bikol, Ilocano, Cebuano, Tagalog, and Malay. Other significant Austronesian languages in Indonesia include Javanese, Sundanese, and Madurese. Meanwhile, Indonesian is the most widely spoken language in the Austronesian family.Dravidian
The Dravidian languages of South India and parts of Sri Lanka include Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Tulu, while smaller languages such as Gondi and Brahui are spoken in central India and Pakistan respectively.Afro-Asiatic
The Afroasiatic languages are represented in Asia by the Semitic branch. Semitic languages are spoken in Western Asia, and include the various dialects of Arabic and Aramaic, Modern Hebrew, and Modern South Arabian languages in addition to extinct languages such as Akkadian and Ancient South Arabian.Siberian families
Besides the Altaic families already mentioned, there are a number of small language families and isolates spoken across northern Asia. These include the Uralic languages of western Siberia, the Yeniseian languages, Yukaghir, Nivkh of Sakhalin, Ainu of northern Japan, Chukotko-Kamchatkan in easternmost Siberia, and—just barely—Eskimo–Aleut. Some linguists have noted that the Koreanic languages share more similarities with the Paleosiberian languages than with the Altaic languages. The extinct Rouran language of Mongolia is unclassified, and does not show genetic relationships with any other known language family.Caucasian families
Three small families are spoken in the Caucasus: Kartvelian languages, such as Georgian; Northeast Caucasian, such as Chechen; and Northwest Caucasian, such as Circassian. The latter two may be related to each other. The extinct Hurro-Urartian languages may be related as well.Small families of Asia
Although dominated by major languages and families, there are number of minor families and isolates in South Asia and Southeast Asia. From west to east, these include:- Hattic, an unclassified language in Anatolia.
- extinct languages of the Fertile Crescent such as Sumerian and Elamite.
- extinct languages of South Asia; mainly the unclassified Harappan language
- small language families and isolates of the Indian subcontinent: Burushaski, Kusunda, and Nihali. The Vedda language of Sri Lanka is likely an isolate that has mixed with Sinhala.
- the two Andamanese language families: Great Andamanese and Ongan; Sentinelese remains undocumented to date, and hence unclassified.
- unclassified languages in Southeast Asia: Kenaboi.
- the difficult to classify Arunachal languages: Digaro, Hrusish, Midzu, Puroik, Siangic, and Kho-Bwa.
- Hmong–Mien scattered across southern China and Southeast Asia
- a few "Papuan" families of the central and eastern Malay Archipelago: such as the Timor-Alor-Pantar and North Halmahera languages, and the little known extinct Tambora language of Sumbawa. Numerous additional families are spoken in Indonesian New Guinea, which is generally considered to part of Oceania.