Awadhi

Awadhi, also known as Audhi, is an Indo-Aryan language belonging to the Indo-Iranian subdivision of the Indo-European languages. It is spoken in the Awadh region of Uttar Pradesh in northern India and in Terai region of western Nepal. The name Awadh is connected to Ayodhya, the ancient city, which is regarded as the homeland of the Hindu deity Rama, the earthly avatar of Vishnu. Awadhi is also widely spoken, along with Bhojpuri, by the diaspora of Indians descended from those who left as indentured labourers during the colonial era. Along with Braj, it was used widely as a literary vehicle before being displaced by Hindi in the 19th century. Though distinct from standard Hindi, it continues to be spoken today in its unique form in many districts of central and eastern Uttar Pradesh.

The Indian government considers Awadhi to be a greater mother-tongue grouped under Eastern Hindi languages. Standard Hindi serves as the lingua franca of the region; Hindi, rather than Awadhi, is used for school instruction as well as administrative and official purposes and its literature falls within the scope of Hindi literature. Some of the most culturally signifiant Hindu text works in Indian literature like the Ramcharitmanas and Hanuman Chalisa have been written in Awadhi.