WARDHA

Wardha is a district located in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. The district is home to several speech communities, each maintaining its own linguistic traditions. Marathi is the predominant language across Wardha, while other widely spoken languages include Hindi, Urdu, and Banjari. The linguistic profile of the district also includes smaller language communities such as Gondi, Kolhati, and regional varieties like Varhadi, contributing to the overall diversity of speech in the area.

According to the 2011 Census of India, Wardha district had a total population of 13,00,774. Marathi was the most widely reported mother tongue, spoken by 87.78% of the population. Other reported mother tongues included Hindi (7.03%), Urdu (1.26%), Banjari (0.58%), Gondi (0.57%), Sindhi (0.56%), Kolami (0.34%), Marwari (0.33%), Gujarati (0.30%), and Telugu (0.25%).

Varhadi is a language variety that is mainly spoken in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, in districts such as Amravati, Akola, Buldhana, Washim, and Yavatmal. This region is sometimes called ‘Varhad Pradesh’, as noted by Deepdhwaja Kosode (2017). The Vidarbha region has a long history, and is even mentioned in ancient texts like the Mahabharata as a legendary kingdom.

Varhadi is well known for a number of phonetic (sound) changes, differences in vocabulary, and grammatical features that make it distinct from other language varieties.

One of the most noticeable features of Varhadi is that the sound “ल” (la) is often replaced with “ड” (da). For example the word ‘बोल (bol)’ which means ‘to speak’ in English becomes बोड (bod) in Varhadi. This change is quite common and perhaps gives Varhadi speech  a smoother and simpler sound in everyday use.

Another interesting feature, noted in the Amravati District Gazetteer (1968), is that long vowels, especially at the ends of words, are often shortened in Varhadi speech. This sound change perhaps makes words comparatively simpler and quicker to say. For example:

These forms come from longer versions जवळ (javal) and उडविला (udavila), but the final vowels are shortened in daily speech. In many words, the vowel ‘a’ is used instead of ‘e’, especially in future tense verbs and some nouns. This can be seen in examples like:

There is also a pattern where ‘i’ and ‘e’ are replaced by ‘va’ in some words. This results in forms like:

In addition, the sound ‘v’ is often weak or missing when it comes before ‘i’ and ‘e’. Because of this, words like vistav, vis, and vel are often heard in shortened forms:

These examples show how Varhadi simplifies pronunciation in everyday speech, making it distinct from other varieties. Such sound changes are a key part of what gives Varhadi its unique character.

Aside from pronunciation, Varhadi also has vocabulary that is both familiar and region-specific. Speakers of Varhadi use some words that are common across Marathi and Hindi, and some that are specific to the region. For example, आलू (ālu) for potato is used in both Varhadi and Hindi, while सिगल (sigal), meaning cup or container, is more region-specific.

Family terms in Varhadi reflect close relationships and often have local variants. Some of these, such as porgi and porga, are also used in other parts of Maharashtra, but forms like katti and katta show regional variation.

The terms for body parts in Varhadi, in many ways, reflect its unique phonetic features. For example, टेकुर (head) and केपज (forehead) highlight the differences from standard pronunciations of similar words in other regions.

Colour terms in Varhadi also differ slightly from forms that one can usually find in Hindi or Marathi, often showing simplified or altered sounds.

Proverbs are an important part of oral tradition. They carry life lessons, humor, and cultural values, passed down through generations. These sayings often reflect practical wisdom and comment on everyday situations that are spoken in Varhadi.

Gondi is a language spoken by the Gond people across central India, including states like Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Gujarat. According to the 2011 Census, 7,420 individuals in Wardha reported Gondi as their mother tongue (0.57% of the population).

The origins of Gondi have been the subject of multiple theories. The traditional view maintains that Gondi has primarily existed as an oral language without a written script. However, it has been noted in the Languages of Maharashtra (2017) that this perspective has been challenged by scholars such as Motiram Kale, who argues that Gondi is an ancient language that once served as the official language of the ancient Gondwana Kingdom, complete with its own script and literary tradition. Scholar Vyankatesh Atram claims that hieroglyphs discovered in Gondwana are actually Gondi script and that it served as the official language of the Kuyava Kingdom in the pre-Rigveda period. According to this theory, the written script disappeared when Duryon, the Kuyava capital, was destroyed around 3201 BCE.

Despite these historical shifts, this language has endured beautifully in its oral form. Unfortunately, it has been classified as a “vulnerable language” in UNESCO’s 2009 report, which states that while most children still speak Gondi, its use may be restricted to certain domains.

Gondi is classified as part of the Dravidian language family in the Chandrapur Gazetteer (1972) and as mentioned above, is spoken across central India. However, rather than existing as a single uniform variety, Gondi exhibits significant dialectal diversity. The influence of surrounding languages, such as Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, Kannada, and Chhattisgarhi, has contributed to regional variations in pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammatical structures.

It is listed in the volume Languages of Maharashtra (2017), that there are more than 13 vowel sounds (counting all the short, long, uncommon vowels and diphthongs) and more than 37 consonant sounds in the Gondi language. They are as follows:

Gondi includes a distinct set of kinship terms that differ and are phonologically unique.

Gondi is spoken differently across Gondia, Gadchiroli, Bhandara, and Chandrapur in Maharashtra. In these areas, the language is in close contact with Hindi and Marathi, which has led to gradual shifts in vocabulary.

In many cases, original Gondi words have been replaced by borrowed forms, especially in everyday contexts. In other cases, certain words in Gondi may look or sound similar to words in Hindi or Marathi, but carry different meanings. For instance, The word मुलगी (mulgī) means mother’s elder sister in Gondi, whereas in Marathi, it means girl. These kinds of terms are often referred to as false friends (words that appear the same across two languages but differ in meaning).

Other terms, like सकार (sakār) for morning or दुपार (dupar) for afternoon, resemble their counterparts in Marathi and Hindi, and may be considered as borrowings which have slight alterations in the way they are pronounced and spelled.

Some Gondi words also resemble terms in Marathi or Sanskrit in both sound and meaning. As noted in Languages of Maharashtra (2017), Vyankatesh Atram has pointed to certain Gondi terms as being possible sources for later Marathi words. For example:

• कलुष (kaluśa) – coal → is believed to be the possible source for the Marathi word कोळसा (kolasā)
  
• जावा उन्माल (jāva unmāl) – having a meal → similar to Marathi जेवण (jevaṇ)

While the direction of influence is debated, such overlaps point to long-standing interaction between Gondi and neighboring languages.

The Kolhati language is spoken by the Kolhati community, a group historically associated with performance arts such as acting, dancing, singing, and gymnastics. Their language, like their traditions, has evolved through generations, reflecting both their unique cultural identity and social history.

There is a very interesting legend which is tied to the origins of this  community. According to this story, when Bhagwan Shiv narrated the origins of mankind to Devi Parvati, he described eighty-four different yonis (species) on Earth, with humans being one of them. Curious about the origins of different castes, Parvati inquired further, to which Shiva explained that every caste descended from a rishi. One particular verse, “Kumbhak Rushi prasidha jagati, Kolhati garbhaj,” (transliterated as ‘Kumbhak Rishi is renowned in the world; the Kolhati community is born from him) he says suggests that Kumbhak Rishi is regarded as the progenitor of the Kolhati community. This legend is one of the reasons why many perceive the Kolhatis to be an ancient community. This perception, in many ways, adds to the richness and history of their linguistic traditions.

The Kolhati community is spread across various regions of Maharashtra. According to Arun Gajanan Musle in Languages of Maharashtra (2017), Kolhati speakers can be found in districts such as Wardha, with notable settlements in Addi, Karanja, Hingangaon, and Deoli.

Every language evolves uniquely, influenced by its speakers’ history, environment, and social interactions. The Kolhati language, like many others, has a vocabulary enriched by indigenous words as well as borrowings from surrounding languages.

Kinship terms, or words used to describe family relationships, vary widely across languages and cultures. In Kolhati, these terms carry distinct phonetic features and reflect cultural nuances in how family relationships are expressed.

They demonstrate the phonetic distinctiveness of Kolhati, particularly through aspirated consonants like /pʰ/ and vowel variations, which shape the rhythm and articulation of the language.

The way seasons are named in Kolhati offers insight into the community’s deep-rooted connection with nature.These seasonal terms, while distinct, exhibit similarities to those in Marathi and Hindi. This suggests a process linguists refer to as ‘borrowing’, which occurs when one language adopts words or structures from another.

The phrase "पाणी के दिन" (Paani ke Din) literally translates to “Days of Water,” capturing the essence of the monsoon season in a way that is unique to Kolhati culture. This construction is likely influenced by Hindi, yet it reflects how Kolhati speakers conceptualize and express their environmental cycles. Such expressions, in many ways, reveal how language preserves cultural perspectives and unique ways of understanding the world through words.