About Kurukh Language

Kurukh Language

Kurukh Language is a popular tribal language in the country of India, belonging to the group of Dravidian languages. It is also known by the names of Oraon, Uranw, as well as Kurux, and has approximately 2 million speakers, spread over the districts of the Indian state of Odisha as well as the surrounded states of Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Jharkhand, spoken by Oraon and Kisan tribes.

Unfortunately, Kurukh is one such language among others that the UNESCO has currently marked as an endangered language, denoting that it is presently in a vulnerable state. The language is also spoken in parts of Nepal as well as Bangladesh as a dialect, alongside the country of Bhutan. It is very closely related to the Pahari languages: Brahui and Malto.

Among the two dialects of Kurukh, that is Oraon and Kisan, currently, the former is being standardized. Kurukh is mainly written in Devangiri script, a popular script also famous for being used to write Hindi, Sanskrit, Marathi, Nepali, etc. Kurukh consists of nasal as well as oral vowels alongside its consonants.

Presently, the Kurukh Literature Society of India has taken steps and initiatives to spread the awareness of Tolang Siki Script for Kurukh literature.