View source for Bhojpuri language

{{Short description|Indo-Aryan language native to India and Nepal}}
{{pp-extended|small=yes}}
{{EngvarB|date=June 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2025}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Bhojpuri
| nativename       = भोजपुरी · {{Script|Kthi|𑂦𑂷𑂔𑂣𑂳𑂩𑂲}}
| image            = Bhojpuri language.svg
| imagescale       = 
| states           = [[India]] and [[Nepal]]
| ethnicity        = [[Bhojpuri people|Bhojpuriya]]
| region           = [[Bhojpuri region|Bhojpur]]-[[Purvanchal]]
| agency           = *[[India]]
**[[Bihar]] (Bhojpuri Academy)<ref>{{Cite news|url = https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/new-chairman-of-bhojpuri-academy/articleshow/6447482.cms|title = New chairman of Bhojpuri Academy &#124; Patna News - Times of India|website = [[The Times of India]]|date = 28 August 2010|access-date = 21 April 2024|archive-date = 9 April 2023|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230409203454/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/new-chairman-of-bhojpuri-academy/articleshow/6447482.cms|url-status = live}}</ref>
**[[Delhi]] ([[Maithili - Bhojpuri Academy, Delhi]])
**[[Madhya Pradesh]] (Bhojpuri Sahitya Academy)
| nation           = {{FIJ}} {{small|(as [[Fiji Hindi]])}}
| minority         = {{IND}}
* [[Jharkhand]]<ref name="telegraph_jharkhandbihar_official">{{cite news|author=Sudhir Kumar Mishra|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/states/jharkhand/bhojpuri-3-more-to-get-official-tag-217369|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180322204611/https://www.telegraphindia.com/states/jharkhand/bhojpuri-3-more-to-get-official-tag-217369|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 March 2018|title=Bhojpuri, 3 more to get official tag|newspaper=The Telegraph|date=22 March 2018}}</ref>
| speakers         = {{sigfig|52.164405|3}} million, partial count
| date             = 2011 census
| speakers2        = (additional speakers counted under Hindi)
| ref              = <ref>{{cite news |date=2011 |title=Census of India 2011 |url=https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/42458/download/46089/C-16_25062018.pdf |work=Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India |page=8 |access-date=22 September 2024 |archive-date=24 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230824120826/https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/42458/download/46089/C-16_25062018.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=2011 |title=National Population and Housing Census 2011 |url=https://cbs.gov.np/wp-content/upLoads/2020/07/National-Population-and-Housing-Census-2011-Caste-ethnicity-and-mother-tongue.pdf |work=Census of Nepal |page=138 |access-date=22 September 2024 |archive-date=23 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240923053412/https://cbs.gov.np/wp-content/upLoads/2020/07/National-Population-and-Housing-Census-2011-Caste-ethnicity-and-mother-tongue.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>
| familycolor      = Indo-European
| fam2             = [[Indo-Iranian languages|Indo-Iranian]]
| fam3             = [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo-Aryan]]
| fam4             = [[Eastern Indo-Aryan languages|Eastern]]
| fam5             = [[Bihari languages|Bihari]]
| ancestor         = [[Magadhi Prakrit]]
| ancestor2        = Magadhan [[Apabhraṃśa]]
| ancestor3        = [[Abahattha]]
| dia1             = Northern Standard Bhojpuri
| dia2             = Western Standard Bhojpuri
| dia3             = Southern Standard Bhojpuri
| dia5             = Domra
| dia6             = Musahari
| dia7             = Mauritian Bhojpuri<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Oozeerally|first1=Shameem|title=The Evolution of Mauritian Bhojpuri: an Ecological Analysis - Mauritius Institute of Education|date=March 2013|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/323772628|access-date=1 September 2020}}</ref>
| dia8             = South African Bhojpuri {{small|{{small|(Naitali)}}}}<ref>{{cite web|last1=Rambilass|first1=B.|title=NAITALI - SOUTH AFRICAN BHOJPURI|url=http://www.indiandiasporacouncil.org/pdf/NAITALI-SOUTH-AFRICAN-BHOJPURI-by-B-Rambilass.pdf|website=indiandiasporacouncil.org|access-date=1 September 2020|archive-date=18 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200918190623/http://www.indiandiasporacouncil.org/pdf/NAITALI-SOUTH-AFRICAN-BHOJPURI-by-B-Rambilass.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
| script           = {{unbulleted list
|[[Devanagari]] 
|[[Kaithi]] (historical)
}}
| iso2             = bho
| iso3             = bho
| lingua           = 59-AAF-sa
| notice           = IPA
| glotto           = bhoj1244
| glottorefname    = Bhojpuric
| imagecaption     = The word "Bhojpuri" in the [[Devanagari]] script
| map              = Bhojpuri Speaking Region in India.png
| mapcaption       = Bhojpuri-speaking regions of India
| map2             = 
| mapcaption2      = Bhojpuri speakers in Mauritius (pink) along with Hindi and Urdu
| dia9             = Nagpuriya Bhojpuri
| altname          = 
| dia10            = [[Caribbean Hindustani]] (incl. [[Sarnámi Hindustáni|Sarnami]])
| dia11            = 
}}
{{Contains special characters|Indic}}
[[File:WIKITONGUES- Krishna speaking Bhojpuri.webm|thumb|A speaker of Bhojpuri]]

'''Bhojpuri''' (IPA: {{IPAc-en|ˌ|b|oʊ|dʒ|ˈ|p|ʊər|i}};<ref name="oxford">{{cite dictionary |url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/english/bhojpuri |title=Bhojpuri entry, Oxford Dictionaries |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208140012/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/english/bhojpuri |archive-date=8 December 2015 |dictionary=Oxford University Press}}</ref> [[Devanagari]]: {{Audio|hi-Bhojpuri.ogg|भोजपुरी}}, [[Kaithi]]: {{Script|Kthi| 𑂦𑂷𑂔𑂣𑂳𑂩𑂲}}, ({{ipa|bho|bʰoːdʒpʊɾiː|ipa}})) is an [[Indo-Aryan language]] native to the [[Bhojpuri region|Bhojpur]]-[[Purvanchal]] region of [[India]] and the [[Terai]] region of [[Nepal]].<ref name="eth2009">[[:ethnologue:bho|Bhojpuri Ethnologue]] World Languages (2009){{Circular reference|date=March 2019}}</ref> It is chiefly spoken in eastern [[Uttar Pradesh]], western [[Bihar]], and northwestern [[Jharkhand]] in India, as well as western [[Madhesh Province|Madhesh]], eastern [[Lumbini Province|Lumbini]]. According to the 2011 Census of India, it is spoken by approximately 50.5 million people.<ref name=":7">{{Citation |last=Ojha |first=Atul Kr |title=English-Bhojpuri SMT System: Insights from the Karaka Model |date=6 May 2019 |url=http://arxiv.org/abs/1905.02239 |access-date=29 June 2025 |publisher=arXiv |doi=10.48550/arXiv.1905.02239 |id=arXiv:1905.02239}}</ref>

It is also a minority language in [[Fiji]], [[Mauritius]], [[Suriname]] and historically primarily in the [[Natal (province)|Natal]] province of  [[South Africa]].<ref name="Rajend Mesthrie 1992, pages 30-32" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Mesthrie |first=Rajend |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ikdPmwEACAAJ |title=A History of the Bhojpuri (or "Hindi") Language in South Africa |date=1985 |publisher=University of Cape Town |language=en}}</ref> [[Fiji Hindi]], an official language of Fiji, is a dialect of Bhojpuri spoken by the [[Indo-Fijians]]. [[Caribbean Hindustani]] is spoken by the [[Indo-Caribbean people]] in [[Guyana]], [[Suriname]], [[Jamaica]] and [[Trinidad and Tobago]].<ref>[http://www.ethnologue.com/language/hns Hindustani, Caribbean] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160113152633/http://www.ethnologue.com/language/hns|date=13 January 2016}} Ethnologue (2013)</ref> In [[Mauritius]], it is a recognised by the government and taught in university as well.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mauritius Bhojpuri |url=https://www.mgirti.ac.mu/index.php/school-of-mauritian-and-area-studies/department-of-bhojpuri-folklore-oral-traditions}}</ref>

Bhojpuri language is listed as potentially [[vulnerable language|vulnerable]] in the [[UNESCO]] World Atlas of Languages.<ref name="UNESCO_bhoj"/>

==Name==
The oldest presence of the word "Bhojpuri" is found as ''Bodjpooria'' in 1789 in the translator's preface of a book titled ''A Translation of the Sëir Mutaqherin'', which is a translation of a [[Persian language|Persian]] book written in 1780 by [[Ghulam Hussain Khan]].<ref>{{Cite book |title=A Translation of the Sëir Mutaqherin |year=1789}}</ref> The paragraph in which reads:

{{Blockquote|text="Don't make so much noise" said of them in his Bhojpooria idiom, "we go to-day with the Frenghees, but we all are servant to [[Maharaja Chait Singh|Chëyt Singh]], and may come back tomorrow with him and then question will not be about your roots, but about your wives and daughters."|title=A Translation of the Sëir Mutaqherin|source=Translator's Preface}}

The word ''Bhojpuri'' is derived from [[Bhojpuri region|Bhojpur]]. After the conquest of [[Chero dynasty|Chero]] and [[Ujjainiya]] [[Rajput]]s in 12th century, who were the descendants of [[Bhoja|Raja Bhoj]] from [[Ujjain]], [[Malwa]], [[Madhya Pradesh]] captured Shahabad and named their capital Bhojpur (City of Raja Bhoj).<ref>{{Cite book|title=Journal of Asiatic Society of Bengal|year=1871|pages=111–129}}</ref>  The seat of their government was Bhojpur village which was near [[Dumraon]] in [[Buxar district|Buxar]]. Two villages named Chhotka Bhojpur and Barka Bhojpur still exist in Buxar, where the ruins of their Navratna Fortress can still be seen. Slowly the word ''Bhojpur'' became the synonyms of the Shahabad or [[Arrah]] region (Today's [[Bhojpur district, India|Bhojpur district]], [[Buxar district|Buxar]], [[Kaimur district|Kaimur]] and [[Rohtas district|Rohtas]])<ref>{{Cite book|last=Rennel|first=James|title=Bengal Atlas|year=1781}}</ref> and the adjective ''Bhojpuri'' or ''Bhojpuriya'' extended to mean the language or people of Bhojpur and even beyond it. Apart from ''Bhojpuri'' in the Eastern UP and Western Bihar,  there were other names also for the language and people, at different places, the Bhojpuriya in Mughal armies were used to called ''Buxariya.''<ref>{{Cite book|last=Irvine|first=William|title=The Army of the Indian Moghuls|year=1903|location=London|pages=168–169}}</ref> In Bengal, they called ''Paschhimas'' (Westerners) and Bhojpuri people also called them ''Deshwali'' or ''Khoṭṭa,'' in upper provinces like [[Oudh State|Oudh]] they called ''Purabiya.'' Besides these, ''Banarasi'', ''Chhaprahiya'', and ''Bangarahi'' has also used for the language and People. [[Rahul Sankrityayan]] has suggested two names for it i.e. ''Mallika'' or ''Malli'' (due to ancient tribe of [[Malla (tribe)|Malla]]) and ''Kashiki'' (due to ancient [[Kingdom of Kashi|Kashi]]).<ref>{{Cite book|last=Tiwari|first=Udai Narayan|title=The Origin and Development of Bhojpuri|publisher=The Asiatic society|location=Kolkata}}</ref> The [[Girmityas]] who were taken to British colonies called it simply ''Hindustani'' or ''Hindi'' and it became ''[[Fiji Hindi]]'' in [[Fiji]] and ''[[Caribbean Hindustani]]'' in the [[Caribbean]] region.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Hua |first1=Z. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cliHDAAAQBAJ&dq=bhojpuri+in+fiji&pg=PA202 |title=Language Learning and Teaching as Social Inter-action |last2=Seedhouse |first2=P. |last3=Cook |first3=V. |last4=Wei |first4=L. |date=31 July 2007 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-0-230-59124-0 |language=en}}</ref> Similarly, in [[South Africa]], while often locally referred to by speakers as  'Hindustani', the variety brought by indentured labourers who embarked at Calcutta was also known as ''''Kalkatia'''<nowiki/>'.<ref name="Rajend Mesthrie 1992, pages 30-32" />

==History==
Bhojpuri is a descendant of [[Magadhi Prakrit]]<ref name="Verma, Manindra K. 2003"/> which started taking shape during the reign of the [[Vardhana dynasty]]. [[Bāṇabhaṭṭa]], in his [[Harshacharita]] has mentioned two poets named ''Isānchandra'' and ''Benibhārata'' who used to write in local language instead of [[Prakrit]] and [[Sanskrit]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Tiwari|first=Arjun|title=Bhojpuri Sāhitya ke itihāsa|publisher=Vishwavidyala Prakashan|year=2014|location=Varanasi|pages=35}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Cowell|first=Edward Byles|title=The Harsa-carita of Bana|publisher=Royal Asiatic Society|year=1897|location=London|pages=32}}</ref>

=== Initial period (700–1100 A.D.) ===
The earliest form of Bhojpuri can be traced in the [[Natha Sampradaya|Siddha Sahitya]] and [[Charyapada]] as early as the 8th century A.D.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Tiwari|first=Arjun|title=Bhojpuri Sahtiya Ke Itihas}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Tahmid|first=Syed Md|title=Buddhist Charyapada & Bengali Identity|url=https://www.academia.edu/4687613|language=en|access-date=29 October 2020|archive-date=22 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220822090115/https://www.academia.edu/4687613|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Pandey|first=Narmadeshwar Sahay|title=Comprehensive History of Bihar (Bhojpuri Language and literature of Bihar)}}</ref>''.''{{Page needed|date=January 2025}} This period is also called as Siddha period.

=== 1100–1400 A.D. ===
Between the 11th and 14th centuries A.D., much Bhojpuri folklore such as [[Lorikayan]], ''Sorathi Birjabh'', Vijaymal, Gopichand, Raja Bharthari''ar'' came into existence.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Prasad|first=Vishwanatha|title=Yathopaari}}</ref> Alongside these, the [[Nath]] Saint composed literature in Bhojpuri. In this period, the Bhojpuri language altered and its regional boundaries were established.{{Sfn|Pandey|1986|p=41-42}}

=== Period of saints (1400–1700 A.D.) ===
In this era, saints from different sects such as [[Kabir]], [[Dharni Das]], [[Kina Ram (saint)|Kina Ram]] and [[Dariya Saheb]] used Bhojpuri as their language of discourse. In the same period Arabic and Persian words came into Bhojpuri. Folk songs are also said to have been composed in this era.{{Sfn|Pandey|1986|p=57-61}}

=== Early research period (1700–1900 A.D.) ===
{{Quote box
| title = A document of Horil Siha, the King of Bhojpur, dated 1728, script: Kaithi
| quote = Kaithi

{{Script|Kthi|𑂮𑂹𑂫𑂷𑂮𑂹𑂞𑂱 𑂮𑂹𑂩𑂱 𑂩𑂱𑂣𑂳𑂩𑂰𑂔 𑂠𑂶𑂞𑂹𑂨𑂢𑂰𑂩𑂰𑂉𑂢𑂵𑂞𑂹𑂨-𑂄𑂠𑂱 𑂥𑂱𑂥𑂱𑂡 𑂥𑂱𑂩𑂠𑂫𑂪𑂲 𑂥𑂱𑂩𑂰𑂔𑂧𑂰𑂢 𑂧𑂢𑂷𑂢𑂞 𑂮𑂹𑂩𑂲 𑂧𑂰𑂯𑂰𑂩𑂰𑂔𑂰𑂡𑂱𑂩𑂰𑂔 𑂩𑂰𑂔𑂰 𑂮𑂹𑂩𑂲-𑂔𑂱𑂫 𑂠𑂵𑂫 𑂠𑂵𑂫𑂰𑂢𑂰𑂧𑂹 𑂮𑂠𑂰 𑂮𑂧𑂩 𑂥𑂱𑂔𑂶𑂢𑂰𑃀 𑂄𑂏𑂵 𑂮𑂳𑂫𑂁𑂮 𑂣𑂰𑂁𑂚𑂵 𑂣𑂩𑂰-𑂄𑂏 𑂍𑂵 𑂇𑂣𑂩𑂷𑂯𑂱𑂞 𑂣𑂰𑂓𑂱𑂪 𑂩𑂰𑂔𑂢𑂹𑂯 𑂍𑂵 𑂇𑂣𑂩𑂷𑂯𑂱𑂞 𑂯𑂈𑂯𑂲 𑂮𑂵 𑂯𑂧𑂯𑂳 𑂄𑂣𑂢 𑂇𑂣𑂩𑂷𑂯𑂱𑂞 𑂍𑂆𑂪𑃀 𑂔𑂵 𑂍𑂵𑂇 𑂣𑂩𑂰-𑂃𑂏 𑂧𑂰𑂯 𑂄𑂫𑂵 𑂮𑂵 𑂮𑂳𑂫𑂁𑂮 𑂣𑂰𑂁𑂚𑂵 𑂍𑂵 𑂧𑂰𑂢𑂵, 𑂇𑂔𑂵𑂢 𑂢𑂰𑂫 𑃁𑃀 ११३६ 𑂮𑂰𑂪 𑂧𑂷𑂍𑂰𑂧 𑂠𑂰𑂫𑂰 𑂡𑂳𑂮 𑂮𑂧𑂞 १७८५ 𑂮𑂧𑂶 𑂢𑂰𑂧 𑂥𑂶𑂮𑂰𑂎 𑂮𑂳𑂠𑂱 𑂞𑂱𑂩𑂷𑂠𑂮𑂱 𑂩𑂷𑂔 𑂥𑂳𑂡𑃀 𑂣𑂹𑂩𑂏𑂢𑂵 𑂦𑂷𑂔𑂣𑂳𑂩 𑂏𑂷𑂞𑂩 𑂮𑂫𑂢𑂍 𑂧𑂳𑂪 𑂇𑂔𑂵𑂢 𑂔𑂰𑂞𑂱 𑂣𑂰𑂫𑂰𑂩}}

 {{Script|Kthi|𑂮𑂳𑂫𑂁𑂮 𑂔𑂵 𑂣𑂰𑂓𑂱𑂪𑂰 𑂩𑂰𑂔𑂢𑂹𑂯 𑂍𑂵 𑂇𑂣𑂩𑂷𑂯𑂱𑂞 𑂯𑂈𑂯𑂲 𑂮𑂵 𑂯𑂧𑂯𑂳 𑂍𑂆𑂪 𑂃𑂣𑂢 𑂇𑂣𑂩𑂷𑂯𑂱𑂞}}

Devnagari

स्वोस्ति स्रि रिपुराज दैत्यनाराएनेत्य-आदि बिबिध बिरदवली बिराजमान मनोनत स्री माहाराजाधिराज राजा स्री-जिव देव देवानाम् सदा समर बिजैना। आगे सुवंस पांड़े परा-आग के उपरोहित पाछिल राजन्ह के उपरोहित हऊही से हमहु आपन उपरोहित कईल। जे केउ परा-अग माह आवे से सुवंस पांड़े के माने, उजेन नाव ॥। ११३६ साल मोकाम दावा धुस समत १७८५ समै नाम बैसाख सुदि तिरोदसि रोज बुध। प्रगने भोजपुर गोतर सवनक मुल उजेन जाति पावार

 सुवंस जे पाछिला राजन्ह के उपरोहित हऊही से हमहु कईल अपन उपरोहित

English Translation

The statement is that: Suvansa pande of Prayag is the priest of the past Rājās, so I also made him my priest. Whosoever among the Ujjen (Rajputs) comes to Prayag should have regard for him. Year 1136 place Dawa (The old place of the Rajas of Bhojpur, now a village) samat 1785 (A.D. 1728) date 13th of the bright part of Baisakha, Wednesday Paragana Bhojpur, Gotra Sawanak, origin Ujen, caste Pawara.

Suvans, who is the priest of the past Rājās, him I also made my priest.
| author = Horil Siha (King of Bhojpur)
| source = Origin and Development of Bhojpuri, pp 218-219
}}
In this period the British established themselves as the colonial power in India, and scholars from Britain conducted the first academic study of Bhojpuri. Bhojpuri folk literature was researched, and the Bhojpuri region was mapped for the first time. In this period Bhojpuri became an international language.{{Sfn|Pandey|1986|p=105}} Between 1838 and 1917 labourers from the Bhojpuri region were taken to [[British colony|British Colonies]] like [[Fiji]], [[Mauritius]], [[Guyana]], [[Trinidad and Tobago]] and [[South Africa]], as well as the Dutch colony of [[Suriname]] as plantation workers. Linguistic analysis of the South African context indicates that while the majority of migrants arriving via [[Kolkata|Calcutta]] (1860-1911) originated from Bhojpuri-speaking areas of Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh, there was also a substantial presence of speakers from Awadhi-speaking regions. This resulted in a process of language coalescence and the formation of a distinct '''koiné variety''' of Bhojpuri in South Africa, influenced by contact between these related dialects.<ref name="Rajend Mesthrie 1992, pages 30-32" /> Music genres based on [[Bhojpuri folk music]] such as [[Chutney music]], [[Baithak Gana]], Geet Gawanai and Lok Geet arose in those countries.<ref name="eco">{{cite news|title=The legacy of Indian migration to European colonies|url=https://www.economist.com/news/international/21727896-century-after-india-ended-system-indentured-labour-its-diaspora-building|access-date=2 September 2017|newspaper=[[The Economist]]|date=2 September 2017|archive-date=1 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170901212224/https://www.economist.com/news/international/21727896-century-after-india-ended-system-indentured-labour-its-diaspora-building|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Indian Arrival Day|url=https://www.nalis.gov.tt/Resources/Subject-Guide/Indian-Arrival-Day|website=www.nalis.gov.tt|access-date=29 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170212091036/https://www.nalis.gov.tt/Resources/Subject-Guide/Indian-Arrival-Day|archive-date=12 February 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> In the [[Caribbean]], particularly [[Trinidad]], the evolution from Bhojpuri folk traditions performed at weddings led to the development of [[Chutney music]] as a distinct genre, often incorporating English lyrics and Soca rhythms alongside Bhojpuri elements.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |title=ORAL LITERARY WORLDS (Chapter 4) |editor-last=Marzagora |editor-first=Sara |pages=145–165 |language=En}}</ref>

[[File:Paramaribo - Kleine Combeweg - Baba en Mai 20160922.jpg|thumb|Statue named '''Baba en Maai''' commemorating the arrival of first Indian couple in [[Suriname]]<ref name="kloosterbakker">Olga van der Klooster &amp; Michel Bakker, ''Architectuur en bouwcultuur in Suriname'' (2009). KIT Publishers. {{ISBN|978-90-6832-531-7}}. Blz. 329-330.</ref>]]

British scholars like Buchanan, [[John Beames|Beames]] and [[George Abraham Grierson]] studied the language in details. Beames published the grammar of Bhojpuri for the first time in 1868. [[G.A. Grierson|Grierson]] compiled and published the folksongs of Bhojpuri in 1884. He published the folklore of Bhojpuri and also made the dictionaries in Bhojpuri. He also conducted the [[Linguistic Survey of India]].{{Sfn|Pandey|1986|p=101-111}} In his work, Grierson characterised Bhojpuri as "''a practical language of an energetic race''"<ref name=":6">{{Cite book |last=Vidyarthi |first=Lalita Prasad |url=https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Rise_of_Anthropology_in_India/c3TqmBoQnf4C?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22bhojpuri%22&pg=PA375&printsec=frontcover |title=Rise of Anthropology in India: A Social Science Orientation |date=1978 |publisher=Concept Publishing Company |language=en}}</ref>

=== Present period (1900–present) ===
In the 19th century, notable works like [[Devakshara Charita]], [[Badmash Darpan]] were published. In the 20th century, [[Bhikhari Thakur]] contributed significantly to [[Bhojpuri literature]] and theatre with his notable plays like [[Bidesiya (play)|Bidesiya]], [[Beti Bechwa]], [[Gabarghichor]]  and novels like ''Bindia'' and ''Phulsunghi'' were published. In 1962, the first Bhojpuri film, ''[[Ganga Maiyya Tohe Piyari Chadhaibo]]'' was released and became the founding stone of the [[Bhojpuri cinema|Bhojpuri film industry]].

Bhojpuri is listed as a potentially vulnerable language in the UNESCO world atlas of languages due to the influence of Hindi.<ref name="UNESCO_bhoj">{{Cite web |title=Bhojpuri |url=https://en.wal.unesco.org/languages/bhojpuri }}</ref> Words like ''Bujhã'' are being replaced by Hindi words like ''Samjhã''.<ref name="Gambhir 1983 28–38">{{Cite journal |last=Gambhir |first=Surendra K. |date=1983 |title=Diglossia in Dying Languages: A Case Study of Guyanese Bhojpuri and Standard Hindi |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/30027654 |journal=Anthropological Linguistics |volume=25 |issue=1 |pages=28–38 |jstor=30027654 |issn=0003-5483 |access-date=12 October 2024 |archive-date=14 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240414065416/https://www.jstor.org/stable/30027654 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Geographic distribution==
The Bhojpuri-speaking region covers the area of 73,000 square kilometres approximately in India and Nepal<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|last=Jain|first=Dinesh|title=The Indo-Aryan Languages|publisher=Routledge|year=2007|isbn=978-1135797102}}</ref> and borders the [[Awadhi language|Awadhi]]-speaking region to the west, the [[Nepali language|Nepali]]-speaking region to the north, the [[Magahi language|Magahi]] and [[Bajjika language|Bajjika]]-speaking regions to the east and the [[Chhattisgarhi language|Chhattisgarhi]] and [[Bagheli language|Bagheli]]-speaking regions to the south.<ref name=eth2009/> In Nepal, Bhojpuri is a major language.<ref name="ucla" /> There are a number of Bhojpuri-speaking Muslims that are part of the [[Muhajir (Pakistan)|Muhajir]] community in [[Pakistan]], as well as in [[Bangladesh]], where they are referred to as [[Stranded Pakistanis]] due to them speaking Bhojpuri and [[Urdu]] as their native tongue and not Bengali as most Bangladeshis do. They migrated to Bangladesh there during the [[Partition of India]] when the area was part of [[East Pakistan]], before gaining independence as Bangladesh.

[[File:East Indian Coolies in Trinidad - Project Gutenberg eText 16035.jpg|thumb|Arrival of Bhojpuri speaking people in Trinidad and Tobago]]
Bhojpuri is spoken by descendants of [[Indentured servant|indentured labourers]] brought in the 19th and early 20th centuries for work in plantations in British colonies. These Bhojpuri speakers live in [[Mauritius]], [[Fiji]], [[South Africa]], [[Trinidad and Tobago]], [[Guyana]], [[Suriname]], [[Jamaica]], and other parts of the [[Caribbean]].<ref name="Rajend Mesthrie 1992, pages 30-32"/><ref name=ucla/><ref>{{cite web|title=Forced Labour|year=2010|publisher=The National Archives, Government of the United Kingdom|url=http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pathways/blackhistory/india/forced.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161204015712/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/pathways/blackhistory/india/forced.htm|archive-date=4 December 2016}}</ref> In South Africa, speakers were historically concentrated in the Natal province. However, the language experienced significant decline throughout the 20th century, undergoing language shift towards English, with intergenerational transmission largely ceasing by the late 1900s. This South African variety also experienced language contact effects from [[English language|English]], [[Zulu language|Zulu]], and [[Fanagalo]].<ref name="Rajend Mesthrie 1992, pages 30-32" /> In Mauritius, music is considered a primary vehicle for maintaining the language, with songs often reflecting adaptation to new environments and mixing Bhojpuri with [[Mauritian Creole]]. In [[Trinidad and Tobago]], while [[Caribbean Hindustani]] remains, popular music forms like Chutney often feature significant English admixture, reflecting linguistic creolisation, as exemplified by artists like [[Sundar Popo]].<ref name=":1" />
<!-- Unsourced table commented out
{| class="wikitable sortable mw-collapsible" style="margin:auto;"
|+Bhojpuri speakers by country
|-
!Country
!Speakers
|-
|[[India]]
|50,579,447
|-
|[[Nepal]]
|1,584,958
|-
|[[Fiji]]
|460,000
|-
|[[Suriname]]
|75,000
|-
|[[Mauritius]]
|66,893
|-
|}
-->

== Classification ==
[[File:Indo-Aryan language map.svg|right|thumb|Major [[Indo-Aryan languages]] of [[South Asia]]; Eastern Indo-Aryan languages in shades of yellow]]
Bhojpuri is an [[Indo-European language]] and belongs to the [[Eastern Indo-Aryan languages|Eastern Indo-Aryan group]] of the [[Indo-Aryan languages]]. The Magahi and Maithili languages of [[Eastern Indo-Aryan languages|Eastern Indo-Aryan group]] are closest living relatives of Bhojpuri. [[Odia language|Odia]], [[Bengali language|Bengali]] and [[Assamese language|Assamese]] are also closely related.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Dept|first=West Bengal (India) Information and Public Relations|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JITKDDK11M4C&q=Bhojpuri+and+Bengali|title=Introducing West Bengal|date=1976|publisher=Department of Information and Public Relations, Government of West Bengal|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Tuṅga|first=Sudhāṃśu Śekhara|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lRRYBHQvXdsC&q=Bhojpuri+and+Bengali&pg=PA79|title=Bengali and Other Related Dialects of South Assam|date=1995|publisher=Mittal Publications|isbn=978-81-7099-588-3|language=en}}</ref> Bhojpuri along with Magahi and Maithili, are grouped together as the [[Bihari languages]]. Together with the other branches of Eastern Indo-Aryan, the Bihari languages are considered to be direct descendants of the [[Magadhi Prakrit]].

Bhojpuri is classified as an Eastern Indo-Aryan Language because it has similar inflexion system to the other languages of the same family such as [[Bengali language|Bengali]], [[Maithili language|Maithili]] and [[Odia language|Odia]]. For example, the pronunciation of the vowel ''a'' is broad in Eastern Indo-Aryan languages, and sounds like ''o'' in Bengali, on moving westwards it becomes less broad but still can be differentiated from the sharp cut ''a'' in Middle Indo-Aryan.{{clarify|reason=What are the IPA symbols for these sounds?|date=July 2022}} In Bhojpuri, the clear cut ''a'' and the drawled ''a,'' which sounds like ''aw'' in the word ''awl''{{clarify|reason=What is the IPA symbol for this sound? The word cited is pronounced differently in different dialects of English.|date=July 2022}} are present and the contrast between the two gives a different tone to the language.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Pandey|first=Shruti|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z35jAAAAMAAJ&q=Similar|title=A Comparative Study of Bhojpuri and Bengali|date=2003|publisher=Vishwavidyalaya Prakashan|isbn=978-81-7124-343-3|pages=122|language=en}}</ref> This drawled ''a'' is represented by [[Avagraha]] (ऽ),  for instance, the word ''dekh'la'', you see, is written as देेखऽलऽ.<ref>Other proposed methods to represent the drawled "a" sound are, देख'ल', देखःलः and देखअलअ.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}</ref> Other property of Eastern Indo Aryan languages is that the adjectives does not change with the noun. For instance, ''moṭā'' is the feminine form of ''moṭī'' in Hindi. However, as with Bebgali, in Bhojpuri, only ''moṭ'' is used. The past and future tense in Bhojpuri is formed in same way as other Eastern Indo-Aryan Languages, by adding a suffix stating from -l''a'' and ''-ba'' respectively to the verb. Form example, ''I shall See'', in Bengali is ''dekh-bo'' and in Bhojpuri is ''dekh-ab''.<ref name=":2" />

Some scholars has also divided the East Indo Aryan or ''Magadhan'' languages in to three sub-groups viz. Western, Central and Eastern. Bengali, Assamese, Odia belongs to Eastern Magadhan, Maithili and Magahi to Central and Bhojpuri to western.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Varmā|first=Śīlā|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qndjAAAAMAAJ&q=Bhojpuri+magahi+Maithili|title=The Structure of the Magahi Verb|date=1985|publisher=Manohar|pages=6|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=I34LAQAAMAAJ&q=western+Magadhan|title=International Journal of Dravidian Linguistics: IJDL.|date=2008|publisher=Department of Linguistics, University of Kerala|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O1RbjdP6nrgC&q=western+Magadhan|title=The New Encyclopædia Britannica|date=1983|publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica|isbn=978-0-85229-400-0|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0yAKAQAAIAAJ&q=western+Magadhan|title=The History and Culture of the Indian People|date=1951|publisher=G. Allen & Unwin|pages=358|language=en}}</ref> Bhojpuri is classified as Western Magadhan because it has some properties which are peculiar to itself and are not present in other Magadhan Languages. Some striking differences are:<ref name=":2" />

*''raürā'' or ''raüwā'' as an honorfic pronoun for second person along with the ''apne'' form is used Bhojpuri. ''apne'' form is their in other Magadhan Languages but ''raüwā'' is totally absent.
* Verb substantive in other Magadhan language is of ''-acch'' for but Bhojpuri has ''-baṭe'' and ''hawe''.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Study|first=Indian Institute of Advanced|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c_M7AQAAIAAJ&q='bate'|title=Transactions|date=1969|publisher=R. Nivas.|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SBzaAAAAMAAJ&q=bate+|title=Bihar in Folklore Study: An Anthology|date=1971|publisher=Indian Publications|language=en}}</ref>
* The simple present is made by Bhojpuri by adding a suffix starting from ''-la'' with the verb, but this is totally absent in the other languages of Magadhan group. Hence, ''he sees'', is ''dēkhe-lā'' in Bhojpuri but in but ''dekhait-chhi'' in Maithili and ''dekhechhi'' in Bengali.

==Dialects==
Bhojpuri has several dialects: Southern Standard Bhojpuri, Northern Standard Bhojpuri, Western Standard Bhojpuri,<ref name=dsal1>[https://dsal.uchicago.edu/lsi/6968AK Parable of the prodigal son in Benares Bhojpuri] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304101536/http://dsal.uchicago.edu/lsi/6968AK |date=4 March 2016 }}, A Recording in May 1920 by Rajaji Gupta, Linguistic Survey of India, Digital South Asia Library, University of Chicago, USA</ref> and Nagpuria Bhojpuri.<ref name=dsal2>[https://dsal.uchicago.edu/lsi/6588AK Parable of the prodigal son in Nagpuria Bhojpuri] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304210005/http://dsal.uchicago.edu/lsi/6588AK |date=4 March 2016 }}, A Recording in 1920 by Shiva Sahay Lal, Linguistic Survey of India, Digital South Asia Library, University of Chicago, USA</ref><ref name=ucla>[http://www.lmp.ucla.edu/Profile.aspx?menu=004&LangID=133 Bhojpuri] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140225194746/http://www.lmp.ucla.edu/Profile.aspx?menu=004&LangID=133 |date=25 February 2014 }} Language Materials Project, University of California, Los Angeles, United States</ref>

Southern Standard Bhojpuri is prevalent in the [[Shahabad district]] ([[Buxar]], [[Bhojpuri region|Bhojpur]], [[Rohtas district|Rohtas]], and [[Kaimur district|Kaimur]] districts) and the [[Saran division|Saran]] region ([[Saran district|Saran]], [[Siwan District|Siwan]] and [[Gopalganj district, India|Gopalganj]] districts) in Bihar, the eastern [[Azamgarh division|Azamgarh]] ([[Ballia]] and eastern [[Mau, Uttar Pradesh|Mau]] districts) and [[Varanasi division|Varanasi]] (eastern part of [[Ghazipur]] district) regions in Uttar Pradesh, and in the Palamu division ([[Palamu district|Palamu]] and [[Garhwa district|Garhwa]] districts) in Jharkhand. The dialect is also known as ''Kharwari''.{{citation needed|date=February 2024}}

Northern Bhojpuri is common in the western [[Tirhut division]] (east and west [[Champaran]] and in Muzaffarpur district) in Bihar, and [[Gorakhpur division]] ([[Deoria district|Deoria]], [[Kushinagar]], [[Gorakhpur]], and [[Maharajganj district|Maharajganj]] districts) and [[Basti division]] ( [[Siddharthnagar district|Sidharthanagar]], and [[Sant Kabir Nagar]] districts) in Uttar Pradesh. It is also spoken in Nepal.<ref name=ss1981>Shaligram Shukla (1981), Bhojpuri Grammar, Georgetown University School of Language, {{ISBN|978-0878401895}}</ref>

Western Bhojpuri is prevalent in the areas of [[Varanasi division|Varanasi]] ([[Varanasi district|Varanasi]], [[Chandauli district|Chandauli]], eastern [[Jaunpur district|Jaunpur]], and the western part of Ghazipur district), [[Azamgarh division|Azamgarh]] ([[Azamgarh district]], western part of [[Mau district]]) and [[Mirzapur division|Mirzapur]] (eastern [[Mirzapur district|Mirzapur]] and [[Sonbhadra district|Sonbhadra]] districts) divisions in Uttar Pradesh.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Cardona |first1=George |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OtCPAgAAQBAJ&dq=Mirzapur+district+Bhojpuri+language&pg=PA518 |title=The Indo-Aryan Languages |last2=Jain |first2=Dhanesh K. |date=26 July 2007 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-135-79711-9 |language=en}}</ref> Banarasi is a local name for Bhojpuri, named after [[Banaras]].{{citation needed|date=February 2024}}

[[Nagpuri language|Nagpuria Bhojpuri]] is the southernmost popular dialect, found in the [[Chota Nagpur Plateau]] of [[Jharkhand]], particularly parts of [[Palamu division|Palamu]], [[South Chotanagpur division|South Chotanagpur]] and [[Kolhan division|Kolhan]] divisions. It is sometimes referred to as ''Sadari''.<ref>[[Monika Boehm-Tettelbach|Monika Horstmann]] (1969), Sadari, Indologia Berolinensis, Otto Harrassowitz – Wiesbaden, Germany, pp 176–180</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Thiel-Horstmann |first=M. |date=1969 |title=Sadani : a Bhojpuri dialect spoken in Chotanagpur |s2cid=127410862 |language=en}}</ref>

A more specific classification recognises the dialects of Bhojpuri as Bhojpuri Domra, Madhesi, Musahari, Northern Standard Bhojpuri (Basti, Gorakhpuri, Sarawaria), Southern Standard Bhojpuri (Kharwari), Western Standard Bhojpuri (Benarsi, Purbi) and Nagpuriya Bhojpuri.

=== Mauritian Bhojpuri ===
Bhojpuri is a major language spoken by Indo-Mauritians, as the majority of the nearly 450,000 indentured labourers who arrived in Mauritius between 1834 and the early 1900s were Bhojpuri speakers who did not return to India. The speech that evolved in [[Mauritius]] is not based on a single dialect, but is rather a blend of several varieties of Indian Bhojpuri.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last=Michaelis |first=Susanne |url=https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Roots_of_Creole_Structures/pPUeQLcGMOMC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22bhojpuri%22&pg=PA174&printsec=frontcover |title=Roots of Creole Structures: Weighing the Contribution of Substrates and Superstrates |date=2008 |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing |isbn=978-90-272-5255-5 |language=en}}</ref>

Over time, [[Mauritian Bhojpuri]] has undergone grammatical simplification when compared to its Indian counterpart. The most notable change is in the system of personal pronouns and honorifics. The multiple levels of honorifics (e.g., formal ''ap'', informal ''tu'') found in Indian Bhojpuri have been reduced, with Mauritian Bhojpuri primarily using a single form, ''tou'', for "you". Similarly, the second and third-person plural pronouns have been simplified.<ref name=":5" />

In present  Mauritius, the language exists in a complex relationship with [[Mauritian Creole]] and [[Hindi]]. There is a degree of mutual intelligibility with Hindi, partly due to the teaching of Hindi in schools and access to Hindi-language television. Mauritian Bhojpuri has also been influenced by Mauritian Creole, particularly in its sentence structure and through lexical borrowing, with younger and more urban speakers tending to use more Creole words. The influence is bidirectional; it has been documented that Mauritian Creole has borrowed more than 300 words from Indo-Aryan languages, the majority of which are likely from Bhojpuri.<ref name=":5" />

==Phonology==
{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center
|+Vowels<ref name="rlt" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Thakur |first=Gopal |title=A Grammar of Bhojpuri |year=2020 |pages=82 |language=English}}</ref>
! !![[Front vowel|Front]] !! [[Central vowel|Central]] !![[Back vowel|Back]]
|-
! [[Close vowel|Close]]
|{{IPA link|i}} {{IPA link|ɪ}}|| ||colspan="2"|{{IPA link|u}}
|-
! [[Close-mid vowel|Close-mid]]
|{{IPA link|e}}|| ||{{IPA link|o}}
|-
! [[Mid vowel|Mid]]
|
| {{IPA link|ə}}
|
|-
! [[Open-mid vowel|Open-mid]]
| {{IPA link|ɛ}}
|  ||{{IPA link|ɔ}}
|-
! [[Open vowel|Open]]
|  {{IPA link|æ}} || {{IPA link|a}} ||
|}

{|class="wikitable" style=text-align:center
|+Consonants<ref name="rlt" />
!colspan=2|
![[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! ([[Dental consonant|Denti-]])<br/>[[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! [[Retroflex consonant|Retroflex]]
! ([[Alveolo-palatal consonant|Alveolo]]-)[[Alveolo-palatal consonant|<br/>palatal]]
! [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
! colspan="2" | [[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
| {{IPA link|m}}
| {{IPA link|n}}
| {{IPA link|ɳ}}
| {{IPA link|ɲ}}
| {{IPA link|ŋ}}
|
|-
! rowspan="4" | [[Stop consonant|Stop]]/<br/>[[Affricate]]
! {{small|[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]}}
| {{IPA link|p}}
|{{IPA link|t̪}}
| {{IPA link|ʈ}}
| {{IPA link|tɕ}}
| {{IPA link|k}}
|
|-
! {{small|[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
| {{IPA link|b}}
|{{IPA link|d̪}}
| {{IPA link|ɖ}}
| {{IPA link|dʑ}}
| {{IPA link|ɡ}}
|
|-
! {{small|[[Aspirated consonant|aspirated]]}}
| {{IPA link|pʰ}}
|{{IPA link|t̪ʰ}}
| {{IPA link|ʈʰ}}
| {{IPA link|tɕʰ}}
| {{IPA link|kʰ}}
|
|-
! {{small|[[breathy voice]]d}}
| {{IPA link|bʱ}}
|{{IPA link|d̪ʱ}}
| {{IPA link|ɖʱ}}
| {{IPA link|dʑʱ}}
| {{IPA link|ɡʱ}}
|
|-
! colspan="2" | [[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
| 
| {{IPA link|s}}
| || ||
| {{IPA link|h}}
|-
! rowspan="2" | [[Rhotic consonant|Rhotic]]
! {{small|plain}}
| 
| {{IPA link|ɾ}}
| {{IPA link|ɽ}}
| || || 
|-
! {{small|[[breathy]]}}
| 
| {{IPA link|ɾʱ}}
| {{IPA link|ɽʱ}}
| || ||
|-
! colspan=2| [[Approximant consonant|Approximant]]
| {{IPA link|w}} ~ {{IPA link|ʋ}}
| {{IPA link|l}}
|
| {{IPA link|j}}
|
|
|}

Among the seven languages which are [[Sociolinguistics|sociolinguistically]] often counted as [[Hindi dialects]] (Haryanvi, Braj, Awadhi, Bhojpuri, Bundeli, Bagheli, and Kannauji),<ref name="autorefA">Diwakar Mishra and Kalika Bali, [http://www.icphs2011.hk/resources/OnlineProceedings/RegularSession/Mishra/Mishra.pdf A COMPARATIVE PHONOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE DIALECTS OF HINDI] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201170926/http://www.icphs2011.hk/resources/OnlineProceedings/RegularSession/Mishra/Mishra.pdf|date=1 February 2014}}, ICPhS XVII, Hong Kong, 17–21 August 2011, pp 1390</ref> Bhojpuri has the most [[Allophone|allophonic]] variations in [[vowels]].<ref>Diwakar Mishra and Kalika Bali, [http://www.icphs2011.hk/resources/OnlineProceedings/RegularSession/Mishra/Mishra.pdf A COMPARATIVE PHONOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE DIALECTS OF HINDI] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201170926/http://www.icphs2011.hk/resources/OnlineProceedings/RegularSession/Mishra/Mishra.pdf |date=1 February 2014 }}, ICPhS XVII, Hong Kong, 17–21 August 2011, pp 1390–1393</ref>

Bhojpuri has 6 vowel [[phoneme]]s<ref name="Verma, Manindra K. 2003"/> and 10 [[vocoids]]. The higher vowels are relatively tense, and the lower vowels are relatively lax. The language has 31 [[consonant]] phonemes and 34 [[contoid]]s (6 [[Bilabial consonant|bilabial]], 4 apico-dental, 5 [[apico-alveolar]], 7 [[Retroflex consonant|retroflex]], 6 [[Alveolo-palatal consonant|alveo-palatal]], 5 [[dorso-velar]], and 1 [[Glottal consonant|glottal]]).<ref name="rlt" /> <!-- See [[MOS:SPELL09]] - comparable numbers in lists are exceptions to the rule. -->

[[Linguist]] Robert L. Trammell published the phonology of Northern Standard Bhojpuri in 1971.<ref name="rlt">{{Cite journal |jstor=30029290|title=The Phonology of the Northern Standard Dialect of Bhojpuri|journal=Anthropological Linguistics|volume=13|issue=4|pages=126–141|last1=Trammell|first1=Robert L.|year=1971}}</ref><ref name="Verma, Manindra K. 2003">Verma, Manindra K. (2003), Bhojpuri, In Cardona et al. (Editors), The Indo-Aryan Languages, 515–537. London: Routledge</ref> According to him, the [[syllable]] system is peak type: every syllable has the vowel phoneme as the highest point of [[Sonority hierarchy|sonority]]. [[Coda (syllable)|Codas]] may consist of one, two, or three consonants. Vowels occur as simple peaks or as peak nuclei in [[diphthong]]s. The [[Intonation (linguistics)|intonation]] system involves 4 pitch levels and 3 terminal contours.<ref name="rlt" /><ref>Shukla, Shaligram (1981), Bhojpuri Grammar, Washington, D. C., Georgetown University Press</ref>

==Grammar==
{{main|Bhojpuri Grammar}}

Linguistically, Bhojpuri is an inflecting and almost entirely suffixing language. Nouns are inflected for case, number, and gender, while verbs are inflected for tense, aspect, mood, and person-number-gender agreement. A notable feature is its system of verbal honorifics, which marks politeness towards the subject directly in the verb form. Syntactically, Bhojpuri is a Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) language, though it allows for considerable free word-order.<ref name=":7" /> Unlike Hindi, it uses a nominative-accusative case system, does not have an oblique case.<ref name=":7" />

According to [[George Abraham Grierson]], the grammar of Bhojpuri is simpler than other languages of the same family.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|last=Grierson|first=G.A.|title=Linguistic Survey of India. Vol V. Part II|year=1902}}</ref> Nouns in Bhojpuri have three forms: short, long and redundant. The adjectives of nouns do not change with genders. Plurals are made by adding either the suffix ''-na'' or ''ni'' with the nouns or adding the multitudes such as ''sabh'' (all) or ''lōg'' (people).

Examples:<ref name=":2" />
{| class="wikitable" 
!Definition
!Singular Form
!Plural Form
|- 
|House
|ghar
|gharan
|- 
|Horse
|ghoṛā
|ghoṛan
|- 
|Boy
|laïkā
|laïkan/laïka sabh
|- 
|King
|rājā
|rājā lōg
|}

Except few instances the [[Verb form]]s of Bhojpuri depend only on the subject and the object has no effect on it. Unlike other [[Eastern Indo-Aryan languages]], Bhojpuri has a different verb form for the present tense, which corresponds to the Future forms of [[Nepali language|Nepali]]. It is formed by adding the suffix ''-lā'' to the present subjunctive. Therefore, for the verb ''to see'' the Bhojpuri verb is ''dekhe'' and the present form is ''dhekhelā'', which is peculiar to itself and is not found in other languages of the same family like [[Magahi language|Magahi]] (dekhaït haï), [[Maithili language|Maithili]] (dekhaït achi) and [[Bengali language|Bengali]] (dekhechī). The Verbs forms of second person singular (dekh'be; you will see) is considered vulgar in Bhojpuri, plural form ({{lang|bho-Latn|dekhab'}}) is used in general. When it is desired to show respect the first person singular form ({{lang|bho-Latn|dekhab}}; I will see) is used instead of second person plural ({{lang|bho-Latn|dekhab'}}). To show plural number the suffix ''-sa'<nowiki/>'' or ''-ja'' is also used with the 2nd and third person forms, thus ''dekhe-la'-sa'' is ''they see''. The present perfect form is made by adding ''ha''' to the past form. Thus, ''ham dekh'li'' (I saw) is the past from and its present perfect form is ''{{lang|bho-Latn|ham dekh'li ha'}}'' (I have seen).  Past perfect in regular verbs are made by adding the suffix ''-al'' to the verb (dekh - dekhal),  but in some cases it has irregular forms like ''kar (kail)'', ''mar'' ''(mual)'' etc.<ref name=":2" />

[[Bhojpuri numerals|Numerals of Bhojpuri]] take the classifier ''gō'' and ''ṭhō'', which emphasises the countability and totality both. To show inclusiveness and exclusiveness, Bhojpuri used the suffixes ''-o'' and ''-e'' as in ''ham āmo khāïb'' (I will eat mangoes too) verses ''ham āme khāïb'' (I will eat only mangoes). These suffixes can be added to any lexical category such as numerals, adjectives etc.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Jain|first1=Dinesh|title=The Indo-Aryan Languages|last2=Cardona|first2=George|publisher=Routledge|year=2007|isbn=9781135797119}}</ref>

The auxiliaries in Bhojpuri are formed on five bases viz. ''ha'', ''ho'', ''hokh'', ''bāṭ'', ''rah''. These also act as the [[Copula (linguistics)|Copula]]. The ''bāṭ'' form provides for the tenses and the ''hokh'' or ''ho'' form provides for the modes, where as ''rah'' is the past of other three.<ref name=":3" />

==Writing system==
[[File:Kaithi2.png|thumb|right|Bhojpuri story written in [[Kaithi]] script by Babu Rama Smaran Lal in 1898]]
Bhojpuri was historically written in [[Kaithi]] script,<ref name=eth2009/> but since 1894 [[Devanagari]] has served as the primary script. Kaithi has variants as the locality changes, the three classified varianta are Tirhuti, Magahi and Bhojpuri variants. The Bhojpuri variant is used for writing Bhojpuri.<ref name=":2" /> Kaithi is now rarely used for Bhojpuri.
 
Kaithi script was used for administrative purposes in the [[Mughal era]] for writing Bhojpuri, Awadhi, Maithili, Magahi, and Hindustani from at least the 16th century up to the first decade of the 20th century. Government gazetteers{{who|date=January 2020}} report that Kaithi was used in a few districts of Bihar throughout the 1960s. Bhojpuri residents of India who moved to British colonies in Africa, the Indian Ocean, and the Caribbean in the 19th and early 20th centuries used both Kaithi and Devanagari scripts.<ref name="Rajend Mesthrie 1992, pages 30-32">Rajend Mesthrie, ''Language in indenture: a sociolinguistic history of Bhojpuri-Hindi in South Africa'', Routledge, 1992, {{ISBN|978-0415064040}}, pages 30–32</ref>

[[File:Kaithi signboard.jpg|thumb|right|Signboard at Purbi Gumti Arrah with "Lock no. 11"  written on the board in Bhojpuri using [[Kaithi|Kaithi Script]] (on the left side), [[Persian alphabet|Persian script]] (on the right side) and [[Roman script]] (above).]]

By 1894 both Kaithi and Devanagari became common scripts to write official texts in Bihar. At present almost all Bhojpuri texts are written in Devanagari, even in islands outside of India where Bhojpuri is spoken. In Mauritius, Kaithi script was historically considered informal, and Devanagari was sometimes spelled as ''Devanagri''. In modern Mauritius, the major script is Devanagari.<ref>Sarita Boodho, ''Bhojpuri traditions in Mauritius'', Mauritius Bhojpuri Institute, 1999, {{ISBN|978-9990390216}}, pages 47–48 and 85–92</ref>

==Politeness==
{{self-contradictory|about=the number of levels of politeness|date=July 2022}}
Bhojpuri syntax and vocabulary reflects a three-tier system of politeness. Any verb can be [[Grammatical conjugation|conjugated]] through these tiers. The verb ''to come'' in Bhojpuri is ''aail'' and the verb ''to speak'' is ''bolal''. The [[Imperative mood|imperatives]] ''come!'' and ''speak!'' can be conjugated in five ways, each marking subtle variation in politeness and propriety. These permutations exclude a host of [[auxiliary verb]]s and expressions, which can be added to verbs to add another degree of subtle variation. For extremely polite or formal situations, the pronoun is generally omitted.

{{plain row headers}}
{| class="wikitable plain-row-headers"
|-
! scope=row | Literary
| [teh] āō 
| [teh] bōl
|-
! scope=row |  Casual and intimate
| [tu] āō || [tu] bōl
|-
! scope=row |  Polite and intimate
| [tu] āv' || [tu] bōl'
|-
! scope=row | Formal yet intimate
| [rau'ā] āīñ || [rau'ā] bōlīñ
|-
! scope=row | Polite and formal
| [āpne] āīñ || [āpne] bōlīñ
|-
! scope=row | Extremely formal
| āwal jā'e || bōlal jā'e
|}

Similarly, adjectives are marked for politeness and formality. The adjective ''your'' has several forms with different tones of politeness: ''tum'' (casual and intimate), "tōhār" (polite and intimate), "t'hār" (formal yet intimate), ''rā'ur'' (polite and formal) and ''āpke'' (extremely formal).  Although there are many tiers of politeness, Bhojpuri speakers mainly use the form ''tu'' to address a younger individual and ''raua'' for an individual who is older, or holds a higher position in workplace situations.

== Status ==
Greater official recognition of Bhojpuri, such as by inclusion in the [[Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India]], has been demanded.{{by whom|date=January 2020}}<ref name="bh">{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3429620.ece|title=Chidambaram speaks a surprise|date=17 May 2012|agency=[[The Hindu]]|access-date=5 June 2012|location=Chennai, India|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120520172134/http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3429620.ece|archive-date=20 May 2012}}</ref> In 2018, Bhojpuri was given second-language status in Jharkhand state of India.<ref>{{cite news|title=Jharkhand gives second language status to Magahi, Angika, Bhojpuri and Maithili|url=https://www.avenuemail.in/ranchi/jharkhand-gives-second-language-status-to-magahi-angika-bhojpuri-and-maithili/118291/|access-date=17 December 2019|work=Avenue Mail|date=21 March 2018|archive-date=28 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190328090028/https://www.avenuemail.in/ranchi/jharkhand-gives-second-language-status-to-magahi-angika-bhojpuri-and-maithili/118291/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Bhojpuri is taught in matriculation and at the higher secondary level in the [[Bihar School Examination Board|Bihar School Education Board]] and the [[Board of High School and Intermediate Education Uttar Pradesh]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2019}} It is also taught in various universities in India, such as [[Veer Kunwar Singh University]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://vksu.ac.in/new/bhojpuri/|title=Bhojpuri|access-date=17 December 2019|archive-date=17 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191217170106/https://vksu.ac.in/new/bhojpuri/|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Banaras Hindu University]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bhu.ac.in/arts/bhojpuri/pc.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140718084839/http://bhu.ac.in/arts/bhojpuri/pc.php|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 July 2014|title=Banaras Hindu University, Faculty of Arts, bhojpuri addhyan kendra Varanasi|website=www.bhu.ac.in|access-date=17 December 2019}}</ref> [[Nalanda Open University]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nalandaopenuniversity.com/notices/Schools/school%20of%20language/content%20for%20website%20for%20Certificate%20course%20in%20Bhojpuri.pdf|title=Bhojpuri in NOU|access-date=17 December 2019|archive-date=28 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200228073002/http://www.nalandaopenuniversity.com/notices/Schools/school%20of%20language/content%20for%20website%20for%20Certificate%20course%20in%20Bhojpuri.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[Dr. Shakuntala Misra National Rehabilitation University]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://dsmru.up.nic.in/User/course.aspx |title=Archived copy |access-date=6 June 2019 |archive-date=16 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170516181428/http://dsmru.up.nic.in/User/course.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In the digital and technology spheres, Bhojpuri was long considered a "low-resource language" due to a scarcity of standardized digital data and advanced computational tools. Early academic efforts, such as doctoral research at [[Jawaharlal Nehru University]] in 2018, focused on creating the first large-scale digital corpora (text collections) and experimental machine translation systems to begin addressing this gap.<ref name=":7" />

A major milestone in the language's digital presence occurred in May 2022, when [[Google Translate]] officially added Bhojpuri to its platform. This significantly improved the language's accessibility and utility for millions of speakers globally. Despite this progress, challenges remain in developing more advanced NLP applications due to wide dialectal variations and the lack of a single, universally adopted standard for writing the language<ref name=":8" />.

== Sociolinguistic Context ==

=== Bilingualism and Code-Switching ===
Due to the prevalence of [[Hindi]] as the formal language of education and media, a majority of Bhojpuri speakers are [[bilingual]]. This has led to frequent code-switching and the emergence of a mixed language variety sometimes referred to as Bhojpuri-Hindi. For many speakers, Bhojpuri remains the dominant language of the home and informal settings, used for understanding, expression, and inner thought. Hindi, however, is often preferred in formal situations or urban environments, sometimes as a means of showing social status. This dynamic is a central aspect of the language's current context, with some scholars questioning whether it will lead to a new mixed language or the gradual decline of Bhojpuri in certain domains.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Alatis |first=James E. |url=https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Georgetown_University_Round_Table_on_Lan/ljumbfV_7y0C?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22bhojpuri%22&pg=PA319&printsec=frontcover |title=Georgetown University Round Table on Languages and Linguistics (GURT) 1999: Language in Our Time: Bilingual Education and Official English, Ebonics and Standard English, Immigration and the Unz Initiative |last2=Tan |first2=Ai-Hui |date=7 September 2001 |publisher=Georgetown University Press |isbn=978-1-58901-854-9 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Linguistic Tensions ===
The close interaction between Bhojpuri and Hindi has sometimes led to linguistic tension and activism. A notable example occurred in the Bhojpuri-speaking areas of [[Patna]] in the 1960s with the '''"ne-hatao aandolan" (remove 'ne' movement)'''. This movement was a direct reaction against the Hindi grammatical particle ''ne'' (a marker for the agent in certain past-tense constructions), which is absent in Bhojpuri. Bhojpuri speakers found this particle "unnecessary and revolted against its use," organising demonstrations with banners and loudspeakers demanding its removal from Hindi. While the movement was viewed as humorous by some outsiders, it represented a serious assertion of Bhojpuri linguistic identity.<ref name=":4" />

=== Grammatical and Lexical Transfers ===
The influence of Bhojpuri is evident in the Hindi spoken by bilinguals, who often transfer grammatical features and vocabulary from their native tongue. Some common transfers are:

* '''Use of the definite noun suffix <code>-wa</code>''': For example, using <code>laikwa</code> (the boy) in Hindi instead of the standard Hindi <code>laṛka</code>.
* '''Substitution of adverbs and interrogatives''': Using Bhojpuri words like <code>lage</code> (near) in place of the Hindi <code>pa:s</code>.
* '''Lexical transfer''': Introducing Bhojpuri words into Hindi, which can sometimes lead to a narrowing of the Hindi word's meaning. For example, using the Bhojpuri word for a mature jack-fruit, <code>kaTahar</code>, may lead to the Hindi word being used in a more specific sense.

==Literature==

<!--
     If you add names and literary works here, please cite a source. For help on how to add source, see [[WP:REFB]]
-->
{{main|Bhojpuri literature}}
[[File:Badmash Darpan (cover).jpg|thumb|Cover page of [[Badmash Darpan]] by [[Teg Ali Teg]]]]
[[Lorikayan]], the story of [[Veer Lorik]] contains Bhojpuri folklore from Eastern Uttar Pradesh.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=75e5RRqIhMQC&q=lorik+ahir&pg=PA8 |title=Traditions of heroic and epic poetry |date=4 December 1969 |access-date=27 February 2014|isbn=9780900547720 |last1=Auty |first1=Robert }}</ref> [[Bhikhari Thakur]]'s [[Bidesiya (play)|Bidesiya]] is a play, written as a book. ''Phool Daliya'' is a well-known book by [[Prasiddha Narayan Singh]]. It comprises poems of ''veer ras'' (A style of writing) on the theme of ''azaadi'' (''Freedom'') about his experiences in the [[Quit India movement]] and India's struggle with poverty after the country gained independence.

Although Bhojpuri is not one of the established literary languages of India, it has a strong tradition of oral literature.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.mustgo.com/ |title=Bhojpuri |access-date=30 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129164832/https://www.mustgo.com/worldlanguages/bhojpuri/?amp |archive-date=29 January 2023 }}</ref> This "persistent orality" continues in the diaspora, where the language often thrives more through performance, particularly song and music (like folk songs and Chutney), than through formal print literature, adapting across multiple media platforms like radio, recordings, and digital formats.<ref name=":1" />

The oral traditions of Bhojpuri have been a topic of academic research. In the 20th century, scholars documented and analysed the region's folklore. [[W.G. Archer]] published collections of folk songs, as did Durga Shankar Prasad Singh, whose work was primarily sourced from women in the [[Shahabad district]]. Other researchers like Satya Vrata Sinha focused on the academic classification of folktales. Thematic analysis was also conducted; for instance, V.S. Gautam wrote about the role of folk songs such as ''Bidesiya'' in the development of national consciousness during the colonial period.<ref name=":6" />

==Media==
The first journal to be published in Bhojpuri was Bagsar Samāchar which was published in 1915, but was closed in 1918.<ref>{{cite book |title=Journal of Historical Research |date=2004 |publisher=Department of History, Ranchi University. |page=91 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7qZQAQAAMAAJ&q=bagsar+samachar+bhojpuri+1915|quote=The first quarterly in Bhojpuri Bagsar Samachar came up in 1915 but was closed down in 1918}}</ref> The first Bhojpuri weekly was published on 15 August 1947. Bhojpuri journalism rose massively in the 1960s and 1970s. Prominent publications from this era include Anjor, published by the ''Bhojpuri Parivar'' organisation in Patna, and journals from ''Bhojpuri Mandal'' (Motihari) and ''Bhojpuri Samaj'' (Arrah). Another important folkloric journal was Purvaiya from Varanasi..<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Yadav |first=Minakshi |date=2023 |title=Debunking the Myth of the Standard: Development of Hindi in Bihar |journal=International Journal of English and Studies  |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=10}}</ref> Many Bhojpuri magazines and papers are published in Bihar, Jharkhand, and Uttar Pradesh. Several Bhojpuri newspapers are available locally in [[northern India]]. ''Parichhan'' is a contemporary literary-cultural Maithili-Bhojpuri magazine, published by a Maithili-Bhojpuri academy and the government of [[Delhi]], and edited by [[Parichay Das]]. ''The Sunday Indian, Bhojpuri''<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.thesundayindian.com/bh/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140130031143/http://www.thesundayindian.com/bh/|url-status=dead|title=Today Bhojpuri Newspaper Update Headlines India- The Sunday Indian Online Magazine – The Sunday Indian|archive-date=30 January 2014|website=www.thesundayindian.com|access-date=17 December 2019}}</ref> is a regular national news magazine in Bhojpuri. ''Aakhar'' is a monthly online Bhojpuri literature magazine.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aakhar.com |title=आखर भोजपुरी पत्रिका Aakhar Bhojpuri Magazine |access-date=13 March 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305153456/http://www.aakhar.com/ |archive-date=5 March 2016 }}</ref> Other media in Bhojpuri include ''Lok Lucknow'',<ref>{{cite web|url=https://rni.nic.in/display_language.asp |title=Archived copy |access-date=10 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150225130153/http://rni.nic.in/display_language.asp |archive-date=25 February 2015 }}</ref> and the channels [[Mahuaa TV]] and [[Hamar TV]]. [[Bhojpuri Wikipedia]] was launched in 2003.<ref>{{Cite book|title=A Study on the Usage of Internet by Working Women of Vadodara City for Performing Their Household Responsibilities|publisher=Anchor Academic Publishing|year=2016|isbn=978-3960675518}}</ref> On 22 May 2022, [[Google Translate]] added Bhojpuri as one of their languages.<ref name=":8">{{cite web | url=https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/google-translate-gets-24-new-languages-including-assamese-bhojpuri-sanskrit-1948298-2022-05-11 | title=Google Translate now supports Sanskrit and Bhojpuri | date=11 May 2022 | access-date=3 November 2022 | archive-date=3 November 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221103095819/https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/google-translate-gets-24-new-languages-including-assamese-bhojpuri-sanskrit-1948298-2022-05-11 | url-status=live }}</ref>

==Vocabulary==
Bhojpuri vocabularies have similarity with other Indo Aryan languages and also have loanwords from Persian. Tiwari has classified the words of Bhojpuri in to 6 parts:{{Sfn|Tiwari|1960|p=xliv}}

* Words of [[Sanskrit]] origin
* Words with untraceable origin
* Words borrowed from other Indo-Aryan Languages
* Sanskrit words either in original or modified form
* Words of non-Aryan Indian origin
* Foreign origin (Arabic, British etc.)

Words of Persian origin are roughly classified under the following head:{{Sfn|Tiwari|1960|p=xlv}}

* Words pertaining to kingly states: amīr, kābū, hajūr
* Words relating to Revenue, Administration and Law: darogā, hak, huliyā
* Words relating to Islam: Allāh, tobā, mahjid
* Words of intellectual culture, music, education: ilīm, ijjat, munsi
* Words of material culture: kāgaj, kismis, sāl

Since Bengal has been one of the greatest centre for Bhojpuri-speaking people, Bhojpuri has taken a number of words from [[Bengali language|Bengali]]. It is also probable that words of European origin came to Bhojpuri through Bengali.{{Sfn|Tiwari|1960|p=xlvi}} The specific vocabulary of South African Bhojpuri also reflects contact with other languages prevalent in the region, notably incorporating loanwords from Zulu and the pidgin Fanagalo, alongside English.<ref name="Rajend Mesthrie 1992, pages 30-32" />

===Weekdays===
{| class="wikitable" border = 1
|-
! English
! Bhojpuri (Latin script)
! भोजपुरी (देवनागरी लिखाई)
|-
|Sunday
|{{lang|bho-Latn|Eitwaar}}
|एतवार
|-
|Monday
|{{lang|bho-Latn|Somaar}}
|सोमार
|-
|Tuesday
|{{lang|bho-Latn|Mangar}}
|मंगर
|-
|Wednesday
|{{lang|bho-Latn|Budhh}}
|बुध
|-
|Thursday
|{{lang|bho-Latn|Biphey}}
|बियफे
|-
|Friday
|{{lang|bho-Latn|Shuk}}
|शुक
|-
|Saturday
|{{lang|bho-Latn|Sanichar}}
|सनिचर
|}

===Common phrases===
{| class="wikitable" border = 1
|-
! English
! Bhojpuri
|-
|Hello
|{{interlinear|lang=bho|Raam Raam / Parnaam|राम राम / परनाम|}}
|-
|Welcome/Please come in
|{{interlinear|lang=bho|Aain na|आईं ना|}}
|-
|How are you?
|{{interlinear|lang=bho|Ka haal ba? / Kaisan hava?|का हाल बा? / कइसन हवऽ?|}}
|-
|I'm good. And you? / We're good. And you
|{{interlinear|lang=bho|Hum theek baani. Aur rauwa? / Humni theek hañi. Aur aap?|हम ठीक बानी। अउर रउवा? / हमनी ठीक हईं। अउर आप?|}}
|-
|What is your name?
|{{interlinear|lang=bho|Tohaar naav ka ha? / Raur naav ka ha?|तोहार नाँव का ह? / राउर नाँव का ह?|}}
|-
|My name is ...
|{{interlinear|lang=bho|Hamar naav ... ha|हमार नाँव ... ह|}}
|-
|What's up?
|{{interlinear|lang=bho|Kaa howat aa?|का होवत आ?|}}
|-
|I love you
|{{interlinear|lang=bho|Hum tohse pyaar kareni / Hum tohra se pyaar kareni|हम तोहसे प्यार करेनी / हम तोहरा से प्यार करेनी|}}
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Number
! English    !!    Bhojpuri
|-
| 1= one             || १= {{lang|bho-Latn|ek}} = एक
|-
| 2= two             || २= {{lang|bho-Latn|du}} = दु
|-
| 3= three           || ३= {{lang|bho-Latn|teen}} =तीन
|-
| 4= four            || ४= {{lang|bho-Latn|char}} = चार
|-
| 5= five            || ५= {{lang|bho-Latn|pan}} = पान
|-
| 6= six             || ६= {{lang|bho-Latn|chhav}} = छव
|-
| 7= seven           || ७= {{lang|bho-Latn|sat}} = सात
|-
| 8= eight           || ८= {{lang|bho-Latn|aath}} = आठ
|-
| 9= nine            || ९= {{lang|bho-Latn|nav}} = नव
|-
| 10= ten            || १०= {{lang|bho-Latn|das}} = दस
|-
| 100= one hundred   || १००= {{lang|bho-Latn|ek say}} = एक सव
|-
| 500= five hundred  || ५००= {{lang|bho-Latn|pan say}} = पान सव
|-
| 1000= one thousand || १०००= {{lang|bho-Latn|ek hajar}} = एक हजार
|}

===Words of English origin===
* atharāiṭīs (𑂃𑂟𑂩𑂰𑂅𑂗𑂲𑂮/अथराइटीस): From [[Arthritis]].<ref name=":0" />
* afkaran (𑂃𑂤𑂺𑂍𑂩𑂢/अफ़करन): Used in ''South African Bhojpuri,'' Borrowed from English phrase "Half a Crown".<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Dalby |first=Andrew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7dHNCgAAQBAJ&dq=%22bhojpuri%22+%22word%22+%22english%22+%22loanword%22&pg=PA91 |title=Dictionary of Languages: The definitive reference to more than 400 languages |date=28 October 2015 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-4081-0214-5 |language=en}}</ref>
* askūṭara (𑂃𑂮𑂹𑂍𑂴𑂗𑂩/अस्कूटर): From [[Scooter (motorcycle)|Scooter]].<ref name=":03" />
* asaṭāṭ (𑂃𑂮𑂗𑂰𑂗/असटाट): From English verb '''''Start'''''. ''sṭāṭ'' ''is'' used in South Aftican Bhojpuri. It was borrowed in sense of starting a [[Motor vehicle]] or any other mechanical device.<ref name=":03">{{Cite book |last1=Barz |first1=Richard Keith |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lMns1oU3n14C&dq=%22bhojpuri%22+%22word%22+%22english%22+%22loanword%22&pg=PA162 |title=Language Transplanted: The Development of Overseas Hindi |last2=Siegel |first2=Jeff |date=1988 |publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag |isbn=978-3-447-02872-1 |language=en}}</ref>
* aspatāla (𑂃𑂮𑂹𑂣𑂞𑂰𑂪/अस्पताल): From [[Hospital]].<ref name=":03" />
* injin (𑂅𑂢𑂹𑂔𑂱𑂢/इन्जिन): From [[Engine]].<ref name=":03" />
* eroplena (𑂉𑂩𑂷𑂣𑂪𑂵𑂢/एरोपलेन): From [[Aeroplane]].<ref name=":03"/>
* kār (𑂍𑂰𑂩/कार): From English [[Car]]. ''khār'' is used in South African Bhojpuri.
* ṭībī (𑂗𑂲𑂥𑂲/टीबी): From T.B., the short form of [[Tuberculosis]].<ref name=":03" />
* ṭeksī (𑂗𑂵𑂍𑂹𑂮𑂲/टेक्सी): From [[Taxi]].<ref name=":03" />
* ṭesan (𑂗𑂵𑂮𑂢/टेसन): from English [[Station (disambiguation)|Station]].<ref name=":03"/>
* ḍākṭar (𑂙𑂰𑂍𑂹𑂗𑂩/डाक्टर): From [[Doctor (title)|Doctor]]. In South African Bhojpuri ''ḍokṭar'' or ''ḍokṭe'' is used.<ref name=":03" />
* nars (𑂢𑂩𑂹𑂮/नर्स): From [[Nurse]]. ''nes'' or ''staf-nes'' (Staff Nurse) in South African Bhojpuri.<ref name=":03" />
* peṭarol (𑂣𑂵𑂗𑂩𑂷𑂪/पेटरोल): From [[Petrol]].<ref name=":03" />
* palaga (𑂣𑂪𑂏/पलग): From [[Plug (disambiguation)|Plug]].<ref name=":03" />
* baeṭrī (𑂥𑂉𑂗𑂹𑂩𑂲/बएट्री): From [[Battery (disambiguation)|Battery]].<ref name=":03" />
* ba's (𑂥𑂮/बस): From [[Bus]]. ''baz'' in South African Bhojpuri.<ref name=":03" />
* bhaena (𑂦𑂉𑂢/भएन): From [[Van]]. ''ven'' is used in South African Bhojpuri.<ref name=":03"/>
* moṭar (𑂧𑂷𑂗𑂩/मोटर): From English word [[Motor]], also used for [[Motor vehicle]].<ref name=":03"/>
* rēl (𑂩𑂵𑂪/रेल): from English '''''rail''''', meaning [[Train]].<ref name=":03"/>
* rēl-gār̤ī (𑂩𑂵𑂪𑂏𑂰𑂚𑂲/रेलगाड़ी): gār̤ī is a Bhojpuri word meaning [[Vehicle]].
* laurī (𑂪𑂸𑂩𑂲/लौरी): From English word [[Lorry]]. ''Lori'' is used in South African Bhojpuri.<ref name=":03"/>
* sāikīl (𑂮𑂰𑂅𑂍𑂲𑂪/साइकील): From [[bicycle]].<ref name=":03" />
* sīka (𑂮𑂲𑂍/सीक): From [[Wiktionary:sick|sick]]. Used in South African Bhojpuri, with the verbal form ''sīkā gael'' (has become sick).<ref name=":03" />
* sūgar (𑂮𑂴𑂏𑂩/सूगर): From [[sugar]], meaning [[Diabetes]].<ref name=":03" />
* hāṭ (𑂯𑂰𑂗/हाट): From [[Heart]], it used for any heart related disease.<ref name=":03" />

==Example text==
The following is Article 1 of the [[Universal Declaration of Human Rights]] in four languages:

* Bhojpuri (kaithi){{Snd}}{{Script|Kthi|𑂃𑂢𑂳𑂒𑂹𑂓𑂵𑂠 १: 𑂮𑂥𑂯𑂱 𑂪𑂷𑂍𑂰𑂢𑂱 𑂄𑂔𑂰𑂠𑂵 𑂔𑂢𑂹𑂧𑂵𑂪𑂰 𑂄𑂇𑂩 𑂋𑂎𑂱𑂢𑂱𑂨𑂷 𑂍𑂵 𑂥𑂩𑂰𑂥𑂩 𑂮𑂧𑂹𑂧𑂰𑂢 𑂄𑂋𑂩 𑂃𑂡𑂱𑂍𑂰𑂩 𑂣𑂹𑂩𑂰𑂣𑂹𑂞 𑂯𑂫𑂵 𑃀 𑂋𑂎𑂱𑂢𑂱𑂨𑂷 𑂍𑂵 𑂣𑂰𑂮 𑂮𑂧𑂕-𑂥𑂴𑂕 𑂄𑂇𑂩 𑂃𑂢𑂹𑂞:𑂍𑂩𑂝 𑂍𑂵 𑂄𑂫𑂰𑂔 𑂯𑂷𑂎𑂞𑂰 𑂄𑂋𑂩 𑂯𑂳𑂢𑂍𑂷 𑂍𑂵 𑂠𑂷𑂮𑂩𑂰 𑂍𑂵 𑂮𑂰𑂟 𑂦𑂰𑂆𑂒𑂰𑂩𑂵 𑂍𑂵 𑂥𑂵𑂫𑂯𑂰𑂩 𑂍𑂩𑂵 𑂍𑂵 𑂯𑂷𑂎𑂪𑂰 𑃁}}
* Bhojpuri (Devanagari){{Snd}} अनुच्छेद १: सबहिं लोकनि स्वतंत्रे जन्मेलन अउर ओखिनियहूं के समान सम्मान अउरी अधिकार प्राप्त हवे। ओखिनियो के पास समझ-बूझ अ अंत:करण के स्वर होखता आओर हुनके हुं के दोसरा के साथ भ्रातृत्त्व के बेवहार करय के चाही।<ref name="UDHR-Bhojpuri">{{cite web |title=Universal Declaration of Human Rights{{Snd}} Bhojpuri |url=https://www.ohchr.org/EN/UDHR/Documents/UDHR_Translations/bhj.pdf |website=[[United Nations]] |access-date=3 January 2020 |page=1 |language=bho |date=23 April 2019 |archive-date=3 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200103114805/https://www.ohchr.org/EN/UDHR/Documents/UDHR_Translations/bhj.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Sarnámi Hindustani]] (a dialect of Caribbean Hindustani){{Snd}} {{lang|hns-Latn|Aadhiaai 1: Sab djanne aadjádi aur barabar paidaa bhailèn, iddjat aur hak mê. Ohi djanne ke lage sab ke samadj-boedj aur hierdaai hai aur doesare se sab soemmat sè, djaane-maane ke chaahin}}.<ref name="UDHR-SarnamiHindustani">{{cite web |title=Universal Declaration of Human Rights{{Snd}} Sarnámi Hindustani |url=https://www.ohchr.org/EN/UDHR/Documents/UDHR_Translations/hns.pdf |website=[[United Nations]] |access-date=3 January 2020 |page=2 |version=(in [[Sarnámi Hindustani]]) |date=9 December 2013 |archive-date=3 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200103114804/https://www.ohchr.org/EN/UDHR/Documents/UDHR_Translations/hns.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|India|Language}}
* [[Culture of Bhojpuri Region]]
* [[Bhojpuri cinema]]

==Footnotes==
{{notelist}}

==References==

{{Reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
* Rajathi, J; Perumalsamy, P (2021). "[http://lsi.gov.in/MTSI_app/DraftReport/Bihar/9.%20BHOJPURI.pdf Bhojpuri" in Linguistic Survey of India Bihar Volume], New Delhi: Office of the Registrar General. pp.&nbsp;293–407.
* {{Cite book |last=Pandey |first=Rasbihari |title=Bhōpurī Bhāshā kā itihāsa |publisher=Lok Sahitya Sangam |year=1986 |edition=1st |location=[[Arrah]] |language=Hi}}
* {{Cite book |last=Tiwari |first=Uday Narayan |title=The Origin And Development Of Bhojpuri |publisher=The Asiatic Society |year=1960}}

== Further reading ==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |title=Bhojpuri Grammar |first=Shaligram |last=Shukla |publisher=[[Georgetown University Press]] |date=1981 |isbn=9780878401895}}
* {{Cite thesis |type=Masters |first=Gopal Thakur |last=Lohar |url=https://archive.org/details/a-sociolinguistic-survey-of-bhojpuri-by-gopal-thakur |title=A Sociolinguistic Survey of the Bhojpuri Language in Nepal |date=4 June 2006 |location=Kirtipur, Kathmandu, Nepal |publisher=Central Department of Linguistics, [[Tribhuvan University]]}}
* Ghosh, Aditi (2012). "Bhojpuri as a non-dominant variety of Hindi". In: Muhr,. Rudolf et al (eds.). ''Non-Dominant Varieties of Pluricentric Languages. Getting the Picture. In Memory of Michael Clyne, hrsg. v. Rudolf Muhr'' (Österreichisches Deutsch - Sprache der Gegenwart 14). Frankfurt am Main, Berlin, Bern, Bruxelles: Peter Lang, 2012. pp.&nbsp;435–452.
* {{cite thesis |first=Gopal Thakur |last=Lohar |title=A Grammar of Bhojpuri |type=PhD |location=Kathmandu, Nepal |publisher=Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, [[Tribhuvan University]] |date=2020 |url=https://www.academia.edu/45566555}}

;On Diasporic Bhojpuri:
* {{cite journal |last=Gambhir |first=Surendra K. |title=Diglossia in Dying Languages: A Case Study of Guyanese Bhojpuri and Standard Hindi |journal=Anthropological Linguistics |volume=25 |issue=1 |date=1983 |pages=28–38 |jstor=30027654}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Mesthrie |first=Rajend |title=Koineization in the Bhojpuri–Hindi diaspora ― with special reference to South Africa |journal=International Journal of the Sociology of Language |issue=99 |date=1993 |pages=25–44 |doi=10.1515/ijsl.1993.99.25}}
* {{cite book |title=Language in Indenture: A Sociolinguistic History of Bhojpuri-Hindi in South Africa |first=Rajend |last=Mesthrie |publisher=Routledge |date=2020 |orig-year=1991}}
* {{cite journal |last=Jayaram |first=N. |title=The Dynamics of Language in Indian Diaspora: The Case of Bhojpuri/Hindi in Trinidad |journal=Sociological Bulletin |volume=49 |issue=1 |date=2000 |pages=41–62 |doi=10.1177/0038022920000103 |jstor=23619888}}

{{refend}}

==External links==
{{InterWiki|code=bh|Bhojpuri}}
* [[:iarchive:rosettaproject bho undec-1|The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Bhojpuri]], United Nations Information Centre, India (1998)
* [https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/handle/10125/4250/simple-search?filterquery=Bhojpuri&filtername=language&filtertype=equals Archived open-access recordings of Bhojpuri] from [[Kaipuleohone]]
* [https://arxiv.org/abs/1905.02239 English-Bhojpuri Machine Translation System]
* [http://lsi.gov.in/MTSI_app/DraftReport/Bihar/9.%20BHOJPURI.pdf Bhojpuri]. [[Linguistic Survey of India]].
* [https://digital.library.unt.edu/explore/collections/BPLR Bhojpuri Language Resource] collection of Bhojpuri language documentation in the Computational Resource for South Asian Languages (CoRSAL) archive

{{Bihari languages}}
{{Languages of India}}
{{Languages of Nepal}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhojpuri Language}}
[[Category:Bhojpuri language| ]]
[[Category:Eastern Indo-Aryan languages]]
[[Category:Languages of Uttar Pradesh]]
[[Category:Languages of Bihar]]
[[Category:Languages of Nepal]]
[[Category:Languages of Jharkhand]]
[[Category:Languages of Mauritius]]
[[Category:Languages of Madhesh Province]]
[[Category:Languages of Lumbini Province]]
[[Category:Languages written in Devanagari]]
[[Category:Languages listed as Hindi dialects in latest census]]