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Home/Anthropology/Mains PYQ/2014/Paper II/Indian Society, Caste & Civilization
UPSC MainsAnthropology Optional Paper II 2014 10 Marks Model Answer Available

Major Linguistic Divisions of India — 2014 Paper II

Question · 2014 · Paper II · 10 Marks

Major linguistic divisions of India

Model Answer

VAID ICS

Approach

  • Demand of Question: Identify the principal language families of India and briefly describe their geographical and cultural distribution.
  • Structuring the Response: Present the four major linguistic families with representative languages and regions.
  • Key Dimensions to Cover: Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, Austroasiatic, Tibeto-Burman, linguistic diversity and language-culture relationship.

Model Answer

Introduction: India is one of the world’s most linguistically diverse regions. Its languages belong primarily to four major language families, reflecting complex histories of migration, interaction and cultural differentiation.

  1. Indo-Aryan

A branch of the Indo-European family and numerically the largest in India.

Languages include:

  • Hindi;
  • Bengali;
  • Marathi;
  • Gujarati;
  • Punjabi;
  • Assamese.

They predominate across much of northern, western and eastern India.

  1. Dravidian

Concentrated mainly in southern India.

Major languages include:

  • Tamil;
  • Telugu;
  • Kannada;
  • Malayalam.

Smaller Dravidian languages occur among some Central Indian tribal populations.

  1. Austroasiatic

Represented especially by Munda languages such as:

  • Santali;
  • Mundari;
  • Ho.

Khasi belongs to another Austroasiatic branch.

  1. Tibeto-Burman

Predominantly spoken in:

  • Northeast India;
  • Himalayan regions.

Numerous Naga, Mizo and other languages belong to this family.

Thus:

India = Indo-Aryan + Dravidian + Austroasiatic + Tibeto-Burman

Conclusion: India’s linguistic divisions reflect both deep historical processes and contemporary cultural identities; however, language, ethnicity and biological ancestry should not be treated as identical categories.

2026 What are the major debates related to the concept of jajmani system? 2026 Does caste as a social category exist among the non-Hindu communities in India? Illustrate your answer with suitable examples. 2025 Characteristics and communication between Little and Great Traditions 2025 Delineate the major features of S. S. Sarkar's classification of Indian populations. Was his classification better than Risley? Explain.

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