General Awareness ยท Civics Polity

Indian and Sri Lankan Languages

2,991 Questions

Indian and Sri Lankan languages cover various linguistic families, regional dialects, and official state languages. A significant focus is placed on Dravidian languages and their distinctive scripts. Strengthen your general awareness of regional language distribution for upcoming tests.

Dravidian language familyOfficial state languagesRegional Indian dialectsSri Lankan languagesLinguistic communities

Indian and Sri Lankan Languages Questions

Multiple choice

What is the primary language of ancient Prakrit literature?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Tamil

  3. Prakrit

  4. Pali
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Ancient Prakrit literature, including works like the Prakrit dramas and Jain texts, is primarily composed in various Prakrit languages, which were spoken in ancient India.

Multiple choice

What is the primary language of ancient Pali literature?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Tamil

  3. Prakrit

  4. Pali
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Ancient Pali literature, including Buddhist texts like the Tripitaka, is primarily composed in the Pali language, which was widely used in ancient India.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is not a scheduled language in India?

  1. Hindi

  2. Sanskrit

  3. English

  4. Tamil
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

English is not a scheduled language in India, while Hindi, Sanskrit, and Tamil are.

Multiple choice

Which language is the most widely spoken in India?

  1. Hindi

  2. Bengali

  3. Telugu

  4. Marathi
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Hindi is the most widely spoken language in India, with over 400 million speakers.

Multiple choice

Which language was the official language of the Kingdom of Travancore?

  1. Malayalam

  2. Tamil

  3. Kannada

  4. Telugu
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Malayalam was the official language of the Kingdom of Travancore and is still the official language of the Indian state of Kerala.

Multiple choice

Which classical language has influenced the development of many modern Indian languages?

  1. Latin

  2. Greek

  3. Sanskrit

  4. Arabic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Sanskrit has had a profound impact on the development of many modern Indian languages, including Hindi, Bengali, Marathi, and Gujarati.

Multiple choice

Which language is the official language of the Telangana state?

  1. Telugu

  2. Urdu

  3. Hindi

  4. Marathi
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Telugu is the official language of the Telangana state, as per the Telangana Official Language Act, 1966.

Multiple choice

Which language is spoken by the majority of the population in Telangana?

  1. Telugu

  2. Urdu

  3. Hindi

  4. Marathi
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Telugu is the most widely spoken language in Telangana, with over 75% of the population speaking it as their native language.

Multiple choice

Which language is the second most spoken language in Telangana?

  1. Urdu

  2. Hindi

  3. Marathi

  4. Kannada
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Urdu is the second most spoken language in Telangana, with over 10% of the population speaking it as their native language.

Multiple choice

Which language is spoken by the third largest linguistic group in Telangana?

  1. Hindi

  2. Marathi

  3. Kannada

  4. Tamil
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Hindi is spoken by the third largest linguistic group in Telangana, with over 5% of the population speaking it as their native language.

Multiple choice

Which language is spoken by the fourth largest linguistic group in Telangana?

  1. Marathi

  2. Kannada

  3. Tamil

  4. Gujarati
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Marathi is spoken by the fourth largest linguistic group in Telangana, with over 2% of the population speaking it as their native language.

Multiple choice

Which language is spoken by the fifth largest linguistic group in Telangana?

  1. Kannada

  2. Tamil

  3. Gujarati

  4. Punjabi
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Kannada is spoken by the fifth largest linguistic group in Telangana, with over 1% of the population speaking it as their native language.

Multiple choice

Which language is spoken by the sixth largest linguistic group in Telangana?

  1. Tamil

  2. Gujarati

  3. Punjabi

  4. Malayalam
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Tamil is spoken by the sixth largest linguistic group in Telangana, with over 0.5% of the population speaking it as their native language.

Multiple choice

Which language is spoken by the seventh largest linguistic group in Telangana?

  1. Gujarati

  2. Punjabi

  3. Malayalam

  4. Odia
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Gujarati is spoken by the seventh largest linguistic group in Telangana, with over 0.25% of the population speaking it as their native language.

Multiple choice

Which language is spoken by the eighth largest linguistic group in Telangana?

  1. Punjabi

  2. Malayalam

  3. Odia

  4. Konkani
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Punjabi is spoken by the eighth largest linguistic group in Telangana, with over 0.1% of the population speaking it as their native language.