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 was the main language of the Kingdom of Kalinga?

  1. Sanskrit

  2. Prakrit

  3. Odia

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

Odia was the main language of the Kingdom of Kalinga. It is still spoken in the state of Odisha, India.

Multiple choice

Which of the following languages is the most widely spoken by the Indian diaspora in Thailand?

  1. Hindi

  2. Punjabi

  3. Tamil

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

Hindi is the most widely spoken language among the Indian diaspora in Thailand, due to the large number of Indian immigrants from Hindi-speaking regions of India.

Multiple choice

Which of the following languages is spoken by the second largest group of Indian diaspora in Thailand?

  1. Punjabi

  2. Tamil

  3. Gujarati

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

Punjabi is spoken by the second largest group of Indian diaspora in Thailand, due to the significant number of Sikh immigrants from Punjab, India.

Multiple choice

Which of the following languages is spoken by the third largest group of Indian diaspora in Thailand?

  1. Tamil

  2. Gujarati

  3. Marathi

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

Tamil is spoken by the third largest group of Indian diaspora in Thailand, due to the presence of a sizable Tamil community in the country.

Multiple choice

Which of the following languages is spoken by a significant number of Indian diaspora in Thailand, but is not among the top three languages?

  1. Gujarati

  2. Marathi

  3. Telugu

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

Gujarati is spoken by a significant number of Indian diaspora in Thailand, particularly in the commercial and business communities.

Multiple choice

Which of the following languages is spoken by a relatively small number of Indian diaspora in Thailand?

  1. Marathi

  2. Telugu

  3. Malayalam

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

Marathi is spoken by a relatively small number of Indian diaspora in Thailand, compared to the other languages mentioned.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is NOT a language spoken by a significant number of Indian diaspora in Thailand?

  1. Hindi

  2. Punjabi

  3. Tamil

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

Bengali is not among the top languages spoken by the Indian diaspora in Thailand.

Multiple choice

Which of the following languages is spoken by a relatively small number of Indian diaspora in Thailand, but has a significant presence in neighboring countries?

  1. Marathi

  2. Telugu

  3. Malayalam

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

Nepali is spoken by a relatively small number of Indian diaspora in Thailand, but has a significant presence in neighboring countries like Nepal and Bhutan.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is an endangered language spoken in the South India?

  1. Tulu

  2. Kodava

  3. Irula

  4. All of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Tulu, Kodava, and Irula are all endangered languages spoken in the South India. Tulu is spoken by about 2 million people, Kodava is spoken by about 100,000 people, and Irula is spoken by about 10,000 people.

Multiple choice

Which language is spoken by the majority of the population of Sri Lanka?

  1. Sinhala

  2. Tamil

  3. English

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

Sinhala is the official language of Sri Lanka and is spoken by the majority of the population.

Multiple choice

Which script is the most widely used in India?

  1. Devanagari

  2. Telugu

  3. Kannada

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

Devanagari is the most widely used script in India, with over 40% of the population using it. It is the official script of the Hindi language, the most widely spoken language in India.

Multiple choice

Which script is used to write the Tamil language?

  1. Devanagari

  2. Telugu

  3. Kannada

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

The Tamil script is used to write the Tamil language, which is spoken by over 70 million people in India. It is one of the oldest scripts in India, with a history dating back to the 3rd century BCE.

Multiple choice

Which script is used to write the Telugu language?

  1. Devanagari

  2. Telugu

  3. Kannada

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

The Telugu script is used to write the Telugu language, which is spoken by over 80 million people in India. It is one of the major Dravidian scripts, along with Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam.

Multiple choice

Which script is used to write the Kannada language?

  1. Devanagari

  2. Telugu

  3. Kannada

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

The Kannada script is used to write the Kannada language, which is spoken by over 40 million people in India. It is one of the major Dravidian scripts, along with Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam.

Multiple choice

Which script is used to write the Malayalam language?

  1. Devanagari

  2. Telugu

  3. Kannada

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

The Malayalam script is used to write the Malayalam language, which is spoken by over 35 million people in India. It is one of the major Dravidian scripts, along with Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada.