Bhil | |
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Geographic distribution | India |
Ethnicity | Bhil people |
Linguistic classification | Indo-European |
Subdivisions |
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Language codes | |
Glottolog | bhil1254 |
Bhili-speaking regions of India |
The Bhil languages are a group of lects spoken by the Bhil that are classified as dialects of Indo-Aryan languages such as Gujarati and Rajasthani.[2][3] They are spoken by around 10.4 million Bhils in western and central India as of 2011[4] and constitute the primary languages of the southern Aravalli Range in Rajasthan and the western Satpura Range in Madhya Pradesh, northwestern Maharashtra, and southern Gujarat.
According to the 52nd report of the commissioner for linguistic minorities in India, Ministry of Minority Affairs, Bhili is the most commonly spoken language of the district of Dadra and Nagar Haveli constituting 40.42% of its total population. Bhili speakers are also significant in the states of Gujarat (4.75%), Madhya Pradesh (4.93%) and Rajasthan (4.60%).[5]