# Languages of Asia

Asia is home to hundreds of languages comprising several families and some unrelated isolates. The most spoken language families on the continent include Austroasiatic, Austronesian, Japonic, Dravidian, Indo-European, Afroasiatic, Turkic, Sino-Tibetan, Kra–Dai and Koreanic. Many languages of Asia, such as Chinese, Persian, Sanskrit, Arabic, Tamil or Telugu, have a long history as a written language.

## Language groups

The major families in terms of numbers are Indo-European, specifically Indo-Aryan languages and Dravidian languages in South Asia; and Sino-Tibetan in East Asia. Several other families are regionally dominant.

### Sino-Tibetan

Sino-Tibetan includes Chinese, Tibetan, Burmese, Karen, Boro and numerous languages of the Tibetan Plateau, Southern China, Myanmar, and North East India.

### Indo-European

The Indo-European languages are primarily represented in Asia by the Indo-Iranian branch, with its two main subgroups: Indo-Aryan and Indo-Iranian.
Indo-Aryan languages are mainly spoken in South Asia. Examples include languages such as Hindustani (Hindi-Urdu), Bengali, Bhojpuri, Punjabi, Marathi, Rajasthani, Gujarati, Sylheti)
Iranic languages are mainly spoken in Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan and neighboring regions. Examples include languages like Persian, Kurdish, Pashto and Balochi which are spoken in
In addition, other branches of Indo-European spoken in Asia include the Slavic branch, which includes Russian in Siberia; Greek around the Black Sea; and Armenian; as well as extinct languages such as Hittite of Anatolia and Tocharian of (Chinese) Turkestan.

### Altaic families

A number of smaller, but important and separately distinguished language families spread across central and northern Asia have long been linked in a hypothetical, controversial and unproven Altaic family. These are the Turkic, Mongolic, Tungusic (including Manchu), Koreanic, and Japonic languages. But since the mid-20th century a majority of scholars have come to regard it as a Sprachbund.

### Austroasiatic

The Mon–Khmer languages (also known as Austroasiatic) are the language family in South and Southeast Asia. Languages given official status are Vietnamese and Khmer (Cambodian).

### Kra–Dai

The Kra–Dai languages (also known as Tai-Kadai) are found in southern China, Northeast India and Southeast Asia. Languages given official status are Thai (Siamese) and Lao.

### Austronesian

The Austronesian languages are widespread throughout Maritime Southeast Asia, including major languages such as Fijian (Fiji), Hiligaynon, Bikol, Ilocano, Cebuano, Tagalog (Philippines), and Malay (Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, and Singapore). Javanese, Sundanese, and Madurese of Indonesia, as well as Indonesian, which is the largest language in this family.

### Dravidian

The Dravidian languages of South India and parts of Sri Lanka include Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Tulu, while smaller languages such as Gondi and Brahui are spoken in central India and Pakistan respectively.

### Afro-Asiatic

The Afroasiatic languages (in older sources Hamito-Semitic) are represented in Asia by the Semitic branch. Semitic languages are spoken in Western Asia, and include the various dialects of Arabic and Aramaic, Modern Hebrew, and Modern South Arabian languages in addition to extinct languages such as Akkadian and Ancient South Arabian.

### Siberian families

Besides the Altaic families already mentioned (of which Tungusic is today a minor family of Siberia), there are a number of small language families and isolates spoken across northern Asia. These include the Uralic languages of western Siberia (better known for Hungarian and Finnish in Europe), the Yeniseian languages (linked to Turkic and to the Athabaskan languages of North America), Yukaghir, Nivkh of Sakhalin, Ainu of northern Japan, Chukotko-Kamchatkan in easternmost Siberia, and—just barely—Eskimo–Aleut. Some linguists have noted that the Koreanic languages share more similarities with the Paleosiberian languages than with the Altaic languages. The extinct Rouran language of Mongolia is unclassified, and does not show genetic relationships with any other known language family.

### Caucasian families

Three small families are spoken in the Caucasus: Kartvelian languages, such as Georgian; Northeast Caucasian (Dagestanian languages), such as Chechen; and Northwest Caucasian, such as Circassian. The latter two may be related to each other. The extinct Hurro-Urartian languages may be related as well.

### Small families of Asia

Although dominated by major languages and families, there are number of minor families and isolates in South Asia and Southeast Asia. From west to east, these include:
* Hattic, an unclassified language in Anatolia.
* extinct languages of the Fertile Crescent such as Sumerian and Elamite.
* extinct languages of South Asia; mainly the unclassified Harappan language
* small language families and isolates of the Indian subcontinent: Burushaski, Kusunda, and Nihali. The Vedda language of Sri Lanka is likely an isolate that has mixed with Sinhala.
* the two Andamanese language families: Great Andamanese and Ongan; Sentinelese remains undocumented to date, and hence unclassified.
* unclassified languages in Southeast Asia: Kenaboi.
* the difficult to classify Arunachal languages: Digaro, Hrusish (including the Miji languages), Midzu, Puroik, Siangic, and Kho-Bwa.
* Hmong–Mien (Miao–Yao) scattered across southern China and Southeast Asia
* a few "Papuan" (Non-Austronesian) families of the central and eastern Malay Archipelago: such as the Timor-Alor-Pantar and North Halmahera languages, and the little known extinct Tambora language of Sumbawa. Numerous additional families are spoken in Indonesian New Guinea, which is generally considered to part of Oceania.

### Creoles and pidgins

The eponymous pidgin ("business") language developed with European trade in China. Of the many creoles to have developed, the most spoken today are Chavacano, a Spanish-based creole of the Philippines, and various Malay-based creoles such as Manado Malay influenced by Portuguese. A very well-known Portuguese-based creole is the Kristang, which is spoken in Malacca, a city-state in Malaysia.

### Sign languages

A number of sign languages are spoken throughout Asia. These include the Japanese Sign Language family, Chinese Sign Language, Indo-Pakistani Sign Language, as well as a number of small indigenous sign languages of countries such as Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam. Many official sign languages are part of the French Sign Language family.

## Official languages

Asia and Europe are the only two continents where most countries use native languages as their official languages, though English is also widespread as an international language.
| Language | Native name | Total Speakers | Language family | Official status in a country | Official status in a region |
| Saraiki | سرائیکی | 28,000,000 | Indo-European | | Saraikistan |
| Altai | Алтай тил | 57,000 | Turkic | | Russia Altai Republic |
| Arabic | العَرَبِيَّة | 313,000,000 | Afro-Asiatic | Bahrain Iraq Jordan Kuwait Lebanon Oman Palestine Qatar Saudi Arabia Syria UAE Yemen | |
| Armenian | հայերեն | 5,902,970 | Indo-European | Armenia | |
| Assamese | অসমীয়া | 15,000,000 | Indo-European | | India Assam |
| Azerbaijani | Azərbaycanca آذربایجان دیلی تۆرکجه | 28,000,000 | Turkic | Azerbaijan | Iran South Azerbaijan Russia Dagestan (mostly in Derbent) |
| Balochi | بلۏچی Balòči | 7,600,000 | Indo-European | | Pakistan Balochistan Iran Sistan and Baluchestan (Recognised) |
| Balti | بلتی སྦལ་ཏི། | 392,800 | Sino-Tibetan | | Pakistan Gilgit Baltistan |
| Bengali | বাংলা | 230,000,000 | Indo-European | Bangladesh | India Barak Valley, Assam (Additional) Jharkhand (Recognised) Tripura West Bengal |
| Bhojpuri | भोजपुरी | 50,579,447 | Indo-European | Nepal, India | Nepal Province 2, Parsa, Bara India Jharkhand Bihar Uttar Pradesh |
| Bikol | Bikol Bikol Naga | 4,300,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Bicol Region |
| Bodo | बर'/बड़ Boro | 1,984,569 | Sino-Tibetan | | Nepal India Bodoland, Assam West Bengal |
| Burmese | မြန်မာဘာသာ | 33,000,000 | Sino-Tibetan | Myanmar | |
| Cantonese | 廣東話/广东话 | 7,877,900 | Sino-Tibetan | | China Hong Kong Macau |
| Buryat | Буряад хэлэн ᠪᠤᠷᠢᠶᠠᠳ ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ ᠬᠡᠯᠡᠨ | 440,000 | Mongolic | | Russia Buryatia |
| Cebuano | Bisaya Binisaya Sinugbuanong_Binisaya Sebwano/Sinebwano | 27,500,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Central Visayas Eastern Visayas Northern Mindanao Davao Region |
| Chhattisgarhi | छत्तीसगढ़ी | 17,983,446 | Indo-European | | India Chhattisgarh (Additional) |
| Chin | Kukish | 3,000,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | Myanmar Chin State |
| Chinese Mandarin | 普通話/普通话 國語/国语 華語/华语 | 1,300,000,000 | Sino-Tibetan | China Singapore Taiwan | Myanmar Kokang Wa State |
| Dari | دری | 19,600,000 | Indo-European | Afghanistan | |
| Dhivehi | ދިވެހިބަސް | 400,000 | Indo-European | Maldives | |
| Dzongkha | རྫོང་ཁ་ | 600,000 | Sino-Tibetan | Bhutan | |
| Filipino (Tagalog) | Wikang Filipino | 106,000,000 | Austronesian | Philippines | |
| Formosan | | 171,855 | Austronesian | | Republic of China Taiwan |
| Georgian | ქართული | 4,200,000 | Kartvelian | Georgia | |
| Gujarati | ગુજરાતી | 50,000,000 | Indo-European | | India Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Gujarat |
| Hakka | 客家話/客家话 Hak-kâ-fa | 2,370,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | Republic of China Taiwan |
| Hebrew | עברית | 7,000,000 | Afro-Asiatic | Israel | |
| Hindi | हिन्दी | 615,000,000 | Indo-European | India | |
| Hiligaynon | Hiligaynon Ilonggo Hiniligaynon/Inilonggo | 9,100,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Western Visayas |
| Hokchiu | 馬祖話 Mā-cū-huâ | 12,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | Republic of China Matsu, Fukien (de facto) |
| Hokkien | 臺灣話 Tâi-oân-oē | 18,570,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | Republic of China Taiwan (de facto) |
| Ibanag | Ibanag | 500,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Cagayan Valley |
| Ilocano | Pagsasao nga Ilokano | 11,000,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Northern Luzon Central Luzon |
| Indonesian | Bahasa Indonesia | 270,000,000 | Austronesian | Indonesia Timor Leste (Working languages) | |
| Japanese | 日本語 | 120,000,000 | Japonic | Japan (de facto) | |
| Javanese | Basa Jawa ꦧꦱꦗꦮ بَاسَا جَاوَا‎ | 80,000,000 | Austronesian | | Indonesia Special Region of Yogyakarta Central Java East Java Suriname, Sri Lanka, New Caledonia Javanese is also spoken by traditional immigrant communities of Javanese descent |
| Kachin | Jinghpaw | 940,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | Myanmar Kachin State |
| Kannada | ಕನ್ನಡ | 51,000,000 | Dravidian | | India Karnataka |
| Kapampangan | Kapampangan/Pampangan | 2,800,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Central Luzon |
| Karen | ကညီကျိာ်း | 6,000,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | Myanmar Kayin State |
| Kashmiri | कॉशुर كٲشُر | 7,000,000 | Indo-European | | India Jammu and Kashmir |
| Kayah | Karenni | 190,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | Myanmar Kayah State |
| Karakalpak | Qaraqalpaqsha | 870,000 | Turkic | | Uzbekistan Karakalpakstan |
| Kazakh | Qazaqsha | 18,000,000 | Turkic | Kazakhstan | China Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture Russia Altai Republic |
| Khakas | Хакас тілі Тадар тілі | 43,000 | Turkic | | Russia Khakassia |
| Khmer | ភាសាខ្មែរ | 16,000,000 | Austroasiatic | Cambodia | |
| Konkani | कोंकणी ಕೊಂಕಣಿ | 2,300,000 | Indo-European | | India Goa Maharashtra (Recognized) Karnataka (Recognized) Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (Recognized) |
| Korean | 조선어 한국어 | 80,000,000 | Koreanic | North Korea South Korea | China Changbai Korean Autonomous County Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture |
| Kurdish | Kurdî کوردی | 32,000,000 | Indo-European | | Middle east Great Kurdistan |
| Kyrgyz | Кыргызча قىرعىزچا | 7,300,000 | Turkic | Kyrgyzstan | China Kizilsu Kyrgyz Autonomous Prefecture |
| Lao | ພາສາລາວ | 7,000,000 | Kra-Dai | Laos | |
| Magahi | मगही/मगधी | 12,706,825 | Indo-European | | India Jharkhand (Additional) |
| Maguindanao | بس ماگینداناو Maguindanaon | 1,500,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Bangsamoro Soccsksargen Zamboanga Peninsula |
| Malay | Bahasa Melayu بهاس ملايو | 30,000,000 | Austronesian | Brunei Malaysia Singapore | Indonesia Malay language in Indonesia is considered a regional language (bahasa daerah), on part with regional languages spoken in the regions of Sumatra and Kalimantan |
| Malayalam | മലയാളം | 37,000,000 | Dravidian | | India Kerala Lakshadweep Mahé, Puducherry |
| Marathi | मराठी | 99,000,000 | Indo-European | | India Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Goa Maharashtra |
| Maithili | मैथिली | 34,000,000 | Indo-European | | Nepal Madhesh Province Province No. 1 India Bihar Jharkhand |
| Meitei | ꯃꯤꯇꯩꯂꯣꯟ মৈতৈ Manipuri | 2,000,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | India Manipur |
| Mon | ဘာသာ မန် | 851,000 | Austroasiatic | | Myanmar Mon State |
| Mongolian | Монгол хэл ᠮᠣᠩᠭᠣᠯ ᠬᠡᠯᠡ | 5,200,000 | Mongolic | Mongolia | China Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region |
| Nagpuri | नागपुरी/सादरी | 5,108,691 | Indo-European | | India Jharkhand (Additional) |
| Nepali | नेपाली | 29,000,000 | Indo-European | Nepal | India Darjeeling, West Bengal (Additional) Sikkim |
| Odia | ଓଡ଼ିଆ | 35,000,000 | Indo-European | | India Odisha Jharkhand (Recognised) |
| Okinawan | 沖縄語 / うちなーぐち | 1,143,000 | Japonic | | Japan Okinawa Prefecture |
| Ossetian | Ирон | 540,000 (50,000 in South Ossetia) | Indo-European | | North Ossetia–Alania South Ossetia |
| Pangasinan | Pangasinan | 1,400,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Ilocos Region Central Luzon |
| Pashto | پښتو | 60,000,000 | Indo-European | Afghanistan | Pakistan Balochistan (Recognised) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Recognised) |
| Persian | فارسی | 130,000,000 | Indo-European | Iran | |
| Punjabi | ਪੰਜਾਬੀ پن٘جابی | 113,000,000 | Indo-European | India | India Delhi (Additional) Haryana (Additional) Punjab West Bengal (Additional) Pakistan Punjab |
| Rakhine | ရခိုင်ဘာသာ | 1,000,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | Myanmar Rakhine State |
| Rohingya | Ruáingga | 1,800,000 | Indo-European | | U.N. refugee camps Myanmar Rakhine State |
| Russian | Русский | 260,000,000 | Indo-European | Abkhazia (co-official) Armenia (inter-ethnic communication) Azerbaijan (inter-ethnic communication) Georgia (inter-ethnic communication) Kazakhstan (inter-ethnic communication) Kyrgyzstan (co-official) Ukraine (inter-ethnic communication) Belarus (inter-ethnic communication) Russia South Ossetia (state) Tajikistan (inter-ethnic communication) Turkmenistan (inter-ethnic communication) Uzbekistan (inter-ethnic communication) | |
| Santali | ᱥᱟᱱᱛᱟᱲᱤ | 7,600,000 | Austroasiatic | | India West Bengal (Additional) Jharkhand (Additional) |
| Shan | ၽႃႇသႃႇတႆ | 3,295,000 | Kra-Dai | | Myanmar Shan State |
| Sindhi | سنڌي | 40,000,000 | Indo-European | India | Pakistan Sindh |
| Sinhala | සිංහල | 18,000,000 | Indo-European | Sri Lanka | |
| Tajik | Тоҷикӣ | 7,900,000 | Indo-European | Tajikistan | |
| Tamil | தமிழ் | 88,000,000 | Dravidian | Singapore Sri Lanka | India Puducherry Tamil Nadu |
| Tausug | بَهَسَ سُوگ Bahasa Suluk | 1,200,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Bangsamoro Mimaropa Zamboanga Peninsula Malaysia Sabah |
| Telugu | తెలుగు | 86,000,000 | Dravidian | | India Andhra Pradesh Telangana Yanam, Puducherry |
| Tetum | Lia-Tetun | 500,000 | Austronesian | Timor Leste | Indonesia East Nusa Tenggara |
| Thai | ภาษาไทย | 60,000,000 | Kra-Dai | Thailand | |
| Tibetan | བོད་སྐད་ | 1,172,940 | Sino-Tibetan | | China Tibet Autonomous Region |
| Tripuri | Tripuri | 3,500,000 | Sino-Tibetan | | India Tripura |
| Tulu | ತುಳು | 1,722,768 | Dravidian | | India Karnataka (Recognised) Kerala (Recognised) |
| Turkish | Türkçe | 88,000,000 | Turkic | Turkey Northern Cyprus Cyprus Azerbaijan (de jure) | |
| Turkmen | Türkmençe | 7,000,000 | Turkic | Turkmenistan | |
| Tuvan | Тыва дыл | 240,000 | Turkic | | Russia Tuva |
| Urdu | اُردُو | 62,120,540 | Indo-European | Pakistan | India Bihar (Recognised in 15 districts) Jammu and Kashmir Jharkhand (Recognised) National Capital Territory of Delhi (Additional) Telangana (Additional) Andhra Pradesh (Additional) Uttar Pradesh (Additional) West Bengal (Additional) |
| Uyghur | ئۇيغۇرچە | 10,416,910 | Turkic | | China Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region |
| Uzbek | Oʻzbekcha Ўзбекча | 45,000,000 | Turkic | Uzbekistan | |
| Vietnamese | 㗂越 Tiếng Việt | 86,500,000 | Austroasiatic | Vietnam (de facto) | |
| Waray | Winaray/Waray | 4,000,000 | Austronesian | | Philippines Eastern Visayas |
| Yakut | Саха тыла | 450,000 | Turkic | | Russia Yakutia |
| Zhuang | Vahcuengh | 16,000,000 | Kra-Dai | | China Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Wenshan Prefecture, Yunnan |