# Delhi Sultanate literature

Delhi Sultanate :
Ruling dynasties :
Mamluk dynasty Qutb al-Din Aibak 1206–1210 Aram Shah 1210–1211 Iltutmish 1211–1236 Rukn ud din Firuz 1236 Razia Sultana 1236-1240 Muiz ud din Bahram 1240–1242 Ala ud din Masud 1242–1246 Nasiruddin Mahmud 1246–1266 Ghiyas ud din Balban 1266–1287 Muiz ud din Qaiqabad 1287–1290 Shamsuddin Kayumars 1290 :
Khalji dynasty Jalaluddin 1290–1296 Alauddin 1296–1316 Shihabuddin Omar 1316 Qutbuddin Mubarak Shah 1316–1320 Khusrau Khan 1320 :
Tughlaq dynasty Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq 1320–1325 Muhammad bin Tughluq 1325–1351 Firuz Shah Tughlaq 1351–1388 Tughluq Khan 1388–1389 Abu Bakr Shah 1389–1390 Nasir ud din Muhammad Shah III 1390–1393 Ala ud-din Sikandar Shah 1393 Nasir-ud-din Nusrat Shah Tughluq 1394–1398 Nasir-ud-Din Mahmud Shah Tughluq 1394–1413 :
Sayyid dynasty Khizr Khan 1414–1421 Mubarak Shah 1421–1434 Muhammad Shah 1434–1445 Alam Shah 1445–1451 :
Lodi dynasty Bahlul Khan Lodi 1451–1489 Sikandar Lodi 1489–1517 Ibrahim Lodi 1517–1526 :
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The literature of the Delhi Sultanate began with the rise of Persian-speaking people to the throne of the Sultanate of Delhi, naturally resulted in the spread of the Persian language in India. It was the official language and soon literary works in the language began to appear. Initially Persian literature talked about topics which were familiar to those from Persia. Gradually however as more Indians learnt the language, the literary works began to have a more Indian theme. Amir Khusrau was a noted writer of the period, who was one of the first writers to write Persian literature about events concerning India. His inspiration came from events he saw around, his work soon grew to be appreciated and he became a court poet.

## Origin

Urdu developed during early 11th century Muslim invasions of Punjab from Central Asia, although the name "Urdu" did not exist at the time for the language. Urdu literature originated some time around the 14th century in present-day North India among the sophisticated gentry of the courts. The continuing traditions of Islam and patronisations of foreign culture centuries earlier by Muslim rulers, usually of Turkic or Afghan descent, marked their influence on the Urdu language given that both cultural heritages were strongly present throughout Urdu territory. The Urdu language, with a vocabulary almost evenly split between Sanskrit-derived Prakrit and Arabo-Persian words, was a reflection of this cultural amalgamation.

## Sanskrit

Sanskrit continued to remain an important language of the time, and despite the increasing influence of Persian, it was able to hold its ground. Many preferred Sanskrit poets as they were more established and experienced than those that worked in the new languages. A centre for Sanskrit learning opened at Mithila (north Bihar). It preserved the tradition of classical Sanskrit literature and kept it alive. Sanskrit was however beginning to lose its popularity as an intellectual language, and the Brahmans struggled to find patrons to keep it alive.

## Regional languages

There was also a significant amount of work taking place in regional languages. Both Sanskrit and Persian were languages which the average person did not understand. Various regional languages flourished and soon literary work in these languages began to take place.