What is the National Language of India?

India is a diverse country with 28 states and 8 union territories, each with its own unique languages and cultures. While there has been much discussion about the concept of a national language, India does not have a national language. Instead, it has a range of official and scheduled languages, each recognized and protected by the Indian Constitution.

National Language of India: English or Hindi

There is no national language of India as per the constitution, Hindi and English both are considered the official language of India. As per Article 343 of the Indian constitution the official language of the country shall be Hindi in Devanagari script. Initially, after the independence of India, 14 languages were included in the constitution of India.

National Language vs Official Language

A national language represents the identity of a country, while an official language is used for government communication. The Indian Constitution does not designate any language as the national language. Instead, it recognizes Hindi and English as the official languages of the Union for government purposes.

Official Language of Colonial India

The official languages of colonial India were English, Urdu and Hindi. The official language act 1963 provides languages that may be used for the official purpose of the Union of India for the transaction of business in parliament for Central and state acts and for a certain purpose in the Hindi high court.

Scheduled Languages of India

The Indian Constitution recognizes 22 languages as scheduled languages under the Eighth Schedule. These languages are entitled to representation in the Official Language Commission and are promoted by the government to ensure their development and prosperity. Candidates for public service exams can also use these languages to answer questions. The 22 scheduled languages are Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu.

Important Amendments Related to Scheduled Languages of India

• 1950: 14 scheduled languages were initially included in the Constitution.
• 1967: Sindhi was added through the 21st Constitutional Amendment Act.
• 1992: Konkani, Manipuri, and Nepali were added by the 71st Constitutional Amendment Act.
• 2003: Bodo, Dogri, Maithili, and Santali were added by the 92nd Constitutional Amendment Act.
• 2011: The spelling of Oriya was officially changed to Odia through the 96th Constitutional Amendment Act.

Government’s Role in implementing National Language

The government has always reiterated that Hindi is the national language of India. in several events, government bodies have declared Hindi as the national language. In 2017, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu addressed Hindi as the national language in his speech at a public event. People are still confused about the national language and official language. The national language is a representation of the history and heritage of the country, it shows the citizens of the country know and speak the language of the majority. An official language is used for the official purposes of the state and Central government. In a country, there can be more than one official language but there’s only one national language.