Bengali(বাংলাBangla) is one of theEastern Indo-Aryan languages,which evolved fromMagadhi Prakrit,native to theeastern Indian subcontinent.[1]The core of Bengali vocabulary is thusetymologicallyof Magadhi Prakrit origin, with significant ancientborrowingsfrom the oldersubstratelanguage(s) of the region. However, in medieval times, more borrowings have occurred, fromSanskrit,Arabic,Classical Persian,Turkishand other languages has led to the adoption of a wide range of words with foreign origins; thus making the origins of borrowed words in theBengali vocabularynumerous and diverse, due to centuries of contact with various languages.
Bengali is typically thought to have around 100,000 separate words, of which 16,000 (16%) are considered to be তদ্ভবtôdbhôbô, orTadbhava(inheritedIndo-Aryanvocabulary), 40,000 (40%) are তৎসমtôtśômôorTatsama(words directly borrowed fromSanskrit), and borrowings from দেশীdeśi,or "indigenous" words, which are at around 16,000 (16%) of the Bengali vocabulary. The rest are বিদেশীbideśior "foreign" sources, includingPersian,Turkish,Arabic,and English among others, accounting for around 28,000 (28%) of all Bengali words, highlighting the significant influence that foreign languages and cultures have had on the Bengali language throughout Bengal's long history of contact with different peoples and the cultural exchanges that came with such interactions.[2]
Persian had one of the most significant influence in terms of foreign loanwords, and numerous sources put this figure at around 10,000 words at a minimum, which includes words that were borrowed directly from Persian and words influenced by it.[3]However, these figures do not reflect the average Bengali speaker's vocabulary, as this will vary greatly by dialect. For example, Muslims and Bangladeshis typically lean on more Persian and Arabic words in their Bengali than their Hindu and Indian Bengali counterparts.[4]Persian influence was so significant throughout Bengal's history, and was the official language of the region for 600 years, until the British arrived and changed it to English in 1836.[5]Persian influence was so extensive that during the medieval Bengal period, a register of highly Persianized Bengali formed, known asDobhashi,which was used by administrative officials and for literary purposes.
Due to centuries of contact withMughals,Arabs,Persians,Central Asians,andEuropeanstheBengali languagehas absorbed countless words from foreign languages, often totally integrating theseborrowingsinto the core vocabulary. The most common borrowings from foreign languages come from three different kinds of contact. After centuries of contact fromPersiaand the Middle East, followed by the invasions of theMughal Empire,numerous Turkic, Arabic, and Persian words were absorbed and fully integrated into the lexicon.[6][7]Later, Europeancolonialismbrought words fromPortuguese,French,Dutch,and most significantly English. Some very common borrowings are shown below.
