महाराष्ट्री प्राकृत
Maharastri Prakrit
Indo-European · historical / hidden variety
Maharastri Prakrit (महाराष्ट्री प्राकृत) was the principal Middle Indo-Aryan literary language of the Indian subcontinent during the 1st century BCE through the 13th century CE, used as the literary register of Jain canonical texts (the Jain Agamas) and as the language of the Maharastri courts of medieval Maharashtra. Maharashtri is sister to Pali (pi, the Theravada Buddhist canonical language) within the Middle Indic continuum, and ancestor of modern Marathi (mr). Distinctively, Maharashtri shows the most extensive lenition of Old Indo-Aryan stops (Sanskrit *p > Prakrit v, *t > d, *k > g) among Prakrits, making it phonologically the most "softened" Middle Indo-Aryan language. Major literary works include the Setubandha (Pravarasena, 5th c. CE), Gathasaptasati (Hala, 1st c. CE), and the bulk of the Jain Agamas.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Maharastri Prakrit
Water
उदग
/udaɡa/
Fire
अग्गि
/aɡɡi/
Sun
सूर
/suːɾa/
Moon
चंद
/tʃanda/
Mother
माय
/maːja/
Father
पिअ
/piaː/
Eat
खा
/kʰaː/
Drink
पिब
/piba/
Love
पेम
/peːma/
Heart
हिअ
/hiaː/
Tree
रुक्ख
/rukːʰa/
House
घर
/ɡʱaɾa/
Dog
सुणग
/suɳaɡa/
Cat
मज्जार
/madʒːaːra/
Hand
हत्थ
/hatːʰa/
Eye
अच्छि
/atʃːʰi/
Hello
—
/—/
Thank you
—
/—/
One
एग
/eɡa/
Good
सुंदर
/sundara/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Indo-European languages
| Meaning | Maharastri Prakrit | Pali | Pedagogical Pali (Theravada monastic) | Maithili | Bhili | Dogri | Modern Spoken Sanskrit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | उदग /udaɡa/ | उदक /udaka/ | udaka /udaka/ | पानी /paːniː/ | पाणी /paːɳi/ | पाणी /paːɳiː/ | जलम् /dʑalam/ |
| Fire | अग्गि /aɡɡi/ | अग्गि /aɡːi/ | aggi /aɡːi/ | आगि /aːɡi/ | आगि /aːɡi/ | अग्ग /aɡː/ | अग्निः /aɡniɦ/ |
| Sun | सूर /suːɾa/ | सुरिय /surija/ | suriya /suɾija/ | सूरज /suːrəd͡ʒ/ | सूरज /suːraj/ | सूरज /suːraj/ | सूर्यः /suːɾjaɦ/ |
| Moon | चंद /tʃanda/ | चन्द /tɕanda/ | canda /tɕanda/ | चान /tʃaːn/ | चांद /tʃãːd/ | चन्न /tʃanː/ | चन्द्रः /tɕandɾaɦ/ |
| Mother | माय /maːja/ | माता /maːtaː/ | mātā /maːtaː/ | माय /maːj/ | माय /maːj/ | मां /mãː/ | माता /maːtaː/ |
| Father | पिअ /piaː/ | पिता /pitaː/ | pitā /pitaː/ | बाबू /baːbuː/ | बाबू /baːbuː/ | बापू /baːpuː/ | पिता /pitaː/ |
| Eat | खा /kʰaː/ | खादति /kʰaːdati/ | bhuñjati /bʱuɲd͡ʒati/ | खाएब /kʰaːeb/ | खानु /kʰaːnu/ | खाना /kʰaːnaː/ | खादति /kʰaːdati/ |
| Drink | पिब /piba/ | पिवति /pivati/ | pivati /pivati/ | पीयब /piːjəb/ | पीनु /piːnu/ | पीना /piːnaː/ | पिबति /pibati/ |
| Love | पेम /peːma/ | पेम /pema/ | mettā /metːaː/ | प्रेम /preːm/ | प्रेम /preːm/ | प्यार /pjaːr/ | स्नेहः /sneːhaɦ/ |
| Heart | हिअ /hiaː/ | हदय /hadaja/ | hadaya /hadaja/ | हृदय /hridəj/ | हिर्दय /hiɾdəj/ | दिल /dil/ | हृदयम् /hr̩dajam/ |
| Tree | रुक्ख /rukːʰa/ | रुक्ख /rukːʰa/ | rukkha /rukːʰa/ | गाछ /ɡaːtʃʰ/ | झाड़ /dʒʱaːɽ/ | रुक्ख /rukːʰ/ | वृक्षः /vr̩kʂaɦ/ |
| House | घर /ɡʱaɾa/ | घर /ɡʱara/ | gehā /ɡehaː/ | घर /ɡʱər/ | घर /ɡʱar/ | घर /ɡʱər/ | गृहम् /ɡr̩ham/ |
| Dog | सुणग /suɳaɡa/ | सुनख /sunakʰa/ | sunakha /sunakʰa/ | कुकुर /kukur/ | कुतरा /kutɾaː/ | कुत्ता /kuttaː/ | कुक्कुरः /kukːuɾaɦ/ |
| Cat | मज्जार /madʒːaːra/ | बिळाल /biɭaːla/ | biḷāra /biɭaːɾa/ | बिलाइ /bilaːi/ | मीनी /miːniː/ | बिल्ली /bilːiː/ | मार्जारः /maːɾdʑaːɾaɦ/ |
| Hand | हत्थ /hatːʰa/ | हत्थ /hatːʰa/ | hattha /hatːʰa/ | हाथ /haːtʰ/ | हाथ /haːtʰ/ | हत्थ /hattʰ/ | हस्तः /hastaɦ/ |
| Eye | अच्छि /atʃːʰi/ | चक्खु /tɕakːʰu/ | cakkhu /tɕakːʰu/ | आँखि /ãːkʰi/ | आंख /aːŋkʰ/ | अक्ख /akːʰ/ | अक्षि /akʂi/ |
| Hello | — /—/ | नमो /namo/ | namo /namo/ | प्रणाम /prəɳaːm/ | राम राम /raːm raːm/ | नमस्कार /nəməskaːr/ | नमस्कारः /namaskaːɾaɦ/ |
| Thank you | — /—/ | अनुमोदामि /anumodaːmi/ | anumodanā /anumodanaː/ | धन्यवाद /dʱənjəbaːd/ | धन्यवाद /dʱənjəbaːd/ | धन्यवाद /dʱənjəbaːd/ | धन्यवादाः /dʱanjaʋaːdaːɦ/ |
| One | एग /eɡa/ | एक /eka/ | eka /eka/ | एक /eːk/ | एक /eːk/ | इक /ik/ | एकः /eːkaɦ/ |
| Good | सुंदर /sundara/ | सुन्दर /sundara/ | kusala /kusala/ | नीक /niːk/ | चोखु /tʃoːkʰu/ | चन्गा /tʃəŋɡaː/ | साधु /saːdʱu/ |
Part of LangMap — a linguistic visualization project. This is a static, crawlable summary; the interactive maps offer pronunciation audio, filters, and a globe view.