Kashmiri language
| Kashmiri | |
|---|---|
| |
The word "Koshur" in Perso-Arabic script (contemporary, official status), Sharada script (ancient, liturgical) and Devanagari | |
| Native to | India and Pakistan |
| Region | Kashmir (Kashmir Valley and surrounding areas of Jammu and Kashmir, parts of northern Azad Kashmir) |
| Ethnicity | Kashmiris |
Native speakers | 7.1 million (2011) |
| Dialects | |
| Official: Perso-Arabic script (contemporary) Others: Devanagari (informally used by some sections within the Kashmiri Pandit community after 1990), Sharada script (ancient/liturgical) | |
| Official status | |
Official language in | India |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-1 | ks |
| ISO 639-2 | kas |
| ISO 639-3 | kas |
| Glottolog | kash1277 |
Kashmiri is classified as Vulnerable by the UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger | |
Kashmiri (English: /kæʃˈmɪəri/ kash-MEER-ee) or Koshur (Kashmiri: کٲشُر (Perso-Arabic, Official Script), pronounced [kəːʃur]) is an Indo-Aryan language of the Dardic branch spoken by around 7 million Kashmiris of the Kashmir region, primarily in the Kashmir Valley and surrounding hills of the Indian-administrated union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, over half the population of that territory. Kashmiri has split ergativity and the unusual verb-second word order.
Since 2020, it has been made an official language of Jammu and Kashmir along with Dogri, Hindi, Urdu and English. Kashmiri is also among the 22 scheduled languages of India.
Kashmiri is spoken by roughly five percent of Pakistani-administrated Azad Kashmir's population.