Mahali

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A language of India

ISO 639-3
mjx
Alternate Names
Mahili, Mahle, Mahli
Population

33,000 (2007), decreasing. Ethnic population: 278,000 (2007).

Location

Jharkhand, Chotanagpur region, Ranchi, Hazaribagh, Gumla, Santal Pargana, Lohardaga, West Singhbhum, East Singhbhum, Saraikela Kharsawan, and Dhanbad districts; Odisha, Balasore, Mayurbhanj, and Keonjhar districts; West Bengal, Jalpaiguri and West Medinipur districts; Assam, on tea estates.

Language Maps
Language Status

6b (Threatened).

Classification
Austro-Asiatic, Munda, North Munda, Kherwari, Santali
Dialects

Possible dialect of Santhali [sat]. Lexical similarity: 69%–87% between varieties of Mahali, 78%–93% with Santali [sat], 53%–59% with Mundari [unr].

Language Use

Most in Jharkhand reported Santhali [sat], Sadri [sck] or Mundari [unr] as their mother tongue rather than Mahali. May be a threatened language. Home, village, private prayer for half the L1 speakers in Jharkhand. Almost all multilingual in 3 to 4 languages - Oriya [ory], Santhali [sat], Hindi [hin], Bengali [ben], Mundari [unr], or Munda [unx].

Language Development
Literacy rate in L2: 12% for Jharkhand (20% male, 4% female) (1981 census); 32% for Odisha (2001 census).
Language Resources
OLAC resources in and about Mahali
Other Comments

Mahli is a Scheduled Tribe, reported to speak Sadri [sck] as L1 in Jharkhand, the Thar dialect of Dhatki [mki] in Odisha, and Bengali in West Bengal. Hindu.