Indian English is the group of English varieties spoken natively in the Republic of India and among the Indian diaspora, descended from British English through the broader family of South Asian English. According to the 2011 Census only about 250,000 Indians reported English as their first language, but roughly 83 million reported it as a second language and about 46 million as a third, for a total of about 128 million speakers, some 10.6 percent of the population. Despite this small first-language base, English holds official status in multiple Indian states and is a primary language of the judiciary and central government of India, giving India one of the largest English-speaking populations in the world.
Facts
RegionSpoken in the Republic of India and among the Indian diaspora; English is an official language in eight states and seven union territories, and one of the official languages in five other states and one union territory. 1 Speaker CommunityAccording to the 2011 Census, 129 million Indians (10.6 percent) spoke English, with about 259,678 reporting it as a first language, 83 million as a second language and 46 million as a third language. 1 Distinguishing FeaturesIndian English speakers do not necessarily make a clear distinction between the LOT and THOUGHT vowels the way Received Pronunciation does, i.e. they may show the cot-caught merger, with the target vowel ranging between either option. 1 Classification
Variety Kind Connections
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Indian English
Wikimedia FoundationLead section
It is also an official language in eight states and seven union territories of India, as well as one of the official languages in five other states and one union territory.
Status section
According to the 2011 Census, 129 million Indians (10.6%) spoke English. 259,678 (0.02%) Indians reported English as their first language. It concluded that approximately 83 million Indians (6.8%) reported English as their second language, and 46 million (3.8%) reported it as their third language, making English the second-most spoken language in India.
Phonology, Splits and mergers section
Indian English speakers do not necessarily make a clear distinction between and unlike Received Pronunciation (RP), i.e. they may have the cot-caught merger, with the target vowel ranging between either option.
Variety kind, Indian English entity page
Indian English is the group of English varieties spoken natively in the Republic of India and among the Indian diaspora, descended from British English through the broader family of South Asian English.
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