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Urdu

Indo-Aryan Languages

Urdu is an Indo-Aryan language spoken primarily in South Asia, the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan and an official Eighth Schedule language in India, with additional official status in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and the two Telugu states.

Facts
ISO 639-3 Code
urd 2
Speaker Count
246,000,000 2
Ethnologue total figure, 2011-2023.
Status
Living 2
Wikipedia article on Urdu: a currently spoken living language with an active native-speaker population; checked 2026-09-27.
Region
South Asia (Pakistan as lingua franca; Hindi-Urdu Belt and Deccan in India; Terai in Nepal; Old Dhaka in Bangladesh) 2
Classification
Language Kind
Safe 1
Official Status
Official Language 2
Connections

In Family

Source Wikipedia: Urdu

Written In

Arabic Script, Scripts

Urdu is written in a Nastaliq-style Perso-Arabic script.

In the Other Atlases

Cases Where Used

Also in Divinity Atlas: used in this subject.

Also in Divinity Atlas: used in this subject.

Also in Divinity Atlas: used in this subject.

Also in History Atlas: used in this subject.

Original Language Of

Also in Literature Atlas: a work originally in this language.

Also in Literature Atlas: a work originally in this language.

Also in Literature Atlas: a work originally in this language.

Located In

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is located.

Found In

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Source Wikipedia: UrduLead paragraph of the cited Wikipedia articletier 2
Quote, Lead paragraph of the cited Wikipedia article
Urdu (اُرْدُو, urdū, [ˈʊɾduː] ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken primarily in South Asia.

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Source Wikipedia: UrduLead paragraph of the cited Wikipedia articletier 2
Quote, Lead paragraph of the cited Wikipedia article
Urdu (اُرْدُو, urdū, [ˈʊɾduː] ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken primarily in South Asia.

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Sources
1. Glottolog: Urdu (Glottolog languoid urdu1245)
GlottologEndangerment, AES status
Quote, Endangerment, AES status
AES status: not endangered
View the Source
2. Wikipedia: Urdu
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Lead section
    Urdu ... is an Indo-Aryan language spoken primarily in South Asia. It is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan.
  • Infobox, ISO 639-3
    urd
  • Article text
    According to 2026 estimates by Ethnologue, Urdu is the 10th-most widely spoken language in the world, with 246 million total speakers, including those who speak it as a second language.
  • Infobox: region
    Pakistan (lingua franca) Hindi-Urdu Belt and Deccan (India) Terai (Nepal) Old Dhaka (Bangladesh) See geographical distribution of Urdu speakers for more
  • Official status, Urdu entity page
    Urdu is an Indo-Aryan language spoken primarily in South Asia, the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan and an official Eighth Schedule language in India, with additional official status in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and the two Telugu states.
  • In Family: Indo-European, Infobox, Language family
    Indo-European > Indo-Iranian > Indo-Aryan > Central Zone > Western Hindi > Hindustani > Urdu
View the Source
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