বাংলা ভাষা: ইতিহাস ও বিবর্তন

• Bangla, also known as Bengali, is an Indo-Aryan language.
• It evolved from Sanskrit, Pali and Prakrit languages.
• It is spoken mainly in Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, and Assam's Barak Valley.
• Bangla is the official and most widely spoken language of Bangladesh.
• It is the second most spoken language of India.
• With approximately 228 million native speakers and 37 million as second language speakers, Bangla ranks as the 7th most spoken language in the world.
• The language has a rich literary tradition and a history of cultural movements.
• Bangla is recognized as one of the official languages of India.
• It is the national language of Bangladesh.

History and Evolution

• Bangla's history is typically divided into three main periods: Old Bangla (roughly 10th-13th centuries), Middle Bangla (14th-18th centuries), and New Bangla (19th century onwards).
• Old Bangla: Characterized by the earliest evidence of Bangla literature, the Charyapada.
• Middle Bangla: Saw the influence of Persian and Arabic due to Muslim rule, and the emergence of various dialects.
• New Bangla: Developed with the influence of English and the standardization of the language, and the emergence of modern literature.
• The Bangla alphabet evolved from the Brahmi script.
• Over time, it underwent significant changes.
• The script used today became relatively standardized in the 18th century.

Phonology

• Bangla phonology features a wide range of sounds, including vowels and consonants.
• Vowels: Bangla has around 7 vowel phonemes, with variations depending on dialect.
• Consonants: Includes a variety of stops, fricatives, affricates, nasals, and approximants.
• Many Bangla consonants are aspirated and unaspirated which can change the meaning of a single word.
• Stress: Word stress is not phonemic, meaning it doesn't change the meaning of words.
• Nasalization: Vowels can be nasalized, which is phonemic.

Morphology

• Bangla is a morphologically rich language.
• It uses inflections and suffixes to indicate grammatical categories.
• Nouns: Marked for case, number, and gender.
• Verbs: Conjugated for tense, aspect, mood, and person.
• Adjectives: Generally do not change form, but some adjectives are inflected.
• Bangla uses postpositions rather than prepositions, following the noun they modify.
• Compounds: Bangla makes extensive use of compound words.

Syntax

• Bangla follows a Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) word order.
• Modifiers generally precede the words they modify.
• Grammatical relations are primarily indicated through inflections and postpositions rather than word order.
• Coordination and subordination are achieved through conjunctions and relative clauses.
• Topic prominent language: Bangla often places the topic of the sentence at the beginning.

Grammar

• Bangla grammar encompasses a wide range of features.
• These features define how words are combined to form meaningful sentences.
• Nouns in Bangla are inflected for case (nominative, accusative, instrumental, dative, genitive, locative), number (singular, plural), and definiteness.
• Gender is not as prominent in Bangla as in many other Indo-European languages, but some distinctions exist.
• Verbs are conjugated according to tense (present, past, future), aspect (perfective, imperfective, continuous), mood (indicative, imperative, subjunctive), and person (first, second, third).
• Verb conjugations are influenced by the level of formality.
• Different forms are used when addressing elders or people of higher status compared to peers or subordinates.
• Adjectives in Bangla generally precede the nouns they modify.
• They do not change their form based on the noun's gender or number.
• Adverbs can appear in various positions in a sentence, modifying verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs.
• Postpositions are used instead of prepositions to indicate relationships such as location, direction, or time.
• These follow the noun or pronoun they govern.
• Bangla uses a variety of conjunctions to connect words, phrases, and clauses.
• Relative clauses are formed using relative pronouns or adverbs, and they typically precede the modified noun.
• Indirect speech involves changes in verb tense and pronoun usage to reflect the perspective of the speaker.
• Bangla has a rich set of idioms and proverbsthat are commonly used in everyday conversation and literature.

Vocabulary

• Bangla vocabulary is a blend of native words (tadbhava) and loanwords (tatsama, bideshi).
• Tatsama words are derived directly from Sanskrit and retain their original form.
• Tadbhava words are derived from Sanskrit but have undergone changes over time.
• Bideshi words come from foreign languages , including Persian, Arabic, English, and Portuguese.
• The extensive borrowing reflects the historical and cultural influences on the Bangla language.

Dialects

• Bangla has a number of regional dialects.
• These dialects vary in pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar.
• The dialects can be broadly classified into four main groups:
  • Rarhi or Southwestern
  • Vanga or Southeastern
  • কামরূপী or Northern
  • সুন্দরবনী or Southern
• Standard Colloquial Bangla ( চলিত ভাষা Chôlitô Bhasha) is the most widely accepted and used form of the language in modern literature and media.

Writing System

• The Bangla alphabet is a variant of the Brahmi script.
• It consists of 11 vowels and 39 consonants.
• The script is abugida, meaning that each consonant has an inherent vowel sound which can be changed using vowel signs.
• Bangla is written from left to right.
• Words are generally written continuously, without spaces between them.

Cultural Influence

• Bangla has a significant impact on the culture and identity of Bangladesh and West Bengal.
• The language is closely tied to the region's literature, music, and art.
• The Language Movement in 1952, where people protested for the recognition of Bangla as an official language of Pakistan, was a pivotal moment in the history of Bangladesh.
• Bangla literature is rich and diverse.
• It includes ancient texts like the Charyapada, medieval works like the Mangalkavyas, and the modern works of Rabindranath Tagore, Kazi Nazrul Islam, and many others.
• Bangla music includes traditional forms like Baul Sangeet and modern genres like Bengali rock.