| Maharashtri | |
|---|---|
| Mahārāṣṭri | |
| Brahmi: 𑀫𑀳𑀸𑀭𑀸𑀱𑁆𑀝𑁆𑀭𑀻,Modi: 𑘦𑘮𑘰𑘨𑘰𑘬𑘿𑘘𑘿𑘨𑘲 | |
| Region | Maharashtra,India. |
| Era | 500 BCE[1][2][3] – 1000 CE; developed intoMarathi andKonkani[4] |
Indo-European
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | pmh |
pmh | |
| Glottolog | maha1305 |
Maharashtri orMaharashtri Prakrit (Mahārāṣṭrī Prākṛta) is aPrakrit language of ancient as well as medieval India.[5][2]
Maharashtri Prakrit was commonly spoken until 875 CE[1][2][3] and was the official language of theSatavahana dynasty.[6] Works likeKarpūramañjarī andGatha Saptashati (150 BCE) were written in it.Jain AcharyaHemachandra is the grammarian of Maharashtri Prakrit. Maharashtri Prakrit was the most widely used Prakrit language in western and southern India.
The rise of thePrakrits is dated to the middle of the second millennium BCE when they existed alongsideVedic Sanskrit and later evolved into highly developed literary languages.[7] It is a subject of scholarly debate as to whether Sanskrit or the Prakrits are older with some scholars contending that Sanskrit was born out of the Prakrits.[8] According to the Sanskrit scholar, Rajaramshastri Bhagawat, Maharashtri is older and more vivacious than Sanskrit.[9]
Vararuchi, the oldest known grammarian of Prakrit, devotes four chapters of hisPrakrita-Prakasha (IAST:Prákṛta-Prakāśa) to the grammar of Maharashtri Prakrit. The other popular Prakrits;Shauraseni,Magadhi,Ardhamagadhi, andPaishachi, have only one each.[10] PoetDandin (fl. 6th–7th century) in hisKavyadarsha grants it the highest status among all Prakrits.[8]
Maharashtri is the most attested amongst allPrakrit languages.[11] It was spoken fromMalwa andRajputana (north) to theKrishna River andTungabhadra River region (south). Historians agree that Maharashtri and other Prakrit languages prevailed in what is now modernMaharashtra.[1] Maharashtri was widely spoken inWestern India and even as far south asKannada-speaking region.[12]
"Paumachariyam", written byVimalsuri is the earliest knownJain version of theRamayana and the oldest work of literature written in Maharashtri Prakrit.[13] TheGatha Saptashati is attributed to KingHāla (r. 20-24 CE). Other Maharashtri Prakrit works include the Setubandha ofPravarasena II, Karpuramañjarī and Sri Harivijay. The language was used by Vakpati to write the poemGaudavaho.[2][3] It is also used in the dialogue and songs of low-class characters in Sanskrit plays, especially the famous dramatistKālidāsa.[2]
Maharashtri was the official language of the Satavahana dynasty.[14] Under the patronage of the Satavahana Empire, Maharashtri became the most widespread Prakrit of its time, and also dominated the literary culture amongst the threeDramatic Prakrits of the time, Maharashtri, Shauraseni and Magadhi. A version of Maharashtri calledJaina Maharashtri was also employed to write Jain scripture.[citation needed]
Through many evidences Ketkar and Bhagwat have demonstrated that Marathi has not originated from Sanskrit but it is as old as Sanskrit. While highlighting the conclusion of research of Rajaramshastri Bhagwat,Durga Bhagwat (1979, p. 2) remarks, "He showed that old Mahārāṣṭrī is older and more vivacious than Sanskrit." It is an important observation and view both as it comes from Rajaramshastri Bhagwat and Durgabai Bhagwat who were both scholars of Sanskrit and Marathi and their dialects, respectively.
