|
Maldivian (, ' or , ') is an Indo-Aryan language predominantly spoken by about 350,000 people in the Maldives, where it is the national language. It is also the first language of nearly 10,000 people on the island of Minicoy in the Union territory of Lakshadweep, India, where the Mahl dialect of the Maldivian language is spoken. The ethnic autonym for the language, ''Divehi'', is occasionally found in English as Dhivehi (spelled according to the locally used Malé Latin for romanization of the Maldivian language), which is the official spelling as well as the common usage in the Maldives. Maldivian is written in the Thaana script. The major dialects of Maldivian are ''Malé'', ''Huvadhu'', ''Mulaku'', ''Addu'', ''Haddhunmathee'', and ''Maliku''. The standard form of Maldivian is Malé, which is spoken in the Maldivian capital of the same name. The Maliku dialect spoken in Minicoy is officially referred to as ''Mahl'' by the Lakshadweep administration. This has been adopted by many authors when referring to Maldivian spoken in Minicoy. Maldivian is a descendent of Maharashtri Prakrit〔http://www.indianscriptures.com/Common/GeneratePDF?pkey=Languages+of+Lakshadweep&ano=1935〕〔http://www.fakten-uber.de/dramatic_prakrit〕〔http://www.omniglot.com/writing/marathi.htm〕 and is closely related to Marathi, Konkani and Sinhalese languages, but not mutually intelligible with them.〔http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go2081/is_3_127/ai_n31523541/〕 Many languages have influenced the development of the Maldivian language through the ages, most importantly Arabic. Others include French, Persian, Portuguese, Hindustani, and English. The English words ''atoll'' (a ring of coral islands or reefs) and ''dhoni'' (a vessel for inter-atoll navigation) are anglicised forms of the Maldivian words ' and '. ==Etymology== The origin of the word "Divehi" is ''Div''+''vehi'' meaning "Islanders". ''Bas'' means "language", so ' means "Islanders' language". Harry Charles Purvis Bell, one of the first Dhivehi linguists, called it ''Divehi''. This was consistent with ''Maldives'', the name of the country, for the ''-dives'' of ''Maldives'' and the word ''Divehi'' have the same root, Old Indo-Aryan ''dvīpa'' "island". Wilhelm Geiger, a German linguist who undertook the first research on Maldivian linguistics in the early 20th century, also called the language ''Divehi''. An ''h'' was added to the name of the language in 1976, when the semi-official transliteration called Malé Latin was developed. Today the spelling with an ''h'' is both common and official usage in the Maldives. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Maldivian language」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|