Languages of Asia

Languages of Asia

Some languages spoken in Asia are Indo-European languages which are languages originated between Europe and India. The Indo-European languages in Asia can be divided into different groups:

1. Indo-Aryan - mainly spoken in the Indian subcontinent, also known as South Asian countries: Hindustani (Hindi-Urdu), Bengali, Bhojpuri, Punjabi, Marathi, Rajasthani, Gujarati, Sylheti, Noakhali etc.
2. Iranic - mainly spoken in and around the Iranian Plateau, spread across the modern-day countries of Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Pakistan and neighboring regions: Persian, Kurdish, Pashto and Balochi.
3. Slavic - Russian in Siberia.
4. Greek - around the Black Sea
5. Armenian - Armenia

Other languages in Asia include:

1. Austroasiatic (also known as Mon–Khmer languages) - are the language family in South and Southeast Asia. Languages given official status are Vietnamese and Khmer (Cambodian).
2. Kra–Dai - (also known as Tai-Kadai) are found in southern China, Northeast India and Southeast Asia. Languages given official status are Thai (Siamese) and Lao.
3. Austronesian - widespread throughout Maritime Southeast Asia, including major languages such as Indonesian (Indonesia and Timor-Leste), Fijian (Fiji), Hiligaynon, Bikol, Ilocano, Cebuano, Tagalog (Philippines), and Malay (Brunei, Malaysia, and Singapore). Other significant Austronesian languages in Indonesia include Javanese, Sundanese, and Madurese. Meanwhile, Indonesian is the most widely spoken language in the Austronesian family.
4. Dravidian - are languages spoken in South India and parts of Sri Lanka include Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Tulu, while smaller languages such as Gondi and Brahui are spoken in central India and Pakistan respectively.
5. Afro-Asiatic - represented in Asia by the Semitic branch and are spoken in Western Asia: various dialects of Arabic and Aramaic, Modern Hebrew, and Modern South Arabian languages.
6. Sino-Tibetan - Chinese, Tibetan, Burmese, Karen, Boro and numerous languages of the Tibetan Plateau, Southern China, Myanmar, and North East India.

You can read more about Asian languages and other world languages at Wikijunior Languages