Ahom

Ahom or Tai Ahom (Ahom: 𑜁𑜪𑜨 𑜄𑜩 𑜒𑜑𑜪𑜨 or 𑜁𑜨𑜉𑜫 𑜄𑜩 𑜒𑜑𑜪𑜨; khwám tái ahüm) is a Southwestern Tai language spoken as a second languageby some Ahom people. It is currently undergoing a revival and mainly used in religious and educational purposes. Ahom language was the state language of Ahom kingdom. It was relatively free of both Mon-Khmer and Indo-Aryan influences and has a written tradition dating back to the 13th century.

The Ahom people established the Ahom kingdom and ruled parts of the Brahmaputra river valley in the present day Indian state of Assam between the 13th and the 18th centuries. The language was the court language of the kingdom, until it began to be replaced by the Assamese language in the 17th century. Since the early 18th century, there have been no native speakers of the language, though extensive manuscripts in the language still exist today. The tonal system of the language is entirely lost. The language was only partially known by a small group of traditional priests of the Ahom religion, and it was being used only for ceremonial or ritualistic purposes.

There have been efforts to revive the language in recent times. A reconstructed version is taught in various schools in Assam by AHSEC and universities like Gauhati University and Dibrugarh University.

From Wikipedia · Ahom language · CC BY-SA 4.0