Tribal Languages of India

The Census of India groups languages by family, not by tribe. So “tribal language” here means a language spoken by a tribal community. The Census counted 121 languages in 2011. Of these, 22 are in the Eighth Schedule and 99 are not.

1.1 What are the main families?

The table shows how the 121 languages split by family. Speakers are counted by mother tongue.

The 121 languages fall in five families in the Census. Indo-European also holds one Iranian language (Pashto) and one Germanic language (English). A fifth family, Semito-Hamitic, has one language. These three are tiny, so the table shows the four that matter here.

Notice the pattern. Tibeto-Burmese has the most languages (66) but few speakers. Austro-Asiatic has only 14 languages and about 1.11% of the people. Many tribal languages sit in these small families.

The Census adds a note. Some 18,75,542 people (0.15%) named languages outside the 121. So the 121 languages cover almost the whole population.

[C03b Sources: [Census of India 2011, Paper 1 of 2018, Statement 9](https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/42458/download/46089/C-16_25062018.pdf)]

1.2 Which families hold the Scheduled languages?

The Census also tells us where the 22 Scheduled languages fall. 15 are Indo-Aryan, 4 are Dravidian, 2 are Tibeto-Burmese and 1 is Austro-Asiatic. That lone Austro-Asiatic language is Santali.

These three names came in a UPSC question in 2021. Each belongs to a different family. That is the key point to remember.

2.1 Where is Halbi spoken, and who speaks it?

Halbi is the language of the Halba people. The Central Institute of Indian Languages calls it a lingua franca of the Bastar region. Halbas were once linked with the Bhonsla kingdom. They served in its army and held posts, so Halbi gained prestige.

The Census puts Halbi in the Indo-Aryan group. The CIIL study finds that its grammar mixes Marathi, Chhattisgarhi and Oriya features.

2.2 Which script does Ho use?

Ho is an Austro-Asiatic language of the Munda group. Its script is Warang Citi, made by Lako Bodra. Ho speakers live mainly in Odisha and Jharkhand, around Ranchi, Chaibasa and Jamshedpur.

The spelling matters. It is Warang Citi, not “Warang Chiti”. Do not confuse it with Ol Chiki, the script of Santhali.

2.3 Who speaks Kui?

Kui is a Dravidian language. The Orissa Review states that Kui is the mother tongue of the Kandhas. The Kandha have three main divisions: Kutia, Dangaria and Desia. Most Kandhas also know Oriya and use it with outsiders.

The three Kandha divisions live in different places. The Kutia Kandha live in houses with the floor below ground level. The Dangaria Kandha live in high hill land and are also called Malia Kandhas. The Desia Kandha live on the plain, among non-tribal neighbours.

[C08b Sources: [Orissa Review, August 2007, pp. 76-77](https://magazines.odisha.gov.in/Orissareview/august-2007/engpdf/Page76-77.pdf)]

Santhali is the language of the Santal community. It is the only Austro-Asiatic language in the Eighth Schedule. The Census counts 73,68,192 Santali speakers.

3.1 Who made the Ol Chiki script, and when?

A script is the set of letters used to write a language. A language can use more than one script. Santhali is a good example, as the next paragraph shows.

Pandit Raghunath Murmu invented Ol Chiki in 1925. Before that, Santhali was written in the Roman, Devanagari, Oriya and Bengali scripts. Those scripts could not show the sounds of the language correctly.

Santals in Nepal, Bhutan and Mauritius also used the scripts of those countries. The President called Ol Chiki a powerful symbol of Santal identity worldwide. She said it also helps build unity among the Santal community.

[C10b Sources: [President of India, 16 Feb 2026, Ol Chiki centenary](https://presidentofindia.nic.in/press_releases/president-india-inaugurates-centenary-celebrations-ol-chiki-script)]

3.2 What happened in 2026?

On 16 February 2026, President Droupadi Murmu inaugurated the centenary celebrations of Ol Chiki. The Ministry of Culture organised them in New Delhi. A commemorative coin and stamp were released.

Ol Chiki was invented in 1925, so it completed 100 years in 2025. The celebration opened in February 2026. Note the word centenary. It means 100 years, not 200.

The President also felicitated 10 achievers from the Santal community for spreading Ol Chiki. She urged children to learn their mother tongue, Santhali, in the Ol Chiki script. She added that they can also study in Hindi, English, Oriya, Bengali or any other language.

[C11b Sources: [President of India, 16 Feb 2026, Ol Chiki centenary](https://presidentofindia.nic.in/press_releases/president-india-inaugurates-centenary-celebrations-ol-chiki-script)]

The Eighth Schedule lists 22 languages. Fourteen were there at the start. Sindhi came in 1967. Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali came in 1992. Bodo, Dogri, Maithili and Santhali came in 2004.

The table sums up how the list grew.

[C12b Sources: [MHA, Eighth Schedule](https://www.mha.gov.in/sites/default/files/EighthSchedule_19052017.pdf)]

The Schedule has a clear purpose. It sits in Article 344(1) and Article 351. These articles link it to the progressive use and enrichment of Hindi. The MHA says that 38 more languages are now demanding a place.

[C12c Sources: [MHA, Eighth Schedule](https://www.mha.gov.in/sites/default/files/EighthSchedule_19052017.pdf)]

4.1 Is Meitei a tribal language?

Be careful here. Santhali and Bodo are languages of tribal communities. Manipuri (Meitei) is also in the Eighth Schedule, but the sources used here do not treat it as a tribal language. So the Schedule holds two tribal-community languages clearly, Santhali and Bodo. It does not hold Halbi, Ho or Kui.

The Census lists Santali under Austro-Asiatic and Bodo and Manipuri under Tibeto-Burmese.

Size and Schedule status are different things. The Census figures below are mother-tongue returns for India.

Notice that Bhili has more speakers than Santali. But Santali is in the Eighth Schedule and Bhili is not. Scale does not decide Schedule status.

Two official papers asked about this topic. The newest is the CAPF 2026 question on Ol Chiki. The older is the UPSC 2021 question on Halbi, Ho and Kui.

CAPF (ACs) Examination 2026, General Ability and Intelligence, Set A, Q4.
Which of the following statements about Ol Chiki script is/are correct?
1. The Government of India recently celebrated two hundred years of the development of this script.
2. This script has been used for the Santhali language.
Select the answer using the code given below.
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Read the UPSC question paper (Set A, printed page 3). UPSC has not published a key for this paper yet. So (b) is worked out from the facts, as follows. Statement 1 is false, because the President of India’s release describes a centenary of 100 years. Statement 2 is true.

UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2021, General Studies Paper I, Set A, Q95.
With reference to India, the terms ‘Halbi, Ho and Kui’ pertain to
(a) dance forms of Northwest India
(b) musical instruments
(c) pre-historic cave paintings
(d) tribal languages

Read the UPSC question paper (Set A, printed page 41) and the UPSC answer key. The key gives (d).

6.1 What do the answers teach?

In CAPF 2026, statement 1 is wrong, because the centenary marks 100 years. Statement 2 is right, because Ol Chiki is used for Santhali. In UPSC 2021, all three names are tribal languages, so the answer is (d).