Kashmiri language

      language spoken in the Vale of Kashmir and the surrounding hills. By origin it is a Dardic language, but it has become predominantly Indo-Aryan in character. Reflecting the history of the area, the Kashmiri vocabulary is mixed, containing Dardic, Sanskrit (Sanskrit language), Punjabi, and Persian (Persian language) elements. Religious differences are evident in vocabulary and choice of alphabet. Muslims employ Persian and Arabic words freely; they also use the Persian form of the alphabet to write Kashmiri, although the Persian alphabet is not truly suited to the task because it lacks symbols for the many Kashmiri vowel sounds. The majority of educated Kashmiris are Hindu; they favour words derived from Sanskrit and write Kashmiri in the Sarada alphabet, a script of Indian origin. In printed books, the Devanāgarī character is used. There is a small amount of Kashmiri literature. The only important spoken dialects are Kishtwari, Poguli, and Rambani.

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