Editing Assamese language (section)

===Magadhan and Gauda-Kamarupa stages===
The earliest forms of Assamese in literature are found in the 9th-century Buddhist verses called [[Charyapada]]<ref>"The earliest specimen of Assamese language and literature is available in the dohās, known also as Caryās, written by the Buddhist Siddhacharyas hailing from different parts of eastern India. Some of them are identified as belonging to ancient Kāmarūpa by the Sino-Tibetologists." {{harvcol|Goswami|2003|p=433}}</ref> the language of which bear [[Charyapada#Affinities with Assamese|affinities with Assamese]] (as well as Bengali, Maithili and Odia) and which belongs to a period when the Prakrit was at the cusp of differentiating into regional languages.<ref>"The language of [''charyapadas''] was also claimed to be early Assamese and early Bihari (Eastern Hindi) by various scholars. Although no systematic scientific study has been undertaken on the basis of comparative reconstruction, a cursory look is enough to suggest that the language of these texts represents a stage when the North-Eastern Prakrit was either not differentiated or at an early stage of differentiation into the regional languages of North-Eastern India." {{harvcol|Pattanayak|2016|p=127}}</ref> The spirit and expressiveness of the ''Charyadas'' are today found in the folk songs called ''Deh-Bicarar Git''.<ref>"The folk-song like ''Deh Bicarar Git'' and some aphorisms are found to contain sometimes the spirit and way of expression of the ''charyapadas''." {{harvcol|Saikia|1997|p=5}}</ref>

In the 12th-14th century works of Ramai Pundit (''Sunya Puran''), Boru Chandidas (''Krishna Kirtan''), Sukur Mamud (''Gopichandrar Gan''), Durllava Mullik (''Gobindachandrar Git'') and Bhavani Das (''Mainamatir Gan'')<ref>""There are some works of the period between 12th and 14th centuries, which kept the literary tradition flowing after the period of the ''charyapadas''. They are ''Sunya Puran'' of Ramai Pandit, ''Krishna Kirtan'' of Boru Chandi Das, ''Gopichandrar Gan'' of Sukur Mamud. Along with these three works ''Gobindachandrar Git'' of Durllava Mullik and ''Mainamatirgan'' of Bhavani Das also deserve mention here." {{harvcol|Saikia|1997|p=5}}</ref> Assamese grammatical peculiarities coexist with features from [[Bengali language]].<ref>"No doubt some expression close to the Bengali language can be found in these works. But grammatical peculiarities prove these works to be in the Assamese language of the western part of Assam." {{harvcol|Saikia|1997|p=5}}</ref><ref>"In ''Krishna Kirtana'' for instance, the first personal affixes of the present indicative are ''-i'' and ''-o''; the former is found in Bengali at present and the later in Assamese. Similarly the negative particle ''na-'' assimilated to the initial vowel of the conjugated root which is characteristic of Assamese is also found in ''Krishna Kirtana''. Modern Bengali places the negative particle after the conjugated root." {{harvcol|Kakati|1953|p=5}}</ref> Though the Gauda-Kamarupa stage is generally accepted and partially supported by recent linguistic research, it has not been fully reconstructed.<ref>"In summary, none of Pattanayak's changes are diagnostic of a unique proto Bangla-Asamiya subgroup that also includes proto Kamta.... Grierson's contention may well be true that 'Gauḍa Apabhraṁśa' was the parent speech both of Kamrupa and today's Bengal (see quote under §7.3.2), but it has not yet been proven as such by careful historical linguistic reconstruction." and "Though it has not been the purpose of this study to reconstruct higher level proto-languages beyond proto-Kamta, the reconstruction here has turned up three morphological innovations—[MI 73.] (diagnostic), [MI 2] (supportive), [MI 70] (supportive)—which provide some evidence for a proto-language which may be termed proto Gauḍa-Kamrupa." {{harvcol|Toulmin|2009|p=213}}</ref>