Editing Deccani language

{{Short description|Indo-Aryan language spoken in India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2018}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Deccani
| nativename       = {{nq|دکنی}}
| image            = File:Khalilullah Butshikan - From Dohras (Songs) 40 and 42 from the Kitab-i Nauras (Book of Nine Essence - 2013.284 - Cleveland Museum of Art.jpg
| imagecaption     = A folio from the ''[[Kitab-i-Navras]]'', a collection of Deccani poetry attributed to the [[Adil Shahi]] king [[Ibrahim Adil Shah II]] (16th-17th centuries)
| ethnicity        = [[Deccanis]]
| states           = [[India]]
| region           = [[Deccan]]<br />([[Maharashtra]], [[Karnataka]], [[Telangana]], [[Andhra Pradesh]], [[Tamil Nadu]], [[Goa]])
| speakers         = 
| date             = 
| ref              = 
| familycolor      = Indo-European
| fam2             = [[Indo-Iranian languages|Indo-Iranian]]
| fam3             = [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo-Aryan]]
| fam4             = [[Central Indo-Aryan languages|Central Zone]]
| fam5             = [[Western Hindi languages|Western Hindi]]
| fam6             = [[Hindustani language|Hindustani]]
| script           = [[Arabic script|Perso-Arabic]] ([[Urdu alphabet]])
| dia1             = [[Hyderabadi Urdu|Hyderabadi]]
| dia2             = Mysore
| dia3             = Madrasi
| agency           = 
| glotto           = dakh1244
| glottorefname    = Dakhini (Urdu)
| stand1           = [[Urdu|Standard Urdu]]
| isoexception     = dialect
}}
'''Deccani''' ({{nq|دکنی}} ''dakanī'' or {{nq|دکھنی}} ''dakhanī'';{{efn-ua|''Deccani'' is spelled variously as ''Dakni'', ''Dakani'', ''Dakhni'', ''Dakhani'', ''Dakhini'', ''Dakkhani'', ''Dakkhini'' and ''Dakkani''}}<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Kellman |first1=Steven G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wCs9EAAAQBAJ&dq=deccani+variety+of+urdu&pg=PT417 |title=The Routledge Handbook of Literary Translingualism |last2=Lvovich |first2=Natasha |date=2021 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-000-44153-6 |language=en}}</ref> also known as '''Deccani Urdu''',<ref>{{Cite book|last=Khan|first=Abdul Jamil|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nH1HBxdA1UIC&q=deccani+urdu&pg=PA156|title=Urdu/Hindi: An Artificial Divide: African Heritage, Mesopotamian Roots, Indian Culture & Britiah Colonialism|date=2006|publisher=Algora Publishing|isbn=978-0-87586-438-9|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Alam |first=Sarwar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HAKqDwAAQBAJ&dq=deccani+dialect+of+urdu&pg=PT113 |title=Cultural Fusion of Sufi Islam: Alternative Paths to Mystical Faith |date=2019 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-429-87294-5 |language=en}}</ref> '''Deccani Hindi''',<ref name="Azam2017">{{cite book |last1=Azam |first1=Kousar J. |title=Languages and Literary Cultures in Hyderabad |year= 2017 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-351-39399-7 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Verma1990">{{cite book |last1=Verma |first1=Dinesh Chandra |title=Social, Economic, and Cultural History of Bijapur |date=1990 |publisher=Idarah-i Adabiyat-i Delli |page=141 |language=en |quote=Deccani Hindi is indebted for its development to the Muslim poets and writers chiefly belonging to the kingdom of Bijapur.}}</ref><ref name="Arun1961">{{cite book |last1=Arun |first1=Vidya Bhaskar |title=A Comparative Phonology of Hindi and Panjabi |date=1961 |publisher=Panjabi Sahitya Akademi |page=xii |language=en |quote=The Deccani Hindi Poetry in its earlier phase was not so much Persianised as it became later.}}</ref> and '''Deccani Hindustani''')<ref>{{cite web |title=Social History — 1750-1780: Document |url=https://www.londonmuseum.org.uk/collections/v/object-779401/document/ |publisher=[[Museum of London]] |access-date=6 February 2025 |language=en-gb |quote=The majority of the documents are written in Farsi (Persian), employing the adapted Arabic script but these notes are written in English and Deccani Hindustani with Carnatic translation.}}</ref><ref name="Hirschmann2019">{{cite book |last1=Hirschmann |first1=Edwin |title=The Accidental Viceroy: Robert Lytton in India |date=11 December 2019 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1-4985-9853-8 |page=41 |language=en |quote=But the dewan translated these (probably into Deccani Hindustani) as "friendship" and "alliance".}}</ref> is an [[Indo-Aryan language|Indo-Aryan]] [[Variety (linguistics)|language variety]] based on a form of [[Hindustani language|Hindustani]] spoken in the [[Deccan]] region of south-central India and is the native language variety of the [[Deccani Muslims|Deccani people]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mohammed |first1=Syed |title=Deccani roots truly secular |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/deccani-roots-truly-secular/articleshow/11562152.cms |work=[[The Times of India]] |date=20 January 2012}}</ref><ref name="Maclean2021"/><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Emeneau |first1=Murray B. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y5RsDwAAQBAJ&dq=deccani+urdu+hindi+dakhani&pg=PA281 |title=Linguistics in South Asia |last2=Fergusson |first2=Charles A. |date=2016 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |isbn=978-3-11-081950-2 |language=en}}</ref> The historical form of Deccani sparked the development of [[Urdu literature]] during the [[Mughal Empire|late-Mughal period]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Imam|first=Syeda|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ww3GYpMrwysC&q=mughals+made+urdu+official&pg=PT120|title=The Untold Charminar|date=2008|publisher=Penguin UK|isbn=978-81-8475-971-6|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Alam |first=Sarwar |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HAKqDwAAQBAJ&dq=urdu+deccani&pg=PT113 |title=Cultural Fusion of Sufi Islam: Alternative Paths to Mystical Faith |date=2019 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-429-87294-5 |language=en}}</ref> Deccani arose as a ''[[lingua franca]]'' under the [[Delhi Sultanate]] and [[Bahmani Sultanate|Bahmani Sultanates]], as trade and migration from the north introduced [[Hindustani language|Hindustani]] to [[Deccan Plateau|the Deccan]]. It later developed a literary tradition under the patronage of the [[Deccan Sultanates]]. Deccani itself came to influence modern standard [[Urdu]] and later [[Hindi]].<ref name="Maclean2021"/><ref name="phonology">{{Cite web |url=https://the-deccan.in/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Dakhani-Urdu-Phonology-Morphology.pdf|title=Urdu-Phonology and Morphology}}</ref>

The Deccani language has an [[Indo-Aryan languages|Indo-Aryan]] core vocabulary, though it incorporated loanwords from [[Persian language|Persian]], which was the official language of the Deccan Sultanates. Additionally, Deccani differs from northern [[Hindustani language|Hindustani]] sociolects due to archaisms retained from the [[medieval India|medieval era]], as well as a [[Language convergence|convergence]] with and loanwords from the Deccan's regional languages like [[Telugu language|Telugu]], [[Tamil language|Tamil]], [[Kannada]], [[Marathi language|Marathi]] spoken in the states of [[Telangana]], [[Andhra Pradesh]], [[Tamil Nadu]], [[Karnataka]] and some parts of [[Maharashtra]].<ref name="Maclean2021">{{cite web |author1=Kama Maclean |title=Language and Cinema: Schisms in the Representation of Hyderabad |url=https://www.flame.edu.in/in-the-media/language-and-cinema-schisms-in-the-representation-of-hyderabad |access-date=12 February 2024 |date=26 September 2021|quote=The Deccani language developed between the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries in the Deccan—it is known to be an old form of Hindi and Urdu. Deccani was influenced by the other languages of the region, that is, it borrowed some words from Telugu, Kannada and Marathi. Deccani was known as the language from the South and it later traveled to the north of India and influenced Khari Boli. It also had a significant influence on the development of Hindi and Urdu.}}</ref> Deccani has been increasingly influenced by [[Standard Urdu]], especially noticed in [[Hyderabadi Urdu]], which serves as its [[formal register]]. In the modern era, it has mostly survived as a spoken [[lect]] and is not a literary language. 

There are three primary dialects of Deccani spoken today: [[Hyderabadi Urdu]], Mysore Urdu, and Madrasi Urdu. [[Hyderabadi Urdu]] is the closest of these dialects to Standard Urdu and the most spoken.<ref name="phonology"/>

The term "Deccani" and its variants are often used in two different contexts: a historical, obsolete one, referring to the medieval-era literary predecessor of Hindi-Urdu;{{Sfn|Rahman|2011|p=22}}<ref name="Maclean2021"/> and an oral one, referring to the Urdu dialects spoken in many areas of the Deccan today.{{Sfn|Rahman|2011|p=4}} Both contexts have intricate historical ties.

==History==

=== Origin  ===
As a predecessor of modern [[Hindustani language|Hindustani]],{{Sfn|Rahman|2011|p=27}} Deccani has its origins in the [[Language contact|contact dialect]] spoken around Delhi then known as ''[[Dehlavi]]'' and now called [[Old Hindi]]''.'' In the early 14th century, this dialect was introduced in the [[Deccan Plateau|Deccan]] region through the military exploits of [[Alauddin Khalji]].{{Sfn|Mustafa|2008|p=185}} In 1327 AD, [[Muhammad bin Tughluq]] shifted his [[Delhi Sultanate|Sultanate]]'s capital from [[Delhi]] to [[Daulatabad, Maharashtra|Daulatabad]] (near present-day [[Aurangabad]], Maharashtra), causing a mass migration; governors, soldiers and common people moved south, bringing the dialect with them.{{sfn|Dua|2012|p=383}} At this time (and for the next few centuries) the cultural centres of the northern Indian subcontinent were under [[Persian language|Persian]] linguistic hegemony.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Matthews|first=David|title=Urdu|url=https://iranicaonline.org/articles/urdu|url-status=live|website=Encyclopaedia Iranica|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429160516/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/urdu |archive-date=29 April 2011 }}</ref>

The [[Bahmani Sultanate]] was formed in 1347 AD with [[Daulatabad, Maharashtra|Daulatabad]] as its capital. This was later moved to [[Gulbarga]] and once again, in 1430, to [[Bidar]]. By this time, the dialect had acquired the name ''Dakhni,'' from the name of the region itself, and had become a ''lingua franca'' for the linguistically diverse people of the region, primarily where the Muslims had settled permanently.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yBJuAAAAMAAJ&q=dakhni+lingua+franca+muslims |title=A History of the Freedom Movement:Being the Story of Muslim Struggle for the Freedom of Hind-Pakistan, 1707–1947 |volume =3| issue =2 |publisher=Pakistan Historical Society |date=1957 }}</ref> The Bahmanids greatly promoted Persian, and did not show any notable patronage for Deccani.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Schmidt|first=Ruth L.|title=Dakhini Urdu : History and Structure|year=1981|location=New Delhi|pages=3 & 6}}</ref> However, their 150-year rule saw the burgeoning of a local Deccani literary culture outside the court, as religious texts were made in the language. The [[Sufism|Sufis]] in the region (such as Shah Miranji) were an important vehicle of Deccani; they used it in their preachings since regional languages were more accessible (than Persian) to the general population. This era also saw production of the [[Masnavi (poetic form)|''masnavi'']] ''[[Kadam Rao Padam Rao]]'' by Fakhruddin Nizami in the region around Bidar. It is the earliest available manuscript of the Hindavi/Dehlavi/Deccani language, and contains loanwords from local languages such as Telugu and Marathi. Digby suggests that it was not produced in courtly settings.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Digby|first=Simon|title=Before Timur Came: Provincialization of the Delhi Sultanate through the Fourteenth Century|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25165052|journal=Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient|year=2004|volume=47|issue=3|pages=333–335|doi=10.1163/1568520041974657|jstor=25165052|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

=== Growth ===
[[File:Phulban - a Persian love story (in Dakkhini Urdu).jpg|thumb|Illustrated page from ibn-e-Nishati's "Phulban" (Flower Garden), a Deccani Urdu rendition of an unknown Persian work. Written under the patronage of [[Abdullah Qutb Shah]], depicted here seated on a throne.]]
In the early 16th century, the Bahmani Sultanate splintered into the [[Deccan sultanates|Deccan Sultanates]]. These were also Persianate in culture, but were characterised by an affinity towards regional languages. They are largely responsible for the development of the Deccani literary tradition, which became concentrated at [[Golconda Sultanate|Golconda]] and [[Bijapur Sultanate|Bijapur]].{{Sfn|Shaheen|Shahid|2018|p=100}} Numerous Deccani poets were patronised in this time. According to Shaheen and Shahid, Golconda was the literary home of Asadullah Wajhi (author of ''Sab Ras''), ibn-e-Nishati (''Phulban''), and Ghwasi (''Tutinama'')''.'' Bijapur played host to Hashmi Bijapuri, San‘ati, and Mohammed Nusrati over the years.{{Sfn|Shaheen|Shahid|2018|p=124}}

The rulers themselves participated in these cultural developments. [[Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah]] of the [[Golconda Sultanate]] wrote poetry in Deccani, which was compiled into a ''[[Kulliyyat|kulliyyāt]].'' It is widely considered to be the earliest Urdu poetry of a secular nature.{{Sfn|Rahman|2011|p=27}} [[Ibrahim Adil Shah II]] of the [[Adil Shahi dynasty|Bijapur Sultanate]] produced ''Kitab-e-Navras'' (Book of the Nine [[Rasa (aesthetics)|Rasas]]), a work of musical poetry written entirely in Deccani. The ''[[mathnawi]]'' ''[[Pem Nem]]'' was also compiled during his reign.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Matthews|first=David J.|title=Eighty Years of Dakani Scholarship|url=https://minds.wisconsin.edu/handle/1793/11813|journal=The Annual of Urdu Studies|year=1993|volume=9|pages=92–93}}</ref>

Although the poets of this era were well-versed in Persian, they were characterised by a preference for indigenous cultures, and a drive to stay independent of esoteric language. As a result, the language they cultivated emphasised the [[Sanskrit]]ic roots of Deccani without overshadowing it, and borrowed from neighbouring languages (especially Marathi; Matthews states that Dravidian influence was much less{{Sfn|Matthews|1976|p=170}}). In this regard, Shaheen and Shahid note that literary Deccani has historically been very close to spoken Deccani, unlike the northern tradition that has always exhibited [[diglossia]].{{Sfn|Shaheen|Shahid|2018|p=116}} Poet San'ati is a particular example of such conscious efforts to retain simplicity:{{Sfn|Shaheen|Shahid|2018|pp=101–103}}
{{Verse translation|rakhiyā kam sanskrit ke is me bōl,
adīk bōlne te rakhiyā hũ amōl;

jise fārsī kā na kuch gyān he
sō dakhnī zabān us kō āsān he|I have restricted the use of Sanskrit words,
And made it free of unnecessary talk.

Those who have no knowledge of Persian;
For them Dakhnī is a readily understood language.}}

As the language of court and culture, Persian nevertheless served as the model for poetic forms, and a good amount of Persian and Arabic vocabulary was present in the works of these writers. Hence Deccani attempted to strike a balance between Indian and Persian influences,{{Sfn|Shaheen|Shahid|2018|pp=103–104}}{{Sfn|Matthews|1976|p=283}} though it did always retain mutual intelligibility with the northern Dehlavi. This contributed to the cultivation of a distinct Deccani identity, separate from the rulers from the north; many poets proudly extolled the Deccan region and its culture.{{Sfn|Shaheen|Shahid|2018|pp=106–108}}

Hence, Deccani experienced cultivation into a literary language under the Sultanates, alongside its usage as a common vernacular. It also continued to be used by saints and Sufis for preaching. However, the Sultanates did not use Deccani for official purposes, preferring the prestige language Persian as well as regional languages like Marathi, Kannada, and Telugu.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Eaton|first=Richard|title=A Social History of the Deccan, 1300–1761|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2005|isbn=9780521254847|series=The New Cambridge History of India|pages=142–144}}</ref>

=== Decline ===
The Mughal conquest of the Deccan by [[Aurangzeb]] in the 17th century connected the southern regions of the subcontinent to the north, and introduced a hegemony of northern tastes. This began the decline of Deccani poetry, as literary patronage in the region decreased. The sociopolitical context of the period is reflected in Hashmi Bijapuri's poem, composed two years after the fall of Bijapur, in a time when many southern poets were pressured to change their language and style for patronage:{{Sfn|Shaheen|Shahid|2018|pp=116 & 143}}
{{Verse translation|tuje chākrī kya tu apnīch bōl,
terā shēr dakhnī hai dakhnīch bōl|Why bother about patrons, in your own words do state;
Your poetry is Dakhni, and only in it should you narrate}}

The literary centres of the Deccan had been replaced by the capital of the Mughals, so poets migrated to Delhi for better opportunities. A notable example is that of [[Wali Deccani]] (1667–1707), who adapted his Deccani sensibilities to the northern style and produced a [[Diwan (poetry)|''divan'']] in this variety. His work inspired the Persianate poets of the north to compose in the local dialect, which in their hands became an intermediate predecessor of Hindustani known as [[Rekhta]]. This accelerated the downfall of Deccani literature, as Rekhta came to dominate the competing dialects of Mughal Hindustan.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Faruqi|first=Shamsur Rahman|title=Urdu Literary Culture, Part 1|work=Literary Cultures in History. Reconstructions from South Asia.|publisher=University of California Press|year=2003|isbn=0520228219|editor-last=Pollock|editor-first=Sheldon|pages=837 & 839}}</ref> The advent of the [[Asaf Jahis]] slowed this down, but despite their patronage of regional culture, Deccani Urdu's literary tradition died. However, the spoken variety has lived on in the Deccani Muslims, retaining some of its historical features and continuing to be influenced by the neighbouring Dravidian languages.{{Sfn|Shaheen|Shahid|2018|pp=118–119}}{{Sfn|Mustafa|2008|p=185}}

== Phonology ==
=== Consonants ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="2" |
![[Labial consonant|Labial]]
![[Dental consonant|Dental]]/<br>[[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
![[Retroflex consonant|Retroflex]]
![[Postalveolar consonant|Post-alv.]]/<br>[[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
![[Velar consonant|Velar]]
![[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
!{{small|[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
|{{IPAlink|m}}
|{{IPAlink|n}}
|{{IPAlink|ɳ}}
|
|{{IPAlink|ŋ}}
|
|-
!{{small|[[Breathy voice|breathy]]}}
|{{IPA link|mʱ}}
|{{IPA link|nʱ}}
|
|
|
|
|-
! rowspan="4" |[[Stop consonant|Stop]]/<br>[[Affricate consonant|Affricate]]
!{{small|[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]}}
|{{IPAlink|p}}
|{{IPAlink|t}}
|{{IPAlink|ʈ}}
|{{IPAlink|tʃ}}
|{{IPAlink|k}}
|
|-
!{{small|[[Aspirated consonant|aspirated]]}}
|{{IPAlink|pʰ}}
|{{IPAlink|tʰ}}
|{{IPAlink|ʈʰ}}
|{{IPAlink|tʃʰ}}
|{{IPAlink|kʰ}}
|
|-
!{{small|[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
|{{IPAlink|b}}
|{{IPAlink|d}}
|{{IPAlink|ɖ}}
|{{IPAlink|dʒ}}
|{{IPAlink|ɡ}}
|
|-
!{{small|[[Breathy voice|breathy]]}}
|{{IPAlink|bʱ}}
|{{IPAlink|dʱ}}
|{{IPAlink|ɖʱ}}
|{{IPAlink|dʒʱ}}
|{{IPAlink|ɡʱ}}
|
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[Fricative consonant|Fricative]]
!{{small|[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]}}
|{{IPA link|f}}
|{{IPAlink|s}}
|
|{{IPA link|ʃ}}
|{{IPA link|x}}
| rowspan="2" |{{IPAlink|h}}
|-
!{{small|[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
|
|{{IPA link|z}}
|
|
|{{IPA link|ɣ}}
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[Trill consonant|Trill]]/[[Tap consonant|Tap]]
!{{small|[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
|
|{{IPAlink|r}}
|{{IPAlink|ɽ}}
|
|
|
|-
!{{small|[[Breathy voice|breathy]]}}
|
|{{IPAlink|rʱ}}
|
|
|
|
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[Lateral consonant|Approximant]]
!{{small|[[Voice (phonetics)|voiced]]}}
|{{IPAlink|ʋ}}
|{{IPAlink|l}}
|{{IPA link|ɭ}}
|{{IPAlink|j}}
|
|
|-
!{{small|[[Breathy voice|breathy]]}}
|{{IPA link|ʋʱ}}
|{{IPA link|lʱ}}
|
|{{IPA link|jʱ}}
|
|
|}

* {{IPA|/h/}} can be heard as either voiceless {{IPA|[h]}} or voiced {{IPA|[ɦ]}} across dialects.
* The {{IPA|/q/}} of Urdu is merged with {{IPA|/x/}}.

=== Vowels ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
!
![[Front vowel|Front]]
![[Central vowel|Central]]
![[Back vowel|Back]]
|- align="center"
! rowspan="2" |[[High vowel|High]]
|{{IPAlink|iː}}
|
|{{IPAlink|uː}}
|-
|{{IPA link|ɪ}}
|
|{{IPA link|ʊ}}
|- align="center"
![[Mid vowel|Mid]]
|{{IPAlink|e}}
|{{IPA link|ə}}
|{{IPAlink|o}}
|- align="center"
![[Low vowel|Low]]
|
| colspan="2" |{{IPAlink|aː}}
|}

* {{IPA|/e, o/}} can have lax allophones of {{IPA|[ɛ, ɔ]}} when preceding consonants in medial position.
* Diphthong sounds include {{IPA|/əi, əe, əu, əo/}}.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mustafa |first=Khateeb S. |title=A descriptive study of Dakhni Urdu as spoken in the Chittoor District, A. P. |publisher=Aligarh: Aligarh Muslim University |year=1985}}</ref>
* {{IPA|/əi/}} can be heard as {{IPA|[æ]}} after {{IPA|/h/}}.
* {{IPA|/əu/}} can be heard as {{IPA|[ɔː]}} in initial positions.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Schmidt |first=Ruth L. |title=Dakhini Urdu : history and structure |publisher=Bahri, New Delhi |year=1981}}</ref>

==Modern era==
[[File:Deccani Urdu speaking areas by concentration.png|thumb|Areas where Deccani is spoken.]]The term Deccani today is given to a Hindustani lect spoken natively by many Muslims from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra (who are known as the [[Deccanis]]). It is considered to be the modern, spoken variety of the ''historical'' Deccani dialect, and inherits many features from it. The term Deccani distinguishes the lect from standard Urdu - however, it is commonly considered a "variety" of Urdu,{{Sfn|Rahman|2011|p=4}} and often gets subsumed under this name, both by its own speakers and the official administration. The demise of the literary tradition has meant that Deccani uses standard Urdu as its formal [[Register (sociolinguistics)|register]] (i.e. for writing, news, education etc).{{Sfn|Matthews|1976|pp=221–222}}

=== Geographical distribution ===
Deccani speakers centre around Hyderabad, the capital of Telangana. Deccani is also spoken in many other urban areas of the Deccan region and [[Mumbai]], especially those with large Muslim populations such as Aurangabad, Nanded, Akola, Amravati, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Mysore and Bangalore.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Masica|first=Colin P.|title=The Indo-Aryan Languages|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1993|pages=22 & 426}}</ref> In addition to members of the [[Deccanis|Deccani]] community, some Hindu Rajputs and Marathas in the Deccan speak Deccani Urdu as well.<ref name="phonology"/>

=== Features ===
Deccani retains some features of medieval Hindustani that have disappeared in contemporary Hindi-Urdu. It is also distinguished by grammar and vocabulary influences from Marathi, Kannada, and Telugu, due to its prolonged use as a ''lingua franca'' in the Deccan.{{Sfn|Matthews|1976|pp=221–222}} Below is a non-exhaustive list of its unique features, with standard Urdu equivalents:
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Deccani
!Standard Urdu equivalent
!Notes
|
|-
|''mai, tu'' (southern dialects)
|''mẽ, tum''
|First and second person singular pronouns
|-
|''hame, tume'' (southern dialects)
|''ham, āp''
|First and second person plural pronouns
|-
|''kane, kan''
|''pās''
|Possessive marker
|-  (both are used in Deccani Urdu)
|''un, in, une, ine''
|''us, is''
|Third person singular pronouns
|-
|''uno, uno logã, unõ''
|''un, un lōg, woh log''
|Third person plural pronouns
|-
|"sabaan"(southern dialects)
|"kal"
| For the word "tomorrow", northern dialects use the same word as Standard Urdu
|-
|''mer(e)kū, ter(e)kū'' (northern dialects)
|''mujhe, tujhe''
|First and second person possessive pronouns often used with [[postpositions]] (''mera'' + ''ku'', ''tera'' + ''ku'') 
|-
|suffix -''ã'' [ãː] (''logã'', ''mardã'')
| -''õ'', -''ẽ''
|Plural marker 
|-
|''ap(p)an''
|''āp lōg''
|Third person plural pronoun, often used in first person as well
|-
|suffix -''ich'' [it͡ʃʰ] (''mai idharich hũ'')
|''hī'' (''mẽ idhar hī hũ'')
|Emphasis marker, Matthews comments that this is "probably from Marathi"{{Sfn|Matthews|1976|p=74}}
|-
|''kaiku, ki''
|''kyũ''
|'why'
|-
|''po'' (southern dialects)
|''par, pē''
|'on' or 'at' (postposition)
|-
|suffix -''ĩgā'' (''kal jaĩgā, ab karĩgā'')
| -''ẽge'' (''kal jāyẽge, ab karẽge'')
|Plural future tense marker
|-
|''sangāt''
|''ke sātʰ''
|'with', both are used in Deccani
|-
|''nakko''
|''mat/na'' (imperative), ''nahĩ cāhiye'' (first person negative) 
|From Marathi{{Sfn|Matthews|1976|p=215}}
|-
|''kate''
|''lagta hē''
|'it seems' or 'apparently' 
|-
|''sō''
|''sō''
|Common to Deccani and Urdu but largely restricted to classic literature and rarely used in the standard spoken registers of the latter
Still commonly used in Deccani, roughly meaning 'that', 'which', or 'hence'
|-
|suffix -''ko'' (''jāko, dʰōko, āko'')
|suffix -''kē'' or -''kar'' (''jākē/jākar, dʰōkē/dʰōkar/, ākē/ākar'')
|Conjunctive participle, all three are used in Deccani
|-
|''<u>kh</u>'' ({{lang|ur|{{Nastaliq| [[خ]] }}}}) [x/χ]
|({{lang|ur|{{Nastaliq| [[ق]] }}}}) [q]
|Deccani speakers have fully merged ''q'' with ''<u>kh</u>''
|-
|<u>''ai''</u> {{lang|ur|{{Nastaliq| (ـَے‬)  }}}} [aɪ], <u>''au''</u> {{lang|ur|{{Nastaliq| (ـَو) }}}} [aʊ] (southern dialects)
|<u>''ai''</u> {{lang|ur|{{Nastaliq| (ـَے‬)  }}}} [ɛː], <u>''au''</u> {{lang|ur|{{Nastaliq| (ـَو) }}}} [ɔː]
|Southern dialects of Deccani preserve diphthongs where northern dialects and standard Urdu have shifted to open-mid vowels
|-
! colspan="3" |Sources:{{Sfn|Matthews|1976|p=222-224}}<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Masica |first=Colin P. |title=The Indo-Aryan Languages |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1993 |isbn=9780521299442 |page=413}}</ref>
|}

These features are used to different degrees among speakers, as there tends to be regional variation. Mustafa names some varieties of Deccani as "Telugu Dakkhni, Kannada Dakkhni, and Tamil Dakkhni", based on their influence from the dominant [[Dravidian languages|Dravidian language]] in the spoken region. He further divides Telugu Deccani into two linguistic categories, corresponding to Andhra Pradesh, which he says has more Telugu influence; and Telangana, with more influence from standard Urdu. The latter is seen especially in Hyderabad.{{Sfn|Mustafa|2008|p=186}}

Deccani's use of Urdu as a standard register, and contact with Hindustani (widespread in India), has led to some of its distinctive features disappearing.{{Sfn|Matthews|1976|p=179}}

=== Culture ===
Deccani finds a cultural core in and around Hyderabad, where the highest concentration of speakers are; Telangana is one of the only four states of India to provide "Urdu" official status. Deccani Urdu in Hyderabad has found a vehicle of expression through humour and wit, which manifests in events called "[[Mazahiya Mushaira]]", poetic symposiums with comedic themes.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Sharma|first=R.S.|title=A Tentative Paradigm for the Study of Languages and Literary Cultures in Hyderabad City|work=Languages and Literary Cultures in Hyderabad|publisher=Routledge|year=2018|isbn=9781351393997|editor-last=Azam|editor-first=Kousar J|pages=32–33}}</ref> An example of Deccani, spoken in such a context at Hyderabad:

{{Verse translation|buzdil hai woh jo jīte jī marne se ḍar gayā
ek mai-ich thā jo kām hī kuch aur kar gayā
jab maut āko mereku karne lagī salām
maĩ walaikum salām bola aur mar gayā.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ghouse Khamakhan (Part 1): Dakhani Mazahiya Mushaira|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt8JEyT-BBs&t=761s |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/Nt8JEyT-BBs| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|website=YouTube| date=19 March 2011 |publisher=Siasat Daily}}{{cbignore}}</ref>|It's a coward who fears death while still alive,
It was but me who did something different altogether
When Death came to me and said "[[salam]]", 
I said "walaikum salam" and died<ref>{{Cite web|title=A Tongue Tied: The Story of Dakhani|url=http://dakhani.com/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090406070656/http://dakhani.com:80/ |archive-date=6 April 2009 }}</ref>|attr1=[[Ghouse Khamakha]]}}

Additionally, the [[Deccani film industry]] (also called Dollywood) is based in Hyderabad and produces movies in Deccani, especially the Hyderabadi dialect.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Mumtaz|first=Roase|title=Deccanwood: An Indian film industry taking on Bollywood|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2016/06/deccanwood-indian-film-industry-bollywood-160623102912455.html|access-date=2018-02-23|website=www.aljazeera.com}}</ref>

== Legacy ==
===Hindustani===
Deccani is often considered a predecessor of Hindustani. The Deccani literary tradition is largely responsible for the development of modern Hindustani since contact with southern poets led to a shift in northern tastes and the development of Urdu as a literary language.<ref name=":0" /> Deccani also imparted the practice of writing the local vernacular in the Perso-Arabic script, which eventually became the standard practice for Urdu all over the Indian subcontinent.{{sfn|Dua|2012|pp=383–384}}

==See also==
* [[Hyderabadi Urdu]]
* [[Urdu in Aurangabad]]
* [[Nawayath]]i ([[Kumta]], [[Honnavar]], [[Bhatkal]])
* [[Dakhini Muslims|Deccani Muslims]]
* [[Deccani film industry]]
* [[Deccani Marathi]], a dialect of [[Marathi-Konkani languages|Marathi-Konkani]] which goes by the same name

==References==
===Notes===
{{Reflist|group=upper-alpha}}

===Citations===
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{citation |first=Hans R. |last=Dua |chapter=Hindi-Urdu as a pluricentric language |editor=Michael Clyne |title=Pluricentric Languages: Differing Norms in Different Nations |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ieMgAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA383 |year=2012 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter |isbn=978-3-11-088814-0}}
* {{citation |title=From Hindi to Urdu: A Social and Political History |last=Rahman |first=Tariq |author-link=Tariq Rahman |year=2011 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-906313-0 |url=http://www.tariqrahman.net/content/hindiurdu1.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141010094507/http://www.tariqrahman.net/content/hindiurdu1.pdf |archive-date=10 October 2014}}
*{{Citation|last=Mustafa|first=K.S|title=Dakkhni|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9WroLC__7EUC|encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia of the Linguistic Sciences: Issues and Theories|pages=185–186|year=2008|editor-last=Prakāśaṃ|editor-first=Vennelakaṇṭi|publisher=Allied Publishers|isbn=978-1139465502}}
*{{Citation|last1=Shaheen|first1=Shagufta|title=The Unique Literary Traditions of Dakhnī|work=Languages and Literary Cultures in Hyderabad|year=2018|editor-last=Azam|editor-first=Kousar J|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781351393997|last2=Shahid|first2=Sajjad}}
*{{Citation|last1=Sharma |first1=Ram |title=दक्खिनी हिन्दी का उद्भव और विकास |date=1964 |publisher=Hindi Sahitya Sammelan |location=Allahabad |language=Hindi|url=https://ia904705.us.archive.org/8/items/in.ernet.dli.2015.478985/2015.478985.Dakhini-Hindi.pdf}}
*{{Cite thesis|last=Matthews|first=David J.|title=Dakani Language and Literature|date=1976|publisher=SOAS University of London|url=https://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?did=1&uin=uk.bl.ethos.465269|url-access=registration}}

==Further reading==
* {{EI3|last=Gricourt|first=Marguerite|year=2015|title=Dakhinī Urdū|url=https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopaedia-of-islam-3/dakhini-urdu-COM_27709?s.num=64&s.f.s2_parent=s.f.book.encyclopaedia-of-islam-3&s.start=60&s.q=dynasty+india}}
*[https://www.jstor.org/stable/42930498?read-now=1&refreqid=excelsior%3A4d3399e813fe25bb6d2bf75052ff5a77&seq=10#page_scan_tab_contents Urban culture of Medieval Deccan (1300 AD–1650 AD)]
*[https://www.jstor.org/stable/42930820?read-now=1&refreqid=excelsior%3A64c0dabb15b84e8cd023730ef1f04f34#metadata_info_tab_contents Bulletin of the Deccan College Post-Graduate and Research Institute, Volume 22 (1963)]
*[https://www.jstor.org/stable/601736?read-now=1&refreqid=excelsior%3Ae461417d67ed961249b3babd2d60f376&seq=3#page_scan_tab_contents Deccani Painting by Mark Zebrowski]
*{{cite journal|title=The Arabian Poets of Golconda|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-royal-asiatic-society/article/abs/arabian-poets-of-golconda-by-m-a-muid-khan-university-of-bombay-pp163-1963-rs-750/C1B451DD9F712B952C35F99C543BFAE3|author=Mohammed Abdul Muid Khan|journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society |year=1963|volume=96 |issue=2 |pages=137–138 |publisher=Bombay University|doi=10.1017/S0035869X00123299 |s2cid=163860407 |url-access=subscription }}
{{Urdu topics}}

{{Central Indo-Aryan languages}}

[[Category:Deccani language| ]]
[[Category:Culture of Hyderabad, India]]
[[Category:Dialects of Urdu]]
[[Category:Urdu in India]]
[[Category:Languages of Telangana]]
[[Category:Central Indo-Aryan languages]]
[[Category:Languages of India]]
[[Category:Deccan sultanates]]
[[Category:Deccan Plateau]]