Kochila Tharu, also called Septari or Saptariya Tharu, Madhya-Purbiya Tharu, and Mid-Eastern Tharu, is a diverse group of language varieties in the Tharu group of the Indo-Aryan languages. The several names of the varieties refer to the regions where they dominate.[1] It is one of the largest subgroupings of Tharu.[2] It is spoken mainly in Nepal and India, with approximately 250,000 speakers as of 2003.[3] In addition to language, cultural markers around attire and customs connect individuals into the ethnic identity Kochila.
Heavily concentrated in the eastern area of Terai,[3] speakers of Kochila Tharu live in linguistically diverse regions and are generally multilingual (with the exception of some elderly female speakers).[4] A 2013 survey by SIL International found that the language was being taught to children as their first language and used conversationally between multiple generations of speakers, characteristics of a "vigorous" language as defined by the Ethnologue Expanded Graded Intergenerational Disruption Scale (EGIDS).[1][4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Tharu, Madhya-Purbiya. Ethnologue. Retrieved 2018-12-12.
- ↑ Encyclopedia of the World's Minorities.{{#if:Carl.|, Carl.}. Taylor and Francis(2013). ISBN 9781135193959
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 International encyclopedia of linguistics{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Oxford University Press(2003). ISBN 0195139771
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 A Sociolinguistic Study of Kochila Tharu in Southeast Nepal, Eichentopf, Stephanie R.. www.sil.org. Retrieved 2018-12-12.